Latest news with #younggirls
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Daily Mail
I spent three years in a Lima prison for smuggling £1.5million of cocaine - it's alarming young female solo travellers are still being targeted by drugs gangs
One of the Peru Two who spent three years inside a Lima prison after being caught smuggling drugs from Ibiza at the orders of an armed gang has said she is alarmed young girls are still being targeted. Michaella McCollum and Melissa Reid were 20 when they became friends holidaying on the party island in August 2013 and were soon coerced into sneaking £1.5million worth of cocaine into Peru. They were arrested when they got off the plane in Lima, convicted of drug smuggling and sentenced to six years and eight months in the hardcore Ancon 2 prison - though they were released in 2016. Michaella, now 31, appeared on Good Morning Britain today in the wake of the arrests of Bella May Culley, 18, and Charlotte May Lee, 21, who have made global headlines in recent weeks as they face drug smuggling charges and up to 20 years in jail. She said she feels it's 'something that's always been happening' but now the public are being made aware of a small minority of cases, adding: 'I think it's alarming that its all young girls and its all similar stories. 'They've all travelled to a country alone, that they haven't been to before and their families are filing missing persons reports and they wind up in prison. I mean, it's a similar story to my situation.' The former drug mule turned author and public speaker explained how when she arrived in Ibiza at 19 it was the first time she had ever left the UK and she was 'completely alone'. 'Within two weeks I started making friends and relationships and I made a friendship with this group of people that ended up luring me into trafficking drugs,' she said. Michaella, who admits to consuming 'a lot' of drugs and alcohol at the time, felt 'inclined to spend more time with them' because she thought they were 'good people' who didn't party. But it wasn't until she was caught red handed by Peruvian police that she would realise she had been targeted and manipulated. She told hosts Richard Madeley and Susanna Reid: 'That's what they do, these organisations. They have people that are pickers and their job meerly is to pick people to become mules and they will target their vulnerabilities. 'It might be their age because at 19 or 20 you're incredibly naive, you're easy to manipulate. 'Women as well tend to be groomed and coerced in situations a lot more. If you have a drug addiction, that can be a vulnerability. There's so many different vulnerabilities.' Bella May Culley and Charlotte May Lee have faced much public scrutiny for allegedly attempting to smuggling drugs from Thailand to Georgia and Sri Lanka with the public questioning why they would risk it all. Michaella offered some explanation for why young girls might decide to agree to be used as a drug mule for gangs. 'You have to understand the level of manipulation behind it, its not just overnight, its probably weeks of manipulation. 'They ended up making me believe that this was totally fine, I was being dramatic, I was being naive to question it. Bella May Culley, 18, from Billingham, County Durham, seen in court in Tbilisi after she was detained at at the city's airport ion suspicion of carrying 14kg of cannabis 'They were like "everybody does this, this is fine, we work with police, we work with everybody in the airport, you're being dramatic, you've never done this, you've never left the country" making me feel like a little girl who doesn't know anything and I was so scared to say no. The mother-of-two believes girls are targeted because men 'know they can manipulate women to do things', adding she herself was 'so scared' to say no. 'You're so far away from your family and this is another vulnerability. These women are in Thailand, they're so far away from family. 'When you don't have contact with your family and your friends, you're even more vulnerable.'
The Guardian
a day ago
- Health
- The Guardian
Teenage girls' TikTok skincare regimes offer little to no benefit, research shows
Skincare regimes demonstrated by young influencers on TikTok offer little to no benefit, researchers have found, adding that on the contrary they raise the risk of skin irritations and lifelong allergies in children. The team behind the study say there has been a rise in young girls sharing videos of complex skincare routines with moisturisers, toners, acne treatments and anti-ageing products. In the first study of its kind, researchers analysed such videos on the plaftorm and found the regimes are not only laborious – some girls wake up as early as 4.30am to fit in their routines – but pricey, unnecessary and potentially harmful. 'The risks associated with using these products, especially in young girls, far outweighs whatever marginal benefit you may get from using the active ingredients,' said Dr Molly Hales, the first author of the research from Northwestern University. Hales added that while social media can be a place for playfulness and self-expression, young girls do not need such regimes. 'The danger is when girls get the message that this is something that they have to do to take care of their skin and to protect their health,' she said. 'These products don't increase the health of your skin and they probably worsen your skin integrity over time.' Instead she said a gentle cleanser once or twice a day and the application of sunscreen is sufficient. Writing in the journal Paediatrics, Hales and colleagues report how they created two TikTok accounts, purportedly for 13-year-olds and, and accumulated a sample of 100 skincare routines videos filmed by young people. The team found all but one of the 82 creators were girls, and their age ranged from seven to 18 years old. 'Almost all content creators had clear, light skin without visible blemishes,' the researchers write, adding the videos 'made frequent reference to aspirational beauty ideals that may be tied to whiteness'. The study reveals the skincare regimes involved six products on average, often from the same brands, with a total average cost of $168 (£124). However, some involved more than a dozen products with a total cost of more than $500 (£369). 'Get Ready With Me' videos were the most common, followed by 'Skin Care Routine' and 'After School' skincare routine videos. The team found many of the ingredients in the featured products, such as citric acid, carry a risk of skin irritation and sun sensitivity – meaning they increase the chance of sunburn and other skin damage. Yet only 26% of the 84 videos showing daytime skincare routines included a sunscreen – something that authors called 'a significant missed opportunity'. Hales added the use of products with multiple active ingredients, or layering products with the same active ingredients, increases the risk of skin irritation. The researchers found that among the 25 top-viewed videos, 76% contained at least one potential contact allergen – often fragrance. Prof Tess McPherson of the British Association of Dermatologists, who was not involved in the work, said the study was important, backing up anecdotal reports of an increase in young people attending clinics with skin irritation. 'We're certainly seeing a huge increase in people wanting something they call perfect or flawless skin, which we know is unachievable [and] unhelpful – it doesn't make people happy,' she said. McPherson added she is aware of young people asking for birthday money to put towards expensive skincare products, many of which are now being targeted at young girls through appealing packaging. As well as the risks highlighted by the study, McPherson said the skincare videos contribute to an increase in stigma around conditions such as acne and eczema as well as a fear of ageing, a message she said was reinforced by women embracing Botox and fillers. 'Younger and younger children are seeking skincare products when they don't need them, they're not helpful,' she said. 'This is a very concerning statement on society and how we view how skin should look.'
