The "Foreskin Facial" Is Popular With Celebs, But Why & How Is It A Thing?

I am a beauty and facials snob. I work in Koreatown, home to some of the best and most innovative spas in New York City. I've been known to spend my breaks and evenings finding the newest solutions to all of my skin woes. Recently, however, I found out that celebrities are getting a facial that's a little much, even for me. Foreskin facials. Yes, that kind of foreskin. Would you get a foreskin facial? Because that's apparently a thing, now.

Celebrities like Kate Beckinsale, Cate Blanchett, and probably several more Kates not listed here have been taking to social media touting the benefits of foreskin facials. Because that is where we are right now. The actual facial starts like many others, according to Huffington Post: First, clients are given a chemical peel, followed by microneedling. So far so good. It's not going to be comfortable, but nothing weird has happened... yet. Until the next and most-important step in the facial: the foreskin. The esthetician then coats the skin in a serum made from epidermal growth factor (EGF), which is "derived from the progenitor cells of the human fibroblast taken from the foreskins of newborn babies," according to The Guardian. They just slather that fake baby penis skin lotion all over and let it work its magic.

I know what you're wondering right now. Where were the original foreskins used to generate the cloned cells acquired? The answer is, um, unsettling, so prepare yourself... the cells were cloned from the circumcised foreskins of South Korean babies, The Guardian reported.

Now, I've been to many a Bris in my time, and at not a single one of them did anyone say "You know, we should talk to the Mohel about the benefits of foreskin." Not only because I am pretty sure that's the exact opposite of Kosher, but also... shudder. I'm usually not one to judge what people do to their bodies. That's your own thing, you do you. But, in this instance, it's difficult not to question if maybe we've gone too far in our quest for youthful skin. It seems very Lady Bathory to me, but instead of bathing in the blood of virgins, you're smearing your face in a mimic of baby junk. And that's some expensive baby junk, to boot; according to The Huffington Post, a "penis facial" typically costs around $650.

Just picture what that means for a second. At some point, a baby was circumcised and that skin was taken to a lab. At this point it's not creepy at all. Scientists examine all kinds of things all the time. But imagine that skin was taken from the baby with a scientist thinking "You know what? I wonder if this would be good to clone for a youthful rejuvenation serum?" Getting weirder. Only, that scientist sees promise. And clones the cells, so while they've never grown on a human, they're they're genetically identical, according to The National Human Genome Research Institute. And people are rubbing it into their freshly poked faces.

And what about a baby's foreskin makes it so magical? Is it that it's so young and fresh? Because for some reason, that's upping the ick factor. That baby didn't consent to having his bits cloned to rub on aging folks' faces. Somehow, I feel like if a guy suddenly decided he wanted to get circumcised as an adult and said "Sure, you can take that to make expensive moisturizer," it would be less objectively terrifying. Although, to be honest, I know for a fact that there are much cheaper ways to get foreskin rubbed all over your face than paying your esthetician to do it. Just saying. (I am just thankful my husband doesn't read my posts.)

But the point is, people are shelling out hundreds of dollars for this treatment, and swearing by their results, as Mel Magazine reported. I don't know how popular this will become, as it is very expensive. So, would you get a foreskin facial? More importantly, how much should you tip?