If you scroll on any social media site long enough, chances are you’ll spot an influencer or two telling you why this new beauty product is going to tighten, lift or remove (or all three) some blemish, wrinkle or the like, and you need to click the link in their bio immediately to grab one for yourself. But it’s doctors like triple board-certified dermatologist, internist and dermatopathologist Dr. Mamina Turegano who are trying to use their platform to factually educate people on the ins and outs of our skin and bodies. Turegano hit her stride on social media during the pandemic and now brings her knowledge to name brands like actress Lili Reinhart’s Personal Day.
Q: What first made you interested in your field of medicine?
Much of my life, I was very interested in integrative medicine, or taking a more holistic approach to skin health. I didn’t even know I wanted to go to med school. I thought I was actually going to be a researcher. I was interested in chemistry. And then I was also a music major; a piano performance major initially. I ended up minoring in it. Later in college, I did become interested in medicine, but I was more interested in holistic or alternative medicine. I thought, “You know what? What if I had my M.D.?” I think there are so many more paths. I have options. Yeah, I could always practice integrative medicine with a medical degree. What was really cool with dermatology, I love the concept of how the skin can be sort of a signal or a sign of what’s going on internally and I think that also studying internal medicine really helped understand or bridge that connection for me, too. What I’ve come to learn as just being a doctor, is that our bodies are smarter than we are, and when our body is acting in a certain way, it’s trying to tell us something.
Q: How did you get started on social media?
I started posting when I first moved back home in 2016. I didn’t realize New Orleans was actually pretty saturated with dermatologists, but I was joining a practice and not starting from scratch. I joined Dr. Patty Farris, and it was kind of slow in the beginning, because nobody knew who I was, and so I thought “Let me establish a social media presence so I can make a name for myself.” I didn’t want to just be a dermatologist. I’m so interested in looking at other approaches to healing the skin, like what supplements can be supportive for acne or what supplements can be helpful for hair loss, anti-aging. What are other things that you can do that are supportive in addition to all the conventional medicine out there? So, I started posting about that. I slowly garnered about 10,000 followers over the following four years going up to 2020 and it was fun. In 2019 people started doing videos and then things got crazy, especially with TikTok, during the pandemic. TikTok, the company, reached out to me in May of 2020. I don’t know why or how they found me. I had a TikTok account that I started in 2019, but it was nothing, I had like one video. They wanted more educational content on TikTok and so they started this initiative called “Learn on TikTok.” They wanted people who were experts in their field to create content. I guess they found me because of my Instagram, and they said they’d love for me to be a part of this cohort of creators to make as much educational content as we can. I thought it was perfect because I was wanting to do more on TikTok, I just didn’t know how to make the best videos. For the cohort I had to make videos five days a week for six weeks straight. The pay was minuscule for what it was, but I needed something to force me to do it right. And so I did it. For people out there who are doing social media, I understand it feels like such a thankless job.
Q: Do you have any advice for people on how to change their routine per weather changes?
Because of colder weather, the air gets more dry, and when the air gets more dry, your skin gets more dry. Potentially. When it comes to products, especially if you are prone to dry skin, we recommend switching to using a cream-like moisturizing cleanser. Same with moisturizers, lightweight moisturizers; there’s like lotions and gels, you might want to consider going to a cream, which is cream is thicker. It has more oil than a lotion. Lotion has more water. I feel like it may not be as necessary because we are so humid here, but having a humidifier in your room is actually helpful, especially if you do have eczema. I recommend that [more so] for people with eczema. And then moisturization is best, on your body right after you get out of a shower on damp skin. That’s when your body is most receptive to the moisturization. Those are the main [ideas]. And just be glad we don’t live Minnesota.
Q: What’s the one thing people should take away from any conversation about dermatology… and why is it to wear sunscreen?
Yeah, it is sunscreen! It’s crazy how it seems like such an underrated product, but we experience the most consequences from the sun just from daily exposure. The criteria is very minimal; we tell people at least an SPF of 30.
