Spoiled Child is an anti-aging skincare brand that claims to use artificial intelligence (AI) to help consumers determine which products best suit their needs. The brand claims that “Age Is An Old Idea,” and describes their products as “intelligent hair and skin products that refuse to take aging seriously.”
But are Spoiled Child products actually more effective than the average skincare brand, or are they just great at marketing? Do they contain ingredients clinically shown to have an anti-aging effect? Can AI really improve skincare outcomes? And how do real users rate and describe the effects of Spoiled Child?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in two of Spoiled Child’s most popular products (Liquid Collagen and Night Rewind Serum) to give our take on whether or not they’re likely to have an anti-aging effect.
We’ll also share our thoughts about whether AI for skincare recommendations is a marketing gimmick, and feature unsponsored customer reviews of the brand.
Spoiled Child Collagen Review
The ingredients in Spoiled Child Liquid Collagen are shown above.
Collagen is arguably the most well-studied supplement for improving skin quality and reducing wrinkles, and the collagen dose of 5 grams (g) in this supplement is within the effective dosing range.
A medical review published in the Dermatology Practical & Conceptual journal analyzed data from 12 clinical trials and concluded that collagen reduces wrinkles and roughness in skin, and that “Both oral and topical collagen can contribute to reducing or delaying skin aging.”
Hyaluronic acid is clinically shown to have an anti-aging effect, but may be underdosed in Spoiled Child’s collagen at only 30 milligrams (mg).
As we documented in our Vital Proteins review article, the effective oral dose of hyaluronic acid for anti-aging appears to be over 100 mg based on existing clinical studies we could locate.
This supplement contains a number of inactive ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Sucralose is an artificial sweetener that's clinically shown to have negative effects on insulin in otherwise healthy adults.
Phosphoric acid intake may be associated with worse bone health, according to a medical review published in the Journal of Clinical Epidemiology.
Artificial flavors may be toxic to living cells according to a 2018 animal study.
Overall, we consider Spoiled Child Liquid Collagen likely to be effective for anti-aging, but we don't currently recommend this supplement due to the inactive ingredients discussed above.
Spoiled Child sells a powdered Collagen peptides supplement that's entirely free of inactive ingredients but contains the same research-backed active ingredients. We consider this to be a much healthier formulation.
A YouTube creator named Tonaya Noel used Spoiled Child Liquid Collagen for 60 days and included before-and-after images in her review:
Spoiled Child Skincare Review
The ingredients shown above are from Spoiled Child's F38 Night Rewind Serum.
This anti-aging serum contains a number of research-backed ingredients.
Retinol is a type of vitamin A that’s been shown in a meta-study published in the Advances in Dermatology and Allergology journal to have anti-wrinkle and skin-hydrating effects.
Bakuchiol is another effective ingredient, and we documented in our review of CeraVe retinol serum that this ingredient is clinically shown to have anti-aging effects.
Sodium hyaluronate is the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid, which was described as a “skin rejuvenating biomedicine” in a 2018 medical review, due to its “remarkable anti-wrinkle..anti-aging, space-filling, and face rejuvenating properties.”
Sodium hyaluronate has a lower molecular weight and can penetrate deeper into skin than hyaluronic acid.
Salix alba bark extract has an active chemical compound called salicin which is clinically shown to reduce visible signs of skin aging.
This serum contains two preservatives that may be unhealthy when used in combination.
Phenoxyethanol is a synthetic preservative shown to be toxic to human cells in a clinical trial published in the Experimental Eye Research journal.
Ethylhexylglycerin is a synthetic preservative shown to potentiate the toxic effects of phenoxyethanol in a 2016 medical review.
Overall, we consider Spoiled Child F38 Night Rewind Serum likely to have anti-aging effects, but we don't currently recommend this product due to the preservatives discussed above.
A YouTube creator named Lavinia Rusanda shared her experience using Spoiled Child skincare products for one month on skin with acne, in a video with over 40,000 views:
Is AI Skincare a Scam?
Part of Spoiled Child’s marketing is their claim that their proprietary AI software, called SpoiledBrain, can help users find skincare products that match their individual needs.
In our opinion, this is more of a marketing claim than a research-backed claim.
We don’t understand the benefit of or need for AI skincare recommendations, because there are already well-established, effective ingredients for different skin conditions and functional outcomes.
For example, a consumer seeking anti-aging effects can use a product that contains research-backed anti-aging ingredients like hyaluronic acid.
A consumer seeking a skincare product to treat a specific medical condition like rosacea can see a dermatologist and get prescribed a treatment that’s clinically proven to treat rosacea.
How does AI provide any benefit beyond choosing products with effective formulations for the desired skincare outcome? We can’t think of one.
In the future, AI may be able to help brands create personalized formulations for consumers based on their genetics and epigenetics, but AI to recommend off-the-shelf products does not provide any value to consumers in our opinion.
Our Clean Skincare Picks
There are skincare products containing ingredients shown in clinical trials to be effective for reducing wrinkles and improving skin quality.
Annie Mak Vitamin C Serum is our top anti-aging serum.
It contains hyaluronic acid which was described as a "skin-rejuvenating biomedicine" in a medical review due to its ability to reduce wrinkles and signs of facial aging.
Ritual HyaCera is our top skin supplement.
It contains wheat oil extract which is clinically shown to "improve skin damages induced by aging."
Both of the products recommended in this section are entirely free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Do Spoiled Child’s Hair Products Work?
Spoiled Child also sells hair supplements and personal care products.
A YouTube creator named Nicole Hopkins does an unboxing of Spoiled Child Hair Mask, uses the product and shares her thoughts on whether it’s worth it or not:
Spoiled Child Pros and Cons
Here are the pros and cons of Spoiled Child in our opinion:
Pros:
- Great branding
- Highly effective formulations
- Collagen supplements contain effective dose
- Powdered collagen supplement has healthy formulation
- Night Rewind Serum should have anti-aging effects
Cons:
- Liquid collagen contains artificial flavor
- Liquid collagen contains artificial sweetener
- Liquid collagen contains phosphoric acid
- Night Rewind Serum contains phenoxyethanol and ethylhexylglycerin
- We're unconvinced about AI product matching benefits
