BB Creams are getting an awful lot of press these days and being touted as “the next new thing”.  But did you know they aren’t really new at all?   BB (Beauty Balm) Creams have been popular in Asia for around FORTY years!   It is just recently that Americans and their appetite for all things multi-purpose, have gone crazy for these products!

So WHAT is a BB Cream?

Originally developed for the Asian market, these products were called Blemish Balms and later changed to Beauty Balms.  The versions sold in Asia are very different than those sold here in the USA. Asian BB Creams have very high concentrations of titanium dioxide and are thick because the intent was to cover discolored skin.  They were designed to create a lightening effect and leave a full-coverage, opaque-whiteness on the skin.

The ones marketed and sold in the US are basically a tinted moisturizer with a little sunscreen and some “buzz-word” ingredients.  Admittedly, the coverage is a little better than you get with a tinted moisturizer – but none the less….pretty much the same product.  The BB Cream just has new, shiny marketing words.

Clearly, the cosmetics industry would have you think there are advanced skincare benefits in these multi-purpose products, but it’s difficult to squeeze adequate amounts of active ingredients into one formulation.  Some BB creams claim to contain sunscreen, antioxidants, anti-aging peptides, moisture-enhancing ingredients and silicone!  They may contain these things, but as we all know – you can do a lot of things so-so or you can do one thing GREAT.   You can’t have it both ways – thus the downfall of an all-in-one magic cream

Now don’t get us wrong.  We think BB Creams can be a good thing. They are quick and easy to use, very convenient in a fix, and do work well as a primer.  They just aren’t the magic bullet they are hyped up to be.  You would get the same benefits using a good foundation and sunscreen.

And while you gotta love a good multi-purpose product – your face is not the place to use one on a regular basis.  With 3 different types of skin, your face  has specific needs and an all-in-one “magic” balm isn’t going to be the way to go! Instead, opt for a daily skin care routine that will get your skin into optimal health and make skin look great into your 40′s, 50′s and beyond!  For more information on a daily skin care:  read this post.