Tips on Choosing the Best Skin Care Product for You

by Ellen Kennedy

Your face is the first thing that people notice when they meet you. So, it is no wonder that skin care is big business! Millions are spent each year to treat acne, under eye circles, wrinkles, discolorations, and a variety of other ailments. If you are in the market for a skin care line, there are a few things that you should consider before settling on a product. First you need to look at the type of ingredients the product contains, and then find out what works best for your particular skin type. So, get ready to put your best face forward!

A good skin care product is only as good as its ingredients. Make sure to read the label before you buy. If you are unable to pronounce anything on the bottle, move on to something else. The best skin care products are made with natural ingredients. Look for a formula with Aloe Vera and vitamin E for a great complexion. You want a skin care line that keeps you looking your best, while feeling great on your skin. Cleansers and creams shouldn’t burn or sting. Depending on your skin type, you may find that formulas that contain alcohol can actually aggravate your problem. So do your homework beforehand. If you have a specific problem like acne or sun damage, you will want to find a skin care line that focuses on your problem areas. Benzyl peroxide has been known to work wonders on acne, while alpha-hydroxy helps improve the appearance of wrinkles or sun damage.

If you have dry skin, you will want to find a formula that helps replenish the moisture in your face. Products made with Aloe Vera and Vitamin E are particularly good at this. Look for skin care lines that come in a cream or a lotion form. A good humidifier used at night may also help improve your complexion. Always remember that excess washing can actually dry your face out further, so limit your washings to once or twice a day.

If you are plagued by oily skin, you may find that acne is a major problem for you. Here again excess washing can aggravate the problem, so limit washings to once or twice a day. Follow up your skin care routine with a quality astringent or toner. This will help control the amount of oil on your face, and reduce the number of breakouts.

Combination skin can be a tricky situation. You have patches of dry skin as well as oilier regions. Look for a formula that is specifically designed for your type of skin. Oil absorbing masks applied to the T-zone (your forehead, nose, and chin) once a week will help control oil and breakouts.

No matter what type of skin you have, you should have no trouble finding a skin care line to suite your needs. The key is to understand what different ingredients do. Research anything that you don’t understand- and don’t be fooled into thinking that a product has to be expensive to work. Some of the best products on the market cost less than $10 dollars a bottle!

Ellen Kennedy is a freelance health writer and contributing author to http://www.fixoilyskin.info – a site that provides free skin care information and tips.

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Skin Care Treatments - How to Look Younger for the Holidays

by Ken Black

Do you have company coming over, or are you visiting family and friends for Christmas ? Are you planning to go out on New Years Eve ? Whatever the reason, most people want to look their best at least during the most important times of the year.

So, what ways are out there to make you look more stunning as fast as possible ?

Well, you could try and lose some weight, but that's not easy of course, especially if you have lots of pounds to lose. And, can you lose it all within one month ?

You might also be able to go to an expensive Spa and get a total makeover. Good idea, but, that might cost one thousand dollars or more.

What about just going shopping and buying some high end shoes and clothes to make you look younger ? Another fair idea, but that might set you back two hundred dollars or more.

If you’re between the ages of thirty five and ninety five, you might want to try making your face more youthful looking. After all that’s what people notice and remember the most.

A premium anti wrinkle and anti aging skin care cream or lotion is often referred to as a "face lift in a jar" and can do wonders for your looks and often has excellent effects within thirty days. And the best products usually sell for less than one hundred dollars. Truly a great bargain and an easy way to quickly transform yourself into how you may have looked years ago.

So why do people get wrinkles anyway ?

You can find an indepth discussion of this at www.skin-care-reviews.com/wrinkles-101.html, but to summarize, sun exposure, smoking, and your age contribute to the breakdown of collagen and elastin, the fibers that keep your skin firm and supple. You can’t fight the passage of time, but you can apply sunscreen if you’re going out into the sun, quit smoking, and use an anti wrinkle cream to battle the effects of skin damage.

Try and buy a product that contains some or all of the following :

1. Alpha, beta and poly-hydroxy acids, which gently remove surface layers of skin to remove fine lines.

2. Argireline - is derived from amino acids that occur naturally. It works by relaxing facial tension because it reduces excessive release of the neurotransmitters, called catecholamines, that make your facial muscles tense up. When your muscles aren't tense, they don't contribute to wrinkles.

3. Edelweis Extract - isn't just something found in a song from "The Sound of Music." Edelweiss Extract is a strong antioxidant that cleans up the free radicals produced by metabolism and by pollutants as well. These free radicals voraciously combine with almost anything, including the components of your skin, causing serious damage. In addition to being an antioxidant, Edelweiss Extract helps protect skin by blocking ultraviolet light.

4. Shea Butter - is derived from the nut of the karite tree of West Africa, where it is commonly used in soap. Shea Butter is a natural moisturizer and skin tightener. It contains cinnamic acid, which helps protect your skin against ultraviolet light. It also includes natural latex, which has hypoallergenic qualities. The fatty acids in Shea Butter, along with the other ingredients, promote healing and regeneration of the skin, and work to prevent the skin from drying, cracking, burning and wrinkling.

5. Vitamin A - is an antioxidant that is necessary in many ways, including for healthy skin, sight, growth, bones and epithelial cells (cells that line the nose, throat, lungs, mouth, digestive system, vagina and urinary tract). Vitamin A penetrates the skin effectively to reinforce collagen and elastin, firming the skin and counteracting wrinkles. It also works to improve skin pigmentation by eliminating aging spots.

There are other fine ingredients like Matrixyl, Dermox, Evening Primrose Oil, and more, that assist in bringing back that radiant looking appearance to your face.

Some of the leading products on the market are : Olay Total Effects Intensive Restoration Treatment with VitaNiacin, Revitol Anti Wrinkle solution, Pond’s Dramatic Results Active Face & Neck Mositurizer with glycolic acid, and Avotone Wrinkle relaxant cream.

The advantage to these products is that they usually have no side effects, do not require a prescription, are often just as effective as injections or chemical peels performed by a doctor, and they can be purchased at fine stores or at the manufacturer’s websites on the internet. The only disadvantages is that they are not free and they do require you to apply them daily in most cases.

However, the results are often amazing. Many people claim they look ten or more years younger after using the product for four to six weeks. However, like anything else, results may vary. You have to try it out for yourself. Best to go with a company that gives a thirty day or longer guarantee, so you’re protected either way.

A new you could be waiting right around the corner.

Happy holidays !

Ken Black is Founder of www.Skin-Care-Reviews.com, a site that specializes in skin care product reviews and information.

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Why Switch to All Natural Cosmetics?

by Lori Stryker

The human skin wraps and protects our bodies. It constitutes a living, dynamic tissue system. It has the remarkable ability to absorb applied products, partially or completely, into the bloodstream. In fact, up to 60% of the products we use on our skin are absorbed and deposited into the circulatory system (Fairley, 2001). For instance, the average woman absorbs 30 pounds of the ingredients contained in moisturizers over sixty years (Dr.Hauschka).

These new understandings of how the skin functions reveal concerns about the possible long term effects due to the combination of chemicals used in cosmetics, often termed the "chemical cocktail effect". Several chemicals which are used in common, popular cosmetics are known irritants and carcinogens. Concern stems from the knowledge that most of these ingredients are derived synthetically or from petroleum. Avoiding these substances serve to decrease overall exposure to harmful or irritating cosmetic ingredients.

Ingredients to Avoid

Forms Found in Cosmetics and Possible Negative Side Effects

Aluminum

• Thought to contribute to Alzheimer's Disease.
  
• Found in almost all antiperspirants.
  
• Works by blocking pores so sweat cannot be released by the skin.

Artificial colours

• FD&C, derived from coal tar.
  
• For example, Azo dyes are a risk to asthmatics, eczema sufferers and people sensitive to aspirin.
  
• Causes hyperactivity in children, severe headaches, blurred vision and itchy/watery eyes and nose (Antczak, 2001).

Benzoates

• Benzoates Benzoic acid, sodium benzoate or parahydroxy benzoate.
  
• Used as a preservative in cosmetics and fizzy drinks. Causes gastric irritation, numbing of the mouth and aggravates asthma (Antczak, 2001).

Certain essential oils

• Rosemary is harmful to epileptics.Sage is not recommended for pregnant women.

DEA, MEA, TEA

• Causes allergic reactions, irritating to eyes and dries out hair and skin (Fairley, 2001).

Dibutyl phthalate

• Found in all persons tested by the CDC (Center for Disease Control, USA) in a 2000 Fall study.
  
• Highest levels were found in women of reproductive age.
  
• Causes birth defects in animals, and damaging to the male reproductive system (ABC News, Internet Ventures 2000).
  
• Used in cosmetics to assist the absorption of other ingredients.

Formaldehydes

• A preservative.
  
• Causes skin reactions.
  
• Imidazolidinyl urea is the second most identified preservative causing contact dermatitis ( American Academy of Dermatology: Fairley, 2001).
  
• DMDM hydantoin
  
• Quaternium 15
  
• Diazolidinylurea
  
• 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1
  
• 3-diol

Fragrances

• Can contain up to 200 undeclared substances (Fairley, 2001).
  
• Major cause, in addition to artificial colours, of skin irritations and allergies (Antczak, 2001).
  
• May cause dizziniess, skin irritation and hyperpigmentation (Fairley, 2001).

Genetically Modified Organisms

• Soy, Corn
  
• Effects still undetermined.

Isopropyl Alcohol

• Drying agent, from petroleum.

Keratolytic chemicals

• Such as hydroxyl acids, retinoic acid.
  
• Corrosive, used in skin peels.
  
• Dissolves the stratum corneum of the epidermis (outermost layer), making skin more sensitive to sun damage.
  
• Accelerates production of dead skin cells; the skin thickens to repair its surface so that vulnerable skin cells underneath are protected from the effects of skin peeling.(Antczak, 2001).

Methylisothiazolinone

• Causes allergic reactions and irritations (Fairley, 2001).

Parabens

• Petroleum product.
  
• Triggers skin irritations and may be an xerestrogen (Fairley, 2001).May play a role in falling sperm counts and rising breast cancer rates (Fairley, 2001).Used in 99% of all cosmetics (Fairley, 2001), and in many so-called 'natural' products.

Parraffin

• Derived from petroleum.
  
• In the form of wax, mineral oil or petrolatum.
  
• Comedogenic, i.e.blocks pores.

Propylene Glycol

• When derived from petroleum.
  
• Increases the amount of acid in the body, resulting in metabolic problems.
  
• Large amounts are needed to produce this effect (Agency forToxic Substances and Disease Registry or ATSDR, 2003).

Sodium laureth sulfate, sodium lauryl sulfate

• Forms carcinogenic nitrogen compounds when combined with specific ingredients.
  
• Irritating to eyes, skin and lungs (Antczak, 2001).
  
• Harmful if swallowed and may cause damage to eyes (Antczak, 2001).

Tallow

• Animal fat.
  
• Not suitable for vegans, and may be a skin irritant.

Toluene

• Found in many nail products and nail polish removers.
  
• Produced during the process of making gasoline and other fuels from crude oil or coal.
  
• Evaporates into the air when products containing toluene are opened.
  
• May affect the nervous system, and/or cause tiredness, confusion, weakness, nausea, or loss of appetite.
  
• Symptoms disappear when exposure is eliminated (ATSDR, 2003).

In Canada, not all cosmetics list their ingredients on their labels, but most have toll free telephone numbers which link you to their customer service departments, where inquiries about ingredient lists can be made. Reading labels and recognizing problematic ingredients are necessary skills for a consumer who intends to choose products that are completely natural. The cost of a cosmetic is not a reliable indicator of either its quality or natural characteristics. Most cosmetics, from the lowest priced, to the most costly brands, are composed of identical base ingredients (Begoun, 1991).

Cosmetics do not stay on the surface of the skin without penetrating to some degree. Lipstick wearers, for example, consume 1.5 to 4 tubes in a lifetime (Aveda). If one considers the ingredients being internalized by the body, absorbing plant oils and waxes, mineral pigments or essential oils is a healthier alternative than absorbing petroleum by-products and synthetic chemicals. The ability to choose the right cosmetics for you depends on accurate ingredient knowledge, personal needs and market choices. Caring for one's whole body includes skin care choices that support and contribute to a healthy lifestyle.

Natural cosmetic products and make-up are safer, healthier alternatives especially when these products are composed of all natural ingredients. A natural product is described as one that contains mostly or completely naturally derived ingredients (Antczak, 2001). It also indicates that the product is free from, or contains minute amounts of artificial chemical additives. Caution is required when products claim to be natural. For instance, they may contain small amounts of plant extracts, but the bulk of the product is petroleum based and loaded with fragrances. Instead, consider switching to completely natural products, which perform to the same standard as their non-natural counterparts. The Organic Make-up Company offers a wide range of simple, affordable and high quality products. Our cosmetic products are carefully formulated from plant waxes, plant oils, essential oils from flowers, barks and spices, as well as richly coloured mineral pigments.

Switching to all-natural cosmetic products and make-up can help you to avoid feeding your skin harmful chemicals. Many skin problems, such as acne, contact dermatitis, irritations and allergies may disappear once petroleum or synthetic ingredients are removed from your skin care regimen. Using fully natural products can contribute to healthy skin and a healthy body in the long term.

We invite you to give our natural products a try. They are completely natural, vegan and an excellent alternative to conventional cosmetics and make-up.

To view our products, please visit our website at www.organicmakeup.ca.

References:

• Antczak, Dr. Stephen and Gina, (2001). Cosmetics Unmasked, Harper Collins, London.
  
• Begoun, Paula, (1991). Don't Go To The Cosmetics Counter Without Me, Beginnings Press, Seattle.
  
• Fairley, Josephine, (2001). Organic Beauty, DK Publishing, London.
  
• www.abcnews.com, ABC News Internet Ventures, 2000.
  
• www.atsdr.cdc.gov, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, April 2003.

By Lori Stryker, B.Sc., B.H.Ec., B.Ed. http://www.organicmakeup.ca

Lori Stryker has been researching and developing all natural skin care and make-up for the purpose of offering men and women safe, natural cosmetics for everyday use. She brings to her research a specialist in human biology from the University of Toronto, coupled with a professional home economics degree and an education degree from the University of British Columbia, fusing chemical and biological knowledge with food, family and textile sciences.

You may use this article but any modification or publication of this article for fiancial gain must be approved of by the author. The author's name, Lori Stryker and her company's name, The Organic Make-up Company, needs to by noted when used.

info@organicmakeup.ca

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Herbal Skin Care

by Ellen Biddle

Skin care is not a topic of recent times; it has been in practice since ancient times, when herbal skin care was probably the only way to take care of skin. However, skin care has transformed in a big way. Herbal skin care routines have been replaced by synthetic/chemical-based skin care routines. The herbal skin care recipes which once used to be common place are not so popular today (and even unknown to a large population). This transformation from herbal skin care to synthetic, can probably be attributed to two things – our laziness (or just the fast pace of lives) and the commercialisation of skin care. Even herbal skin care products have been commercialised. These commercial herbal skin care products have to be mixed with preservatives in order to increase their shelf-life, hence making them less effective than the fresh ones made at home. However, it seems that things are changing fast and more people are now opting for natural and herbal skin care routines. But still, none want to make them at home and hence the commercial market of herbal skin care products is on the rise.

So what are these herbs or herbal skin care mechanisms?

Aloe vera, which is an extract from Aloe plant, is one of the best examples of herbal skin care product. Freshly extracted aloe vera is a natural hydrant that helps in soothing skin. It also helps in healing cuts and treating sun burns.

A number of herbs are known to possess cleansing properties. Dandelion, chamomile, lime flowers and rosemary herbs, are a few examples of such cleansers. Their herbal skin care properties get invoked when they are combined with other herbs like tea.

Antiseptics are another important part of Herbal skin care. Lavender, marigold, thyme and fennel are good examples of herbs that are known to possess antiseptic properties. Lavender water and rose water also form good toners.

Tea plays an important part in herbal skin care. Tea extracts are used for treatment of skin that has been damaged by UV radiation.

Oils prepared from herbal extracts present another means of herbal skin care. Tea tree oil, Lavender oil, borage oil and primrose oil are some popular oils used in herbal skin care. Some fruit oils (e.g. extracts from fruits like banana, apple and melon) find use in shower gels (as a hydrating mix)

Homeopathic treatments and aromatherapies also come under the umbrella of herbal skin care remedies.

Herbal skin care is good not only for the routine nourishing of skin but also for treatment of skin disorders like eczema and psorasis. Most herbal skin care products don’t have any side effects (the most important reason for preferring them over synthetic products) Moreover, herbal skin care products can be easily made at home, hence making them even more attractive. So, herbal skin care is the way to go. However, this does not mean that you totally discard the synthetic products. Some people go to the extent of debating with their dermatologist, if he/she suggests a synthetic product. You should accept the fact that some skin orders might need usage of clinically proven non-herbal skin care products.

Many skin care tips and articles: http://www.ultimate-cosmetics.com/beauty/skin-care.htm

Copyright http://www.ultimate-cosmetics.com

Ellen Biddle for http://www.ultimate-cosmetics.com. Find lots of makeup and beauty tips here with many useful articles on skin care (http://www.ultimate-cosmetics.com/beauty/skin-care.htm). Also learn how to get rid of dark circles under eyes (http://www.ultimate-cosmetics.com/dark-circles.htm).

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