Generation Tweakment

More and more 20-somethings are dabbling in aesthetic procedures and even plastic surgery. But what happens when you turn back a clock that has barely started ticking? One 40-plus writer explores what's going on below the surface—and engages in her own forms of experimentation.

- By Krista DeMaio

I was 22 when Botox became FDA-approved as a temporary cosmetic treatment for moderate to severe frown lines. It was 2002; I was fresh out of college and working as a beauty assistant at a women’s magazine. Frown lines never crossed my mind then—I didn’t even use eye cream. As I climbed the editorial ranks over the next decade, vouchers for the neurotoxin from top dermatologists would land on my desk. I don’t need Botox at 26! I thought, a bit smugly.

Despite two decades of free offers, I was almost 42 when I finally tried it. These days, I’m conservative with Botox. I get it twice a year. I tried filler in my nasolabial folds but didn’t continue out of fear of the dreaded puffy-face look (a major concern). In my circle of friends, I’m one of the only 40-ish moms who has dabbled in injectables. Some are working up the nerve; others are decidedly anti-antiaging. Yet recent research shows there's one age group that's plunging in wholeheartedly: Gen Z.

The use of Botox and other neuromodulators increased 73 percent overall from 2019 to 2022, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), and Gen Z'ers (those born between 1997 and 2012) are all in on the growing trend, with Botox injections in those 19 and younger increasing by 9 percent between 2022 and 2023, says the ASPS. And it's not just injectables: A staggering 75 percent of plastic surgeons have seen a spike in clients under the age of 30, according to the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

The trend has been dubbed prejuvenation, a new term describing Gen Z's preventive approach to aging, according to one study. The authors of the paper write that “the most notable change in cosmetic dermatology over the past two decades lies in the shift from correction and reversal for millennials to preventative measures for Gen Z.”