

June 22, 2009

Recent Study Shows Biased Perception of Teens with Acne

beauty-prescription-img.jpgWith June being the first ever National Acne Awareness Month, it's the perfect time to share some recent findings from a study conducted by the American Acne & Rosacea Society (AARS) and Dr. Eva Ritvo, a psychiatrist and co-author of The Beauty Prescription. "As a psychiatrist, I've had a longstanding interest in beauty and how the perception of beauty can impact how people feel about themselves and one another," says Ritvo. "Two of the biggest things to impact teens' psyche are weight/body issues and acne, so I thought it would be interesting to conduct an image-based study quantifying exactly how acne can alter others' perception of teens."

Dr. Ritvo and the AARS asked thousands of teens and adults to offer their first impressions of teens based entirely off photos of their face--one without acne and one digitally enhanced with acne. What they found was that teens with acne are more likely than teens without acne to be perceived as shy (39% vs. 27%), nerdy (31% vs. 17%), and lonely (23% vs. 13%). Meanwhile, teens without acne are more commonly perceived as self-confident (42% vs. 25%), happy (50% vs. 35%), and leaders vs. followers (49% vs. 29%). "We were expecting the results of the study to show that having acne would be difficult for teens, which it does, but what I found most distressing was the extent to which acne can really skew the way society perceives teens. We live in a very visual society and based on the survey results, unfortunately people do make snap judgments about teens with acne," Said Dr. Ritvo. "The results illustrate the fact that unfortunately, acne does play a role in how teens are viewed by both their peers and adults. So, what starts as a purely medical condition can have other implications."

Dr. Diane Berson, Assistant Professor in the Department of Dermatology at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, as well as a founding board member of AARS said, "What surprised me most about the survey was confirming the length teens will go to improve their acne and what they are willing to sacrifice." According to the study, if it meant clearer skin, 59% of teens would stay off Facebook for one year, 30% would not go on a date for a year, 13% would take their mom or dad as their prom date, and 11% would have their GPA drop. "Acne is not just a rite of passage, and there should not be a stigma associated with acne. Acne is a medical condition and I want all teens--and parents--to know that there are safe and effective treatments for acne."

Do you guys agree? How do you feel when you have a breakout?