Wednesday, October 13th, 2010
This should have come first, but to sort of pick up where I left off my brain last week, following are some of the things you can do pre-bedtime to help your face beautiful stay that way.
Cleanse. Obviously, remove all traces of makeup. Use an eye makeup remover and cotton swab to gently get it all off. Even on the days that you’ve skipped make up, cleanse. Pollution, oils, sweat, even dirt are all sitting there, unseen, and thus make skin unclean. If you do only one thing, cleanse. Please!
Consider toner. Toner is good for getting rid of the last traces of makeup, especially if your makeup primer is a good one. Unless you are dry or very dry, toners are ok for you. Gone are the days of the Sea Breeze sting (although I think you can still get it at CVS – don’t!). Toners now are much more gentle and less drying and some good ones even contain antioxidants, which I like.
Specialty products. This is the time to use acne treatment, vitamin C serum, retinol cream, lightening product or whatever that address specific concerns you have, whether over the counter or prescription.
Moisturize. If you’re perfect just the way you are and don’t care to use anything special, then just moisturize. Make sure you use a product that does not contain sunscreen. Sometimes a heavier emollient night cream is appropriate for dryer, more mature skin. The eye area benefits from a moisturizer like this, but a separate eye cream is unnecessary. What is good for your face is good for your eye area too.
Not just the face, but night is also a good time to moisturizer the body, hands and feet. Use oil on cuticles or just be sure to rub in some of the cream here too. To treat calluses, rub a BHA lotion all over your feet at night then cover with socks. In the morning shower, uses a pumice stone to gently rub the callus smooth. Alternate the BHA with a moisturizing cream every other night. I’ve had nice success with callus and heel smoothing this way.
There’s more too (brush, floss, etc.), but it goes without saying that everyone does all that already.
We’re all getting it done in the gym and in the kitchen, which contribute to overall fitness, beauty and well-being. The additional five minutes (or less) that a ritual like this takes pays off very big in the health and appearance of your face. Get it in, then please, get some sleep!
Monday, April 26th, 2010
Depression—Are you SAD?
It’s a rare person who isn’t ready to slap the snot out of someone (everyone) by March due to SAD (season affective disorder). Assuming they have the energy and motivation to do it, that is. By then you’ve used up any Vitamin D you stored up from the previous summer and the well has run dry during the gloomy-gray winter months. There’s a reason it’s called a “sunny disposition”, after all. I’ve found that several studies are out there on sunlight therapy (aka heliotherapy, alluded to earlier) with regard to depression and anxiety. One in particular showed no difference in effectiveness between Prozac and UV therapy. The UV therapy, by the way, was delivered at 10,000 LUX—enough to equate to a good blast from good old Mr. Sun. In other words, both were effective, not one more than the other. They did find sunlight therapy to work much quicker than Prozac, doing so without any toxic side effects. Finally, they found no advantage to treating with both Prozac + sunlight therapy. So apparently you can’t double up on the happy pills and the rays for the ultimate high, sorry! 
Prozac/sunlight study http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/163/5/805
http://www.psycheducation.org/depression/LightTherapy.htm#evidence
(Note: fluoxetine is the generic for Prozac)
Aging—The sun’s rays doing us wrong
Okay, this is a tough one. I mean, no wait… the cancer one is a tough one, but that’s also largely a matter of genetics and balance. I mention appropriate sun exposure, not “burn the beejeebers out of yourself starting in infancy”. I hope you got that. But the incidental adding-up of just living life in the light showing up as brown spots and wrinkles and such? Oy. Again, genetics come into play here. But you don’t just inherit genes, you inherit habits. And as much as I’ve hit lightly upon the fact that not getting enough sun can age you on all levels, it can fast-track you to looking like Magda from Something About Mary as well. Balance, people. And know yourself. We harp on it with your eating and your training, the sun is no different. Anyone 25 and under, pay close attention to those of us in the 40+ crowd. In fact, one of my heroes, Seanna of MP4, is a perfect example of knowing herself, gathering information, and applying her own experience and knowledge of her genetic potential to her lifestyle choices. In fact, stop reading this and head over to her Wednesday posts now. And bring a pen and notepad! It’s not all about habits and good sense with regard to the sun either. Seanna and the rest of the team know that what you eat can affect how you “per4m”. All of you, including your skin! Here are some of the power players for your skin, acting as protectants from the elements, even the sun:
-Dark green leafies (we’ll bring them up until you’re all eating them daily)
-Dark chocolate (you’re welcome, but before you head for the sugary bars keep in mind the best form is the really dark stuff and raw chocolate, aka “cacao”—which is not sweet as-is)
-Fatty fish, such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines
-Green and black teas
-Fruits and veggies, esp the deepest and richest in color, eat from the whole palette!
Articles about foods that protect your skin. They mention exactly the same foods, but expound on them more if you’d like to know how/what they help (I do!). If nothing else, they back up the MP4 food ethic!:
http://food-facts.suite101.com/article.cfm/sunscreen_in_your_food
http://www.emaxhealth.com/1020/66/31859/five-foods-protect-sunburn-and-skin-cancer.html
How’s the High Horse, Heath?
There’s so much more to say that I just can’t go there even if I want to. And I really need a minute and some space to reiterate the best point(s) I made above: Know yourself; know your family history; make wise choices with regard to appropriate exposure, products, clothing, and nutrition, and make them consistently. I am absolutely positively not “for” jackassery of any sort, including sun exposure. But I do feel like we are in a time period when something natural with proven health benefits is being maligned to the point of causing a public health crisis. Additionally, I feel that common sense has flown out the window. Complete avoidance of the sun is not appropriate for most beings, but too many wallets stand to be filled by fueling a fear of exposure to it. How sad that the products they peddle may actually be a major cause of what we fear will happen.
So what do I do? Well, I know that I don’t have a family history of lethal skin cancers, but that if people in my family do dumb stuff (read: nothing) when in the sun, they sometimes have to have something scraped off a forearm here or there, or have something biopsied (such as those who repeatedly fry their bald heads for years on end…Dad…). I also know I used to tan well/easily as a child, I rarely if ever burned (thanks, Mom), but I don’t as well anymore due to the whole stuck-indoors phenomenon. Sooooo, I do gradually build up a “base layer”* in summer (Seanna is now cringing) because I live in Atlanta, sun is going to happen, and I’d rather have the natural protection this offers versus an always-unacceptable sunburn. And if this bod is going anywhere near the equator, I do hit the tanning beds for this purpose, but only those considered “safe” via the standard set by those in medicine who are pro-heliotherapy. (reference below, don’t trust the 19 year old behind the counter at your local salon, just sayin’…). Oh, and I never purposely tan my face. My family gets those brown spots too, and I have some from: a) having a family tendency; b) being a jackass as a younger gal; c) hormone replacement therapy.
I get my Vitamin D tested (I’m at an optimal level of 55), I take Vitamin D3 (which is the only way I’m at 55), I eat all of the foods mentioned above, and I get outdoors whenever I can, exposing as much of my skin as I can depending on weather, setting, and decency standards. 
But I don’t overdo, I wear sunscreen (a more “natural-ish” one, yes it is chalky and white and takes forever to soak in), I have good eyewear and a fabulous wide brimmed pink hat with a sun protection rating, and I embrace shade. Oh, and sometimes I mess up. But that’s where the consistency comes in. I’m counting on it bailing me out of the boo-boos.
There’s so much more, like sunlight’s positive effect on bones, PMS/women’s issues, Alzheimer’s, heart health, and pain management. And things I’m forgetting to mention even. I didn’t even touch on sunlight and athletic per4mance or even get too in depth about Vitamin D. See my post from a month or two ago for more on those last things. There are links in it for blood testing for your own Vitamin D levels, as well as other information. And don’t forget to get your annual head-to-toe checks at the dermatologist! Be smart, be safe, be beautiful—inside and out, always in all ways!
*http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/3/15/vitamin-d-in-your-skin.aspx (how to tan, nutrition, how anti-tanning is “killing us”)
**http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2006/11/11/can-a-tanning-bed-be-healthy.aspx (tanning beds)
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010
by Seanna K. Metzger
I’ve learned that what I eat is as important to my skins health and appearance as what I put on it.
Oh, I’m still a products junkie, but by choice. I like messing around with potions and pretty bottles, yes, I have no intentions of being a slave to them. I want to feel as good about my skin health and appearance with or without all my stuff. You’d be surprised at how simple my “regime” really is. Sure, my bathroom cabinet spills out onto the floor because there isn’t room for one more thing, but that doesn’t mean I use all of it all the time. I don’t use much because I don’t have too. Instead, I eat well.
Good fats:
I have to start with good fats. By good fats, around here we mean primarily omega-3 fatty acids. Wild salmon and fresh flax oil are the best sources of omega-3, but walnuts and grass fed beef have nice amounts of omega-3s too. Astaxanthin, the carotenoid that gives salmon its pink color, improves skin elasticity and the omega-3 DHA in salmon makes your skin and hair look younger and healthier. Extra virgin olive oil, nuts and nut butters, and other fatty fish are decent sources of good fats too, but have more omega-6 than -3, so use these too cook with or drizzle and dallop here and there. Avocados are a divine food fat simply because they are delicious, in their own right, but they also have a high biotin content, which keeps skin and nails from becoming brittle. Coconut oil is a saturated fatty acid, but its many healing and health promoting characteristics make it a good fat superstar none the less. I love it warmed and drizzled over sliced banana or spread on Ezekiel toast like butter.
When I was doing physique competitions I limited good fats to one serving daily, which was enough to serve my purposes – getting lean and maximizing beauty. Now that I am looser with my diet and don’t count grams and servings like I used to, I’m eating a lot more good fats in a day and it really show on my skin. Even in frigid February, the skin on my body and face is not dry, itchy or flaky, my cuticles don’t crack like they typically do in the winter, and my hair is not dried out and frizzy. Even my heels aren’t cracky and gross anymore! You know you’ve taken in enough good fats when you can skip body lotion and not notice it. I give credit for my comfortable cold weather skin to increased good fats.
Green tea:
A great skin-friendly beverage thanks to its high amount of polyphenols, a chemicals found in plants with potent antioxidant properties. It’s what gives tea its bitter flavor. Green tea has up to 40% polyphenols while black tea has around 10%. White tea, which is actually the young, small green tea leaves, are the least processed of green teas and so have the most polyphenols. Green tea also has 1/3 the amount of caffeine as black tea yet it’s been shown to yield the same level of energy but in steadier levels than other caffeinated drinks. I’m pretty sensitive to caffeine so this in addition to it’s skin beautifying benefits, and because it’s so cold right now, I’m loving 2-3 hot teas each day. Fortunately I found a green tea that I like (Numi Monkey King Jasmine Green). Oh, and fyi … casein in milk has been shown to inhibit the beneficial effects of tea, so consider skipping it in your green tea.
Protein:
Protein helps repair cells that have been damaged by free radicals. As it is digested protein breaks down into amino acids, the building blocks of cells. Amino acids facilitate the repair and regeneration of skin cells and collagen. Eggs, a complete source of protein, also contain biotin, the essential vitamin also found in avocados, and help keep skin and nails from drying out. Salmon, the good fat super star, is obviously an important beauty protein, as are lean poultry, beef, other seafood and legumes.
Veggies:
I have a t-shirt that says “I heart veggies,” but the heart is a fat orange carrot with the green leafy stems and a smile. It’s cute. (I wore it when I did a presentation on healthy foods to the little kids at camp one summer. They loved it. ) You absolutely must heart veggies too, as many different kinds of veggies as possible. If for no other reason than you will look so gorgeous when you bring in a nice mix up of different veggies to your life each day. If you do nothing else for your skin but good fats and veggies, it will show.
Vegetables are a powerhouse of vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, polyphenols, and a myriad of other phytonutrients, all of which are essential to skin health and beauty. They should be present in hefty amounts at every meal. In a day have as large a variety of color as you can. Kale, spinach, brussel sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, broccoli, beets, red peppers, onions, eggplant, garlic, squash, tomatoes, and asparagus. Dark green leafy veggies like collards, dark lettuces like romaine, endive, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens, etc., and the rich yellow and red or deep orange vegetables such as winter squash, carrots, peppers and sweet potatoes are power foods because they are super-alkalinizing (you need a balanced body pH to enjoy your best health and beauty) and are a rich source of vitamin A and beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is the precursor to vitamin A and also an antioxidant that protects against cancer and heart disease and is critically important to skin health. Green leafy veggies are also great sources of folate, iron and calcium. Most other vegetables are alkalinizing too and include a myriad of different phytochemicals and antioxidants and are high in fiber, which is important for digestive health. There aren’t any bad veggies – eat them all.
Fruits:
Did you know Jodi isn’t a fan of fruit? She eats them, she’s too smart not to, plus I’ve seen her eat them. But who knew? And how weird is that? What’s not to like about fruit? I totally heart fruit!
Fruits are as equally essential in your beautiful skin diet as veggies, and a high variety of colors should also be present daily too. Some of the best fruits are blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, plums, oranges, red grapes, cherries, pomegranates, cranberries, cantaloupe, papaya, peaches and mangoes. Nearly all fruit are good and a rich source of many different vitamins like vitamin C, which as we know is important for production of collagen in the skin, and beta-carotene, fiber and water, along with other nutrients that feed beneficial digestive bacteria. Flavonoids, which produce the yellow and red/blue color in fruits, offer anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-microbial benefits.
It’s kind of a cool gift of efficiency that the foods we eat in an effort to optimize performance, health and physique are the same foods that really make your skin gorgeous. Go figure. And eat well because it shows!
Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
By: Seanna K. Metzger
Ever wish you had someone to ask the little skin care / beauty / make up / questions you feel like you should already know the answer to? Me too. In fact, the Wednesday theme of “all things aesthetic” was born out of many happy hours of Jodi and I sitting at my kitchen table talking (and laughing hysterically) about these mysterious little details.
Somewhere along the way she got the idea that from my massive desire to be healthy AND look good, as well as the kick I got out of futzing around with it all the time, I knew enough about skin care / beauty / make up / self-care-when-it-comes-to-the-outside-as-well-as-the-inside to author a blog on it. Ha! If I don’t know something, I’m going to figure it out one way or another, meaning through a little research and a lot of trial and error.
Heather and I were talking specifics (actually, emailing) about some of her skin care questions. I think I may have even answered a few! It would have been more fun sitting around the kitchen table or at a slumber party, but it was good stuff just the same. Check it out …
H: If I come up with beauty and skin q’s, can I send them to you?
S: No. Haha!
H: I figure if I’m wondering, others are.
S: Probably! Sounds like a blog post topic.
H: In fact, here’s one: You know that whole “exfoliate blah-blah times per week, do this x-times per week” and so on.
S: Yep.
H: Is it different in any way for those of us who sweat multiple times per day?
S: Probably not. If your pores are visibly clogged, the clogs look raised (I know, gross), and you can manually extract them (ie. squeeze em out; anyone but me?), give that area a scrub.
Basically I judge when to exfoliate by taking a look at my skin. Flakes, any peeling, patchy, dryness, dull looking, cloggy pores around my nose and forehead, crepey lines around my eyes, been at least a week = time to exfoliate. Glowing, smoothness, even texture and appearance (for the most part – that darn melasma!) = skip it today.
H: Like, is there any need to exfoliate less? More? Anything different there?
S: Not really. The main goal of exfoliating is to GENTLY scrub away dead skin cells and keep pores clear. I’m an oil slick on my forehead, so at night when I’m washing my face before bed, I”ll “scrub” the make up remover away w/ a fresh washcloth a bit more aggressively there and over my nose. I’m gentle around the eyes and cheeks. I prefer a clean wash cloth over a scrub product, for no reason besides I can’t find one that I feel is worth it. You know, one more product. And you can exfoliate in degrees; it doesn’ t have to be a sand papering every time. Take a look in the mirror and decide each day. Kind of like with amounts of daily good fats – I go by how the skin on my body feels (even in the winter). If I’m tight and mildly itchy, I probably need more good fat. If I’m supple and good, I’m getting enough (so scientific). Same for your face with regards to exfoliation. Get familiar w/ what it’s like at it’s best and when it’s not there, do or give it what it needs to be happy. This goes for moisturizers and make up too. Use just what you need.
H: Likewise, as an active chick, I use makeup WAY less than other women.
S: With skin as gorgeous as yours you don’t need it! Brat.
H: Especially other women my age. (Too bad for whoever my 5:30a training session is, haha). Does that make a difference in cleansing, ala we should save ourselves the potential drying out of another scrubbing and try and get away with those on-the-go face wipes as needed?
S: Cleanse your face after sweating, although don’t scrub every time you cleanse. Do you use soap or a cleanser? Please say a cleanser. Regular soap is clogging and drying. For cleansing several times daily, use something extra gentle, like for sensitive skin. Sensitive skin formulas are great because they are bare bones ingredient wise. No fragrance or anything unnecessary that’s potentially irritating but get you adequately clean and degreased. I use one and love it because it doesn’t dry out the skin around my eyes or cheeks. Plus it’s just a good way to expose the old skin to fewer synthetic ingredients. You know?
I love wipes for the convenience and they’re great for when I’ve headed down the wrong path with make up and it’s time to start over. Neutrogena Make Up Remover Cleansing Towelettes and Olay Daily Facials Skin Soothing Cleansing Cloths (or the drug store brand of the same thing) are both great for on the go cleansing and shouldn’t dry you out. You may or may not need to moisturize afterwards (and if you don’t need to, skip it), but for sure sunscreen post-wipe cuz now it’s gone.
H: And then with sweat, there comes zits. With sweat + being 40 I find myself with Proactiv in one hand and wrinkle prevention creme in the other. Fortunately, I may be on to something b/c the zits are minimal as are the wrinkles (or I’ve fooled myself into thinking that). Is there a better protocol?
S: Ok, acne is not my speciality. Thankfully I only get one, two zits tops around my period (esp with increased good fats), but they’re whoppers. I’m thinking it’s hormones as well as a clogged pore. I don’t have this figured out. (But I’m working on it!) I’m doing good to keep from squeezing the sucker and walking around w/ a big ‘ol scab on my forehead, like I’m in jr. high again. Ugh!
S: I’ve never used Proactive. What do you think?
H: Proactiv – I use only the Repairing Lotion. As a prophylactic measure, I’ll layer it on after cleansing, then apply moisturizer once it soaks in. I don’t find it overly drying, esp once moisturizer goes on, but I’m pretty oily, esp with all of those oils in the diet. Whooo. I never use soap, so we’re good there. That makes me feel like I’ve been stripped with paint thinner or something. Awful.
S: I know that, at least for me and I’ll bet you too, the lack of wrinkles are genes and lifestyle. (More on wrinkles in another post.) I mentioned retionoids in my first blog. They’re really the only thing topical that affects wrinkling. As far as sweat and pimples, see above and just keep your problem areas clean.
H: Okay, that was more than one question. Whoops. But that’s where my head is. You should probably scare the crap out of me about how bad it is to let the sweat sit there for a long period of time. Sort of a job hazard come bad habit in my world. heh heh
S: Yeah, it’s not a good thing. Along the lines of sleeping in your make up. You’re just asking for bad things. Plus, it’s gross. Sweat is a way for toxins to be excreted from the body, right? Having said that, it’s not like I’ve never done it. Life happens around here too.
S: So … this was cool! I love to talk products and what to do. I’m a total junkie when it comes to this stuff. But you’re very obviously doing something right. You’re skin is perfect, your face is beautiful, and you look like you’re 25. I know it’s what you put in your body way more than what you put on it, but it’s important too. (Also a future blog post!) I feel like a lot the good skin I’ve got as the years fly by come from the very same thing. So, yay us! How cool are we? Haha!
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010
I love being 41. Wisdom, deeper friendships, muscle maturity, great jewelry. Plus, there is dignity in passing on fashion trends because you were there, rocking it the first time around. (Shiny aerobics outfits, legwarmers, headbands, a la Olivia Newton John; acid wash, skinny, zippered ankle jeans tucked into turquoise Zodiac cowboy boots; checkerboard Vans, slouchy, shoulder bearing Flashdance sweatshirts, leggings, wide belts, big Jody Watley hoop earrings … anyone but me?)
Not a fan, however, of looking older than I am. Anyone but me? (haha, love this expression!) Call me vain, I don’t love the word, but I can take it.
By now you know too that I’m a believer in the protection that sunscreen provides from the damaging affects of the sun. Well, believer is putting it mildly. I’m obsessed. I sunscreen every inch of my body and practically white out my ankle tattoo when it’s exposed. Does anyone but me think a blurred, faded out tattoo that you can’t tell what it even is any more make us look old?
Slather on sunscreen, protect my face and body from the risk of skin cancer, burning, and – the real reason I was motivated to forgo the skin firming illusion of a tan and put on this glop that inevitably found a way to burn the crap out of my eye – premature aging, sun spots, darkening my melasma again, wrinkles, and crepey skin.
It was easy. But, turns out, sunscreen is more complicated than it used to be. Read on as I finish up my series on sunscreen with the ins and outs of UV protection.
Basically, the sun ages and damages the skin by weakening elastic collagen fibers, by preventing stem cells from rejuvenating the injured area, and by causing free radicals to damage DNA. All of which is not good. We need to see about putting a big fat stop on this kind of stuff.
There are two types of UV radiation, UVA and UVB (UVC wavelengths are filtered out by our atmosphere, at least for now). UVA rays penetrate into the deeper dermis, and these are the ones that cause the premature aging and bad things to happen to the skin. UVB rays penetrate the epidermis, the upper layer, and cause burning and contribute to skin cancer. So we need protection from both.
(Remember in last week’s post that SPF refers to protection from UVB rays only and that products indicating broad screen protection cover you for UVA and UVB rays.)
Physical blockers – Hats, longs sleeves, and the gorgeous pool umbrellas I got from my obsession w/ protecting myself from the sun, but also ingredients like titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. These mineral sunblocks literally sit on the skin and both UVA and UVB rays reflect off them. And since they’re mineral rather than a chemical, are less irritating to sensitive skin. For the most part, zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are the safest active sunscreen ingredients that you’ll find available in the local CVS. Except now, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide are being micronized into tiny nanoparticles. This is great in that the mineral ingredients are transparent and no longer opaque, so it doesn’t go on so diaper baby white or take near as long to rub in. (Remember the beef jerky colored life guards with the white nose coat? Wonder what his face looks like now?) The thing is, the nanoparticles are extremely tiny, 1/10,000 the diameter of a strand of hair, and they may be able to penetrate the skin and enter the bloodstream. So instead of just sitting on top of your skin, it may be being absorbed into your body. Research has indicated that when absorbed, these ingredients can generate free radical damage. Most studies done on nanoparticles do not indicate penetration through human skin and those in which absorption has been shown, the related risk (creation of free radical damage to the cell DNA, the very same cell DNA we are trying to protect from the sun in the first place!) has not adequately been demonstrated.
Chemical sunscreens – Ok, here we go. These ingredients filter either UVB or UVA radiation. Instead of creating a physical barrier that deflects ultraviolet rays, it converts the damaging UV rays into heat that then dissipates from the surface of your skin, preventing the radiation from reaching the connective skin tissue and the DNA in your cells. This chemical reaction consumes the sunscreen ingredients. So rather than wearing off, it actually gets used up. The more sun you are getting, the faster it is being used up, which is why it needs to be reapplied often. How often? Well, who knows? There is data that says it degrades to useless w/ in 30 minutes of sun exposure and other that indicates it is effective for up to 7 hrs. So, reapply “often,” like when training outside, after swimming, sweating a lot, wiping off said sweat, etc. In the summer, under my awesome umbrellas, I reapply every hour-ish. It’s still hot and sweaty in the shade!
Not all chemical sunscreens protect from the full UVA spectrum; most protect the skin from just the shortwave UVA rays. Avobenzone and Mexoryl SX are the only chemical ingredient that shields the full spectrum UVA waves, but it isn’t photostable. Most sunscreen products that use avobenzone as an active ingredient have added a photostabilizer so that it won’t degrade quickly in sunlight, and give it a cool name like Helioplex.
To complicate things further, there is concern because some studies have indicated that chemical sunscreens can mimic estrogen and disrupt the endocrine system and generate free radical damage to the cell DNA, the very same cell DNA we are trying to protect from free radical damage caused by the sun. However, other research indicates that any penetration of commonly used sunscreen agents in human skin was too low to cause any significant toxicity. In other words, the potential for problems with chemical sunscreens causing problems happened under controlled lab conditions, not in actual usage.
So, like hydroquinone, after running through the potential risks and side effects, I’m feeling a bit silly and conflicted about using it. Research will surely be on going, but for now it seems the jury is still out. I’m listening with an open mind, but so far, my mind hasn’t been changed. Here’s why … The risk of damage and it’s affects to the appearance of my skin from leaving it unprotected is just not worth it – to me.
What I do, and what I wholeheartedly recommend you do to protect your skin from unwanted, premature aging caused by the sun is to use a broad sprectrum sunscreen every day, every minute that the sun is in the sky, from your collarbone up w/ an SPF 15 at the very least. If you’re going out into the sun to train, go for a higher SPF, cover all exposed skin (and tattoos) and reapply often. Choose a product with ingredients that you aren’t sensitive or allergic to. Check out the information, both sides, and make a choice that is best for you.
Let me know what you think. Anyone but me obsessed w/ sun protection? What does your sun protection regime look like?
Sources:
http://www.cosmeticscop.com/sunscreen-ingredients-zinc-oxide-titanium-dioxide.aspx?filter=itemtype%3acontent
(The Cosmetics Cop, Paula Begoun. I’m in love with this woman. She’s sensible, smart, and too grown up and entirely too cool for BS. The “studies” and “research” cited for this post are all listed in various articles on her website, beautypedia.com)
Simple Skin Beauty, Ellen Marmur, MD (book)
You Being Beautiful, Michael F Roizen, MD and Mehmet C Oz, MD (book)
