How Gen-Z and Gen Alpha are Clinging to Their Youth

What new trends are surfacing and how do they correlate to keeping Gen Z’s youth?

Over the past few months, TikTok has seen a rise in Gen Z users wishing to relive their childhood. From young girls trashing Sephora to Millenials saying they look younger than Gen Z does, it’s causing Gen Z to wonder why they grew up so fast.

What is The “No Glue No Borax” Trend?

This new TikTok trend has confused a few people, but don’t worry we’ll explain it. This trend centers around the search term “no glue no borax” from when Gen Z was younger and making slime was all the craze. Glue and borax are the two key ingredients to create slime. It cannot be made without them. Users are using this trend to express their wanting of something. Gen Z is using this trend when users wish to get over an ex or time travel back to their childhood. However, these things are “impossible, ” so they add the “no glue no borax” aspect. Gen Z just wants to stay young!

Gen Alpha Taking Over Sephora

On the aspect of staying young, Gen Z has been very critical to Gen Alpha when it comes to growing up. Gen Alpha kids are being rude in Sephora and other beauty stores. When in reality, they don’t even need these skin care products yet. Another article on the Sephora kids alone, says that Gen Alpha is problematic due to their behavior and lack of cleanliness in the stores. These girls lack manners when entering Sephora and are too busy rushing to get the new Drunk Elephant product to be clean about it.

Kids now worry about their bronze drops and what snail mucin to purchase, while Gen Z wants to play with Littlest Pet Shops again. Gen Alpha’s use of real skincare and makeup promotes growing up fast, which none of Gen Z wants to do. Posting images from Gen Z’s childhood and remembering the “good” days has become common. These posts share the toys they used to play with, cartoon-themed TVs, clothes, etc. They include things that remind Gen Z of their childhood atmosphere, which they wish to return to.

The general dislike of rude Gen Alpha kids has brought Gen Z together. They have compared what they had when they were little, to what Gen Alpha has now. For example, the pretend phones that held lipgloss in them to Summer Friday’s lip oil. The closest thing Gen Z had to skincare was Nutrogena’s Oil-Free Acne Wash which did nothing. Overall, these are things Gen Alpha shouldn’t be worrying about before high school.

Millennials Looking Younger Than Gen Z

On the topic of Gen Alpha using skincare at a young age, skin care may be why Gen Z looks “old”. Millennials were introduced to skin care in adulthood, while Gen Z was introduced to it way before. Putting these harsh chemicals on their face during developmental years may have changed how they look now. This is another reason why Gen Alpha should stay away from expensive skincare, especially with retinol.

A comparison used in Daily Mail’s article shows Emma Chamberlain next to Taylor Swift. Both are beautiful; however, Taylor Swift looks younger. Emma also has a history of vaping. Vaping became a trend during Gen Z’s pivotal years. It can also cause premature wrinkles and other skin defects.

Not only do things like vaping and premature skincare cause Gen Z to look older, but the overall stress of just being alive affects them. Society has become more rash and hateful than in the past, making it a dog-eat-dog world. Between living through a pandemic during their teenage years, to increasing mental health issues; Gen Z has experienced immense stress. This stress causes them to look older. Stress can attack the immune system and make wrinkles more prominent.

One thing about Emma Chamberlain that makes her look older is her droopy eye look. Social media has compared it to Tim Burton’s movie characters. This is common among Gen Z. There is a lack of sleep, causing deep eye circles. Gen Z has noticed that there is not enough time in the day to get everything done. There are only 24 hours a day and they are supposed to work and/or go to school, have a social life, enjoy hobbies, and get 8-10 hours of sleep every night. It realistically cannot all happen, making sleep a lesser priority.

So What can Gen Z do?

It may sound cheesy, but they need to take a step back. As a part of Gen Z, I often worry about the future. This is common within Gen Z and it’s one of the leading causes of stress. At the end of the day, we need to focus on the now. One takeaway from reminiscing on our childhood is that you never know how good something is until it’s gone.

In Conclusion

Live in the moment; go out on a weekday, find a new hobby to consume your weekend, and take that nap. One day these moments won’t matter, and you will wish you had done them.

If you want new hobbies feel free to check out this article. So, Gen Z, live your life to the fullest, and remember it will be gone before you know it!