In October, many of us revisit favorite monster movies and slip into fun costumes—but some legends expose a darker side of humanity.

Elizabeth Báthory was a countess who allegedly tortured young women, then bathed in their blood to preserve her youth—a true symbol of vampirish vanity.

Centuries later, some beauty rituals are still macabre: People grind animals’ body parts for collagen supplements, harvest snails’ slime for serum and bottle a queen bee’s royal jelly or bee’s venom for skincare, to name a few. So, as Halloween approaches, let’s remember that only monsters harm other living beings—and choose vegan.

A recent study makes that moral line as sharp as a fang. Researchers at the University of Belgrade found that psychopathy and sadism—traits marked by callousness and cruelty—predict speciesist attitudes. In other words, individuals who endorse human superiority over fellow animals exhibit darker personality traits. This makes sense, as many serial killers have infamously tortured or killed animals before eventually turning to humans.

Many compassionate folks don’t realize that the way animals are treated for beauty products reads like a horror story. To collect snail mucin for skincare products, for example, workers steal the slime from living snails. Some kinds of mucin require that the snails be stressed or in pain, so workers poke them with sticks, spray them with harsh chemicals like citric acid or ozone or shock them with electricity. In other cases, workers break the snails’ shells, tear out their bodies and plunge them into freezing water to collect the mucin.

We don’t need to bathe in blood or slime or take anything from anyone in the name of beauty. A bath enhanced with green tea, rose petals and oats can soothe inflammation and replenish the skin’s natural barrier—benefits confirmed by experts. Add some Epsom salt for detoxification and hydration.

The grocery store is a modern-day apothecary. Green tea is rich in antioxidants, pomegranate seeds are bursting with protective phytochemicals and berries are brimming with anthocyanins. A study in Immunity & Aging reveals how such plant-born compounds disarm free radicals, shield collagen and soothe the skin from within.

If only Elizabeth Báthory knew that all she needed was a bath of rose petals—and vegan hot chocolate. A recent COSMOS trial showed that daily cocoa extract supplementation reduced an age-related inflammatory marker by approximately 8.4% per year in older adults.

Aging is a natural part of the human experience, so let’s welcome it like an old friend. After all, growing old is a privilege denied to many. So this Halloween, let’s remember that real beauty is compassion—and it never fades with age. And let’s leave monstrous beauty rituals in the dustbin of history where they belong.

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Rebecca Libauskas is a staff writer for the PETA Foundation, 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510; www.PETA.org.

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