The Natural Anti Wrinkle Solutions
At some point in her life almost every woman looks at the wrinkles in the mirror and decides to fight back. “I’m not going give up that easily. I’m not going get old that fast. I’ll look my best as long as I can.” Sounds familiar?
Well, luckily for us, we don’t have to give up that easily. And there are plenty of natural anti-wrinkle solutions that do not require you to load up on toxic ingredients or painful injections.
In future posts, I am going to get into more detail on these methods, but today let me just give you a quick overview of the natural anti aging solutions available.
Hydration
We’ve heard so much about the importance of proper hydration that it’s beginning to sound cliché, and escapes our attention. But nevertheless, proper hydration for your skin is a fact of life. If you want your skin to stay fresh and supple, you need to supply it with enough moisture. Think about it, you are 80% water. If that water gets stale and is not properly replenished, you can’t expect to look young and fresh. Period.
Nutrition
Next to hydration, proper nutrition is the best thing you can do for your skin. It is also the most realistic and lasting youthful appearance you can get – the youthfulness will come from within.
Here are some key anti-wrinkle nutrition tips:
SUGAR – substitute with honey, stevia, maple syrup, agave nectar.
SALT – substitute with seaweed (I love Dulse Flakes on salads) or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (found in any health food store). Or use high quality sea salt. Just stay away from the common “table salt”.
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UV ray protection
Many natural and organic skin care brands have SPF creams as well. Try to avoid direct exposure to the sun around the high noon hours – that’s when the rays are most harmful.
Anti-Aging Supplements
Another means of combating wrinkles is using supplements. This is a vast topic that I hope to cover in a later article. But essentially it comes down to the reality that many of the foods we eat today are stripped of their nutritional value. Not to mention our modern diet itself… So supplements are there to give back the vitamins and minerals you might not be getting otherwise. Plus in certain climates you just can’t get the antioxidant rich fruit in the middle of January.
When it comes to supplements, my motto is to look for something from a very natural source. And not to overdo it. Whenever I can, I try to get all the nutrients from “real food”. But there are some nice “green” supplements out there, and I definitely recommend looking into them.
Best thing to do before starting on any supplements, is to talk to your doctor and do a whole physical check up to see if you have any deficiencies. Then do an honest analysis of your diet. Can you substitute a junk snack with anti-oxidant rich berries? Can you substitute your egg and bacon breakfast with a fresh green salad or a smoothie? As wonderful as supplements can be, they will only work for you if they work with your diet. Think of supplements as patching up little cracks on the wall. If there is no stable wall to begin with, no patching up will help 
Topical Solutions
This is the most common anti-aging method. We’ve all seen and heard and tried anti-wrinkle creams, serums, masks, etc. Essentially this is feeding and treating your skin from the outside. Naturally, this only work long term if the inside treatment (hydration, nutrition) is on par as well.
When it comes to organic anti-aging creams, the choices are endless. There are so many high quality natural anti-wrinkle products, that it’s hard not to find something that works for you.
Personally, I find Dr. Hauschka products to be very effective. There is also a new line out there called Sophyto that is very natural and is getting positive buzz.
But remember – there is no such thing as universal solution. We all have different skins and lives. What works for one person in one set of circumstances may not work for another. So it’s a method of trial and error search. Find a company that uses natural and organic ingredients, get some samples and try it on. It doesn’t have to be the most expensive celebrity touted product of the moment. It just has to be something that works for you.
Facial exercise
Undeservingly this simple and natural anti wrinkle solution does not get the publicity it needs. But wouldn’t you rather do some facial then get tons of painful injections and face lifts? If you want to learn about it, check out the classic work on the subject – Carole Maggio’s “Facersize”
Essentially it comes down to the fact that you have muscles on your face, just like on all the other parts of your body. So exercise will keep them toned. When used in conjunction with other tips above, you can end up looking young well into the autumn years. Just check out Carolyn at the glorious age of 61! I really hope I’ll look this good…
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October 4, 2008 1 Comment
Organic Skin Care Myths
Organic skin care and organic makeup are the fastest growing segments in the beauty industry. They seems to be popping up everywhere as everyone wants a piece of the pie. No wonder that this phenomenon has produced a whole load of mythology around what organic means when it comes to skin care. Which is why I decided to go over some of my favorite organic skin care myths. I think it’s about time that we separate them from reality.
If it says “organic” or “natural” on the package, it’s a natural or organic product
Not necessarily. Especially when it says “natural”. First of all, the term “natural” bears no legal responsibility whatsoever, so plenty of unscrupulous manufacturers put it on concoctions full of synthetics, fragrances, colors, etc. Therefore to make sure you actually get natural or organic skin care, be sure to read the ingredients on the labels. (Here is a list of most common harmful ingredients in makeup and skin care products.)
“Contains Organic Ingredients” means that it is a fully natural product
You wish. It could be a 99.9% chemical cocktail with a 0.1% of extract from something organic. So read the labels carefully. This is a very popular gimmick, especially with the big mainstream companies trying to get a piece of the “green” pie.
“Certified Organic” means the product contains only natural organic ingredients
There are many different certifications. Most only require that a certain percentage of ingredients are organic. They also vary in strictness of policing. In majority of cases it’s a voluntary honor system. However some labels carry more value, such as BDIH from Germany. That is one of the most respected organic certifications for cosmetics in the world. (Read more about organic certifications.)
Organic skin care is way more expensive
Depending on what you compare it to. You can get great organic BDIH certified Weleda creams for the same price or cheaper than many creams at the local beauty counter. Aubrey Organics makes high quality organic products that are often cheaper than the regular drug-store alternatives. Even the top of the line organic creams such as those by Dr. Hauschka are easily comparable in price to department store brands. Plus you can always make your own recipes from seasonal affordable organic ingredients. Not all organic skin care needs to be store bought. Put your “green” on, plus some imagination, and a bunch of parsley may become the organic skin care miracle of the year.
Organic skin care products are always effective
Let’s not fall into the other extreme. Just because something is organic doesn’t make it automatically good for everything. Organic carrot is organic. If I shredded it and sold it as a shampoo, it would be 100% organic, but hardly effective as a shampoo. There are good products and then there are bad products out there. Finding the product right for your specific situation is a trial and error process, just like most things in life.
Organic products do not contain allergens
If you are allergic to almonds and your new organic makeup contains 100% organic almond oil, you’ll be allergic to it. So while it contains far fewer synthetic allergens, if you have specific food allergies, always double check the ingredients.
I don’t need to read the labels because the skin care industry wouldn’t let me put anything potentially harmful on my skin.
Where do I start on that one? First of all, you really need to READ THIS BOOK
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September 9, 2008 7 Comments
Review of Weleda Skin Food
Luckily for my risk-averse wallet, you don’t have to buy a whole bottle of an expensive cream to assess whether you’ll like it or not. Most skin care manufacturers also make those tiny little sample packs that the sales people usually carry (though they hide them behind the counter, and unless you ask, you’ll never know what they have). Weleda, though, has these tiny packs of their actual product in cute little tubes that have all the feature of the real thing (the box, the tube, and the no need to master the logistics of preserving the tinsy amounts of precious cream for future date in a flimsy paper pack…)
What I’m trying to say is that I went to one of my favorite “health” stores and saw a display of travel-sized tubes of Weleda products for a buck or two. Before I could stop myself, the Weleda Skin Food has found itself in my shopping cart, and a day later all over my face… Which is the basis for this report… As I’m sure you’ve already figured out.
But enough of the intro. Let’s get down to business.
Product name:
Weleda Skin Food (it doesn’t actually say “cream”) in English, but does in French…
What and who is it for:
The package states that it’s “for dry and rough skin”, which is ME! ME! ME!
About the brand:
Please consult my epos on Weleda. I can’t think of anything else to add to that monumental work and I can’t think of a reason why you shouldn’t read it!
Price:
Between $13 and $19 at Amazon for 2.5 oz tube. (weleda skin food
Certifications:
BDIH Certified Natural Cosmetic
Packaging:
My sample tube is a “mini-me” of the real aluminum tube with lining (so no, you’re not putting aluminum on your face…) The tube is then in the box… Waste of material, if you ask me, but hey – it’s the industry standard. And the box and insert are fully recyclable, so don’t sweat it. I just like writing about it.
Reading the ingredients:
Water, sunflower seed oil, lanolin, sweet almond oil, alcohol, beeswax, glyceryl linoleate, hydrolyzed beeswax, fragrance, viola tricolor extract, rosemary leaf extract, shamomilla recutita flower extract, calendula officinalis flower extract, cholesterol, limonene, linalool, geraniol, citral, coumarin.
The fragrance and the last five ingredients are from natural essential oils. Of course, in the ideal world we’d have no alcohol… But the world is not quite there yet, so I’m not gonna be too picky.
Reading the insert:
“Weleda Skin Food nourishes, restores and protects the skin, maintaining the skin’s moisture levels and keeping the skin feeling smooth and supple. This intensively nourishing formula made with extracts of organic Pansy, organic Chamomile and biodynamic Calendula, is ideal for both children and adults. Skin Food is the natural choice for everyday care of the face and body. It is especially recommended for dry skin, particularly on the hands, feet and elbows.”
Scent:
When you apply it, you can smell a shot of orange. At least that’s what I think it is. A very potent shot of something citrussy.
Texture:
This took me by surprise. The cream is thick. I mean really thick. It doesn’t spread out the way all my previous creams do. It feels waxy when applying (which wouldn’t have surprised me had I read the ingredients first – beeswax!). Not moist at all. But once it’s on the face, it feels totally normal. So I think the texture basically means that you need more of it per application then you would of something like Dr. Hauschka Quince Day Cream, or you need to rub harder, which is not always a good idea when it comes to face. Perhaps that’s why they recommend it for hands, feet and elbows…
What does it do on the face:
Nourishes it. Plain and simple. No fluff. If your face is dry and rough (after a dry and windy day, for example), it will make you feel human again. This is also good for other body parts. I heard people rave about the miracle work it does to dry elbows… I haven’t tried it on my hands, as they have been surprisingly normal lately.
Verdict:
One of the more reasonably priced organic ventures. Hard to go wrong here. I think it’s a necessity – not for daily use, though, but for those extra dry and rough moments. Unless, of course, your dry and rough moments are a daily occasion.
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September 5, 2008 No Comments