Age before Beauty?

So I was reading up on Japan probe and come across a rather interesting article, something that a few years ago perplexed me, but I'd stopped noticing or thinking about it recently.

As many may know, Japanese women are well known for looking much younger than they really are. Or at least to a gaikokujin's eyes, I think Japanese males have already picked up on it :P

A Japanese TV show interviewed several foreigners, inquiring about the age of Japanese women who were pictured. As expected, the big eyed guesses were below the actual age of the femmes.
Now, this was done in the traditional "let's analyze these weird foreign people have a laugh while we are it" but just try to keep up!

Some plausible reasons for this phenomenon have been put forward:

Bags/wrinkles seem to stand out more under the eyes of Westerners.

Many Japanese women avoid the sun by carrying parasols, wearing strong sunscreen, or covering up their skin with clothing. This makes their skin less likely to have wrinkles. (22 countries were represented in their poll of foreign tourists, and apparently tanned skin is seen as a good thing in 17 of those countries).

Japanese women wear make-up. Of 25 Japanese women interviewed, all 25 were wearing full make-up. Of 25 foreign women, only 2 were wearing full make-up. On average, the Japanese women were carrying 10.6 different make-up products, while the foreign women were carrying 2.7 different make-up products.

Without any special thought or sound source, I can totally agree with these findings. Japanese women look good, that's just the way it is and there is little wiggle room about it. That and they run from the sun like... You would run from a swarm of bees heading in your direction.

The issue here is mainly a cultural one, looking good is really embraced here, it's much more important in this culture than any other I have experienced, more so than eastern Europe, where young women also slap on a lot of makeup and dress to the "nines".

There is a lot to be said about image in Japan: the right hair cut, with every strand in place; the right designer bag; the flawless make-up; the impossibly high heels; arriving 45 minutes early to work and last but not least, always remembering to use that flushing sound in the toilet, because God forbid anyone might hear you pee.

Another issue is "full make-up". This to the average American young lady means a bit more make-up than you used on Prom night. In Japan it's the everyday deal. I've actually had a company guidebook that stated that women were expected to wear make-up to work because it reflected pride and interest in themselves and their workplace. Probably true BTW. It also placed lower and upper limit on heels, skirt length and appropriate colours.

Full make-up does have it's drawbacks, for example beige collars and basically just adding about 1cm to your face in the form of paint. It's such a problem that most shops actually provide head covers so that women don't get garments dirty when trying them on. Not joking.

(I think this pic is hilarious!!!)

It's all a bit odd for most foreigners, who don't usually use that much make-up. I've had co-workers shocked when I told them that I use foundation about twice a year. You know, they nod and say how good it is for the skin to breathe and be natural, but deep down they know I'm just too lazy to bother!

(to be continued...)