Is face taping really an anti-ageing solution?

According to the latest online beauty trend, face-taping is your ticket to fine line- and wrinkle-free skin. Celebrities, drag artistes and influencers across the world are posting images on their Instagram, with colourful tapes around their temple and neck regions, all hoping it would result in smooth, shiny skin.

These posts claim that you can cut a medical tape to fit different areas like the forehead or under the eyes or buy ones made for specific face areas, leave them on for at least three hours, and you've found an almost-instant, easy and low-cost anti-ageing formula. These tapes are being promoted on the principle that you emote when you sleep, or lines form if you sleep on the side or your stomach, and these adhesive patches hold the skin in place and reduce the formation of lines. Do they really work?

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“Face taping is the application of elastic tapes specifically in the forehead area, around the eyes, cheeks and jawline. It helps to lift skin for an immediate effect but not in the long run. It doesn’t help prevent wrinkles permanently," says Shareefa Chause, dermatologist and cosmetologist, Shareefa’s Skin Care Clinic, Mumbai. "When you tape for the whole night, your lines will be less visible in the morning, but for a short period.” 

Facial skin is soft and taping helps hold the facial muscle, which indirectly helps by restricting facial movement, giving that temporary firm and lifted look, says Dr Chause. 

“We need to aid our skin’s normal breathing and healing at night, and taping will affect this. One can also be allergic to adhesives, so you need to check for skin allergies first as tapes and adhesives can cause skin allergies,” says Dr Chause. 

And when your skin is fragile and delicate, taping and removal daily can cause damage. “It can also cause clogging of pores due to sebum accumulation and cause acne. I do not recommend taping for a permanent solution to fine lines in the long run,” says Dr Chause. 

There are also select tapes that are specifically being sold to make scars disappear. 

“Scar formation is a part of the body's healing process, in a way, tapes can be used to reduce tension on the skin and prevent scar formation but only for fresh wounds," explains the expert. "Temporary medicated tapes can be used to prevent the thickness of a new scar but not for the complete healing of scars. Taping’s effectiveness in scar removal has not yet been proven, so it’s doubtful.” 

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