The Science of Skin Care

Research and development departments of many cosmetic companies use the science of aging skin to come up with state-of-the-art products that address many of the reasons why skin appears to age as well as taking into consideration the proper daily procedures necessary to maintain healthy, radiant skin.

The first step is determining the essential steps in one?s daily routine that maintain healthy skin:
?Cleanse - remove makeup and impurities.
?Exfoliate - remove the dead surface cells that dull the skin.
?Freshen - refine the pores as well as tone the skin.
?Moisturize - keep your skin hydrated, soft and supple.
?Protect - your skin from the environment (sun and pollution).

Then they develop products that address all the factors in the aging process:
?The breakdown of collagen and elastin in the skin.
?The chronic loss of hydration and the skin?s diminishing ability to retain moisture.
?Protection from the most damaging factor of all ? the sun.
?And lastly, providing antioxidants that protect the body against free radical damage.

So, why does skin age?
Many people watch (for the most part) what they eat? Why? ?Because, they know that proper nutrition and a balanced diet help maintain a healthy weight and provide their organs with the ?Fuel? they need to function properly?Right?

That?s great, but what about your body?s largest organ? The only organ visible to the eye?YOUR SKIN! It?s amazing, but the skin is your largest organ and it is largely ignored. Well, your skin needs to be properly cared for, for it to function properly as well!

Your skin is an ever growing organ that keeps the good things in and the bad things out. Formation of new, healthy skin cells requires good nutrition, protection from harmful environmental stress, and proper daily skin care.

As we grow older the proteins in the skin called collagen and elastin begin to diminish. Collagen is a tough protein that protects the skin against tearing and elastin provides the skin with its ability to return to shape after pressure is applied, in other words, its elasticity. Therefore, in our quest for more youthful looking skin, it is essential that we use products that help protect and replenish these proteins.

A second reason why skin appears to wrinkle has to do with the loss of hydration. As we age, our skin loses its ability to retain moisture. Therefore it is critical that we replace the lost moisture and use products that help the skin retain the new moisture we have just given it. Many people tend to confuse oily skin with moisture in the skin. The two are not the same. It is possible and even common to have oily skin that is improperly hydrated or even dehydrated.

The third element that acts as a major factor in the aging process of the skin is, of course, the sun. Excessive sun exposure damages the immune system in the skin, destroys both collagen and elastin production and kills normal skin cells. Heat and cold also damage skin and reduce its functionality. It is highly recommended that both men and women use a sunscreen product specially formulated for your face area with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 15 or greater on a daily basis. This will help protect your skin from everyday, incidental sun exposure as well as give you necessary summer-time protection. We all know it is important to use sunscreen during the summer months. However, the UVB rays of the sun that cause the more subtle long-term breakdown of the skin are present in full force from sunrise to sunset, 365 days a year. It is, therefore, important to use sunscreen products daily, during the entire year.

The last element that has become more and more of a danger to the skin as well as the rest of the body, both inside and out, is pollution. With more and more pollution in the air, the body is increasingly exposed to nasty chemicals called free radicals. A free radical is a chemical with a very reactive chemical bond. The chemical bonds, which hold atoms together to make molecules, contain pairs of electrons. A free radical essentially has no pair, therefore it will steal an electron from other molecules in order to gain a pair for its? lone electron. The structure of the molecule that loses the electron is then changed, thus causing damage resulting in speeding up the aging process of the skin. Antioxidants such as vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E help protect your body's cells, including your skin cells.

I personally use Mary Kay's anti-aging skin care system because it works. The research and development team has has taken all of this into consideration and developed a product line that when used all together significantly improves the natural aging process, helps bring moisture balance back to the skin and protects the skin from environmental stress factors that damage and thus pre-maturely age the skin. And this is the system that I recommend to my clients as well.

Have a great day!

Dawn Hull Professional Skin Care Consultant http://www.MaryKay.com/ShopOnline

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Real Beauty Comes From Within

Since real beauty comes from within, it's important that your beauty products bring out your best natural qualities. Natural beauty product reviews can help you choose which products are best suited to your own individual needs.

One popular type of natural beauty product is stretch mark removal cream. Since stretch marks are pretty common--their causes range from pregnancy to body building--a lot of people can be helped by a natural, effective treatment for them. While reading natural beauty product reviews, I noticed that the best stretch mark remedies contain high amounts of Emu Oil, Aloe Vera Gel, Collagen, Elastin and Vitamin E. When these key ingredients are combined in a highly concentrated cream, they can not only help reduce stretch marks you already have, but actually help prevent new ones from forming!

One of the most helpful things about natural beauty product reviews is that they tell you about the ingredients in the best beauty products out there. Whenever you're looking for skin treatments--whether it's cellulite cream, spider vein therapy, sunless tanning or stretch mark removal--you want to make sure that the ingredients are safe and actually make your skin look better, not worse. What's the point of diminishing stretch marks if the skin around them becomes red and irritated? Natural beauty products tend to be safer, because they don't include a lot of harsh chemicals in their ingredients.

If you're fair skinned like I am, you know how hard it can be to enjoy the great outdoors. There's nothing unusual about stretch marks or cellulite or spider veins. They are the natural effects of having bodies that grow and change. Using natural, high quality products to safely improve your skin's appearance can help you feel less self-conscious at the beach or in the bedroom.

Then your natural, individual beauty can shine through!

David Stanton
Dermaglow provide natural and organic skin care products to help stretch marks, cellulite and spider viens. http://www.dermaglow.co.uk/index.html

Fighting the Visible Signs of Aging

YOUR SKIN

The skin is the largest organ of the body, and is significantly affected by the aging process. Estrogen receptors have been detected on the cellular components of the skin and lower levels of estrogen influence the skin-cell metabolism. Changes in the skin collagen leads to diminished elasticity and skin strength. There is a distinct reduction of collagen production after menopause. Changes in vascularity are found following menopause. Dermal blood flow decreases significantly in postmenopausal women.

Repair functions in skin are regulated by a group of chemicals called 'cytokines.'. Included in these are epidermal cell growth factor (ECGF), transforming growth factor (TGF), and angiogenesis factor. AF stimulates the rebuilding of the microvascular system within the skin. TGF and ECGF stimulate rapid cell proliferation for the replacement of dead or damaged cells.

Excessive exposure to UV rays causes oxidation of the collagen and elastin fibers in this skin. This, in turn causes 'crosslinking'. Cross-linking causes the collagen in the skin to become tangled and stiffen. This results in sagging and loss of skin elasticity, and allow facial expressions to put deep lines and wrinkles in the skin. Some of this UV damage can be prevented by the use of sunscreens and sunblocks. Some of this damage can be reversed by the use of 'peels' - where the outer layer of the skin is removed by the use of mild acidic formulas, which removes the damaged layers and stimulates the production of a stronger, thicker layer of skin.

Free radicals are molecules created by oxidative chemical reactions within the body. These free radicals damage cellular DNA and cause mutations of the skin cells. Free radical damage can be prevented by the use of anti-oxidants, both internally and topically. Antioxidants attract and bind these free radical molecules, rendering them harmless.

Premature skin aging can be avoided by preventing excess exposure to sunlight and pollutants, as well as providing with skin with the nutrients it needs to repair itself. Provide your skin with the building blocks it needs by maintaining adequate consumption of the following nutrients:

NUTRITION FOR AGING SKIN

ZINC: Zinc is required for collagen production and elastin synthesis, as well as DNA repair. Zinc is required for DNA duplication, which is required for cell division. Zinc is required for the production of certain proteins that remove damaged or mutated tissue as well as for superoxide dismutase, a power antioxidant.

COPPER: Copper helps to stimulate the production of collagen and elastin, helps to thicken the dermis, increases vascularity and oxygenation and works to stimulate superoxide dismutase.

SULFUR: Sulfur is a component of the protein Keratin found in nails, hair and skin. Sulfur is essential for the production of collagen and it is required for the production of the connective tissues.

Vitamin A: The vitamin necessary for healthy skin. A serious lack or excess intake can cause dry, rough skin, among other problems. Ascorbyl palmitate applied on the skin decreased the level of formation of free radicals*.

Vitamin C: Known for its antioxidant properties. Photoprotective properties of topically applied vitamin C have also been demonstrated, indicating its use in the prevention and treatment of skin aging. Topical applications of 5% vitamin C cream is an effective treatment, clinically shown to improve photodamaged skin.**

Vitamin D: Vitamin D has been shown to reverse skin damage, increase wound healing. Vitamin D is produced in the body in response to sunlight, and has been shown to have a beneficial affect on skin repair and hair growth. Vitamin D rarely requires supplementation, and 15 minutes of daily low-sun exposure should stimulate adequate production of this hormone-like vitamin.***

Vitamin E: Vitamin E is a power antioxidant. Experiments show that that it may protect against the degradation of collagen, and prevent skin damage by environmental insult and aging.***

CoQ10 (Ubiquinone): Internal and topical application of CoQ10 has a beneficial effect of preventing photoaging. CoQ10 penetrates into the viable layers of the epidermis and reduces the level of oxidation. Reduction in wrinkle depth following CoQ10 application has also been shown in clinical trials. CoQ10 prevents oxidative DNA damage and suppresses the degradation of collagen.****

References:

*Skin protection against ultraviolet induced free radicals with ascorbyl palmitate in microemulsions. Jurkovic P, Sentjurc M, Gasperlin M, Kristl J, Pecar S. Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia

**Topical ascorbic acid on photoaged skin. Clinical, topographical and ultrastructural evaluation: double-blind study vs. placebo. Humbert PG, Haftek M, Creidi P, Lapiere C, Nusgens B, Richard A, Schmitt D, Rougier A, Zahouani H. Department of Dermatology, Hospital Saint Jacques, University of Franche-Comte, Besancon, France.

***Vitamin D enhances mitogenesis mediated by keratinocyte growth factor receptor in keratinocytes. Gamady A, Koren R, Ron D, Liberman UA, Ravid A. The Basil and Gerald Felsenstein Medical Research Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Petah-Tikva, Israel.

***Age-dependent increase of collagenase expression can be reduced by alpha-tocopherol via protein kinase C inhibition. Ricciarelli R, Maroni P, Ozer N, Zingg JM, Azzi A.Institut fur Biochemie und Molekularbiologie, Universitat Bern, Switzerland.

****Coenzyme Q10, a cutaneous antioxidant and energizer. Hoppe U, Bergemann J, Diembeck W, Ennen J, Gohla S, Harris I, Jacob J, Kielholz J, Mei W, Pollet D, Schachtschabel D, Sauermann G, Schreiner V, Stab F, Steckel F.Paul Gerson Unna Research Center, Beiersdorf AG, Hamburg, Germany

Fawn Bales has studied and practiced natural and alternative medicine for over 20 years, and has also studied aesthetic technology and cosmetology. She is the co-author of two natural beauty reference books and a managing editor and partner of Botanical Beauty Lab, a women's reference for natural health and beauty information located at http://www.botanicalbeautylab.com You can reach her by email at fawn@botanicalbeautylab.com