Holistic Skin Care
« Previous EntriesA Few Reasons a Homemade Wrinkle Cream Might be Preferable
Friday, July 23rd, 2010Why go to the trouble of making a homemade wrinkle cream when you can go to the store and buy something? There are many reasons that you might want to make your own at home. Here’s a look at some of them.
You might be concerned about the safety of the ingredients cosmetic manufacturers use. While questioning the safety of cosmetics is always a good idea. It is easy enough to avoid common allergens, irritants and toxins.
Most allergic reactions are caused by artificial preservatives and fragrance ingredients. Other irritants include petrochemicals, petrolatum, colors, excessive alcohols and mineral oil. You can tell whether or not a product contains toxins by looking for a poison control advisement.
You might be concerned about price. Some anti-aging creams cost hundreds of dollars per ounce, but there are less expensive alternatives. Independent studies have shown that price is not equivalent to effectiveness. Some of the less expensive creams are just as effective as the costly ones.
There are some effective compounds to look for if you do decide to buy a ready-made production instead of trying to make homemade wrinkle cream. Independent researchers have found that ubiquinone, keratin proteins, peptide complexes, plant extracts and some vegetable oils are effective. Those are all natural non-irritating ingredients.
You can make a mask using plants like wakame kelp or a cleanser using lemon juice. You can use soybean oil as a moisturizer. But, you can only buy ubiquinone as a dietary supplement.
It is better known as the antioxidant coenzyme Q10. The form that is taken by mouth will not penetrate the skin. So, it’s not possible to include it as an ingredient in homemade wrinkle cream.
Soybean oil does contain some coenzyme Q10, although the concentration varies from 54mg/kg to 280mg/kg. Whether or not the form present in soybean oil could penetrate the skin is unknown. In order to get the best penetration, researchers have reduced the size of the molecules.
In the reduced form, COQ10 reverses wrinkles and sun damage by about 30% after three months of use. It’s hard to say what kind of results you would see using soybean oil.
Keratin proteins are hard in nature. If you boiled some animal skin or chicken feathers, you might be able to get some keratin out of them to use in a homemade wrinkle cream. But, the cooking process would destroy the nature of the protein.
The only stable bioavailable form of keratin was created by extracting it from sheep’s wool and processing it very carefully. The exact processes are patented. So even if you raise sheep, it’s not something you could learn how to do at home.
Peptide complexes are composed of natural amino acids. They have to be combined just right to provide the results which include stimulating collagen and increased skin cell production. You can’t make peptide complexes at home.
So, my suggestion is to use soybean oil as a moisturizer instead of trying to make a homemade wrinkle cream. But, if you really want something effective, you will have to buy something ready-made.
4 Important Ingredients in Natural Wrinkle Creams
Friday, July 16th, 2010
A natural wrinkle cream containing antioxidants, proteins, plant extracts and nourishing oils could be exactly what you need to improve your skin’s health and appearance. Here’s a look at the benefits of specific ingredients.
Grape Seed Oil
Grape seed oil can be used for cooking. Some chefs like it because of its unique “filming” ability. It forms a film over the pan and the vegetables being cooked. This allows them to use less oil.
When applied to the skin, the film acts to hold moisture in. The benefits of use may include reduced wrinkles, scars and stretch marks. It can help improve circulation. Because of its antioxidant activity, it protects against free radical damage (one of the causes of cellular aging) and it may reduce your risk of skin cancer.
You can purchase grape seed oil at gourmet food stores and use it “as is”. Or, you could look for a natural wrinkle cream that contains it. It may be particularly beneficial for repairing damage around the eyes.
Wakame Kelp Extracts
Wakame is one of the most nutrient-rich varieties of kelp. Kelp is simply another name for seaweed. It is sold in health food stores around the world. The extracts must be properly prepared in order to be used on the skin.
The minerals in wakame are necessary for balancing the skin’s moisture content. The extracts have antioxidant activity and contain B vitamins that help to provide protection from sun damage, another cause of wrinkles.
But, the primary benefit of wakame has to do with the skin’s hyaluronic acid content. Along with collagen and elastin, hyaluronic acid is essential for smooth, firm skin. Without wakame, the skin’s hyaluronic acid content decreases with age. Wakame keeps that from happening.
Coenzyme Q10
Any natural wrinkle cream worth its price will contain coenzyme Q10. There is more scientific evidence supporting its benefits than there is for any other single ingredient.
Coenzyme Q10 is a popular dietary supplement. It is particularly beneficial for the heart. It keeps heart rates stable and helps with some kinds of murmurs.
The concentration of coenzyme Q10 in all of the cells of the body starts to decrease with age. The skin’s COQ10 is quickly depleted during sun exposure.
Scientists have had to reduce the size of the COQ10 molecules in order to allow them to penetrate deep into the skin. A natural wrinkle cream containing this reduced form is beneficial for reducing wrinkles and reversing sun damage. It not only protects against free radical damage. It reverses it.
Vitamin E
You might not know that most of the vitamin E for sale in the US is synthetic, derived from petrochemicals. There are only a few companies that still use the naturally occurring form of the antioxidant.
The benefits of use may include a reduction in fine lines and the prevention of age spots. It can also be used to replace the irritating artificial preservatives that so many companies use.
There are other ingredients that should be included in natural wrinkle cream. You might want to learn a little more about them before you buy.
All Natural Beauty Products, Their Ingredients & How They Work
Friday, July 9th, 2010
The benefits of all natural beauty products depend on what they contain. Here’s a look at some of the compounds you might see on the list of ingredients and the benefits associated with them.
Active Manuka Honey
Active Manuka honey can be found in some of the better body lotions, nighttime facial creams, under eye gels and deep cleansing masks. The benefits have to do with the antioxidant and the antibacterial activity.
Antioxidants of all kinds are beneficial to the skin’s health and appearance. They prevent and sometimes repair free radical damage, which dermatologists believe to be the primary cause of wrinkles, age spots and other visible signs of aging.
The antibacterial activity of Manuka honey will help heal pimples, scrapes and other injuries. It will help prevent those things from becoming infected. It can also help to prevent future pimples caused by over-growth of the P acnes bacteria.
All honey varieties have been used in cosmetics, but few have proven benefits. Manuka honey is tested for its antibacterial and antioxidant activity, before it is shipped. It is graded with a “Unique Manuka Factor”. A high UMF number is equivalent to a highly active honey.
You might think that all natural beauty products would contain manuka. In some cases, it is just not necessary or other ingredients are more beneficial. For example, daytime moisturizers do not usually contain it. As long as you use a nighttime cream that does, you can reap the benefits.
Maracuja
Maracuja is a kind of passion fruit. The tree is native to Brazil. All passion fruits have been included in skincare creams and lotions, because of the antioxidant and the moisturizing benefits.
Maracuja is unique, because it is very similar on a molecular level to the skin’s own oils, which are called sebum. Because of its similarity to sebum, maracuja balances sebum production.
All natural beauty products containing the ingredient will help prevent your skin from becoming too dry or too oily.
That also means it can be used by any complexion type; oily, dry or combination.
Babassu Palm Oil
The benefits of Babassu are similar to those of maracuja. It is one of the few moisturizers that can be used on oily and acne-prone complexions.
It is Babassu wax that is most beneficial, because the wax helps to prevent moisture loss. Most companies use paraffin for this purpose. But, paraffin should not be included in all natural beauty products. It is not close enough to human skin. So, it causes dryness and clogs the pores.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is another antioxidant. People with acne typically have low blood levels of the vitamin. The same deficiency is seen in many different skin conditions.
If used on a regular basis, creams containing vitamin E can prevent age spots. Age spots are heavily pigmented areas. They are sometimes referred to as senile freckles. They are caused by free radical damage, typically due to excessive sun exposure.
All natural beauty products may contain a number of anti-aging ingredients or they may contain none. Check the label before you buy to be sure what you are getting.