Is skin care on your child’s wish list? Proceed with caution.

Will and Melissa Rosebro’s 10-year-old daughter is asking Santa for the Bubble Skincare Water Slide hydration-boosting serum with hyaluronic acid this holiday season. She has no idea if her skin needs a hydration boost or whether hyaluronic acid is good for her skin, nor does she care, her parents said. The $17 serum felt “nice” when she sampled it at a friend’s house, she told them. And she’s already picturing the periwinkle blue bottle on her vanity.

“I tried to explain to her that she’s being marketed to by YouTubers who cosmetics companies are paying, but she refuses to believe me,” said Will Rosebro, of New Jersey.

If you have tweens or young teens in your life who love to watch the glossy-skinned content creators of YouTube and TikTok #grwm (get ready with me) videos, chances are they want skin care for the holidays. Last year, Gen Alpha spent $4.7 billion on skin care and makeup, more than any other age group, according to the market research firm AYTM. A single face cream or serum from an expensive skin-care brand can cost hundreds of dollars. Young people, many of them with flawless skin, are mesmerized.

“Sephora Kids,” preteens who buy pricey and age-inappropriate skin care as seen on social media, made headlines this year in part for excessively using and mixing product testers at the cosmetic stores Sephora and Ulta. This trend raised red flags among parents and dermatologists about the damage some of these products can do to young skin.

California lawmakers are also concerned about tweens using aggressive skin care. Starting Jan. 1, children younger than 13 in the state will not be permitted to buy skin-care products with antiaging active ingredients such as retinoids.

Fortunately for the Rosebros, their daughter chose an innocuous serum that shouldn’t irritate her skin and won’t break the bank, but not all parents will be so lucky this holiday season. Aggressive ingredients lurk in many of Gen Alpha’s favorite brands, camouflaging active ingredients with optimistic descriptors and adorable packaging that looks like it was made for your tween’s dream.

Before you buy from that wish list, read the package carefully. Stay away from collagen-stimulating claims, as well as products that have the words brightening, glowing, radiance, renewal, firming, plumping, lifting, clarifying, balancing and purifying.

Don’t let them damage

their skin barrier

Young people make copious amounts of collagen – a protein that gives the skin strength and elasticity – meaning that tweens don’t need antiaging ingredients that aim to stimulate collagen production. Their young skin also does not need ingredients such as hydroxy acids and topical vitamin C, and using them can compromise the skin barrier – the layer that protects skin from irritants such as pollution while helping to keep it hydrated, said Tiffany Clay-Ramsey, a dermatologist based in Atlanta.

Dermatologists say tweens can have a skin-care routine of washing with a gentle cleanser, hydrating with an unscented moisturizer and then applying sunscreen. But if they want to pamper themselves, and you can afford to indulge them, here’s what dermatologists say you should look out for when you shop for your skin-care-loving tween.

Why kids shouldn’t have products claiming ‘brightening’ and ‘glowing’

Claims like brightening and glowing are sunny yet sneaky terms that usually mean that a skin-care product has exfoliating properties, which can do more harm than good. Watch out for ingredients including alpha hydroxy acids such as glycolic acid and lactic acid; beta hydroxy acids such as salicylic acid; and brightening agents such as niacinamide and topical vitamin C.

These active ingredients can disrupt even adult skin barriers, and children have thinner skin, D.C. dermatologist Adam Friedman said. “Peeling away that thinner skin barrier opens the skin to assault from possible pathogens like bacteria, fungi, irritants and allergens,” he said.

Using these products can also increase water loss from the skin, causing cracking, dryness, itching and redness, said Friedman, a professor and chair of dermatology at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Many of these products can also make the skin sun sensitive, and children typically aren’t diligent about sunscreen, said Joshua Zeichner, an associate professor of dermatology and director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. UV exposure to sun-sensitive skin can result in a severe sunburn, which could increase the likelihood of skin cancers as an adult, he said.

Beware of words ‘balancing,’ ‘purifying’ and ‘clarifying’

The descriptors clarifying, balancing and purifying typically describe products designed for oily, acne-prone skin and have such active ingredients as sulfur, benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid.

While these ingredients can be used effectively in moderation if your tween is already having problems with acne, they should be under the supervision of a dermatologist since tweens are known for overdoing it, said Ranella Hirsch, a dermatologist based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “I tend to see (young) people making their acne worse by overdoing it with too much product and too many products,” she said.

If your tween is experiencing breakouts, Hirsch recommends using a single active ingredient in one product, such as a cleanser with a low percentage of benzoyl peroxide or a moisturizer with salicylic acid. If acne is not a concern, however, these products can dry out and sensitize preteen skin, she said.

The problem with ‘firming’

and ‘plumping’ for kids

Firming, lifting, regenerating, revitalizing and plumping are often associated with antiaging skin care, typically expensive and designed for adults. Unless a dermatologist recommends it for acne, your preteen doesn’t need retinoids, hydroxy acids or other antiaging ingredients.

“Parents will spend an absurd amount of money for products that will do little to help their child’s skin, and many of these products can irritate young skin,” Hirsch said.

If you’re willing to get your tween skin care this holiday season, look for soothing, calming and hydrating products that are safe for most skin types. Also, seek out ingredients such as squalene, colloidal oatmeal, ceramides, arnica and shea butter – all of which will nurture young skin, experts said.

If your child does end up with one of the potentially problematic products, aside from temporary irritation, it’s unlikely they would cause permanent damage, Zeichner said. He also pointed out that many tweens want the products only for their aesthetic value. “They want to look at it on their shelves. Think of it like a throw pillow,” he said.

An expensive throw pillow.