Purely Personal Skin Care

When we think of skin moisturizers, a lot of us think of the cold winter weather first, and how skin becomes chapped and dry. However, summer can be just as bad as winter for skin due to exposure to the sun. It’s important to keep skin moisturized with skin moisturizer.

There are several different kinds of sunblock that can also serve as skin moisturizer, and these can work to protect against sunburn, but won’t help as much with hydrating the skin and preventing it from cracking and peeling. For people who live in humid areas, moisturizing might not be as necessary, but for people who live in the desert or in areas with dry weather, moisturizing is essential. It’s also important to keep chapstick on hand, because the lips can become burned by the sun’s rays in addition to the skin. In fact, sunburns on the lips can be even more devastating than on the other areas of the body, so always put on chapstick, and make sure it is the correct SPF to protect against the sun.

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Lipids are natural fats found between cells layers in the epidermis.  Their function is to conserve moisture since water cannot pass through them very easily.  As we age, we need to supplement our natural lipids with lipid drops, which help keep your skin moisturized and healthy.

Environmental stress coupled with natural aging tends to decrease the lipid content of the skin that leads to a moisture loss.  Those Lipid Drops will reverse these effects and result in softer, smoother skin – a natural moisturizer.

Used daily, lipid drops help restore the skin’s ceremides and sphingolipids, immediately giving the skin a softer look and feel by rejuvenating the skin’s abilility to hold moisture.

We do hear confusing things about the sun and its harmful rays.  Warnings of skin cancer are prevalent and for good reason.  However, when the sun’s rays touch our skin our bodies produce Vitamin D.  We know Vitamin D is extremely important for our health.  Studies have now verified that people with low Vitamin D levels exhibit higher levels of several common types of cancer, including colon and breast.

How much Vitamin D do we need and where can we get it?  Well we can get about 200 units a day from food and supplements usually contain about 400 – we need 1, 000 units a day to keep our cells healthy.  Spending 10 minutes a day in the sun in the middle of the day with our face and arms exposed can produce 1,000 units.  Believe it or not, with our air conditioned existence a lot of people are not in the sun even that long.   For that short amount of time, it’s actually good to be unprotected by sun screen.

So, science has confirmed the old wisdom that sunlight is essential to and beneficial for all living things. While you’re at it, slather up with sunscreen after the first 10 minutes, take a walk, dine on some fresh fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water – now we’re talking healthy living!

Protecting your skin from the harmful rays of the sun is such an obvious thing to do – though few people do.  But it’s just as important to be vigilant to the needs of your skin when away from the sun.

We can assume many conditions can cause your skin to lose its proper moisture balance – wrong products containing damaging chemicals, aging and then there’s aging and maybe aging.  Anti-aging using the right products can be effective – not the whole answer but better than nothing.

How can you find the right moisturizer for you?  Unless you are very young, you probably know your skin type.  That narrows the quest somewhat.  Another part of the equation is the environment in which you live.  Summer sun rays or winter winds can factor in.  So does the way your home is heated or cooled and whether you live in a high or low humidity climate.  A humidifier can do wonders to help your retain moisture as well as facial steams and facial masks.

Moisturizers containing algae peptides, Vitamins and other natural ingredients are what you should look for.  Most over-the-counter products contain chemicals, some that can be harmful to your skin.  Your best bet is dermatologist formulated products using natural ingredients in proportions that can actually do some good to your facial skin.

When in doubt, find a good dermatologist and ask – ask each season as your skin’s needs can change with the environment.  Either way, moisturize in the morning and before bed.  Nightime is especially important to cleanse away the day’s accumulated grime and to use a night cream that will work with your body to rejuvenate your skin while you sleep.

Facials improve your skin and appearance, but they can cost anywhere from $50 to a couple of hundred dollars or more.

If you’ve never had a facial, these are the steps to expect:

Cleansing, skin analysis, exfoliating, blackhead extraction, facial massage, facial mask, application of toners    and creams.

A facial should leave your skin clean and refreshed.  If you’ve been treated to an oxygen facial and had your face painted with caviar, you know your skin-care budget has taken a major hit.

Here we come to save the day!  High level counsel and product advice is available and affordable.  Maybe you should give some thought to a facial spa at home.  There are skin care products to answer all you will get with a spa facial and at a much better price.  In place of a facial massage you can do facial exercises.  For example, try saying the vowels in the most exaggerated manner you can imagine.  Feel all of the facial and neck muscles contracting?  Do these exercises whenever you can – and when you are alone, unless you wish to attract an amused crowd.  Natural cleansers, exfoliation, facial masks for many different purposes, moisturizers, anti-aging products – for all different skin types are available in dermatologist-formulated  strength and you can enjoy them in the comfort of your own home.  Many facial masks for example can be beneficial if left on over night.  Hard to do at a spa.

Do a little surfing and some research or make an appointment for one visit with a dermatologist to get your skin analyzed and have products and/or specific product ingredients recommended.

Your skin is the largest organ in your body – pamper it.

All quality cleansers are formulated for people with different types of skin.  Cleansers with salicylic acid, for example, are better for people with oily or normal skin rather than dry.   They’re excellent for curbing breakouts.  However, they may overdry and irritate dry skin, thus making the skin appear and feel worse.  That can be alleviated with the addition of moisturizing and soothing agents.

People with such sensitivity should find cleansers that are pH balanced, contain few irritants, suit many varying skin types and don’t make the skin feel dehydrated directly after cleansing.  For example, an antioxidant moisture wash.  Chamomile extracts and algae peptides highlight the antioxidant moisture wash while soothing and hydrating the skin.  Daily use promotes softer, smoother skin and helps reduce surface dryness.

Another cleansing possibility for dry or normal skin would be lavendar and aloe uniting in a creamy wash that soothes and replenishes moisture to the skin, leaving it ultra soft and clean.

Obviously we urge…never continue using a cleanser that upsets the balance of the skin.  Cleansers should work with the skin , not against it.  A trial and error approach may be wise, but a trip to your dermatologist may save time and money.

Our dictionary (Microsoft’s Encarta) tells us a cleanser, noun (1) is something we use to clean something thoroughly, (2) a cosmetic product for cleaning the face.

Wikipedia (that great free encyclopedia) tells us straight off…a cleanser is a facial care product used to remove make-up, dead skin cells, oil, dirt and other types of pollutants from the skin of the face.  They’re used to scare off those free-radicals.

It also tells us using a cleanser is a better alternative to bar soap or another form of skin cleansor not specifically formulated for the face.  We can assume that the specific formulations are specified by those dedicated dermatologists often referred to on quality cleanser labels.

A humectant is a substance used to help retain moisture.  Many skin care products contain humectants to aid the skins natural oil producers in keeping the skin moist and smooth.

The water content of the skin varies, but for the epidermis, it is about 80%.  The very surface of the skin, the stratum corneum, is made up of dead skin cells and this layer is much drier, with water content varying between 10 and 30%.  If those dead cells aren’t removed often, the skin can take on an ashen, dull look.  That’s where exfoliates come in.  When the dead skin cells are removed, the skin takes on a healthy glow, especially when followed by a rich moisturizer.

Skin that has low water content will dry and fissure, making it more prone to both bacterial and fungal infection.  Moisturizers are designed to reduce water loss from the epidermis.  The stratum corneum acts as an occlusive layer – waterproofing the skin.  Enriched moisture creams containing anti-oxidants like Vitamin E and algae peptides combine to hydrate the skin.  Mix in a little glycerin to absorb moisture from the air and you have a very effective “humectant” cream.

Many skin types require different skin care.  Experiment and find the products that are most effective on your skin.  Choose carefully from clinically tested products with natural ingredients.

Sun avoidance and regular use of sun block are usually promoted by organizations, doctors and other individuals interested in skin cancer prevention.  However, 70% of those participating in a beach survey were on the beach for an average of four hours, and only half were using any sunscreen.

Skin cancer reports should carry such a compelling message these days, compared to fifty years ago when the sun was regarded as being much more friendly.  Sunblocks and Sunscreens are advertised and touted everywhere.  You would think compliance would be close to universal as warnings and information are distributed in all media.  “The sun can hurt you!  The sun can kill you!”

Well, some people do use sunscreen to prevent sunburn, whereas many use it just to improve sun tanning.  A lot of people wish to avoid the wrinkling associated with sun exposure, yet others just use sun block to prolong their time in the sun to prevent burning.

If seat-belts can become mandatory, can sun block be next?  Why not?  Medical bills and funerals traced to sun induced skin cancer are huge.