I've never in my life been to a place where I've seen store after store of just skin care people
here are obsessed with skin care in a way you have never seen when we wash our faith we use
Skin and erosion they're actually testing my hydration levels in my skin today I'm using
this face scanner that will tell you where your next pimple will be this is a Korean technology
that's becoming popular South Korea's skin care industry is worth more than 13 billion dollars
and it's one of the largest exporters of skin care products a store that focuses on just face
masks they even make products for your neck even feet peeling is a big part of this whole
industry and it's not just your standard skin care products some people here have such an elaborate
routine that involves more than 10 products every morning this is many Koreans even start doing skin
care as kids moisturizer yeah if you use it even when we are young we start using it I'm always
solution and storm block and shaving even the technology coming out of this country is next
level very intense experience a lot to learn I feel like I'm back in chemistry class this machine
can predict where my next acne is gonna be all of this is given rise to What's called the K Beauty
Trend which is spread across the world when we see the movie stars on TV screen Korean film stars
is absolutely amazing but considering that 70 of young Korean women reported feeling dissatisfied
with their appearance is there a dark side to all of this and why exactly is this country obsessed
with products for your skin see in South Korea it's not just that people want to look pretty the
Skin Care industry is massive because people here believe that taking care of your skin is actually
an essential part of your overall health and well-being it's just in the culture in Korea we
have a saying better looks means better insights this obsession is not exactly a recent Trend but
a deeply rooted one in South Korea's culture and history see here Beauty has long been associated
with social status and success and radiant skin is seen as the key to that success people always
want to take care of their outside features so that they can prove that they are a good
person and insights Korean culture actually puts an emphasis on maintaining a balance between the
Mind Body and environment and that even extends to your daily skin care routine the industry has
been booming especially because of social media that's why I love Korean skin care their products
are absolutely amazing and you know what I love Korean skincare come shop for Korean skincare with
me in New York City the pandemic has led to a huge increase in you and me focusing on self-care and
wellness and Skin Care has become a popular way to pamper yourself while staying at home the loss of
the movie stars still looks beautiful right and a lot of young people they follow and they want to
be like that you don't want to be ugly you want to be more beautiful and that's a human nature this
place just has mask store out their math store lined up it's crazy I've never seen anything like
this people like oh beautiful first young people need to skincare because they want you beautiful
South Korea has also become famous for products that have well let's just say unconventional
ingredients you will find products that have snail mucine B Venom or fermented extracts here
but in order to really understand this industry in depth I go for a facial and to my surprise this
starts off like nothing I have ever seen before like this this is a Korean technology that uses
a face mapping system to analyze the conditions of my face which can even predict where my next
acne is going to be very intense experience a lot to learn I feel like I'm back in chemistry class
the amount of data shown to me right now based off of my face is kind of crazy and definitely
overwhelming it would be better to concentrate on like the dryness and like adding moisture that's
what we need to address further first this Korean technology uses high resolution imaging to examine
your Skin's condition then it analyzes the images to identify your skin concerns like wrinkles Fine
Lines hyperpigmentation acne and dehydration then it will suggest personalized recommendations for
your treatment and also products to sell you after oh and they give me advice not just on which type
of products to use but lifestyle changes as well like drink more water or be less stressed I think
I just saw more data from my face than when I go to my general practitioner doctor in the U.S
analyze my entire body I'm really curious to see what's next I've never had an experience that's
been so customized and that's large part because of the technology so now the facial starts now
that the assessment is of birth [Music] that was almost two hours that felt really relaxing and uh
very refreshing while in Korea I meet Andy he's from here but has spent some time in Australia
and said going there was kind of like a skincare culture shock in Korea if you go outside you'll
just see a cosmetic store hanging around somewhere but I was in Australia and I just went into this
town I just look around it but I can't find a single cosmetic store just that's outside but
soon Australians could become just as obsessed as Koreans if this growth continued see South Korea's
skin care industry is growing almost 10 percent every year but is there a dark side to all of
this you see a lot of film stars and movie stars and they got plastic surgery the lots of people
getting similar I do not recognize a fool who is some people if they had a face but they have
the skin for trouble they're looking for this so ugly so they get a stress so they have to get us
some Cosmetics first of all many Korean products like other countries contain harmful ingredients
like Mercury lead and even human placenta these ingredients can be dangerous to People's Health
and some have even been banned in many countries there have also been reports on animal cruelty in
the Korean beauty industry some products use animal testing to make sure they're safe for
humans while some Korean beauty companies have stopped using animal testing many still do and
the pressure to conform to a certain Beauty standard like fair skin or double eyelids or
a small face can often lead to feelings of low self-esteem and anxiety seventy percent of young
Korean women reported feeling dissatisfied with their appearance according to a government survey
data also found there is a higher percentage of Eating Disorders amongst Korean women compared to
other Asian countries and this is largely believed to be because of its K beauty industry history I
asked Andy about all of this you know Koreans don't suicide because of the nooks only they
have more multiple reasons for their depression you don't want to compare yourself on the social
media influencers as I walk through South Korea and see the nearly perfect faces of both men
and women I wonder is this booming industry a good thing or not so much see I like that South Korea's
obsession with skin care is driven by a belief that taking care of one's skin is essential for
your overall health and well-being I mean when you look good and feel good well you'll do better as
a person and tend to be happier as a person as a citizen of Korea it's just a proud thing right but
I also can't help but think of all the impact of hundreds of millions of bottles chemicals absorbed
into our face and of the data which suggests there's just too much pressure especially on
young people to look a certain way that might not ever actually be in reach oh [Music]
what's up thanks for watching this video let me know in the comments what do you think
about the K beauty industry has it gotten too big for its own good while you're at it check
out more of my videos from South Korea and around the world and thanks for subscribing