Experts stressed that while social media may democratise skincare knowledge, it also amplifies half-truths and oversimplified “do and don’t” rules.
Published Nov 09, 2025 | 9:07 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 09, 2025 | 9:24 PM
The panel featured six specialists spanning dermatology, endocrinology, and clinical nutrition.
Synopsis: At the Dakshin Health Summit 2025, a panel of dermatologists, endocrinologists and nutrition experts examined how social media trends are reshaping public understanding of skin health, ageing and diet. The session highlighted the role of chronic inflammation in cellular decline and stressed that nutrition, lifestyle and skincare must be guided by evidence rather than viral advice.
In an era when beauty advice is more often sourced from reels and influencers than from clinics, a panel of doctors at the Dakshin Health Summit 2025 examined how digital narratives are influencing real-world skin, hair, hormonal, and dietary decisions.
Moderating the session titled Skin Health & Ageing, Senior Dermatologist Dr Malavika Kohli opened the discussion by breaking down the science of ageing and the emerging medical focus on “inflammaging” – the inflammation-driven process that accelerates cellular decline.
The panel featured six specialists spanning dermatology, endocrinology, and clinical nutrition: Dr Malavika Kohli (Senior Dermatologist), Dr Kalpana Sarangi (Consulting Dermatologist), Dr Maya Vedamurthy (Senior Dermatologist), Dr Lakshmi Lavanya Alapati (Endocrinologist and Diabetologist), Mrinal Pandit (Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics), and Dr Jyotsna Gampa (Dermatologist and Trichologist).
Together, they unpacked the gap between what goes viral online and what is medically valid.
Dr Kohli explained that ageing is a balance between cellular damage and repair, driven by mechanisms such as mitochondrial decline, DNA damage, telomere shortening, and chronic inflammation.
Biomarkers like ferritin, vitamin D3, fasting insulin, CRP, and IL-6, she said, often reveal silent inflammation long before it becomes visible on the skin.
The panel also discussed the gut–skin microbiome axis, noting that with age, beneficial microbes reduce while inflammatory ones increase – a shift now recognised as a key driver of “inflammageing”.
Diet, self-diagnosis and the microbiome
Clinical Nutritionist Mrinal Pandit observed that most people arrive already “Google-diagnosed or ChatGPT-diagnosed”, but clinical nutrition relies on protocols, not trends.
She clarified the difference between prebiotics and probiotics, reminding the audience that the former simply feeds the good bacteria the body already has. Her key principle: food should not be eliminated without reason.
“Unless a person is gluten-sensitive, there is no need to completely eliminate gluten,” she said, urging people to watch their body’s response rather than follow social media elimination charts.
Dermatologist Dr Jyotsna Gampa contextualised the dairy debate for India, explaining that allergic reactions are far more commonly linked to nuts than to milk or curd.
Moderate dairy was considered beneficial – provided it is uncontaminated and not consumed in excess. The panel also discussed the problem of hormones and antibiotics in commercially produced milk, which may influence puberty and metabolic balance in adolescents.
Mrinal Pandit emphasised antioxidants and omega-3s but warned that quantity matters more than so-called “superfoods”. “Berries and fish are beneficial, but the key lies in consuming them in the right quantities,” she said, adding that cinnamon may help improve insulin sensitivity when used correctly.
Dr Kalpana Sarangi described the anti-inflammatory diet modelled on the Mediterranean pyramid, now used not only in cardiology but also in dermatology for acne, psoriasis, and wrinkle prevention.
Endocrinologist Dr Lakshmi Lavanya added a realistic note: “I’m not here to push anything – supplements are just a side aspect. What matters is a balanced approach.”
She encouraged vitamin D correction and muscle-preserving exercise, warning against spending on supplements while neglecting healthy habits. The panel also discussed how many patients walk in already using multiple “viral” nutraceuticals, which doctors do not always stop unless they are harmful.
Dermatologist Dr Maya Vedamurthy outlined the two types of ageing—intrinsic and extrinsic—noting that photoageing is only one part of the picture, and pollution, sleep, diet, and smoking accelerate oxidative stress.
She stressed the importance of structured routines: exfoliation, retinol-based repair, sunscreen, and barrier-support moisturisers. She also cautioned that many commercial products under-dose actives:
“Niacinamide needs to be at least 10 percent – 1 percent and 2 percent are a waste of money.”
On ingestibles, she said most of her patients “love oral collagen” and that marine collagen appears clinically superior.
Dr Jyotsna Gampa shared her approach of modifying routines gradually rather than prescribing full product overhauls: “I usually begin by changing the moisturiser. I don’t recommend retinol for everyone.”
The panel also discussed microbiome-friendly leave-on products for rosacea, adult acne, and seborrhoeic skin, noting that cleansers do not stay long enough on the skin to have a microbial impact.
Social media may democratise skincare knowledge, but it also amplifies half-truths and oversimplified “do and don’t” rules.
The panel repeatedly returned to four principles: ageing is inflammation-linked, diets must be personalised rather than copied, supplements are secondary to habits, and skincare requires sequencing rather than product hoarding.
Whether the topic was dairy, collagen shots, niacinamide percentages, or online weight-loss hacks, the conclusion remained consistent: longevity in skin, hair, and metabolic health still depends on consistency, context, and medical supervision – not on trends that go viral faster than science can verify them.
