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Archive for the ‘Skin Care’ Category

There’s truly practically nothing like a finest skin care item. There truly cannot be something like the finest skin care product, because skin care products function differently for various folks (based on the skin type to some extent). A product which is the very best skin care item for 1 individual might wind up being the worst for another individual. So, a far more logical question to ask will be What exactly is the top skin care item for my sort of skin?. Nonetheless, this still isn’t totally logical. We have a tendency to segregate men and women into four groups determined by their skin types, i.e. dry skin, oily skin, typical skin and sensitive skin. Nevertheless, this classification is just too broad to be employed definitively in figuring out the best skin care item. We are able to say best skin care product for a dry skin or finest skin care item for an oily skin are far better statements than just greatest skin care item. But truly, that’s what it can be far better nevertheless not correct.

So, it actually comes to rephrasing the question to What is the most effective skin care item for me. Yes, this can be exactly the question that you needs to be asking, and however there isn’t any simple answer for this. Arriving at the greatest skin care item for self will need some effort on your part.

To start with, you’ll want to realize how the skin care items function. This can be easy. You are able to contemplate all skin care items to be composed of 2 types of ingredients: Active and inactive. The active ingredients are the ones that actually function in your skin. The inactive ones just support in delivering these active ingredients for your skin. Each the ingredients should operate for your skin, in order for the product to be effective (and move on to grow to be the top skin care item for you).

Besides the ingredients, the way you apply your skin care products is equally essential. In fact, this is even more essential. In case you don’t know the best way to apply skin care goods, you might forever be hunting for the very best skin care item for yourself, when that has currently passed you. Moreover, it is also critical to determine on the frequency of application (of the skin care product). The environmental factors – temperature, humidity and pollution level, also affect the selection of best skin care item. Here are a couple of guidelines which you could use to make sure that your best skin care product is truly the most effective for you personally:

* Cleanse your skin before applying that best skin care item.

* Use a makeup remover as opposed to plain water and eliminate your makeup prior to going to bed.

* The effectiveness of active ingredients is lowered when applied more than yet another product e.g. over moisturiser. So apply that best skin care product initial and then apply a bit of moisturizer if required.

* Apply the goods on moist and warm skin.

* You will have to experiment with a couple of products prior to you arrive at the one particular that is the top skin care item for you.

* Do not exfoliate an excessive amount of or too tough.

* Vary your skin care routine as per the seasons (winter/summer and so on), modifications in environmental elements and changes in your skin sort

Note that the most effective skin care item can’t be determined overnight. It really is only by means of experiment (and awareness) that you just can discover the most effective skin care product? (for you).

A fundamental question can be asked to tell whether or not a business has the necessary force to survive on the challenging market today: Are you easy to do business with?
At first glance (and each subsequent one, too), the question seems either redundant, or absurd. “Of course,” most business leaders would automatically reply to that strange inquiry, “we’re incredibly easy to do business with. How can you ask such a silly question?”

But if we were to talk about the beauty industry and the cosmetic products for men, the question suddenly seems legitimate. Most of the product providers for masculine men’s anti-aging face care products are not that easy to do business with and millions of men waste their time searching for quality products which use special formulas to solve their skin problems.

For all these men, doing business with the beauty industry product providers is not an easy thing. In fact, they waste so much time and energy trying to find quality products that are actually what they say they are.

Go Directly to Female-Centric Department Store Beauty Counters: Do Not Pass GO

The advice given by these beauty industry leaders is meant to comfort men looking to take care of their skin and it goes like this:” If you want a perfect skin, free from all impurities, if you are interested in preventing the signs of premature aging and keeping your face healthy and clean for all the environmental influences, then you can easily use lady’s products, that are also meant to do all that”.

Most men understand the capital importance of preventing the signs of premature aging, of creating a protection shield against environmental factors such as dust, heat, sun, wind or to reestablish their skin’s natural balance after the daily shaving routine. It is extremely important to create a good first impression, because while it takes seconds to make judgments about a person, it takes years to change that first opinion. Great opportunities don’t come around too often and it’s better to seize them when they come.

Men deserve to get the chance to enjoy all the benefits of technology and progress their female counterparts enjoy and they need to find reliable anti-aging solutions specially created for men. Having no other alternative, men are forced to march into the feminine beauty stands and pick something that doesn’t smell like roses that much. They are forced to hide this practice from their girlfriends and wives, out of shame and embarrassment. Sadly, this is a very common situation and it’s done by millions of men who have no other alternative but to put women’s products on their stubbles.

Another example of how much consideration are men offered by the beauty industry producers is the Free Gift with Purchase incentives, promoted all year long in beauty departments. Now, let’s not even pretend that these offers are meant for the male clients that purchase same brands of skin care products as their female counterparts. No, lipsticks and make-up bags are not men gifts and this is another evident proof that this industry is not easy to do business with, when referring to the male point of view.

The explanation to all this is simple. Men are not the key customers when it comes to purchasing creams and skin care products. Therefore, even if some of their products are labeled “for men”, they are pretty much aware that their main target doesn’t wear a beard. Statistics say that more than 70% of all skin care products are purchased by women, therefore the industry leaders are interested in enticing the female buyers into purchasing products for you, not enticing you directly to shop from them.

So, all in all, we can call these beauty industry strategies many ways, but not easy to do business with. This is actually not the case.

Of course, another possibility is to do your manly shopping at the drugstore, where you’ll find a variety of men’s anti-aging skin care products available, and some of them very efficient too.

Surely, there is another place where you can shop for cosmetic products and that’s the drugstores. Men can purchase their masculine men’s anti-aging face care products and solve their skin issues.

But can they really? Well, drugstores are pretty much like department stores when it comes to attending to men’s problems. Whereas the beauty industry is all about image and prestige, there is a well-defined hierarchy between products found in department stores and those sold in drugstores. The brands you can purchase in department stores are considered high-quality, prestigious brands, with prices that match their labels, of course, but not necessarily direct proportionally with the quality.

Anti-aging face care products sold in drugstores are not considered quality products in the beauty industry. Some people are willing to spend a lot of money for quality products, while others settle for lower-standard products, for which they pay less money. Putting the brands aside, the reality is still not men-oriented, considering that women have a wide plethora of products to choose from, endless aisles and rows filled with feminine face care products ,while those designed for men can easily fit in a shoe box. Unless of course you’re not bothered by shopping for pinkish creams and using the same moisturizer as your girlfriend.
Shopping Online Experience Give the Customer What He Needs

The COOKIE CUTTER Approach – Men are ALL the SAME
There are many people who believe that when the offer is not sufficient on the market, the online shopping is the answer to all problems. If masculine men find it hard to search endless rows of women’s face care products in search for stronger fragrances, they could easily not be a part of that and purchase their products from the comfort of their own homes.

Beauty industry advocates believe that men can simply shop for men’s anti-aging, face and skin care products in the comfort of his home. There’s plenty of privacy (even more so if the package is delivered in a plain brown package), plenty of selection – try an on-line search for men’s anti-aging, face or skin care, face or skin care for men, and be delighted with literally millions of web results and thousands of brands to sort through – some more prominent than others, and many of which have their own set of

And then you can find tons of contradictory reviews, some people stating how extraordinary they are, other stating how much they hate it, while other simply couldn’t see any results at all. However, you might have noticed that 90% of these reviews are written by women who most certainly bought these products for their partners. However, we can’t help but ask- where are the real users? Or these men trying out these quality products have no idea that their partners have submitted them to some kind of intensive treatment?

Putting aside other people’s reviews and the beauty industry leaders’ claims that their men’s anti-aging skin care products are the best, choosing a product according to certain criteria and deciding if it’s worth the investment is, after all, a matter of personal interest and needs. Like with any other thing we buy, men need to hold the product in their hands, to check the label, to see whether the slogan of a particular cream resonates with his inner sense of masculinity and power, before deciding to invest in it. He must be convinced that product is specially designed for his skin care problems so that he can believe in its power and efficiency.

Actually, online shopping takes a lot of our time and energy, while websites are filled with unknown providers with no credentials or credibility.

Many beauty industry leaders would completely disagree with this article series, shrugging and saying in a frenzy:’ We don’t see what the big point is, here. We are easy to do business with- we have options for every preference and need. You don’t like going to a department store to shop for cosmetic products, you have the option to carry out your purchases online, from your own house. You don’t like the pretty make-up bags and free gifts, then give them to a female friend. Our products may not be very artsy, but they’re not all pink and rose-smelling. We have made a lot of efforts to satisfy our male clientele too and make the products friendlier. What’s wrong with creating men products and selling them to women? What’s wrong with our campaigns that seek to feminize men? It has results, doesn’t it? The new-age man is someone who is strong but also looks to develop his feminine..’

Let’s not stress upon the beauty industry’s unethical methods, at least not more than we already done in this article series, and let’s take a look at the cookie cutter approach of the beauty industry to create what they consider to be men friendly anti-aging skin care products designed especially for men.

If there were some chance to gather all men’s anti-aging skin care products available in the present on the market and if we were to place them together, we would be stricken by some visible similarities. First of all, you can’t help but notice the colors used for the label’s background only earth-colors, variations of grey, black, blue and brown. These are colors considered by the beauty industry to define the portrait of the universal man. They actually think all men are alike.

If we were to zoom in on the label, there are many feminine influences you can spot right away and you can see how these men’s anti-aging face care products were actually conceived. Mentioning other feminine characteristics of the male addressing products, you can identify the terminology used by both branches in defining the content of the package- serum, moisturizer, etc.

These traditional terms and conditions applied so far for feminine products cannot render the same results when trying to describe and define men’s quality anti-aging face care products. In fact, rarely can we see that beauty industry leaders take into account men’s general preference for simplicity and functionality, rather than colored labels and strong fragrances. In fact, we can more often see how men’s standpoint is neglected and not taken into consideration at all.
While a moisturizer is essentially still a moisturizer by any other name, the Beauty Industry is notoriously creative when it comes to inventing new descriptions as a means of setting a brand apart from the competition, never-mind the confusion this creates for the consumer. For example, what is commonly known as a ‘moisturizer’ could be marketed under ‘lotion’, ‘complex’, ‘balm’, ‘therapy’, ‘cream’, ‘replenisher’, ‘hydrator’, ‘renewer’, ‘nourishment’, ‘essence’, ‘lift’ and so on. Even descriptions that have some masculine resonance, such as ‘rebuilder’ and ‘defense’, are still more confusing than practical.

We cannot, however, completely dismiss all efforts of beauty industry leaders to create strong products that are specially addressing the male public. It is, in fact, true that their main target is not the man and investing big money in rebranding or rethinking market strategies so that their products can appeal to men is not, financially speaking, a wise move.

Is not so much a problem of not striving enough or not having the necessary resources to actually create men appealing products. The problem goes much deeper than this and it’s rooted in the general perception of the public that cosmetic products are only addressed to the female costumers. The difficulty of changing this perception is somewhat obvious. As a consequence, all the market strategies and slogans which advertise new-generation men’s anti-aging face care products are, in this perspective, shallow and inefficient and it’s nobody’s blame.

Finding Solutions: The Right Perspective On Men’s Anti-Aging Face and Skin Care Products
A viable solution to an existing problem can be found with one condition: to identify the problem first. The same goes for the beauty industry leaders, who can easily come up with efficient solutions as long as they understand what the problem is.

But what does this understanding mean? Well, it’s simply referring to acknowledging that, in order to create products that address only to men and in order to make them spend billions of dollars on cosmetic face care, the beauty industry suppliers should get rid of the old practices and conventional marketing strategies and reach out to the actual problems men face every day, to come closer to their present condition as a powerful and modern human being, whoseself-respect and masculinity must be taken into consideration. This is the way to go:

* Think of men as masculine men and respect them for that- reach out to your customer’s actual needs. Speak your messages directly to men, rather than convincing women to buy cosmetic products for their husbands and boyfriends.

* Create products and labels that don’t make men ashamed of buying them or having to hide them from their masculine buddies. Make them want to use your products openly, not hiding in the bathroom and moisturizing behind closed doors.

* Design your marketing strategies to appeal to men, rather than making them feel ashamed and overseen.
* Educate men, in language that is familiar and acceptable to them, on the advantages of proper masculine anti-aging face and skin care, so they make smart, informed decisions and enjoy the results and benefits they expect.

* Accept the fact that men are not like women and their buying preferences are very much distinct from that of women’s. Respect that and come up with viable solutions.

* Liberate the hoards of men walking with their heads down in department stores and drugstores in search for the cosmetic products they need. Let them raise their heads up high and feel confident and proud about shopping for face care cosmetics.

All men would be glad to take their business where they receive the respect and consideration they deserve.

That’s the challenge the Beauty Industry faces – not next year, not next quarter, but RIGHT NOW.

Visionaries who rise to this challenge and create ways to be ‘easy for masculine men to do business with’ will reap immense rewards and competitive advantages that carry them through the 21st century.

However, those who are stuck with conventional marketing strategies and perspectives, denying the general tendencies and neglecting the actual needs of men will remain on the outside, shyly looking in.

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There is really nothing like a best skin care product. There really cant be anything like The best skin care product, because skin care products work differently for different people (based on the skin type to some extent). A product that is the best skin care product for one person might end up being the worst for another person. So, a more logical question to ask would be What is the best skin care product for my type of skin?. However, this still is not completely logical. We tend to segregate people into 4 groups based on their skin types i.e. dry skin, oily skin, normal skin and sensitive skin. However, this classification is just too broad to be used definitively in determining the best skin care product. We can say best skin care product for a dry skin or best skin care product for an oily skin are better statements than just best skin care product. But really, that is what it is better; still not accurate.

So, it really comes to rephrasing the question to What is the best skin care product for me. Yes, this is exactly the question that you should be asking, and unfortunately there is no easy answer for this. Arriving at the best skin care product for self will need some effort on your part.

First of all, you need to understand how the skin care products work. This is simple. You can consider all skin care products to be composed of 2 types of ingredients Active and inactive. The active ingredients are the ones that actually work on your skin. The inactive ones just help in delivering these active ingredients to your skin. Both the ingredients need to work for your skin, in order for the product to be effective (and move on to become the best skin care product for you).

Besides the ingredients, the way you apply your skin care products is equally important. In fact, this is even more important. If you do not know how to apply skin care products, you might forever be hunting for the best skin care product for yourself, when that has already passed you. Moreover, its also important to decide on the frequency of application (of the skin care product). The environmental factors – temperature, humidity and pollution level, also affect the selection of best skin care product. Here are a few rules that you could use to ensure that your best skin care product is really the best for you:

* Cleanse your skin before applying that best skin care product.

* Use a makeup remover instead of plain water and remove your makeup before going to bed.

* The effectiveness of active ingredients is reduced when applied over another product e.g. over moisturiser. So apply that best skin care product first and then apply a bit of moisturizer if needed.

* Apply the products on moist and warm skin.

* You will have to experiment with a few products before you arrive at the one that is the best skin care product for you.

* Do not exfoliate too much or too hard.

* Vary your skin care routine as per the seasons (winter/summer etc), changes in environmental factors and changes in your skin type

Note that the best skin care product cannot be determined overnight. Its only through experiment (and awareness) that you can find the Best skin care product (for you).

Anti-aging is a bit of a misnomer and I’ve yet to meet anyone who has turned back the hands of time. However, as we age our skin becomes depleted of nourishment and hydration which leads to pre-mature skin aging. Antiaging skin care are formulated to renew and reclaim our youthful appearance.

Through a combination of hydration, protection with antioxidants, and anti wrinkle creams, lotions and moisturizers, those of us in the baby-boomer stage of life can add years to aging or damaged skin.

Antiaging skin care begins with several fundamentals we should all follow together with the use of effective skin care. Diet, fitness and health, together with maintaining proper hydration for healthy cell membranes and a bit of scientific “know-how”, allows us to look years younger, slow or halt pre-mature aging, improve suppleness and smoothness, and somewhat “turn back the hands of time”.

Keeping Your Skin Clean

As simple as this may sound, many skin problems result from lack of proper cleansing. Clogged pores can cause skin rashes, rosacea, blackheads and whiteheads, and prevent the proper irrigation of pores. Dermal layers require adequate moisture and circulation; and nutrition can be hampered without proper cleansing.

As part of a daily skin care regimen, using a facial cleanser in the morning and at night before bed is recommended. Avoid cleansers with harsh surfactants that may irritate the skin – this only worsens the problem and my offset gains from products formulated to treat or protect.

Oily or dry skin may need special attention, but a good, deep cleaning, removing makeup and pat drying are the first best steps towards protecting your skin from aging quicker than you would like.

Hydrating Your Skin

You have probably heard by now that our bodies are made-up in large part of water. Water is the primary component of skin cells, so it holds true that proper hydration is important. Moisture content directly effects healthy cell maturation and development, while improving circulation and delivery of nutrients.

Maintaining adequate levels of bodily fluids is a must. As the doctor says, drink plenty of fluids and avoid liquids high in caffeine and sugar. Caffeine is a diuretic that acts to deplete fluids and sugar is known to increase metabolism, both flushing nutrients and reducing fluid levels. It goes without saying diet and regular exercise and stopping smoking (if you do) are hugely helpful.

Anti-Aging Skin Care

Though anti aging covers a broad topic, to keep the conversation succinct and to focus on the most effective products, anti aging skin care can be categorized into a relatively small group:

Wrinkle Treatment

Antioxidants Skin Care

Age Spots

Dry Skin

Enlarged Pores

Body Firming

Spider Veins

Stretch Marks

Granted this is not an all encompassing list, but it covers many of the skin care issues we face as we age. Skin care is fundamentally developed to address symptoms, but effective products can remedy the causes as well. Let’s take a closer look at antiaging skin care and how it can help in our anti aging “quest”.

Wrinkle treatment comes primarily in the form of wrinkle creams formulated to reduce the density and depth of wrinkles. Many provide added hydration that acts to reinforce and provide nutrients to cell membranes – improving the skin’s health, while improving healthy cell rejuvenation.

Argireline and Matrixyl are two of the most commonly used active ingredients. These peptide compounds act similar to BOTOX in that they relax facial tissue – smoothing wrinkled skin and eliminating fine lines. Many are somewhat temporary in nature, though consistent use will aid to further prevent wrinkles.

Common in anti wrinkle eye and face cream, Argireline and Matrixyl are also effective for use on the neck (where my wrinkles started) and on the chest. Hyaluronic Acid is also useful in wrinkle treatment. Hyaluronic Acid is a naturally occurring substance in our bodies. It helps cells retain moisture and acts to plump and smooth. Used as an active ingredient in wrinkle creams, it has a cumulative effect in relaxing and smoothing wrinkles.

Antioxidants skin care should not be overlooked. Free-radicals produced from naturally occurring oxidization destroy cells – and are especially fond of skin cells. Antioxidants are common in many fruits and vegetables – in particular, Green Tea, Idebenone and coffee.

All three have found themselves as popular ingredients in anti aging skin care. Green Tea in particular is promoted in consumables (tea), moisturizers, and topical serum applications. Free-radicals, in a nut shell, lead to pre-mature skin aging and can be accelerated if you smoke or are over exposed to the sun. Using an antioxidant as part of your anti aging program is a great step in the right direction.

I turned 50 last year…mmm…I still feel 30, but I’ve started noticing some things on my skin that I only linked to my grandmother – age spots. As we age melanin pigment in our skin loses its ability to protect from sun damage, thus dark, brown or age spots appear.

Bleaching or skin whitening creams can be effective reducing the appearance of age spots, but should be used with care. Many whitening agents make skin sensitive – and sensitive to the sun. Also, use should be confined to the age spots themselves, unless used in light(er) formulations for overall skin lightening.

Dry skin is the hidden villain of aging. As we age our skin naturally loses moisture, the ability to retain hydration, and this leads to amplifying other skin problems such as, wrinkles, rashes, and psoriasis.

Using a night cream that moisturizes is the best advice. Avoid the sun, drink plenty of fluids, and attempt to eat fruits and raw vegetables if possible. As mentioned, many products utilize Hyaluronic Acid to aid moisture retention. Often found in face applications, it is also used successfully in body lotions and creams.

In the past couple of years, Emu Oil has also become a favorite in anti aging skin care. Emu Oil is known to penetrate into the dermis and subcutaneous skin layers and is super-moisturizer. It also has anti-inflammatory properties as well as being an antibacterial. It has carrier benefits allowing it to “carry” other anti aging ingredients deeper into the skin – improving their effectiveness. Like Hyaluronic Acid, it can be found in body lotions and creams for the eyes and face.

Enlarged pores create havoc on the face. A result of heredity, clogged pores, or excessive oils, enlarged pores accumulated dirt, oil and dead skin cells. Often they lead to rough skin, bacterial infections, blemishes, swelling and irritation, inflammation, or acne and rosacea.

Daily and effective cleansing usually helps reduce pore size and irrigates bacteria-laden pores. Light use of makeup or using mineral makeup that does not irritate the skin and cause inflammation is recommended.

Many skin care products use either Emu oil or Alpha Hydroxy crystals to clean bacteria and reduce pore size. Both are effective active ingredients and when used in concert, help clean and clear your complexion and make skin pores smaller.

Ah…if you’re still with me, there are just a few items to cover – but, they are the top-three on the countdown list. Let’s start by discussing body firming lotions. Again, I know you’re tired of hearing this, as we age our skin loses elasticity and elastin fiber production drops. So?…well, this causes loose skin.

Outside the more obvious causes of lack of exercise and diet, collagen production and elastin development diminishes. Combined with depleted hydration, you get a one-two punch for loose and sagging skin. To get skin tight, body firming lotions use a complex of ingredients that firm and tighten skin, improve hydration, and nourish for optimal cell reproduction.

Many body firming lotions use Collagen III, Emu Oil, a firming peptide complex, and nutrients and amino acids that act together to firm sagging skin. Particularly useful on the arms, stomach, neck, and legs, these lotions tighten skin while adding moisture.

Spider veins are generally the result of several common occurrences – weight gain, pregnancy, having work responsibilities that require you to be on your feet a lot, or often from sun exposure – especially facial spider veins.

Considered a result of damaged or weak veins and capillaries, spider veins occur when damaged valves allow blood flow to get in, but not get out. Weight gain and gravity complicate the problem and in some respects may contribute to the problem. Anti aging skin care focuses on two results.

One, healing or strengthening the vessel walls. There are several active ingredients considered useful in helping the vessels and restoring healthy walls, but Vitamin k is consider the most effective currently. Two, you can cover them up. Repairing spider veins usually requires a spider veins cream or a spider veins treatment.

In fact, I had several facial spider veins removed from below my eyes and at the top of my nose with laser treatment – the result of too many days in the Florida sun growing up, per my dermatologist. But, I have had great success using a cream enriched with Vitamin K and have experienced measurable and noticeable clearing since use.

But, back to covering them up. Many folks have begun using spray-on pantyhose (men and women) to add some tint and color to their legs as the warmer seasons approach. Many spray-ons are formulated to not run when wet or to give you a weird coloring. Often available in a variety of shades, they can be chosen to give you a hint of color that matches your body without being noticeable.

Finally, whew, stretch marks. Though not necessarily at the top of the anti aging list, they are a common problem that folks like to address, especially as they age and become more “aware” of their bodies or pass through the child-bearing age.

Stretch marks are often result from childbirth, pregnancy, weight loss and gain, and are common among body builders. Simply, stretch marks are just that, marks created when the skin stretches faster that the skin can keep-up. Elastin and collagen are not able to reproduce quickly enough to counteract the stretching and the result is scarred and torn tissue.

Underlying the obvious, stretch marks core issue is elasticity and hydration. There’s that word again. True, though. If you are experiencing weight gain or are pregnant, using a stretch mark cream developed to add moisture and hydration has been shown to significantly reduce or even prevent stretch marks. If you already have them, as the title of this article suggests, there are several options.

Again, a stretch marks and scar creams help increase collagen and elastin fiber production. If used with ingredients that stimulate healthy cell reproduction, consistent, disciplined use can often marks and scars.

An alternative is to use an in-home, soft light laser. Low-level lasers emit light waves in oscillations that have been shown to stimulate cell growth and increase circulation. Used for many applications such as scars, burns, sores, and blemishes, low level “soft light” lasers have been shown effective.

Anti aging is a goal we all have and can be effectively dealt with using anti aging skin care. The reduction or elimination of wrinkles, smoother, softer clear skin, protection with antioxidant products, a firmer, tighter body and the elimination or fading of spider veins and stretch marks is possible with the right skin care products.

Though it’s a lot to consider, a skin care regimen focused on cleansing, moisturizing, and treating will to give you substantial short-term and long-term benefits.

The following article provides some insight into why good skin care is important and suggests a simple skin care regime anyone can follow to help your skin perform at its best.

Our skins functions are too many to go through here in detail, however it protects our insides from the external environment, acting both as a barrier and a filter between outside and inside our bodies.

The skin helps in regulating our bodys temperature, like when we have a fever or were physically working hard, we tend to sweat, which is the bodys way to attempt to lower the temperature.

The skin also protects us from harmful substances entering our body, and it eliminates many toxins. This takes workload off our Liver and Kidneys to filter out by-products from our bodys metabolism. The skin also breathes!

These are just some of the important functions of our skin and as you can see, looking after your skin is vital, not just for your outer beauty, but for maintaining your inner health.

Now there is skin care and there is skin care… well, we all (hopefully) wash our body (skin) every day and we may even rub some body cream on and that is pretty much that. Women (most) go one step further when they make-up their face. Often using a cleanser and then a moisturiser before applying make-up. But is that really skin care?

I think not. I would consider it an attack on the skin rather than caring for it. You see, most of the products marketed to women are full of artificial colours, stabilisers, emulsifiers and other chemical, which are supposed to help in achieving a beautiful complexion.

Some products are advertising hormones, which are supposed to make your skin re-gain that youthful (no wrinkles) look but more often than not these hormones are artificial or synthetic and may well cause problems with the hormonal balance of the body. This is NOT Skin care this is plain old manipulation and marketing.

Real skin care is much more than that and is more than just skin deep. Your skin is a living, breathing organ of your body. As such, just like every other organ in our body, it needs to be fed from the inside it requires nutrients.

There are 4 basic ingredients to feeding the inside: Good nutrition: keep it simple, fresh and unprocessed. That is the best nutritional advice I can give. The simpler the food, the less processing and the fresher your food is, the better it is for you. Fresh fruit and vegetables contain so many of the nutrients we need to maintain our health. Sure have the odd processed, high in fat meal when youre enjoying a meal out or have to attend a Luncheon or what ever. But make sure you have more natural foods than not. Keep the diet varied dont eat the same old, same old risk a new veggie one you havent tried before you might like it

Adequate rest and relaxation: dont work yourself to an early grave its not worth it. Make sure you get the sleep you need. Did you know that a study in England showed that your IQ (intelligence) drops if you do not have 8 hours sleep per night?

Think about it, do you get more work done if you feel well rested? Can you concentrate better if youre not tired? I bet you can.

Well, why not invest some additional time into rest and relaxation so that you gain an increase in energy and concentration? Im sure you will find you will get more work done in less time if youve had sufficient rest.

Sufficient water intake: thats a biggie. Most people (irrespective of were they live) will utilise around 3 litres of water per day hey, dont believe me, all the medical texts say so. Our body simply needs water to function.

If you do not drink at least this amount, your body will either not function well (on some level) or it will take it from where ever it can. That is called dehydration. You know, dry lips, dry flaky skin, parched mouth, cracks on you tongue, premature wrinkles the list goes on. So, drink up (water, mind you) or shrivel up its up to you.

Fresh air and sunshine: well, what can I say. Taking a deep breath of air and tell me it doesnt feel great Well? Oxygen is the stuff of life. Fill your lungs with it. Here I could go into how most of us do not know how to breath properly, but Ill save this for another article.

So what does all this have to do with skin care? Well, that is the point of putting expensive, beauty products on your skin, when you do not give it the stuff of life from the inside? The cells that make up your skin need the right nutrients for proper development, growth and all that You can help your skin by using good quality, natural skin care products, but you have to support this from the inside as well. Only in that way can you expect to get good results from proper skin care.

So whats proper skin care?

The primary key is to use a natural skin care system that addresses the following 3-steps:

Cleanse and Condition Hydrate and Tone Moisturise and Revive.

OK. Cleansing the skin seems obvious and I know, you do know how to use soap wrong, this is one sure way to make your skin dry-out quicker. Most soaps remove the natural oils of the skin, change the natural pH levels and do nothing to remove the dead layers of skin, which can block your pores and lead to blackheads. And, oh no, not pimples! The skin produces oils and acids to help it function, to protect it from loss of excessive moisture, to form a barrier etc. So please do not use soap or detergents unless it is necessary.

Using a loofah or a gentle scrub will remove the dead skin cells and this in turn will promote better blood circulation and help your skin to breath.

The next step is to hydrate and tone the skin. Say what? Well, youve just removed the dead skin layers, rubbing the skin with a loofah and or a specially formulated cleanser, now its time to remove the residue, sooth the skin and prepare the skin for getting a good feed of nutrients from the moisturiser.

Preparation of the skin prior to putting on the moisturiser is not dissimilar to preparing a surface about to receive a new coat of paint. You wouldnt just paint over a wall that hasnt been cleaned and prepared for the new paint, would you? It would be a waist of time and money well, good skin care is the same. You first get rid of the old layer of paint, than you give it a primer and finally the top-coat.

Ah, I already use a moisturiser Great, at least thats a step in the right direction. But, have you looked at the ingredients? Are they natural, or are there numbers and words you dont recognise on the label? If so, then consider that your body absorbs these substances and if they are not useful, (preferably of a natural kind) then the body has to eliminate them – and thats more work and not necessary.

In some cases, the body actually cant eliminate these substances and has to store them. This is a potential problem and could cause health issues down the track. Pure essential oils, or herbal extracts are usually good ingredients to have in your skin care products.

So there you have it – the importance of good skin care. These steps, if you follow them, will help you to achieve the results you want and your body will thank you too.