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The Role of the Sun in Skin Care

August 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Many people believe that the sun is a good contributor to ensuring good skin, but always be wary that the role of the sun in skin care can only be limited in ways that it actually can do more harm than good when one is not guided accordingly.

Vitamin D from the sun can be helpful for many, but it can only be left to that since we all know that we actually need to protect our skin from the sun’s harmful rays, especially from prolonged ultraviolet radiation.

Here are some tips to make good use of sun exposure and avoid the dangers of getting too much of it.

Always make it a point to wear sunscreen formulated with a sun protection factor (SPF) of no less than 15, regardless if the weather is cloudy or not wanting to spend a lot of time outdoors, since this will help keep your body filter out ultraviolet rays that can be reflected on the earths surface.

Make sure to also reapply sunscreen every 2 to 3 hours if you plan to go swimming or get involved in sports activities. Same goes even for sunscreen that is labeled waterproof. It is always better to be safe than sorry.

Also look for sunscreen that blocks both UVA and UVB rays, especially those labeled with broad spectrum protection or UVA protection for formulation with an SPF of 15 or greater.

Select a sunscreen that is labeled nonacnegenic or noncomedogenic to help keep pores clear and also prevents the skin from having pimples or acne.

If possible, stay away from the sun between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM, which are the times of the day when the sun happens to be the hottest.

If staying indoors is unavoidable during these times, make sure to reapply sunscreen frequently and take indoor breaks every so often if you can.

One good tip in knowing when it is safer to be under the sun is when your shadow is longer than you are tall, but continue to wear sunscreen just to be safe.

Take note to apply more sunscreen with higher SPF when around reflective surfaces like ice, snow or water, since it intensifies the heat, as well as the ultraviolet radiation of the sun.

Some medications, like prescription acne treatments or birth control pills can increase a persons sensitivity to the sun, so make sure to ask your doctor if you are taking any or both of these treatments, as well as increasing the SPF of the sunscreen to use when exposed to the sun.

If you want the glow of a tan, try to fake it with self-tanners or salon tanning treatments to avoid the risk of getting harmful ultraviolet radiation. You may also want to avoid tanning beds, although manufacturers claim that tanning beds are free of UVB rays, they still use ultraviolet radiation that could also be harmful to the skin.

Never ever consider applying sunscreen on your exposed skin to be wasteful, since the cost of getting skin disease costs much more than several tubes of sunscreen.

Always make sure to give careful attention to children and do not hesitate to apply sunscreen on them, even double the frequency as you do on yourself. Children have more sensitive skin than adults and need it more than we do.

To avoid the risk of getting over exposed you may resort to going on a healthy diet that includes vitamin supplements, especially vitamin D and can be sourced from foods like dairy products, fish, oysters or fortified cereals.

Lastly, make sure to always go to a dermatologist whenever you feel something wrong in your skin, since skin cancer is very treatable when discovered early.

So make the most of the information provided in this article and understand the role of the sun in skin care.

Filed Under: Skin Care

Recipes For Homemade Skin Care Treatments

August 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Enough of that stress, of those bad habits, of that anxiety, as all these show up on your face. Give your skin a little pampering. Dont worry it wont be too costly. Just take a good look inside your ref, take out some stuff, prep your kitchen utensils, whip up some mixtures, and youre good to go! Dont worry about how to do it either. Here are recipes for homemade skin care treatments. It would be fun. Enjoy!

Cucumber Lotion

Best as skin whitener, cucumber lotion is applied on the face and neck. Let it stand for 15 minutes and rinse off with warm water.

You Need:

1 tablespoon of cucumber juice

1 tablespoon of milk

a few drops of rosewater

Procedure:

Crush one piece of peeled cucumber to get a tablespoon of juice. Then, mix the cucumber juice with 1 tablespoon of milk. Add a few drops of rosewater. Mix until the ingredients blend together.

Tomato Lotion

This lotion will tighten big pores. Gently massage on the face, then wash off after 15 minutes.

You Need:

1 tablespoon of tomato juice

a few drops of lime juice

Procedure:

Crush one tomato to extract 1 tablespoon of juice. Add a few drops of lime juice. Mix the ingredients well.

Cabbage Mask

This will prevent wrinkles and make your skin supple and fresh-looking. Pat over the face and neck. After 15 minutes, remove with wet cotton wool.

You Need:

cabbage leaves

1 teaspoon honey

teaspoon yeast

Procedure:

Extract cabbage juice by grinding the leaves. Then, add the cabbage juice to the mixture of 1 teaspoon honey and dissolved teaspoon of yeast. Mix the ingredients well.

Peach Mask

Works to tighten pores, peach mask should be gently applied on the face. After 30 minutes, rinse off with cool water.

You Need:

1 ripe peach

1 egg white

The peach must be first peeled and pitted. Then, drop it into a blender with the egg white. Process the ingredients until smooth.

Honey Facial

This facial refreshes the face and leaves it radiant-looking. Best to leave on the face for 15 minutes before rinsing off.

You Need:

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 egg yoke

Procedure:

Beat the egg yoke, then add olive oil. As soon as the two ingredients blend well, pour the honey. Stir the ingredients thoroughly.

Lime Juice Facial

This mixture works well in preventing pimples. Best to apply every night, lime juice facial leaves the skin young and beautiful. It can also work to soften hands and feet.

You Need:

one lime

a glass of whole milk

1 teaspoon of glycerin

Procedure:

Boil the milk, then add lime extract and 1 teaspoon of glycerin. Mix the ingredients well. Leave the mixture for 30 minutes, then apply on the face.

Apple Tonic

Works for oily skin, apple tonic must be patted over the face and neck. Let it sit for 20 minutes, and rinse off with warm water.

You Need:

1 tablespoon apple juice

teaspoon lime juice

Chop an apple and grind to extract 1 tablespoon of juice. Then, mix the apple juice with teaspoon of lime juice. Stir until the ingredients blend together.

Note: If you are allergic to any of the ingredients mentioned above, please discontinue use. Remember, these homemade skin care treatments are meant to improve your skin, not the opposite.

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Proper Skin Care To Delay Aging

August 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

It is a given fact that all living things age. Animals, plants, and most especially people go through this natural cycle of life. For some people, aging is considered as something dreadful because it affects the largest organ of the body, which is the skin. So, to avoid revealing ugly lines on the face, and wrinkles on the skin, proper skin care is a must.

Skin care is relevant these days because everybody wants to become beautiful. Everybody wants to remain beautiful and youthful for the rest of their living days. But since aging somehow affects a person’s physique and physical beauty, many people consider this as a threat to their mission of maintaining their beauty and vitality for a long time. To ensure that the skin will remain as youthful and vibrant as possible, now it the best time to know more on proper skin care.

Fighting Aging

Aside from drastic physical changes, some people also dread aging because it slows down their system that hinders them to do things that younger people can do, it affects memory, and it also affects overall composure.

But, since aging is a natural phenomenon, people cannot do much about it. If you are one of those people who experience the signs of aging this early and you would want to do something about, now is the time to take extra care of the major indicator of aging, which is the skin. Below are some tips for proper skin care that could help you wage fight the unpleasant results of aging.

1. Seek sun protection. Experts agree that protecting yourself from the sun’s damaging and deadly rays is among the best skin care that you can do. One way to do this is by using safe and effective sun protection. Studies show that 90 percent of facial aging is cause by the damage brought by UV rays and radiation. You can protect yourself from UV rays by applying sun block or sunscreen daily, wearing clothing that helps protect your skin from the sun’s rays such as long sleeves and pants along with wide brimmed hats, and by lessening your exposure to the sun especially in its peak hours-10a.m. to 2 p.m.

2. Quit smoking cigarettes. Many smokers do not realize it but the major reason for having dry skin is by smoking through the nicotine that their bodies absorb. To maintain good skin, you should be quitting smoking by now. Studies show that nicotine intake especially inhaled when smoking greatly contributes to the emergence of lines in the face, aging, and drastic changes in the skin’s texture as well as in its elasticity.

3. Load up on fluids, most especially water. By taking in lots of fluids, especially water you can maintain your skin properly moisturized. Drinking enough water daily helps aid skin hydration and healthy cell formation. Aside from maintaining the skin’s water balance, drinking water also helps in the removal of waste products in the body.

4. Eat well. One of the surefire means to proper skin care is balance your nutrition because the foods people eat affect greatly their overall health. To ensure that you will have a beautiful skin that is not prone to aging, have a healthy diet that includes fruits and veggies, lean meats and fish, with moderate intake of carbohydrates.

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Simple yet Effective Skin Care Tips for Healthy Skin

August 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

A lot of women in the world today are more conscious of the need to maintain a supple and beautiful skin, but would oftentimes resort to more expensive means to achieve their desires results when in fact, there are simple yet effective skin care tips for healthy skin without the hassles of spending too much time and money.

Nowadays, it is more practical to know that skincare is very important in keeping skin youthful, most especially among women, with whom the desire to achieve healthy skin is more overpowering compared to the male population.

This is mainly so because women are inclined to be more conscious of skin care generally for beauty and aesthetic purposes, with the end result of making sure that they not just look presentable, but beautiful and attractive.

But without having to go through great lengths like spending too much on beauty and supervised skin care treatments, there are indeed a number of natural or simple yet effective treatments that work wonders for skin care.

First, many may not be fully aware that a healthy & balanced diet is primarily one of the biggest factors of that promote glowing and radiant skin, for which most have unconsciously neglected.

It is a given fact that most women want to combat the signs of ageing and take the time to follow a skin care regimen such as regularly using a skin cleanser, applying a toner and moisturizer as part of their morning or evening routines in order to keep their skin looking youthful.

Ensuring a healthy and balanced diet is essentially key to making sure of the effectivity of your skin care regimen, which results to the success of your desired results.

A healthy and balanced diet involves making the right choices and taking only recommended amounts of certain food groups that help ensure a well- balanced diet.

This would mean cutting down intake of simple carbohydrates and making sure to avoid taking foods rich in saturated fats, cholesterol and trans fatty acids.

Since this food group, once broken down into the system, can do more harm than good and will not just affect the appearance of the skin, but also have its damaging effects in the human body leading to high blood pressure, fatty liver, kidney diseases and even cancer.

It would be better to focus on taking foods that are considered complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, wheats, oats, fresh vegetables and fruits among others.

As part of the skin care process that go along with healthy dieting, wanting to have healthy hair and skin is also achieved by consuming essential fatty acids like omega 3, among others, along with essential vitamins and minerals the body needs to ensure good health and good food digestion.

Lastly, you may want to see a licensed and reputable dietitian or nutritionist to help you plan out your diet or may just simply want good and expert advise on how to go about a healthy diet program and a well rounded skin care regimen.

These experts will not just be your best line of defense, but will provide you with safe and sound regimens without the risk of adversely affecting your health or well- being.

So dont just consider spending thousands of dollars on skin care and healthy dieting programs or regimens, because just around the corner are simple yet effective skin care tips for healthy skin.

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Face Washing as Basic Skin Care for Teens

August 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

If you are a parent with adolescents or teenagers in the house, you need to understand and also be aware of skin care for your kids and what better way than to impart to them the simplest method of face washing as basic skin care for your teens.

Surprised? Actually it is by understanding the fact that as children enter adolescence, they still have sensitive skin that requires delicate and constant care for them to have healthy skin.

Many parents usually worry over the prospect of their teenagers having problems with acne or oily skin, however, it is best to know how to deal with each possible skin problem teenagers are likely to encounter.

Probably one of the most common factor that leads to parents worrying over their childrens skin problems is knowing that as teenagers, they are already independent of washing and bathing themselves, wherein parents no longer have the idea of how their kids go about their skin care routines.

Are they simply using water to wash their faces? Or probably using your facial skin toners or cleansers or use bar soaps to wash their faces?

These things need to be carefully considered and corrected since this could lead to more harm than good if the incorrect method is not corrected right away.

Out of the three mentioned routines earlier, washing the face with water is the safest process of all, while the remaining two could prove harmful to your teenager.

Do remember that since adolescent skin is still sensitive, the appearance of acne does not conclusively indicate that your childs face is really dirty, but is just a result of their skins sensitivity.

Also, adult facial cleansing formulas could also be too harsh for their sensitive skin and should also be avoided.

Using acne removal treatments could only lead to aggravating the problem or even do more damage to your childs skin regeneration process.

Essentially, skin or face washing habits for adolescents should be limited to once a day since anything in excess of that can be damaging to their skin.

Parents, and teenagers as well, must be aware that adolescents should only be using gentle cleansers on their skin, for which the best choices are those made of natural or water based cleansers and cream-based cleansers that not only cleans but moisturizes skin as well.

Face cleansing should ideally be done once a day, as mentioned earlier, unless your teens are active in after school sport or outdoor activities, where intense sweating or exposure to dust and grime are part of the activity.

Also avoid letting your kids use body lotion on their faces, if they feel that their skin needs moisturizing, since the skin from the neck up is more sensitive and requires delicate attention, most especially since majority of body lotions available in the market contain certain ingredients that can cause reactions on facial skin.

It is a rare fact for teenagers to worry about moisturizing their skin, but if the skin starts to become extra dry, a gentle water-based moisturizer would do.

You can ask a dermatologist or a licensed skin care expert for products that can be helpful for skin teenagers skin conditions.

In a nutshell, skin care for adolescents should just be more of simply clearing the dirt or grime from the topmost layer of the skin and to ensure good skin care habits, like face washing as basic skin care for teens, is by instilling in them the responsibility and awareness of what needs to be done and what should not.

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