Natural Skin Care Blog

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.

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Senior citizens always have skin that looks like a map from the automobile club. Or so anyone who hasn’t yet been invited to join AARP seems to think.

Deep wrinkles in the cheeks

Sagging skin

Age spots

Dry, crinkly-looking surface

Drab, drab, drab

Far too many people display these unattractive features as they add years.

Does that mean these are inevitable? That there is no way to avoid them? Or at least minimize them?

I’m glad you asked those question (you were going to ask, weren’t you?)–

Short answer?

It’s the shortest possible answer, actually: No.

No to all three parts to that question. (Or all three questions, if you prefer.)

Perhaps when we stop expecting to look like that, we’ll start to take effective measures to repair past damage. Then move on to positive steps to prevent future problems.

The present and future condition of your skin is largely under your control. Accept the wear and tear of gravity, the blueprint your ancestors passed along in your DNA and get started on the many ways you can improve your appearance. (And, no, you will never again have skin like a twenty-something.) You’ll be surprised at how much you can do.

Here are a three simple suggestions to start you off:

Remove dead surface cells gently and completely. (You can learn specific techniques for doing this yourself.)

Protect your face 24/7 from further environmental damage with a surface shielding product suitable for your skin type. Not just AnyOldCream.

And the third?

Healthy skin is beautiful skin.

Beautiful skin grows – from the inside out – it is not applied to the surface. Take a hard look at your eating habits…

Healthy “Senior Citizen” skin can be beautiful, too.

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Relax. “Liver spots” are misnamed, to start with. They have nothing to do with your liver. Perhaps it was the color that attracted the name. They are also called brown spots or age spots.

Most brown spots are the result of sun damage. (How about calling them “sun spots”?) It would be more accurate to say that brown spots are a visible sign that your skin has been trying to protect you against sun burn. That sun tan you worked so hard to get is the same sort of thing… Your body doing its best to keep the surface cells from burn damage.

Back to those brown spots — They did not jump up overnight and paste themselves on your face. The process started years ago, as long ago as 15-18 years. And it built up from deep inside your skin layers. Each exposure to the sun without adequate protection added a little bit to them. Then, one day, you began to notice them.

The usual recommendation seems to be bleaching. Your dermatologist will be able to suggest chemical mixtures that may or may not bleach the surface of the spot without harm to other cells. The difficulty is that, because these are not strictly surface blemishes, the color will return as your cells grow toward the surface. And the process will have to be repeated.

The same difficulty comes when you try to bleach brown spots using natural skin care products.

In the end, it’s going to be your choice. Do you prefer to reach the same temporary result using chemicals or using natural products?

Either way, the best you can do is reduce the appearance of those liver spots.

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When cancer makes your skin age faster, you look older faster, too.

Cell biologists, scientists who study cells and how they work, noticed that in a body affected by cancer, cells follow a pattern similar to the natural aging process – at a much faster rate. The type of treatment plays a huge role in this process — that’s a whole topic in itself and we’ll talk about that another time.

What are the first characteristics that come to mind when you think of aging skin? Dry. Drab. Dull. Sallow. Sagging. Wrinkles. Deep lines …

“That’s not all”, some of you will say, “my skin is red and rashy, covered with little bumps, too.”

What you’re seeing is evidence of inflammation — in addition to all of the above.

Oh, no! That’s not what you wanted to hear at all.

And, as some of you have been unfortunate enough to discover, cancer-related skin conditions can be much, much worse. Such as cracking, peeling and the torment of itching … and itching and itching…

Cancer sufferers find that the principles and techniques of natural skincare help off-set the effects of their medication and treatment.

Everybody has skin, so this applies across the board, not just to women.

Your first goal is to cool the inflammation and heal the injured cells. This is where natural skincare products shine. When the finest botanicals give up their gentle, soothing ingredients, you have the best chance of slowing down cancer’s effect on your skin.

Slow down the aging process even a little and your appearance will benefit.

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Aging is a condition. It has little to do with chronological age, the number of years you’ve been around. A face without proper care may look older at 20 than a healthy skin at 45.

Perhaps the largest contributor to what we consider the “aging” look is the lack of proper nutrition — both inside and outside the body.

Yes, your skin needs certain nutritive elements. Hey, it’s a living, breathing organ. Like any other organ in your body — liver, heart, lungs… you name it. The skin is, in fact, the largest organ you have. And you’ve been taking it for granted?

“But,” you protest, “My skin is getting drier and sort of flaky. I can’t find makeup that doesn’t cause all those horrid little lines.”

Is your makeup to blame?

The researchers who study skin cells say otherwise.

Here’s what the scientists say is important in caring for your skin’s health:

1. Exfoliation or the removal of excess dead cells in a gentle, thorough manner. No scraping or scrubbing — they damage skin, they don’t improve it.

2. Deflecting damaging sun rays. Those SP factors just don’t cut it. You need a sun shield, not a sun screen. There is a huge difference.

3. Proper nutrition, inside and out, to give your cells what they need to be healthy. Starvation at the cellular level will result in unattractive conditions on the surface. Maybe you see some already….

So, what can you do about them? We talk about these here in the blog. Be here to follow along.

The longer you neglect your skin, the more difficult it is to regain elasticity and the harder it is to reduce inflammation that cause redness, splotchiness and similar problems.

It’s not “aging” – it’s improper care. And it’s not inevitable.

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