{"id":3130,"date":"2019-09-23T15:26:36","date_gmt":"2019-09-23T15:26:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/?p=3130"},"modified":"2019-09-24T01:36:11","modified_gmt":"2019-09-24T01:36:11","slug":"disability-inclusion-in-the-beauty-industry-feature-article","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/2019\/09\/23\/disability-inclusion-in-the-beauty-industry-feature-article\/","title":{"rendered":"Disability Inclusion in the Beauty Industry – Feature Article"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Over the past decade, the beauty industry has seen massive\ngrowth. According to the firm Edited, the beauty industry is currently valued\nat $532 billion, with projected upward growth. New developments in beauty\nproducts and other hygiene tools have helped to expand the beauty industry along\nwith a growing culture of beauty vloggers found on social media. During this\ntime, we\u2019ve seen men like James Charles become ambassadors for makeup brands\nlike CoverGirl. While CoverGirl has garnered praise for gender inclusion,\nbrands like Fenty have started tackling issues of racial inclusion\u2014providing individuals\nof all ethnicities makeup that properly matches their skin tones. Just as it\nseems as if beauty and hygiene brands are beginning to grasp the importance of inclusion\u2014one\nrealizes that something is missing. We see an increase in gender and ethnic\ndisplay, but why don\u2019t we ever see individuals with disabilities?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Beauty brand Tarte recently faced backlash against their Shape Tape Foundation product line for providing limited foundation tints for individuals with brown and black skin tones. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Since the beginning of time, humans have sought self-expression\nin their outward appearance. Physical characteristics help communicate identity,\npersonality, and even sexual orientation. Aside from expression, self-care can also\nsupply individuals with boosted self-esteem for feel-good vibes all day. Like\nthey say: look good, feel good. So, what happens when someone doesn\u2019t have the ability\nto get themselves ready for the day? Many of these individuals must rely upon assistance\nfrom a family member or caretaker. This required assistance can strip individuals\nof their sense of freedom, privacy, and identity\u2014leaving them feeling\nvulnerable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because most beauty routines involve altering facial\nfeatures and the hair, conditions causing limited upper body mobility can cause\na number of complications for someone attempting to get ready in the morning.\nUpper body mobility refers to the function of upper body extremities such as the\nhands, elbows, shoulders, and neck. Many disabilities can limit upper body\nmobility; some such disabilities include cerebral palsy, Parkinson\u2019s Disease,\nand various forms of arthritis. Today, we\u2019ll be looking specifically at\narthritis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arthritis is a very common disability with more than 3 million\nUS cases per year. While there are many forms of arthritis, osteoarthritis; rheumatoid\narthritis; lupus; and psoriatic arthritis are among the most common. Some forms\nof arthritis\u2014such as osteoarthritis\u2014have unknown causes, while others\u2014such as rheumatoid\narthritis and lupus\u2014stem from autoimmune conditions. According to the Center\nfor Disease Control, one in four women have arthritis while, in comparison, one\nin five men have arthritis. Women\u2019s experience with arthritis is also more\npainful. While men are predisposed to certain forms of arthritis, there are statistically\nmore forms of arthritis which favor women. One such form is rheumatoid\narthritis, of which there are three times as many women with rheumatoid arthritis\nthan men. Some factors which predispose women to arthritis include strong immune\nsystems and higher levels of estrogen. Generally speaking, women often have\nstronger immune systems than men and experience more hormonal fluctuation\nthroughout their lifetime than men. When women go through menopause\u2014when estrogen\ndrops, and hormone levels change\u2014this can trigger arthritis and allow for\ninflammation. This is why women often experience a later onset of arthritis\nthan men. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By having a comprehensive understanding of the current\nbeauty industry and the effects of arthritis, we can clearly see how a lack of\ninclusion in the beauty and hygiene industry can negatively affect individuals suffering\nfrom arthritis by stripping these individuals of their sense of freedom and\nself-expression. This high-level problem stems from several issues. Let\u2019s begin\nby looking at industry-standard beauty and hygiene tools. These products are oftentimes\nnot designed with accessibility in mind. The few universally designed tools that\ndo currently exist on the market are often hard to find, undermarketed, and even\nunappealing in nature and usability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This past week, I sat down with beauty blogger Monica\nSengupta, a beauty enthusiast with rheumatoid arthritis. Monica focuses on \u201cchronic-illness\nfriendly\u201d techniques for doing makeup and nails. Monica expressed how beauty\ntools, such as her jade roller\u2014a tool which utilizes a large, stone bead to\nmassage lotions into facial skin\u2014and razor, are often difficult to use. She\nemphasized that tools such as her roller, which she uses in the morning, can be\nextremely difficult to use due to morning stiffness. Morning stiffness is a\ncommon side-effect of many forms of arthritis. She also voiced having problems\nwith packaging\u2014specifically flip-top packaging such as that on the tops of shampoo\nbottles. Monica said the biggest tip she follows to navigate self-care with rheumatoid\narthritis is to work on eliminating steps within her routine. One example she\ngives is using a razor with a built-in lotion bar which eliminates the extra\nstep of applying shaving cream. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another widespread issue Monica touched upon was the\nrelationship between arthritis and other health concerns. For example: in\naddition to having rheumatoid arthritis, Monica also has Sjogren\u2019s Syndrome\u2014a condition\nwhich affects the tear and salivary glands. Other additional health concerns individuals\nwith rheumatoid arthritis are pre-disposed to is gum disease. This is due to\nthe nature of rheumatoid arthritis being an autoimmune condition. In the case\nof oral health, this pre-disposition is made worse by the fact that rheumatoid\narthritis often affects the hands\u2014making it difficult for affected individuals\nto brush their teeth and perform basic oral care. This creates a vicious cycle\nof health concerns. Another healthcare-related topic Monica touched upon was\nthe cost of healthcare for individuals with Arthritis. Monica emphasized that\nliving with a chronic illness can be expensive and that people living with arthritis\nmight be financially strapped due to the cost of healthcare. She believed price\npoint was an important factor in the overall accessibility of universally\ndesigned products: \u201cThere are quite a few \u201cconvenient\u201d products on the market\nbut they generally are very expensive \u2013 and if given the choice [arthritic\nindividuals] will choose our health.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
In a recent ad campaign, beauty retailer Ulta featured a model who uses a wheelchair.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

A larger issue within the beauty and hygiene industry is cultural perception. Cultural perception within the beauty industry is dominantly shaped by the beauty vlogger culture and marketing from big beauty stores such as Sephora and Ulta. There is a small number of beauty vloggers on YouTube who live with a disability\u2014most famous beauty gurus are able bodied and, therefore, teach beauty techniques in ways individuals with disabilities may be unable to follow. There are some signs, however, that disability inclusion is making its way into mainstream beauty culture. Ulta, a large makeup retailer, recently presented an ad campaign featuring a model in a wheelchair. This has sparked wide-spread praise from the public, especially after a picture\u2014depicting a young girl in a wheelchair, enchanted by the advertisement\u2014went viral online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the beauty industry seeks to become fully inclusive, they\ncannot forget individuals with disabilities. Everyone is deserving of\nself-expression, privacy, and independence. Individuals with arthritis,\nspecifically, already fight against symptoms of morning stiffness in the\nmorning.  Products geared solely toward\nable-bodied people only add to the frustration and difficulties individuals\nwith arthritis face each day. Because women are both more pre-disposed to\narthritis and are the prime users of beauty and hygiene tools, we must provide\nthese women with the proper tools they need to be self-sufficient and outwardly\nexpressive. In order to for the beauty industry to become inclusive, beauty\nproducts geared toward women with arthritis are a must. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

References<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biron, B. (2019, July 9). Beauty has blown up to be a $532\nbillion industry \u2013 and analysts say that these 4 trends will make it even\nbigger. Retrieved from https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/beauty-multibillion-industry-trends-future-2019-7<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabin, R. (2016, April 12). Ask Well: Why Is Arthritis More\nCommon in Women Than Men?. Retrieved from https:\/\/well.blogs.nytimes.com\/2016\/04\/12\/ask-well-why-is-arthritis-more-common-in-women-than-men\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the past decade, the beauty industry has seen massive growth. According to the firm Edited, the beauty industry is currently valued at $532 billion, with projected upward growth. New developments in beauty products and other hygiene tools have helped to expand the beauty industry along with a growing culture of beauty vloggers found on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":3249,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[266,265,267],"class_list":{"0":"post-3130","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-featured","8":"tag-beauty-industry","9":"tag-disabilityinclusion","10":"tag-featurearticle"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3130"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3428,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3130\/revisions\/3428"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}