Natural Skin Care Blog

There’s lots of buzz just now about how sun screens may be causing skin cancer. Statistics reported recently show that the incidence of skin cancer has increased with increased use of products with SPFs.

Could it possibly be that it isn’t the product that’s at fault? How about “user error”?

In other words, users slap on a chosen SPF product and think they are now immune from all those UV rays for however long they chose to play around in the sun.

Those of you who have been reading this blog for any length of time know that there is a distinction between “sun screen” and “sun shield”.

A screen does just that — it screens out some stuff while letting other stuff pass through. A sun screen is no different. Even the highest SPF allows some dangerous rays through. These are absorbed.

SPF on the label indicates certain chemicals in the product; the number following indicates the amount of protection that particular chemical formula can be expected to provide. It also indicates, indirectly, the period of time that the formula will remain effective at screening out the sun. The higher the number, the more effective the screening and for a longer period.

A shield protects. Shields were once used to deflect the enemy’s spears and are used today by riot squads to deflect rocks and bottles.

A sun shield deflects UV rays. They literally bounce off protected skin rather than being “filtered” and absorbed.

You must still exercise good judgment about how long you remain in the sun before renewing whatever product you choose to use against the sun’s rays.

A skin care product containing a sun shield will not have an SPF number because it contains none of the chemicals needed to rate for an SPF number. These are natural skin care products.

The effective ingredients are not only harmless to skin cells but also protect them against other environmental threats. Look for titanium dioxide and/or zinc oxide in a cream or lotion. This will give you the best protection possible against skin cancer.

Tags: chemical formulas, sun screen, sunshields

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Dream on… An effective anti-aging program needs to start ‘way before your 30s, according to cell researchers.

When they peer through their microscopes, they clearly see that most of the damage to your skin is done before you reach the age of 20

You just don’t see it yet. Or perhaps you don’t recognize it.

During this period, while you’re still in your teens, developing skin cells are being injured by environmental attacks – pollution in the air, minerals and toxins in the water, burns from the sun, chemical stuff you apply to the surface… You get the idea.

Trouble starts when the injury reaches the layer of developing cells. This is where healthy, beautiful skin starts. When cells are attacked here, they are already damaged when they come to the surface. That surface is your face.

In addition to environmental damage, you may experience hormonal disruptions which attract free radicals and bacteria… Suddenly, your face breaks out in unsightly splotches, spots … or worse.

This is about more than teenage acne. That is simply the most visible kind of skin problem during these years.

The problems that will plague you after the age of 30 won’t usually show up that early. Unless you know what to look for.

That doesn’t mean you should put off caring for your skin until you start to see the fine lines, sagging skin, brown spots, and other unpleasant signs.

“Out of sight. Out of mind” is hardly an effective anti-aging program.

Tags: bacteria, burns, chemicals, developing cells, environmental attacks, free radicals, hormonal disruptions, pollution, teenage acne, toxins

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“My make-up expires? Are you talking about how long it stays looking fresh on my face?”

That’s certainly one way of looking at it. We could call that “face life”, couldn’t we? That’s an entirely different topic.

What I want to call your attention to in this post is the shelf life of cosmetics.

I know, I know. The print is so fine you can’t even read the instructions for use – or anything else printed on the label or the packaging. So how on earth are you ever going to find an expiration date?

Two word answer: You aren’t.

The fact that the law does not require an expiration date does not mean there isn’t one.

Bacteria, molds and other stuff start to take over when the preservatives (mandated by government regulation) lose their effectiveness.

You’ll know from reading these posts that I keep squawking about how sensitive the area around your eye is and how careful you must be when selecting products to use there.

It will come as no surprise, then, to learn that mascara and eyeliner can be positively dangerous once bacteria get into them. Extremely unpleasant infections have been documented. (And you thought Pink Eye was bad…)

According to the Food and Drug Administration, mascara and eyeliner are safe for 2-3 months only. When you first open one of these, write the date down somewhere and note in your calendar another date 2-3 months ahead.

When the second date arrives, THROW THE MASCARA OUT! (Yes, even if there’s still lots of it left…)

Your make-up expires when it becomes subject to bacterial activity. Please be careful.

Tags: bacterial infections, eyeliner, make-up expires, mascara, Pink Eye, shelf life of cosmetics

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The water in your shower can make you look older. You may want to rethink that hot shower you’ve grown to enjoy. The basic problem is that the chlorine which makes your water safe to drink, is corrosive. It irritates delicate body tissues like your lungs and your skin.

Unfortunately, the heat releases the chlorine so not only does it float into your nose, it has an oxidizing effect on your skin. The heat and moisture make your pores more able to absorb substances — chlorine, in this case.

The longer you stay under that steaming stream, the greater the damage.

Get those teenagers out of the shower? A good idea – but they will be hard to convince because the damage being done won’t usually show up for several years.

It is, however, one of the factors that scientists say is aging their skin more rapidly than young skin aged in the past.

The damage comes from both the water and the steam which produce compounds that attack surface cells, stripping them of protective oils. Repeated exposure increases the rate of damage.

And don’t think that slathering on oils or lotions after your shower — even immediately after — will reverse the drying effect already created. Alas, your shower has added a bit more “age” to your skin.

Tags: chlorine, damages tissues, hot shower, oxidizing

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Good grief — GERMS! — and in the bend of your elbow, too…

Did you ever imagine that you had a family — well, actually, several families — of germs living and thriving where your arm bends?

As you learned in school, microbes are very, very small but their colonies are huge — as in huge.

Think you can get rid of them?

You can scrub, scrub, scrub.

They’ll still be there. Lots of them will still be there.

The scientists who have been peering into their elbows assure us that, even after washing, they expect to find about 1 million critters per square centimeter.

What’s more, these elbow bacteria are not the same as the bacteria on your forearm… or your hand…

No. The elbow is their little fortress.

And how cool is it that?

Your best friend and your pet peeve both have the same tribes living in their elbows?

(Ask the scientists why. I haven’t a clue.)

Come back often – helpful information — and some odd bits, too — about your skin. Where else can you read thrilling stuff about germs in your elbow?

Tags: bacteria, elbow germs, microbes

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Whatever it is you do — bottom line is: hot, burning feet at the end of a long day.

You stand behind a counter serving demanding customers …

You rush from kitchen to table, serving hungry patrons…

You run errands through endless corridors, in and out of offices…

You patrol a school, a neighborhood…

You lead hiking parties…

You chase little ones around the house, the yard, the playground

Those new shoes look real cool, but … oooof!

Don’t have time for a long foot soak? (Feels great but leaves your skin dried out and kinda wrinkly.)

Here’s a quick tip to perk you up.

It’s just what your skin cells need — hydration.

Tap water does not provide the hydration necessary for healthy skin. Too many minerals and undesirable chemical residue.

To hydrate fully, water must be treated to remove all of the above. This is done by oxidation and electrolysis, a process that purifies water and re-arranges the molecules in such a way that they can penetrate deeply into the layers of your skin.

(How? We’ll have to ask the chemists, I guess.)

A quick spray with a specially formulated hydrating mist cools instantly — and more.

Here’s a short list of what it can do for your suffering feet:

Refresh by cooling

Reduce inflammation

Destroy/prevent odors by its anti-bacterial action

Prevent infection where skin is broken, rubbed off (those new shoes, maybe?)

Heal damaged skin

Reduce rashes, athlete’s foot and other yucky stuff that thrives on hot feet

There. Now don’t those feet feel better?

For a final soothing touch, give a quick spray and follow with your favorite moisturizer or hand cream.

Ahhh… Goodbye to hot, burning feet. For now.

Tags: anti-bacterial spray, athlete's foot, chemical residue, hot burning feet, hydration, inflammation

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