Four in 10 women have sworn by a beauty hack that turned out to be questionable - seeing little or no results, research has revealed.
A study of 2,000 females found 32 per cent have followed the mantra that shaving their legs should be avoided as it makes your hair grow back thicker - when in reality it makes no difference to the colour, thickness or rate of growth of the hair.
While 22 per cent have turned to toothpaste to help soothe spots - despite the fact that it can actually cause more irritation to the skin.
Other misconceptions women have believed over the years include that crossing your legs causes varicose veins, plucking grey hairs causes more to grow in its place and chocolate gives you spots.
But it also emerged more than one in twenty (six per cent) have even been harmed by a beauty myth they tried, with some suffering skin reactions, bruising and even burns.
TV presenter Frankie Bridge, an ambassador for beauty supplement brand Perfectil, which is working to help separate beauty facts from fiction, said: “I’ve spent a lot of time in the past googling various beauty myths and then giving them a go, hoping they would be the quick fix I was looking for.
"As you can imagine, I was almost always left disappointed.
A study of 2,000 females found 32 per cent have followed the mantra that shaving their legs should be avoided as it makes your hair grow back thicker - when in reality it makes no difference to the colour, thickness or rate of growth of the hair.
While 22 per cent have turned to toothpaste to help soothe spots - despite the fact that it can actually cause more irritation to the skin.
Other misconceptions women have believed over the years include that crossing your legs causes varicose veins, plucking grey hairs causes more to grow in its place and chocolate gives you spots.
But it also emerged more than one in twenty (six per cent) have even been harmed by a beauty myth they tried, with some suffering skin reactions, bruising and even burns.
TV presenter Frankie Bridge, an ambassador for beauty supplement brand Perfectil, which is working to help separate beauty facts from fiction, said: “I’ve spent a lot of time in the past googling various beauty myths and then giving them a go, hoping they would be the quick fix I was looking for.
"As you can imagine, I was almost always left disappointed.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I don't think I really properly thought about my skin until the last few years.
00:04I think once I hit my thirties, I was like, oh, okay, yeah, that needs looking after.
00:09There's a broccoli trend going around at the minute where you pad it onto your face to
00:17make it look like you've got freckles.
00:19I love broccoli, but using it to put makeup on my face, I don't think so.
00:25We all want to do the best for our skin.
00:27And like everyone, I've tried all the myths, the hacks, the tips.
00:31So I thought today we could debunk some of those myths.
00:33And I've got a specialist skin expert to ask all the questions to that you all want to
00:37know.
00:38So Katie, I'm so excited for you to debunk some myths for us today.
00:41I can't wait.
00:42What are we going to start with?
00:44Let's start with chocolate gives you spots.
00:46Well, I feel like I would kind of believe that because it's dairy and sugar.
00:49We know we shouldn't have too much of it, but I feel like it affects us all differently.
00:53Yeah, you're exactly right.
00:55There is a little bit of truth in it, but it is kind of a myth and it really just depends
00:58on the person.
00:59Your overall diet and sugar intake can influence your skin's health, but ultimately it comes
01:03down to the person.
01:04Okay.
01:05So I'm going to keep eating the chocolate.
01:06If it works for you, it's fine.
01:08So what's our next myth?
01:09So a phone to your ear can give you breakouts.
01:11See, I believe this one because when I take the phone away from my ear, it's a little
01:15bit sweaty.
01:16I read somewhere that your phone screen is up to 10 times dirtier than the toilet seat.
01:20No.
01:21I know.
01:22So that means that often you probably clean your phone versus your toilet.
01:25And so if you have blemish prone skin, it can give you an increase in breakouts.
01:28So just make sure you clean your phone regularly.
01:30So this next one, I am so excited about your answer.
01:33What is the myth?
01:35Carrots can tan your skin.
01:36I have literally never heard of this.
01:38So is it true or false?
01:40This is fiction.
01:41So essentially, carrots are high in beta carotene and they can give your skin an orangey color
01:46if you eat a lot of them, but this is not a tan.
01:49That is your melanin that gives you a tan.
01:51Okay.
01:52Wearing makeup every day is bad for your skin.
01:54For me, I don't like to wear makeup every day on my skin, but is there any truth in
01:59it?
02:00No, this is a myth.
02:01I mean, it's all coming down to making sure you remove your makeup properly.
02:04So if you're cleansing at night, double cleansing every night, you're absolutely fine.
02:07Double cleansing?
02:08Why?
02:09First cleanse is going to remove your makeup and then the second cleanse is going to actually
02:12clean your skin.
02:13Okay, I need to start double cleansing.
02:15A myth that I want to debunk is shaving your legs makes the hair grow back thicker.
02:20This is a myth.
02:21Ultimately, when you're shaving, you're making a blunt cut to the hair.
02:24You're not pulling the hair out at the follicle.
02:26So when it grows through, it looks thicker because it's got that blunt end.
02:30Thank you so much for debunking all the myths with me.
02:32I really hope we've helped you guys and maybe you'll give some things a go and others you
02:36now know not to bother.