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Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Diary of a Gen Z Student: I'm just naturally this pale — and fake tan is more effort than it's worth
A few months ago, I got a tetanus vaccine booster. Afterwards, the nice lady who gave me the vaccine asked me to stay seated in the waiting room for a little longer than usual. She said I looked 'a little too pale'. She was concerned I might faint. Now, I was feeling perfectly fine and tried to protest this precaution. 'I'm always this pale', I offered, but she wasn't convinced. So, I was sat down and given a glass of water. Twenty minutes later, when the lady relented to my naturally pale disposition, I was free to go. This isn't the first time people have expressed concern for my health, due to the evident lack of melanin in my skin. As a teen, my concerned mother considered anaemia or lack of sleep. But iron supplements and sleep routines did little to improve things. In Ireland, being too pale isn't usually considered a good thing. We think paleness looks like poor health. But we've come up with the perfect solution: it may smell like chicken curry mixed with Custard Cream biscuits, and it may turn your skin more tangerine than sun-kissed, but fake tan is a part of our culture — like Guinness, and being shouted at for leaving the immersion on. From the age of 12, most girls in Ireland start to wear fake tan. At first, they're lashing the tan on the night before a disco in the local GAA. Then it becomes more routine. Every week, you might put on a fresh layer. You'll be told that it looks like you just stuck your hand into a packet of cheese-flavoured Doritos, but it's better than being told you look like you've got an iron deficiency. Every year, we go months on end without seeing a clear sky in Ireland. But by God, we don't want to look like it. Even if it was just for the ankles poking out the bottom of your school trousers, the status quo meant that those ankles needed to have a suggestion of sun exposure, at the very least. It didn't matter if it was January. The problem with fake tan for me is always the amount of effort it demands. Exfoliating, shaving, moisturising, and applying the tan. And then a few days later, you need to start scrubbing the tan off, before it begins to resemble scales on your knees and elbows. Oh, the things we do for beauty. I never particularly enjoyed the process, so, for most of my teens, it was only out of obligation that I wore it. I couldn't fathom going to a junior disco with my milk-bottle legs glowing in the dark. I wasn't prepared to be the only one going au natural. Being tanned was an obsession. When I first visited a country that didn't idealise tanned skin, it was honestly surprising to me. I was trying to buy soap in the Philippines and noticed that all of the soaps advertised their 'skin-lightening' properties. Of course, in many countries, the idealisation of paleness is a terrible relic of colonialism. But seeing those 'skin-lightening' products lined up on the shelves of a shop, cemented my previous understanding of beauty as something that is constructed. Over the past few years, I've sort of let go of the idea of having tanned skin. It could be my frontal lobe developing, but I'm just not bothered by being pale anymore — especially if it means I can avoid routinely dying my bed sheets orange. Maybe I've lost patience for the tyranny of exfoliating and moisturising and exfoliating again. But I've laid down my tanning mitt. I haven't touched a bottle of tan for years now. My tanning breakup was unintentional, really, I just stopped worrying about being the one with the light-reflecting legs on a night out. I was able to see fake tan as a product invented by people who wanted to make money, not a necessity for beauty. Being told my pale skin makes me look a bit unwell by the kind lady giving me a vaccine may have been a low blow a few years ago, but now I've got this column to channel my frustrations into. And that vaccine was certainly helpful, while I was thinking about how to discuss my rocky relationship with fake tan as a pale and pasty Irish girl. Maybe I look like I'm lacking in vitality and sun exposure. But at least it has been a few years since I was last told that my hand looks like it was rooting around a bag of Cheese Doritos. A win is a win. Read More Gen Z Student: Knowing my own essays will be graded against the work of AI is disheartening
Daily Record
19-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Sainsbury's unveils twist on classic biscuit that leaves shoppers divided
The humble Custard Cream has become a beloved British biscuit over the years. Perfect with a cup of tea or for snacking on its own, it is a staple for many households. Said to have originated in the UK as early as 1908, the sandwich-style biscuit boasts a creamy custard-filling, while the buttery biscuits usually feature an embossed baroque pattern. However, Sainsbury's has often shaken things up with its Custard Cream Twists range that boasts a selection of unique flavours. The latest? A lemon meringue pie flavour filling. While these limited edition biscuits are not currently available to buy online, foodie social media group Newfoodsuk recently spotted them in store and couldn't wait to share them with their loyal fanbase. Since the latest addition offers a zesty twist on the otherwise simple Custard Cream, multiple shoppers quickly flocked to the comments to express their enthusiasm, while loyalists admitted they weren't as keen for a change. It's not the first time that Sainsbury's shoppers have been left divided over a new flavour, as the supermarket also launched a limited edition filling for Easter that was said to boast the flavour of hot cross buns. Usually retailing at 65p a pack, the supermarket's Custard Cream Twists have boated multiple other flavoured filling over the years, this includes peach and banoffee pie. As for the latest lemon meringue pie Custard Cream's, shoppers were quick to voice their own thoughts after they were shared to the Newfoodsuk Facebook page, with many of them divided over whether they would be good or not. One shopper who was keen on the new flavour said: "I brought a pack yesterday and they are a must buy they are so good." Someone else admitted: "Kimmy, I NEED these." Another shopper who was quite interested wrote: "These look yummy." Nevertheless, not everyone was keen on the zesty filling, as one disappointed shopper said: "These sound nice but they're not, there's virtually no taste to them and the smell is more like toffee or burning caramel." Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Another shopper who wasn't overly fond of the flavour said: "Na they sound jank lol." Meanwhile, loyal fans of the original biscuit were left a little confused at the flavour switch-up, with some saying replacing the classic custard filling for something different meant they could no longer be classed as Custard Creams One shopper who thought this wrote: "I saw how can they be Custard Creams if they are lemon meringue????" A shopper shared similar thoughts by writing: "They're no longer Custard Creams are they?" It's worth mentioning that Custard Creams are not the only biscuit that Sainsbury's has given a makeover to, as the supermarket also offers Bourbon Twists that offer the beloved chocolatey biscuit in two flavours - caramel and black forest. Sainsbury's shoppers can check their local store for the new Custard Cream Twists with a lemon meringue pie flavour filling now.
