A new trend is spreading among teenage boys, which is chewing hard gum in the hope of achieving a more masculine appearance.
In an article he published Cut On Wednesday, June 12, the outlet took an in-depth look at several gum brands that help sell adolescent boys’ dreams of a defined “jaw.”
UK-based Rockjaw claims on its website that it is “the first to do so”.
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The gum was founded in 2020 and is “the first mastic-based gum on the market,” the company said. It promises its product is up to 14 times stronger than other brands — helping to “create a robust, effortless jawline workout.”
Additionally, Rockjaw claims its gum is “chewed by the world’s top athletes and CEOs.”
Meanwhile, the Jawz Gum site has much less information, but interested parties can fill out a subscription form for a free 10-pack of “jaw defining gum”.
Although no brand specifically markets to teenagers, school-aged children are paying attention.
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teenager blowing bubble gum — picture.
Getty
“My 12-year-old asked me that, and I said, ‘What are you even talking about?’ ” certified dermatologist Kavita Mariwalla, MD, told per Cut.
Mariwalla addressed the trend while speaking at a recent Allergan Aesthetics panel discussing the ethics of social media in aesthetic medicine.
“He told me he’d heard it would do the same thing as meowing,” the dermatologist continued.
Meowing is another trend that involves “keeping the tongue pressed against the palate to change the shape of the jaw,” according to Health.com. However, there is not much evidence to suggest that it actually works.
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“As a mom, it made me wonder why he was so obsessed with his jaw at the age of 12 and what social media was feeding him,” Mariwalla said.
Cut also spoke with 14-year-old Henry Dixon, a resident of Charlotte, NC, about a similar trend called looksmaxxing, which has become popular among teenagers on social media.
“Looksmaxxing”, in simple terms, is maximizing one’s looks. In March, the BBC called it an “extreme social media beauty trend”.
“Most kids my age want a sharp, defined jawline because of the promotion of looksmaxxing on TikTok,” Dixon said. Cut. “People want these jaw lines because they want to look model-like and potentially more attractive.”
“I personally don’t care about those things,” he added.
Before concluding a deeper investigation, the outlet consulted celebrity cosmetic dermatologist Paul Jarrod Frank, MD, who was skeptical of so-called jawline-defining gums.
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He also said that teenagers should consider waiting until they are old enough to develop more masculine facial features.
“Younger people tend to have more natural volume of facial fat,” Frank said. “For men who are lean and in good shape, as they age in their 20s and 30s, they are naturally likely to see more definition.”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education