TikTok is a hotbed of beauty recommendations, but building a skin-care routine around products promoted on social media comes with risk, a small new observational study suggests.
The research, which was presented at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (EADV) Congress 2026, followed 94 dermatology patients for 12 months who were experiencing new or aggravated skin conditions after using a makeup or skin-care product that was promoted on social media.
The most common issue was irritant contact dermatitis, or non-allergic skin inflammation—this surfaced in 42% of patients. Nearly 30% of patients developed acne or experienced acne exacerbations, while 12% had rosacea flares or rosacea-like dermatitis. More than 10% of patients experienced hyperpigmentation after their skin inflammation, but 7% experienced superficial chemical burns.
Nearly 35% of the patients had “adverse” skin reactions from chemical exfoliants containing alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA) or beta-hydroxy acids (BHA). Over-the-counter retinoid-based products were linked to skin inflammation in 27% of patients, while high-concentration vitamin C serums were associated with 14% of skin inflammation issues. Products that contained niacinamide were responsible for 11% of cases.
The majority of patients (63%) used more than three active ingredients in their skincare regimens, while 14% said they used complex multi-step skin-care routines that combined multiple active ingredients with the potential to irritate the skin—and they often used these at the same time.
While 36% of patients had acne-prone skin and 18% had a history of rosacea, 35% of patients had no known past skin issues.
Nearly half of patients said their skin-care routine was created entirely with the inspiration of social media. Again, the study was small. But dermatologists say this points to a growing trend they’re seeing among their own patients and, naturally, they have concerns.
Social media inspiration can be good and bad, according to doctors.
Product savviness doesn’t require a medical degree. But dermatologists are unsurprisingly concerned about some of the advice being offered on social media. “These people do not have the scientific knowledge to give medical advice, which is what they’re often doing,” says Ife J. Rodney, MD, founding director of Eternal Dermatology + Aesthetics in Columbia, Maryland.
Other research supports those trepidations. A 2025 study published in the journal Pediatrics analyzed 100 videos from beauty content creators who were 18 or younger. Each regimen featured an average of six products, with the top 25 most-viewed videos containing an average of 11 and a maximum of 21 potentially irritating active ingredients. This particular study focused on kids, but Dr. Rodney says the findings reflect what you’ll see in adult skin-care videos, too. “A lot of the products recommended on social media are trendy, but they can irritate the skin, especially when combined,” she says.
