Archive for October 25th, 2009
Acne is a problem most people will battle at some time in their life. Whether it’s a minor break out or a serious condition will deem what kind of treatment, if any, is required to help tackle the problem and prevent scarring and permanent skin damage.
If acne is very serve, medical advice is often warranted for dealing with outbreaks. However, minor cases can be treated at home without too much difficulty. Making the choice on how to proceed should include the severity of breakouts, the duration of breakouts and if visible damage is occurring to the skin. If visible damage is present, checking with a doctor is absolutely in order.
To battle acne, it is first advisable to understand what it is. The condition basically is a blockage of the pores of the skin. When pores become blocked due to oils or dirt or both, eruptions can occur. These can be white heads, which are raised bumps on the skin filled with a pussy liquid, or blackheads, which are inverted breakouts. Both are filled with oil and bacteria.
Although medical science doesn’t completely understand why acne occurs, since it can happen at any age, in any skin type or color, many myths surrounding the condition have been debunked. Some prevalent myths include that chocolate, sugar and seafood cause acne. There is no proof to support the notion that diet causes acne. Stress, too, is often blamed, but this doesn’t seem to be the case either.
For those who think that face washing will automatically clear up acne, they’re wrong. Blemishes take place when a pore collapses from deep within the skin. They don’t start from the top down. Too much washing can irritate skin and actually make acne worse. A rough washcloth can further irritate the situation. Washing of course is important for overall hygiene, but excessive washing or scrubbing can cause more problems.
The best way to treat acne is to understand what kind it is and proceed. For those who feel the condition doesn’t require medical attention, over the counter remedies often work very well. The options here include benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, sulfur and other topical agents. These can work extremely well in minor to moderate cases and should be tried when possible. Following package instructions and using proper skin care techniques can also benefit the condition.
If acne is very pronounced, it is smart to consider seeing a doctor. Since severe acne can lead to scarring, it’s important to be seen before the situation becomes too advanced. A small break out from time to time is normal. In fact, babies and seniors might even experience a break out once in a while. Pregnant women are particularly prone to occasional break outs. This type of break out can benefit from home care and often show signs of improvement very quickly. A single pimple or even three doesn’t equate to severe acne, so relax.
Severe breakouts are not normal. Seek help and follow medical advice.
No matter how it manifests, acne is an embarrassing condition. A single pimple or a face-full of them is never good news. For the best results, use good cleansing practices at home, topical solutions if necessary and seek help in severe cases
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Here is reality. When you try to purchase anti aging skin care products you soon realize that there are an infinite amount of products on the market to choose from. The skin care business is massive and companies know that consumers will spend an unlimited amount of money in order to make their skin look younger.
Evidence of this is the field of plastic surgery where billions are spent by consumers each year in hopes of bringing back a more youthful appearance, and the same can be said for anti aging skin cream.
When talking about the skin care market, nearly a billion dollars is spent every year by consumers who fall victim to manufacturers who market products just so they can increase their bottom line without showing any real interest in the consumer.
With this being said, don’t lose faith because there are some excellent products on the market. Well, how do you know which products to buy? I wrote this article in order to help you to make an informed decision when purchasing skin care products.
#1
When purchasing products, you should avoid those that contain fragrances. Why? Even though these anti aging skin care products may have a pleasant smell, the pleasant smell is created by toxins which, when applied to the skin, can cause long term damage. How do they cause long term damage? Your skin is porous and when the creams are applied to the skin, these toxins are soaked up by your body and enter your bloodstream which can unknowingly affect your health.
If your desire is to smell pretty and not to cause unexpected damage to your body, then use perfume or some other type of spray. Why? When you use perfume or a body spray, you can apply this to very lightly with just a couple of sprays to your body or clothes where as with an anti aging skin cream product, you will apply these toxins to your entire face and body.
#2
If an anti aging skin care product contains collagen, you will want to stay away from those as well. As you well know, your skin begins to wrinkle and age because the collagen begins to break down in your body. This is one of the ways that these companies are taking advantage of their consumer. What? That does not make any sense.
I’ll explain. It all has to do with the size of the collagen molecules. Whereas toxins are small enough to be absorbed by your skin, the molecules that collagen is composed of are larger than your bodies pores and thus they cannot be absorbed by the skin. The result is that the user will receive no real benefit from using them. What is needed is a product that helps the skin to regenerate and begin to produce more collagen, not one that applies collagen to the top of your skin.
#3
The key to any successful business is marketing, and the companies that manufacturer anti aging skin care products realize this and thus they spend more money on marketing products instead of producing products that their consumers will actually benefit from the most. Examples are the types of individuals who are paid to market these products such as singers, models, or some other individual of fame or the glamorous and extravagant packing that these skin care products are contained in. These companies realize that if they can appeal to consumer’s interest in celebrities, whether it is through print, radio, or TV, their products will sell.
For an example of this, just watch commercials. Who do they have advertising for them? Singers, models, athletes, movie stars, etc. Who is selling the latest release of skin care products and what do you think they are compensated for their advertisement and effort?
Millions you say? I agree and not to mention royalties and all at the benefit of the consumer. In order to pay for these types of advertisements, these companies must and do raise the price of their products costing the consumer valuable money out of their pockets. Is there a way to avoid this? In my opinion, the small companies that have not spent millions of dollars in advertisements, but who instead invested in the quality of there product and are not as widely known, are the best route to go when looking to purchase anti aging skin care products.
These smaller companies take pride in their products by making sure that they are producing a quality product at an affordable price, which is the result of not having to pay millions for some infamous individual to advertise their products. It is my opinion that a smaller company that produces a skin care product which does not contain toxins or collagen and has not been approved by a celebrity, will not only be more beneficial to the pocketbooks of consumers, but also to the health of consumers. As an examiner of these types of companies and products, consumers will fare much better if they purchase products that are produced by companies whose goal is to benefit the consumer and not to appeal to their glamour side.
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This is a request from itismebutterfly FACE: Fair, Combination, Sensitive, Acne Prone, Fine Lines, Large Pores Daily: Organic Coconut Oil $5.99 Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Foaming Scrub, Pink Grapefruit $7.99* St. Ives Apricot Scrub, Renew & Firm $3.99* Murad Skin Perfecting Lotion $33* Jergens Natural Glow Healthy Complexion Daily Facial Moisturizer, Fair to Medium $8.49* Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado $24.50*** Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Gel $38** Twice Monthly Treatments …
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sorry I had to reupload to make the sound better. hopefully it is this time
www.xsparkage.com http Promo code NEUTROGENA10 Leave comments and video responses of your current skincare regime! Share what works best for you
What do you do to keep your face clear? I really hope this helps some of you! This is one of the number one things I am asked about, so I hope this helps some of you.
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A professional skin care regime is one of the most important parts of maintaining your skin’s health. Your skin is not a smooth surface like a sheet of glass. On the contrary, your skin is more like a riverbed, full of little lumps, bumps, crevasses and holes. You can give these dermatological names such as fine lines, pores, sebaceous glands, etc., but at the end of the day the fact remains your skin is far from a flat, smooth surface.
Because of this and because your skin is a living, breathing part of your body and fulfils several major functions including temperature regulation, immune defence, protection from the external environment, etc., you will need to look after it if you wish to have it work at its optimal level and hope to have good, healthy skin into your late 70’s and beyond.
What about the type of products I should use for my skin care regime?
You should always choose natural skin care products as many commercially mass-produced skin care products utilise potentially toxic chemicals and highly modified ‘natural’ ingredients.
Wildcrafted Herbal Products hand makes a range of holistically-natural skin care products suitable for your particular skin type. These products are based on traditional naturopathic principles and utilize herbal extracts and essential oils to produce lasting effects.
Their products are designed to benefit your skin’s health for the long term and include only the best ingredients suitable for your specific skin type.
Daily Skin Care Regime
Cleansing your skin
Cleansing your skin is one of the most important steps if you want to maintain a healthy, vibrant and youthful looking skin.
As well as providing the basis for an advanced skin care regime, effective cleansing can actually improve the quality of our skin, enhancing its radiance and keeping it looking younger for longer.
Thorough cleansing is one of the most important steps of a complete skin care regime. Cleansing of your skin should be done morning and night to ensure the removal of surface impurities, make-up, and stale skin oils. When regularly performed cleansing will enhance the skin’s ability to breathe and maintain its other important functions.
One of the best ways to do this is to make cleansing your skin part of your daily skin care regime.
This is how you do it:
First, moisten your face with lukewarm water. Then apply a small amount of facial cleanser. Gently spread the product over your skin, using light, circular movements. At this stage, spend an extra minute massaging the product into your face to boost your skin’s circulation and help decongestion.
Secondly, be sure to be gentle, your skin is a delicate organ and needs to be treated with care and respect.
Lastly, rinse off the cleanser, using lukewarm water and pat your face dry.
If you are still using ordinary soap, STOP. You are seriously compromising the health of your skin. Throw it away and start using a quality cleanser.
Toning your skin
Toning is the second step in your daily skin care regime. These days, women often leave this step out and yet it is just as important as the cleansing of your skin or the moisturizing. It is a must include step. The one or two minutes it takes are worth every second if you desire to have healthy, vibrant skin with a minimum of lines and wrinkles. Don’t leave this step out.
You have just spent time cleaning your skin, ridding it of stale oils, makeup, dead skin cells and other impurities, now you have to tone your skin.
A quality cleanser may contain such ingredients as clay. This helps to remove dead skin cells and other impurities, but may not rinse off totally. This is why you need to use a quality toner.
Firstly, it removes every last bit of the cleanser such as the fine clay particles and other residues from the cleansing process.
Secondly it will close the skin’s pores to protect it from further loss of moisture, which invariably happens when cleansing your face.
Thirdly it provides nutrients and restores the pH balance of your skin.
Now that is worth spending a minute or two, isn’t it?
Moisturising your skin
This is the third part of your daily skin care regime and should also be done morning and night using a day crème in the morning and a night crème before retiring.
A quality moisturiser protects your facial skin from environmental damage, provides nutrients for the skin and prevents loss of moisture, thereby slowing down the aging process.
In addition, a moisturiser should help to maintain the acid mantle of your skin, which is part of your immune system and if the pH of your skin becomes too acidic or alkaline, the acid mantel is compromised.
Weekly Regime
To complete your skin care regime, you should set aside a few minutes once a week, preferably at the weekend to deeply cleanse and nourish your skin. Your weekly treats should include, the use of a Facial Mask and Exfoliation.
These treatments encourage cellular repair, step up collagen production and help strengthen, tone and firm up your skin.
Facial Clay Mask:
Using a clay mask will help to draw toxins from your skin, whilst moisturising and nourishing the skin at the same time. There are different clays that will work for specific skin types and choosing the right products containing the clay that is most suitable to your skin type is important. There are 3 basic clays: Green, Yellow and Red.
Exfoliation
Think of Exfoliation from this perspective. Exfoliation removes dead skin cells, soothes the skin and improves its tone. Dead skin cells are the very top layer of your skin. Applying moisturiser to dead skin cells does not make sense, does it? So exfoliation, removes the dead skin cells, promotes blood circulation and helps to invigorate and prepare the skin to more easily absorb any moisturising product you apply.
Exfoliation also helps speed up the rate of cell turn over. Another word for exfoliation is scrubbing. Using a facial scrub at least once a week, makes your skin more receptive to creams and treatments. However care must be taken not to over exfoliate.
The aim is to remove any dead cells from the skins surface without disturbing the healthy cells beneath.
In conclusion, to follow a skin care regime is like taking out an insurance policy on the health and vitality of your skin. Can you afford not to follow a complete, daily skin care regime?
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I’ve finally reached 100000 subscribers, thank you so much! and what better way to celebrate than with champagne? Cheers to success and beautiful skin using champagne. Yep, thats right, you can use less than a sip of your champagne as a detoxifying cleanser…or I’d say more like a toner instead. Detailed Blog Entry here ricebunny.xanga.com My Skin Care Line IQQU iqqubeauty.com IQQU Sunscreen Review http
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Skin Care Tips
Skin Types and Skin Care:
It is really important for you to be able to identify your skin type. This is to enable you to look after your skin correctly. Also the selection of your cosmetics is, to a considerable extent, influenced by your skin type. Although no two skins are exactly similar most have characteristics which enable them to be grouped into one of the following types: Dry skin, Normal skin, Combination skin and Oily skin.
Dry Skin: Dry skin needs extra care, as it is prone to fine lines and wrinkles. This is especially true during the winter months when it feels even drier and may feel too taut or may even flake. A few measures help alleviate dryness and keep your skin supple and, at the same time, guard against premature aging.
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1. Always wash your face with a mild, soap-free face wash. Never use soap, as that would further strip your skin of natural oil.
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2. Always use a moisturizer during the day. Use upward, circular motion to lightly massage the moisturizer into your face. Make sure not to pull or tug your skin.
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3. You should consider using a night cream before going to bed at night. It is advisable to use a cream that contains Alpha Hydroxy Acids(or AHA’s, as they’re commonly known).AHA’s are derived from sources such as milk, fruit and sugar-cane. These acids gently exfoliate the dry, dead, outermost layers of skin while they moisturize the newly revealed layers. They greatly benefit complexions that look dull, dry or flaky and they give your skin a beautiful glow.
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Home Remedies For Dry Skin
1. Add 1/2 tsp of rose water to 1 tsp of honey and gently apply to the face. Leave it for about 15-20 minutes, and then wash off with tepid water. Honey moisturizes and soothes dry skin, and is gentle enough for daily use.
2. Massaging you face regularly with almond oil or olive oil works wonders for dry skin.
3. Take 1/4 of an apple. Peel off the skin and grate. Cool in the refrigerator. Apply it on the skin and leave it on for 15 minutes. Wash off with cool water. Apple helps soothe dry skin and gives it a pleasant glow.
- Normal Skin Normal skin is usually trouble-free and needs simple care to keep it healthy and glowing. Normal skin also tolerates most popular lotions and creams as well. A regular skin-care program combined with a balanced, healthy diet helps keep normal skin stay supple and young. Regular care for normal skin should include a few simple steps.
1. Cleansing, toning, and moisturizing daily keeps normal skin in great shape for a long time. It is advisable to use natural products on your skin.
2. Creams and lotions that contain vitamin A, C and E help improve the texture of your skin, making it smoother and softer. Moreover, these vitamins counter the effects of free radicals.
3. Even if your skin is normal, you still have to give it regular care. Your skin, like any other skin type, is constantly assaulted by free radicals. Free radicals are molecules formed in the skin when it is exposed to the environment, pollution, or sunlight.
Home Remedies For Normal Skin
- Mash 1/4 of a ripe banana. Apply on the face, taking care to avoid the areas under the eye. Leave it on for 10 minutes, then wash off with cool water. Banana is excellent to do away with dead skin that makes your skin look lifeless. Regular use of banana gives your skin a fresh, healthy glow.
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“Serious skin care” is about maintaining a healthy and glowing skin all through your life. As you grow older, your body’s natural skin care mechanisms become weaker. So, “serious skin care” is about responding to the changing needs of your skin. Thus, “serious skin care” is about constantly evaluating, analysing and changing your skin care routines. Your skin care routine should change based on the environmental conditions, your age and changes in your skin type.
Skin care is also about awareness. With the technological advancements and research, more and more facts are being brought to light everyday. Also, the composition and nature of skin care products seems to be changing with time. So trying out the new products is also a part of this care. However, serious skin care advises using a new product over a small patch of skin (not facial skin) first, just to see how your skin reacts to it.
Serious skin care also means knowing how to use your products. Good practices include things like applying the moisturizers while the skin is damp, using upward strokes for better penetration of skin care products, removing the make up before going to bed, cleansing before moisturising or applying make up, using the correct amount of products, etc. Thus, increasing the effectiveness of your skin care products is another focus area of care.
Some precautions, like avoiding contact with detergents, are also part of serious skin care. Serious skin care means being gentle with your skin. Things like over-exfoliation, use of low quality products, and application of strong-chemical based products, are all harmful to your skin. Some people have a wrong notion about this. For them serious skin care is – using large quantities of products as often as possible. However, this really isn’t serious skin care (and that’s why awareness is so important).
Serious skin care is also about visiting your dermatologist for treatment of skin disorders. Ignoring the skin disorders can be fatal for your skin and might lead to permanent damage. So, if the things don’t improve with over the counter medication, you should immediately visit a dermatologist. Self-surgery e.g. squeezing of acne/pimples is a big no (it can lead to permanent damage of your skin).
So, seriously serious skin care is more about precautions and preventive measures (than treatment). It is about being proactive as well as reactive. In fact, we can say that it is about being proactive about the needs of your skin so that the need for being reactive is reduced to a minimum.
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Natural skin care is one of the many things you can do to keep your life, your body and the environment free from artificial, chemically-based ingredients, some of which may actually be toxic. All natural skin care, sometimes known as organic skin care is a great way to keep your complexion in top condition. Here’s some information about natural beauty products that might be useful to women (and savvy men) in the UK.
It’s All About the Ingredients
Natural skin care products are formulated to be as luxurious some of the most popular “mainstream” brands, but express a holistic philosophy that’s reflected in the ingredients used and the manufacturing process. Often crafted in small batches, the best natural skincare products emphasize the skin’s health and vibrancy without sacrificing effectiveness. Also, natural organic skincare often avoids the use of harsh, harmful or ingredients like artificial fragrance, artificial color, mineral oil, PEGs, silicone, ethoxylates, glycols and parabens. Natural skincare formulations should avoid even some natural substances that might prove to irritate skin, such as citrus extracts. Allergy issues are important too, so these products need to be free of ingredients like peanut oil or other nut-based oils. If you take the time to read the label, you’re likely to find that a natural skin care product isn’t totally free of synthetic ingredients. These ingredients are often required to assure the freshness and shelf life of a product. The best natural skin care products are carefully crafted blends that use sound scientific formulations and practices to deliver pure and long-lasting products. Here are a few examples:
Instead using of silicone to provide “slip” and a smooth texture to the product, organic skin care might substitute a natural substance like olive oil or even exotic natural oils like jojoba, kukui or elipe, or kokum or mango butter.
Organic beauty products might use natural witch hazel and plant extracts and instead of detergents.
Natural beauty skin care products are often rich in antioxidants that help counter the detrimental effects of free radicals. Free radicals are formed when oxygen interacts with other substances, causing a destructive chain reaction that kills or damages cells. Antioxidants intervene in the chain reaction and halt its progress. Ingredients like olive oil, olive leaf and white tea are powerful antioxidants, as are herbs like aloe vera, ginkgo and grape seed.
Some Alarming Numbers
It’s estimated that many women use up to 12 products per day on their skin. These products can contain up to 177 different chemicals and substances. It’s no wonder that so many women suffer from irritated skin! Women who use all natural skin care products, however, often find that irritated skin is calmed, which in turn prevents the irritation from escalating into inflammation that can lead to serious problems like skin cancer. Why not try some natural skin care products? You’re sure to love the results, along with growing numbers of women in the UK.
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In an attempt to get shiny and radiant skin many people will spend tons of money and time using the latest skin products. But often they don’t see permanent results, or any results for that matter. Yet they still believe that the latest skin cream on the market is going to solve all of their skin problems.
When you follow the following skin care tips you won’t need all those skin care products, all you will need is one or two organic skin creams to enhance your beautiful skin. The main thing you need to understand is that if your skin is not healthy and shiny right now if you follow these tips you can get results.
But understand it takes time, effort, and in the short-term your skin may even get worse before it gets better as you cleanse your body of harmful toxins.
Skin Care Tips – Work Out
You need to get fit and healthy if you want your skin to shine. If you look at most people who take care of their body by working out and eating healthy food (organic fruits vegetables, and nuts) they have excellent skin.
This is because when you work out you naturally expel harmful toxins from your body. Your body gets these toxins mainly from your environment, processed food, and chemicals. And they are released through your skin.
Your body gets rid of toxins quickly when you are sweating, for example, but if you live a sedentary lifestyle and don’t work out toxins take longer to get out of the body and therefore they will show up on your skin as acne, blemishes, rashes, discoloration etc.
Skin Care Tips – Eat Organic
Basically, your skin reflects how you are treating your body and what you are putting into it. So, you need to eat right in order to get that radiant skin you have always wanted.
You need to eat organic food as much as you can afford to because it is not filled with the chemicals (toxins) that processed food is. Next time you go food shopping think of it this way, pretty much everything in the aisles is all junk full of chemicals that give you bad skin. Everything around the outside of the store is pretty much okay to eat and won’t show up on your skin.
If you are unsure if a food is healthy just read the ingredients. Ingredients should be other kinds of food not chemicals.
Skin Care Tips – Watch The Sun and The Sunscreen
The third skin care tip is that you need to watch how much time you spend in the sun. You do want to spend 10 – 15 minutes a day in the sun if you can so your body can get the vitamin D it needs.
Also get your sunscreen at your local health food store so it is natural. Commercial sunscreens contain chemicals that harm your skin.
Skin Care Tips – Stress
It is well documented that stress causes much harm to the human body. Another of the skin care tips for maintaining healthy skin is to reduce or avoid stress. While all stress is not possible to eliminate, learning to deal with it can remove some of the worry lines that are carved into many foreheads and around the eyes. Learn yoga, tai chi, meditation techniques, or just exercise for stress management.
Skin Care Tips – Clean Hands
Ask any health expert and they will tell you that the hands are one of the biggest enemies of facial skin. Washing your hands frequently and refraining from touching your face will prevent the transfer of germs and bacteria to the skin on your face.
Once you follow the above skin care tips you can use your favorite natural skin cream to enhance the appearance of your skin even further. That is really what skin creams are meant for anyway. The companies won’t tell you that because they want you buy a lot of their product, but the truth is that you need “good skin to have good skin,” not good creams.
Having good skin comes from being healthy and fit. Don’t think that having great skin is easy though, it takes work, determination and motivation to get healthy.
Give the above skin care tips a try and you will see results. Good luck on your journey towards health and wellness!






