TikTok’s latest must-watch isn’t about a makeup trend or an out-there skin-care hack—it’s a simple secret to why a 92-year-old woman says she looks so youthful.
As reported on by the Daily Express, Joan Woodhouse took to social media to praise her love for a tub of Nivea Lotion.
“My secret’s Nivea because I’ve used it for 70-odd years,” she said in a video via her account @joansummer1930 when asked to divulge what she does. “When I think about it now, I used to have a hot bath, get out of the bath, dry myself, and then while my body was still hot, I would put the cream on—it was the soft cream in those days, it was a little bit harder.
So, I had to warm it first to make it soft…but since the soft stuff came out, it’s wonderful, you could do that for your body every time you have a bath or shower. Get your body warm, and spread it all over, and you’ll look beautiful when you’re my age.”
The not-so-basic product has a storied history: As cosmetic chemist Kelly Dobos told us, the Nivea Crème formulation is more than 100 years old, was started in a pharmacy, and—even though Woodhouse gives a shout out to the revised soft-cream version—the actual formulation hasn’t changed all that much over its century-plus history.
“Except for a few small changes to fragrance and preservatives to meet changing consumer and regulatory trends, the product’s efficacy and popularity have stood the test of time,” Dobos says.
