Everyday Money

Everyday I read advertisements which urge me to get rid of my wrinkles, change my body shape or alter my bust size - and the options don't stop there. The advertisers want my discretionary income, my everyday money, to create a new and miraculously better looking person.

The amount of money we spend on skin care and cosmetic procedures (which seem to become weirder and weirder) is phenomenal. Global skin care companies boast science laboratories which are better funded than most universities. The cosmetics industry spends $15-16 billion a year in the US, making profits of around $1 billion annually, it is the seventh largest industry in spending money on advertising - higher than telephones, beer and airlines. The cosmetic surgery spend is around $10 billion a year.

Don't get me wrong I love makeup, fragrance and have no qualms about collagen but I am beginning to feel somewhat uneasy at the cult of beauty which wants an ever increasing share of my money.