For most tweens and teens, acne is a rite of passage, as those surging hormones tell the skin to produce more oil. That oil mixes with sweat, makeup, or anything else on the skin, and—voilà!—out comes a pimple (or two, or three, or a gazillion). To manage this, tweens should get into the habit of washing their face nightly with a gentle cleanser, says Nicole Kittler, a pediatric dermatologist with UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals. “It’s to get the grime of the day off your skin,” she says.

The key is to take a gentle approach. Floral or fruity cleansers may smell great, but fragrances and some plant-based ingredients can actually irritate the skin more, Kittler says. Meanwhile, alcohol and acne-specific ingredients, such as benzoyl peroxide, can dry out the skin. Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser and CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser are two no-nonsense, fragrance-free cleansers (CeraVe is more foamy; Cetaphil is more gel-like). These kinds of gentle facial cleansers can also be used on the rest of the body, Kittler says. Both soaps are easy to spread on the face and wash off with water, and neither cleanser leaves the skin feeling tight or tingly.

Those with particularly bad acne may need to treat their skin with something medicated. However, most tweens and teens should start with a gentle cleanser—and not an acne-specific one, Kittler adds. (If the acne is deep, painful, or scarring, consult a dermatologist.)

Most of all, give it time. It generally takes about six to eight weeks of consistent use for a cleanser to do its job and show any results, Kittler says. For most people, acne eventually goes away, she adds. “Patience and consistency are both key to managing it successfully while waiting for their bodies to do what they’re going to do.”

Whether it’s armpits, calves, or patchy facial hair that tweens and teens are learning to shave (without bloodying themselves or the bathtub), the task is much easier if they have an excellent razor in hand. After testing dozens of body razors over nearly a decade, for our guide to the best women’s razors (for every body), we’re confident that young body shavers would do well to start with the Billie. We especially love this razor for its highly effective magnetic holder, which sticks to your shower wall and stays there. Hanging a razor helps to keep it goop-free, and if several people are sharing a shower, a new shaver can more easily remember which tool is theirs. (Our longtime top pick, the Gillette Venus Original, is also a great choice. It’s especially easy to grip, so it’s less likely to slip and nick.)

For face shaving, Wirecutter’s longtime shaving writer Dan Koeppel thinks starting with an electric razor is less daunting than starting with a manual one. For his own kid, he purchased Philips Norelco’s OneBlade First Shave as a first razor. Senior staff writer Rachel Cericola also bought this model as a first razor for her teenage son, who found it easy to use. The OneBlade First Shave is much like another good option in our guide to the best beard trimmers in that it’s lightweight and easy to use. And this razor is slightly tweaked, making it even simpler for first-time face shavers to avoid razor burn and nicks.

If manual razors are more your family’s style, we recommend heading straight to the Gillette Mach3, the longtime top pick in our guide to the best men’s razors (for any face). And the Tweezerman Slant, the top pick from our guide to tweezers, is great for plucking stray hairs.

Sweat-free, fresh-smelling underarms can help tweens and teens avoid embarrassment (and pit stains). To battle stink and sweat simultaneously, they’ll need a deodorant and antiperspirant in one.

“Antiperspirants have active ingredients to control sweat, but they don’t do anything for odors,” says dermatologist David Pariser, co-founder of the International Hyperhidrosis Society (aka an expert in extra-heavy sweating). “Deodorants don’t do anything to control sweat, but they have masking fragrances to give the impression of cleanliness.” Anyone who’s concerned about odor and sweat should use a product that includes both, according to Pariser.

We like Dove Advanced Care Sensitive Antiperspirant Deodorant, which is gentle on delicate armpits but still effective enough for most people. The notably sweaty or stinky should try Certain Dri Clinical Strength Antiperspirant Deodorant. This one is intense and can cause armpit tingling, but it is beloved by odor-prone folks. “Antiperspirants that come in a box and are labeled ‘clinical strength’ tend to be as good as prescription ones,” Pariser says.

For those who prefer deodorant-only sticks, any product with a feel and scent your kid finds pleasing can be a great choice. This affordable, great-smelling stick from Arm & Hammer got rave reviews from our tween testers. And one staffer, who doesn’t like antiperspirant, has been using Old Spice Deodorant Fiji with Palm Tree scent since her teen years. She says “it smells amazing, works well, and doesn’t leave white marks on my skin or clothes.”

Of note: Just because the marketing for a deodorant is gendered, that doesn’t mean everyone can’t use it. And there’s no need to buy deodorants labeled for kids or to be overly concerned with avoiding traditional deodorants.

We’ve found that other sweaty body parts, like feet and the groin, can be tamed by the aptly named Anti Monkey Butt body powder. We love this talc-free powder for its ability to keep crevices fresh and dry.

When it comes to managing menstrual cycles, today’s teens and tweens have a lot of excellent options—from pads to period underwear to menstrual cups and tampons. “Period underwear are great during puberty, because not only is it normal for a period to be irregular the first few years but also because the reality is that leaking is going to happen,” Chambers says. You can help maturing kids “embrace the fact that you can’t control your menstrual flow, and period underwear help you not get caught off-guard and to avoid accidents,” she adds.

Any of the picks in our guide to the best period underwear could work well for tweens and teens. Yet the Aisle Boost Boxer is arguably the most comfortable, attractive, and—crucially—leakproof of the bunch (but they’re expensive). For about the same price as a single pair from Aisle, you can get your newly minted menstruator a three-pack of Bambody Period Underwear, our budget period-panty pick; they are basic but extremely effective.

Both of the top picks from our guide to the best tampons—Tampax Pearl and Tampax Pure, an organic option—are soft, have a smooth plastic applicator, and come in a variety of absorbencies. And many young people have learned to rely on menstrual cups, which, as one staffer recounts, can eliminate a lot of menstrual mess and stress (especially when paired with period underwear). We recommend that beginners start with Cora’s The Easy-Does-It Cup, the top pick in our guide to menstrual cups.

We haven’t tested pads or pantyliners (yet!). But in general, to avoid pooling and leaking, “the longer pads and pantiliners, the better,” Chambers says.

The range of products available to manage menstrual flow has evolved considerably in recent years, but the cramps and discomfort are the same as parents will remember from their own adolescence. “Heat is underutilized as a method for managing period symptoms,” Chambers says. The Pure Enrichment PureRelief XL King Size Heating Pad—the top pick in our heating pad guide—is great to have on hand. We’re also fans of this inexpensive rubber hot water bottle, which gets hotter than our electric picks.

Good beginner bras should be soft, comfortable, and not too fussy—after all, they’re meant to be an introduction to bra wearing. In our non-scientific survey of teens and tweens, we found that sports bras and sports bra–style options were a popular choice. These bras have an elastic band, so they’re generally easy to slip on and off.

Companies including Maidenform and Old Navy offer affordably priced sports bras in tons of fun colors. Our favorites, though, are especially soft and comfortable, designed for tweens, and made for many body types. We tried out nine wire-free bras with our own tweens, and we identified three stand-out favorites. Our testers liked the Oomla Oombra Straight Straps bra, which is made with a cotton jersey fabric. This bra remained soft after a year of washing, and it comes in several tween-friendly designs.

If you’re looking for something that feels a little more special, Bleuet’s bras arrive in a cardboard box, wrapped in gift tissue. Like the Oombra bra, the Bleuet Aster Organic Racerback Bra feels plush and soft. Uniqlo’s AIRism Bra also felt cozy and comfortable, though availability, colors, and sizes can be limited. The downside of these bras, however, is that the straps are not adjustable, and they may loosen and slip off the shoulder over time.

As your tween grows, check out our advice for finding a bra that fits (it may help, for instance, to get measured by a pro). If they’re ready for an adult sports bra, we recommend six that are comfortable and provide ample support for different cup sizes. Our guide to the best, most comfortable bras also offers a variety of styles, including bralettes and push-up bras.

Books can open the door for conversations about your child’s changing body. Whether you place these books directly in your kid’s hands or leave them discreetly on a table, they can be a helpful resource for answering questions a tween may be too embarrassed to ask. Books can also offer additional details and facts for the curious, and they can be a springboard to frank and honest talks. “I definitely recommend parents talk to their kids early and often, and to use these books and resources to start,” says Ivy Chen, a sexuality health educator in the San Francisco Bay Area.

For young tweens, from about 8 to 12 years old, The Care and Keeping of You 1 is a popular classic with plenty of illustrations (this book is the first in the series; there’s also The Care and Keeping of You 2, for kids age 10 and up). Published by the same company that makes American Girl dolls, this book introduces tweens to self-care, including flossing, grooming, and buying their first bra. For those who are about 10 and up, Celebrate Your Body (And Its Changes Too!) is upbeat and conversational, diving deeper into topics such as how breasts develop, how long periods last, and how to manage it all. Guy Stuff: The Body Book for Boys (also published by the American Girl company) offers straightforward, friendly advice on bodily changes and self-care, including shaving.

For an inclusive, all-gender look at puberty, the American Academy of Pediatrics’ You-ology: A Puberty Guide for Every Body covers every aspect of development. Each chapter opens with a fictional story, featuring a diverse cast of six characters who are dealing with real-world scenarios (such as a group of boys in the pool locker room talking about penises).

Though it’s not specifically about puberty, Wow in the World: The How and Why of the Human Body incorporates humor, colorful illustrations, and graphic-novel elements for a fun, general primer on the human body. It addresses the science of pimples and stinky armpits, along with gross, kid-appropriate facts about pooping, farting, and vomiting.

Since it was first published, over 25 years ago, the classic It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, Gender, and Sexual Health has been regularly updated (most recently in 2021). Chen routinely recommends this book, along with its companions, It’s Not the Stork! A Book About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families, and Friends and It’s So Amazing! A Book About Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families! for younger kids. The 28-chapter book sends the message that all of these changes to the body are normal. It also covers a lot of stuff that The Care and Keeping of You and Guy Stuff don’t delve into, including masturbation, sex, and sexually transmitted diseases.

Even though these books can provide the facts, tweens and teens also need “human tech support to answer questions and personalize these experiences, like what it feels like to get your period,” Chen says. Talking about hygiene and skin care can be a “lower-stakes” way to start a conversation, building the foundation for more-complex topics, such as sex, relationships, and identity. “It’s crucial to have these talks,” she says.

Podcasts

• For cheerful, informative conversations about puberty and parenting, try The Puberty Podcast. This ongoing series of half-hour episodes is co-hosted by Vanessa Kroll Bennett and Dr. Cara Natterson, also co-authors of This Is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained. (Natterson is also the author of The Care and Keeping of You 2 and Guy Stuff, and she’s the co-founder of bra company Oomla.) In their podcast, Bennett and Natterson discuss everything from anxiety to period products to early and late bloomers, providing a dose of humor, science, and advice for parents and caregivers.
• A podcast for tweens and teens, That’s Totally Normal! With Dr. T offers 10- to 20-minute episodes that dive into everything from sexually transmitted diseases to body image. This podcast is fact-filled without being too didactic, and it often incorporates tween and teen voices, perspectives, and questions.

Books

• Aida Salazar’s The Moon Within has been called a modern-day successor to Judy Blume’s classic Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. In this novel in verse, a mixed-race girl is waiting for her period to come, knowing—and cringing—that her mom plans to hold an ancestral Mexican “moon ceremony” when it does. Of course, Blume’s book also remains a fan favorite—over 50 years since it was first published—and it was the inspiration for the excellent 2023 movie adaptation.

Videos

• Amaze.org, recommended by Ivy Chen, offers a free library of bite-size, approachable sex-ed videos for parents and kids. The videos offer advice on various pertinent subjects, such as how to start a conversation about sex with your kid. And they provide helpful information, including a primer on pads, tampons, and menstrual cups for tweens. The animated clips, which last about 2 to 3 minutes, are sorted into categories, like puberty and healthy relationships; the clips can also be found on YouTube.
• For an entertaining conversation starter, Pixar’s 2022 movie Turning Red is a sweet and charming tale about a girl going through puberty.

This article was edited by Kalee Thompson.