My sister is a vegetarian and ever since she changed her diet, I have made big changes to mines as well. I didn’t go all vegetarian like she did. But I would try my best to avoid meat. I won’t eat burgers or steaks. Just occasionally some chicken or fish when I’m out eating. My younger sister has a big influence on me – I know, usually its the other way around, the bigger sister is suppose to have an influence over their younger sister. But not with me…I really listen and value what she says and thinks. So, anyways, I have cut down on meat drastically for a couple of years now. And I must say, since then, my skin, nails and hair have gotten worse. Its funny because I would think all this time, oh I’m eating healthier and therefore my skin/hair, just my whole body in general would be in much better shape. But that is not what I saw. Sorry…my dearest sister Tiffy, I know you’re a vegetarian, but its just what I saw happen to me. My hair became thinner and drier over the years, my skin is dry and I never had dry skin. Also, I am seeing some wrinkles and acne on my face as well. Back then everyone would say I have beautiful skin. Even estheticians would tell me I have wonderful skin and I don’t have to do anything with it except to wash it and moisturize if needed. I never really thought about what I was eating or not eating have anything to do with it…like I said, I thought I was eating healthy with all the veggies and fruits. I always thought it was the products I’m using. You have no idea how many new products I’ve tried. Only to be disappointed time and time again. It wasn’t until just a couple of days ago, I was talking to a friend online, and somehow we got to the subject of protein. He says that if you don’t eat enough protein, you’ll have dry skin. That is when I did more research online and found out the importance of protein to our skin health…along with hair and nails, because they’re all made out of protein. Proteins are the second (next to water) most plentiful substance in our body. Proteins are made out of amino acids. When we eat proteins, our body will break down the protein into amino acids and our body will just use it as needed. Our bodies are capable of making some amino acids, but there are 8 amino acids there the body cannot make. That has to come from food. From what I’ve researched, these 8 essential amino acids are present in aniaml prodcuts – such as meat, fish, milk and eggs. Usually veggies and fruits are missing one or more of the essential amino acids. But I’ve read that soy contains all 8 and also, vegetarians do food combining. They pretty much just eat foods that compliment each other to have all the essential amino acids. I have to say, I’ve never done that before. Okay, proteins are needed to repair and create new cells. I’ve read (I’m not a doctor) that if we don’t eat enough protein, our body actually eats our muscles (since its made out of protein) to get what it needs! Pretty scary! From what I’ve learned, protein does not store in the body. So it is important to replenish your body with proteins constantly. Even Dr. Pierrecone says that proteins are important for anti aging. After all, collagen is a protein too. After reading many forums (many people also thought they see that hair thinning or their skin being dry after not eating meat), and studies it seems that protein have a major effect on our hair and skin and our body as a whole.
Ingredient Spotlight: Pearl Powder
I forgot how I came across this, but it was sure interesting. From what I’ve read and heard, pearl powder is great for you skin. Pearl powder is created when pearls are crushed into fine powder. Pearl powder contains the essential amino acids, minerals and it has a high calcium content. Pearl powder is very popular in the asian community. My mom bought some home when she went back to hong kong for a visit. It is said that back then, women would use it on their skin to protect their skin from stage makeup. It can be taken internally and used externally. When taken internally, its suppose to detoxify the body and help give you a more youthful appearance. You can also use it externally. Women of the Chinese Imperial Palace used it for healing, skin brightening, and sun protection. I have been using it lately (for about a week) and I have noticed some positive changes on my skin. I use it both externally and internally. Some blemishes have gone away and the ones still there are definately getting smaller, some old scars are getting lighter, and overall skin does look better and less blotchy. However, it does feel like it dries my skin a bit. Or either that, my skin is just dry to begin with and it just doesn’t moisturize it. But I have to use moisturizer on top of the pearl powder or my face feels really tight and dry. I’ll keep an update on how my skin is doing with the continue use of pearl powder. But its looking good so far! By the way, I was recently watching an episode of Bizzare Food and Andrew went…I forgot where, but somewhere in Asia and they had a brief segment on pearl powder. The woman who Andrew was with says she takes pearl powder ever since she was a teenager and her skin looks pretty good.
You are what you eat?
Do you guys believe that? Well, I used to, but I’m not too sure now. I always thought that if you eat healthy, it will show on the outside as well, like in your skin. People have always said if you eat fried greasy food, you’ll get pimples and blah blah blah. Yes, we all heard of that before. But do you think its true? I used to truly believe that, but lately, not so much. I eat very healthy, I avoid french fries, fast food, and eat plenty of fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water. But yet, I still have pimples on my forehead and my skin is often dry. Now is this just something I was born with? Not that I remember. I used to have very good skin. It was soft and silky and I never even put on any lotion. At that time, I remember, I was eating unhealthy. I didn’t even know or care what calories or fats are. I didn’t know anything about hydrogenated oils, etc. I just ate whatever pleased my tastebuds. Now, I’m a health freak and a lot of it have to do with me wanting better skin. I thought that if you eat right and exercise….you will age slower. So, I get really upset when I see people eating McDonalds, Burger King and they have flawless skin. Let me know if you guys think or see the same thing. Those who eat well and those not so well, if you see what you put in your mouth links to how your skin looks.
Ingredient Spotlight: Green Tea
Green tea has many health benefits as many of you know. But what about for your skin? Green tea contains powerful antioxidants than can help delay aging. One of the powerful antioxidant being EGCG. It is even said to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Green tea is said to also help repair skin and even reverse aging due to its effect on skin cells. It is also a good supplement to sunscreen as well. It protects your skin from photo aging and photo damage caused by UV rays. It is very simple to make your own green tea toner. Just brew a cup of green tea like you would as if you were to drink it and let it cool, of course. Or you can just steep a tea bag in room temperature water for at least an hour. You can apply it with a cotton ball/pad. Leave in the refrigerator to help keep it fresh. I have been doing this for about 3 weeks now. I haven’t seen any changes, but then again, I don’t have much problems to begin with. But I do agree with some users that green tea does not easily get absorbed into the skin. But I don’t think that causes any harm or clogs pores in anyway.
Oxygen Facials – are they really good for your skin?
So oxygen facials are really the hype nowadays. Madonna is a big fan of the oxygen facial. I’ve read that she gets it done before all her red carpet moments. It is said to help plump up those wrinkles and fine lines and makes your skin look more radiant. The oxygen facial uses a machine that sprays pressurized oxygen infused with moisturizers/nutrients and or vitamins (every spa or clinic uses different ingredients) onto the skin. The pressurized oxygen helps to push the ingredients deeper into the skin. This of course will hydrate your skin to make it look more supple and youthful. Some say that oxygen is vital to our skin health. And it is due to the lack of oxygen that speeds up the aging process. But this is whats confusing to me. I’ve been learning all this time that oxygen is not necessarily our skin’s best friend. I mean of course, it is needed for not only our skin’s survival, but our bodies as well…we will not be living without oxygen. But I’m just thinking of what we’ve been told all this time about aging. The free radical theory. For those of you who don’t know what that is…I have a link at the bottom to where you can read about it. We’ve all learned or at least heard of in school when we were young about the apple experiment. If you cut an apple in half and just let it sit out, it will turn brown. Why? Because of oxidation. Well oxygen itself is not bad…but it is the unstable form of molecules of oxygen (free radicals) that is bad. So why should we forcefully put oxygen onto our skin? I think that the oxygen we get everyday naturally is enough for our skin. Well this is what scares me into not getting an oxygen facial. Does anyone who have had the oxygen facial have any comments? What I wrote is just what I’m thinking…but I could be totally wrong…let me know!
Ingredient Spotlight: Soy Lecithin
Soy lecithin is of course, derived from soy beans. It is a substance present in all living cells. It is an emulsifier, emollient and antioxidant. It is said to help protect and soften the skin. Lecithin contains phospholipids which is a substance that can attract water from air and therefore it can hydrate your skin. It is commonly used in cosmetics/skincare products since it helps to bind water and oil together. It is also used as a thickener. Lecithin has the ability to penetrate deep into your skin, and can also help other ingredients to penetrate better. I just tried some recipes that I googled up and I have tried to use liquid soy lecithin to make lotion…but umm…maybe I’m not doing it well…but I can’t seem it make it work. Its fine when I mix it together, but after a while…the oil separates from the lecithin…like overnight, the oil would end up sitting on top of the mixture. Maybe I didn’t mix it well to begin with? Also, it can be very sticky and hard to work with. When I apply the mixture on my hands, it does feel a little bit sticky…maybe I used too much? Also, my boyfriend says that it doesn’t smell too good. Does anyone know a good recipe to make a smooth lotion with lecithin? Because I would really like to use it since it has so many benefits. Thanks!
Ingredient Spotlight: Dimethicone
Dimethicone is an unmodified silicone oil. It is used as a moisturizer, emollient, skin protectant and it helps prevent skin against moisture lost. However silicone products shows occlusive properties. Due to its large molecules, dimethicone does not penetrate deep into your skin and forms a layer on the skin protecting, but I think also trapping it. Maybe this is how it prevents moisture lost, but at the same time, it can also trap moisture along with it bacteria, sebum and impurities which can in turn lead to pimples or clogged pores. Many say that dimethicone is a wonderful ingredient for moisturizing and protecting even sensitive skin. I have used products with dimethicone in it before and I didn’t have any bad reaction to it. But it wasn’t on my face, I used it in a hand lotion. I have to say that it does leave a film on my hand, its not sticky, and it doesn’t feel like anything is on my skin, but I notice that when I wash my hands, the lotion comes off. So I guess that it doesn’t get absorbed by the skin. But do I really want to have something (like a film) over my skin all the time? Probably not. And how do I know that this is a breathable barrier? Dimethicone is also a popular ingredient for hair care products such as conditioner and anti frizz products since it coats the hair. Have anyone ever had problems with dimethicone? or do you think its a wonderful ingredient to have for dry skin?
Beta Carotene – the secret to beautiful asian skin?
I was doing some research on red palm oil (this week’s ingredient) and I came across something interesting. I have never knew or heard about this before. In the article I read it states that asians have a yellow tint to their skin due to having more beta carotene in their skin. Beta carotene is a powerful antioxidant that can scavenge free radicals effectively. Could this be why asians tend to age better? Well, it could be their diet as well. So maybe we should start eating more carrots!
http://www.beautymagonline.com/pages/oriental_skin.htm
http://www.environ.co.za/contents/articles/varieties_of_vitamin_a.htm
Ingredient Spotlight: Red Palm Oil
Red Palm Oil is rich in vitamin A and vitamin E. The vitamin A comes in the form of carotenoids. This is what gives the oil a rich red color. Red palm oil is extremely high in carotenoids – 15 times more provitamin A carotenes than carrots and 300 times more than tomatoes! The vitamin E in this oil is unique because it contains not only tocopherols (a more common form of vitamin E) it also contains the highest amount of a super potent form of vitamin E – tocotrienol. It is said that tocotrienols have up to 60 times the antioxidant activity of ordinary vitamin E. Red palm oil contains 50% saturated fatty acids, 40 percent monounsaturated fatty acids, and 10 percent polyunsaturated fatty acids. Due to its high antioxidants, this oil is very stable even at high temperatures which also makes it a good cooking oil. Red Palm oil seems like a good ingredient for skincare since it contains powerful antioxidants that can “mop up” free radicals which is believed to cause aging and many other ailments. The only downside of it is the fact that this oil is red in color! So when you apply it to your skin, you can look orange! I tried…but its really not that bad…I just put a little on and then blot the excess too. I’ve read that the brand Ojon – the haircare product company uses this oil for their hair and body products too.
Just pondering….
Do you treat the skin on your face different than the skin on the rest of your body? I mean our skin is an organ so what is the difference between the skin on your face than on your body? I definately pay more attention to my face. My boyfriend once said that maybe when I get old, I would still look young on my face and the rest of my body would be old and wrinkly. I certainly hope not! But we should take care of our skin all over. Some give aways of your age are your hands and neck. So make sure you take care of those areas too!
The Beauty Post 