Wednesday, July 7th, 2010
The weather in my part of the world has been sunny and hot, just like summer ought to be. I’m rejoicing because the last several summers have been short, cool and wet, so the long stretches of sun and heat this year are a lovely thing. It’s been almost two straight weeks of 80-plus degree temps and the ocean water is even warm enough to get into! Yay!
I love a little color on the old bod in the summer as much as you do, and in fact have taken Heather’s advice and allowed a little base tan to develop on my body, but even with that, I’m still being smart in the sun (and absolutely NEVER exposing my face to the sun). Here are a few things to remember:
Use a sunscreen that protects from UVA and UVB rays.
Use a mineral only sunscreen if you’re sensitive at all.
Put it on about 30 minutes before sun exposure.
Reapply often, even if you’re not sweating or swimming, as the chemical sunscreens break down with time and sun exposure.
Wear a hat and hang out in the shade if possible.
Avoid the sun during peak mid-day hours.
I recently received a newsletter from my favorite beauty gal, Paula Begoun, listing out the best body products in one convenient place. I love her no-nonsense approach to evaluating products in the lab and real life and appreciate that she cuts through the crap and gives it to you straight. I trust her completely, and so I’ve cut and pasted her list of best sunscreens hoping that it would help you find one that’s perfect for you. Check it out …
Best Sunscreens for the Body
The Criteria: To make our best list of sunscreens for the body, the product had to be rated at least SPF 15 and contain one or more of the following essential UVA-protecting active ingredients: titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, avobenzone, ecamsule (Mexoryl SX), or Tinosorb. In addition, all sunscreens on the list contain antioxidants to boost skin’s environmental defenses and reduce inflammation.
Almost all of the sunscreens on this list are fragrance-free; only the Jason Natural Sunbrellas sunscreens and Mary Kay sunscreen contain fragrance. For complete product reviews, visit Beautypedia.
Note: Although there are other body sunscreens reviewed favorably on Beautypedia, this report includes only the body sunscreens that come in packaging of 4 ounces or more. Used daily and applied liberally, a 4-ounce bottle of sunscreen should last 1–2 months, depending on how much skin you bare on each outing.
Second note: In addition to sunscreen, be sure to follow other safe sun tips, such as wearing a broad-brimmed hat and sunglasses, donning protective clothing, avoiding the sun during peak intensity (typically 10 a.m.–4 p.m.), and seeking shade whenever possible.
**Banana Boat Kids Tear-Free SPF 30 Continuous Lotion Spray ($9.99 for 6 ounces)
Clinique Sun SPF 30 Body Cream ($20 for 5 ounces)
Clinique Sun SPF 50 Body Cream ($20 for 5 ounces)
**DDF Matte Finish Photo-Age Protection SPF 30 ($32 for 4 ounces)
DDF Moisturizing Photo-Age Protection SPF 30 ($32 for 4 ounces)
*Dr. Perry Natural Block 100% Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 ($19.95 for 4 ounces)
DERMAdoctor Body Guard Exquisitely Light SPF 30 for Face & Body ($25 for 4 ounces)
Jason Natural Fragrance Free Hand & Body Lotion SPF 15 ($12.99 for 8.5 ounces)
Jason Natural Sunbrellas Complete Sunblocks (SPF ratings vary from 36 to 46; each costs $11 for 4 ounces)
**Kinesys Sunscreen Spray, Fragrance Free SPF 30 ($18.99 for 4 ounces)
Kiss My Face Sun Screen SPF 18 ($11.95 for 4 ounces)
**Mary Kay SPF 30 Sunscreen ($14 for 4 ounces)
*Neutrogena Sensitive Skin Sunblock SPF 30 ($9.49 for 4 ounces)
Neutrogena Age Shield Sunblock SPF 30, SPF 45, or SPF 55 ($10.69 for 4 ounces)
*Paula’s Choice Pure Mineral Sunscreen SPF 15 ($15.95 for 6 ounces)
**Paula’s Choice Essential Non-Greasy Sunscreen SPF 15 ($14.95 for 5 ounces)
Paula’s Choice Extra Care Moisturizing Sunscreen SPF 30 ($14.95 for 5 ounces)
**Paula’s Choice Extra Care Non-Greasy Sunscreen SPF 45 ($15.95 for 5 ounces)
**Paula’s Choice Ultra-Light Weightless Finish SPF 30 Sunscreen Spray ($15.95 for 4 ounces)
**Peter Thomas Roth Uber-Dry Sunscreen Cream SPF 30 ($26 for 4.2 ounces)
Peter Thomas Roth Oil-Free Sunblock SPF 30 ($26 for 4.2 ounces)
Peter Thomas Roth Ultra-Lite Oil-Free Sunblock SPF 30 ($26 for 4.2 ounces)
*Note: Sunscreens marked with an asterisk (*) are best for sensitive skin; sunscreens marked with a double asterisk (**) are best for oily, blemish-prone skin. All of the other sunscreens are versatile, but best for normal to dry or normal to slightly oily skin.
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)
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010
My thing is head to toe beauty, from the inside out.
A beautiful woman (and of course, we are all beautiful women) is soooo many things, exterior and interior, tangible and intangible, heart and soul … I’m not even going there. But speaking strictly physically, a beautiful face is be made up of any combination of gorgeous features, and without a doubt, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. To me, and this is just me, the most beautiful faces are the ones with smooth, clear, glowing skin. I’m even down with age appropriate wrinkling! Gorgeous skin communicates health, and health is a beautiful thing!
I want my skin to be as beautiful and healthy as I can possibly manage for the rest of my life. Lots of things contribute to good skin … genes, lifestyle, sleep, diet, exercise, stress, etc. … but, the big one, I’m convinced, is sun exposure. Protecting your skin from the sun needs to be a priority if you want beautiful skin. Plus, skin cancer is no joke, and sun exposure is the major cause of skin cancer. Research shows that UV exposure of any kind accounts for 80% of the skin’s aging process! (Wrinkles, dark spots, and dryness, flaking, you know the list.)
Here is the quick version of how sun damage works. Short UVB radiation waves hit the epidermis (the upper portion of the skin) and cause the skin to tan and burn, which are both actually skin damage. The longer UVA rays penetrate further into the dermis (the mid-layer), causing not only a tan but also prematurely ages the skin by dissolving collagen and elastin (protein-based connective tissue that form the skin’s infrastructure and give it strength and resilience). UVB rays are much stronger than UVA radiation, however, UVA radiation is the larger danger for skin because the earth receives about 100 times as much UVA as UVB radiation.
Keeping the skin youthful and beautiful is impossible w/ out protecting it from sun exposure. Period. Besides moving into a cave and never leaving it, the only way to protect your skin from increased risk of cancer and premature aging is with sunscreens and blocks that offer protection from both UVA and UVB rays. Select a product w/ an appropriate SPF for your skin and one that lists ingredients that shield both UVA and UVB rays, indicating broad screen protection, and USE IT!
The sun protection factor, SPF, measures a product’s ability to protect the skin from UVB rays only. It quantifies the amount of time you can be in the sun wearing sunscreen before you are burned. This obviously depends on you. If you burn w/ in 10 minutes of being in the sun, then wearing an SPF of 15 will protect you for 15 times as long, or 150 minutes. SPF 30 is not exactly double the protection of SPF 15, but it’s close. Spf 2 blocks about 50% of UVB rays; spf 10 filters out about 85% of UVB rays; spf 15 stops about 95%; and spf 30 stops about 97%. An SPF that’s higher than 30 does not provide any more UV protection, it just offers more time that you can stay in the sun without burning. Choosing to wear a higher SPF product means that you still need to reapply after swimming or sweating to ensure continued protection.
In addition, a moisturizer w/ SPF 15 and a foundation make up with SPF 15 don’t add up to SPF 30. You still have just SPF 15; you’ve simply used more of it, which is a good thing. Also, the concentrations of sunscreen ingredients needed to reach the very high SPF (55+) available these days can be potentially irritating (more on this later) to your skin. There aren’t enough daylight hours to ever need one shot of so much sunscreen. It’s better to find a concentration that works for you and be diligent about reapplication.
Remember that SPF only refers to protection from UVB radiation. You’ll need to look for products that specifically list protection from UVA rays too.
A few more things to know about the sun and its affects on your skin …
* UVB radiation is the sun’s burning ray and has an immediate, harmful impact on skin. Damage from UVB rays takes place within the very first minute (yes, 60 seconds) of walking outside.
* Even on a cloudy or hazy day, the sun’s rays are present and impacting the skin.
* Regular clothing has an SPF of about 10.
* Surfaces such as water, sand, snow, cement, and grass reflect the rays from the ground to your skin giving you a double dose of exposure.
* UVB rays increase as the ozone layer is depleted, meaning more serious burns for unprotected skin.
* There is no risk of sunburn when you sit in a car or next to a window, because UVB rays can’t pass through glass, however UVA rays can.
* It’s best to apply sunscreen at least 15 to 20 minutes before sun exposure. This gives the sunscreen time to absorb and to spread over and into the uppermost layers of skin.
Come back next week because I’ll be tackling the pros and cons of sunscreen formulas and ingredients – sadly it’s complicated, and the when and how much of which product to use – not as complicated but a large enough discussion to get it’s own post. Plus, I’ll share my opinions and favorite products.
Resources
Simple Skin Beauty, Ellen Marmur, MD
The Original Beauty Bible, Paula Begoun
Mind-Beauty Connection, Amy Wechsler, MD
You Being Beautiful, Michael F Roizen, MD and Mehmet C Oz, MD
Wednesday, January 13th, 2010
I’m Seanna, the skin care/make up/style/beauty/shoes/all things-aesthetics-girl for Model Per4mance. I check in on Wednesdays, and soon I’ll be chatting it up with video too.
Today I want to just jump right in and discuss skin care, a topic near and dear to my heart; specifically facial skin care. There are so many issues and directions to go, but I’m going to start with what I struggle with most. Dark spots, or melasma, on my forehead, cheeks and upper lip. I hate it! I feel like it looks like my face is dirty, my foundation is too dark or I went crazy w/ a bad bronzer. Like I have a five o’clock shadow on my upper lip. Come on! In general, the discoloration makes my face just appears older than I really am, more aged, even more so than from wrinkling.
Melasma is sometimes also called the mask of pregnancy. They’re brown and/or sometimes grayish discolorations in various sizes and shapes on the upper lip, cheeks and forehead and chest. It’s usually caused by increased progesterone and estrogen during pregnancy and when taking birth control pills, and can also even appear on the cheeks of those with hypothyroidism. Sometimes a mask of pregnancy clears up on it’s own. Mine didn’t. In fact, mine didn’t even show up until my son was 3 or 4 years old. Weird? But whatever, hormones are what get melasma started and the sun brings it on strong. UV exposure causes melanocytes in the skin to accelerate melanin production (the pigment that absorbs ultraviolet light from the sun and causes your skin to tan or burn), turning a patch (or two or three) of skin a nice brownish gray. Gross.
While there isn’t anything to be done about raging pregnancy hormones, you can protect yourself from the sun. Sunscreen is the best prevention for any kind of hyper pigmentation (freckles, sun spots, sun burns, etc.), including melasma.
(Actually, sun protection is a huge deal if you want to have beautiful, healthy skin. Too much sun exposure is the major cause of premature aging of the skin by dissolving collagen and elastin, which show up on the face as wrinkles, sagging and hyper pigmentation. And most importantly, it is the primary cause of most skin cancers. Sun protection is a very hot topic around here so we’ll all be talking about it more as we go along.)
Fortunately, I don’t have to just live with this ugly melasma. There are a few things out there, like laser treatments and topicals, that address an otherwise lovely face with the color out of whack.
I decided to start with topicals. I’m working with a dermatologist who put together an easy regime. Currently using a prescription hydroquinone and retinol cream each night and vitamin C/hydroquinone serum in the morning. Hydroquinone is a topical bleaching agent but doesn’t actually bleach the skin, rather it inhibits the enzymes that cause the formation of melanin. Vitamin C is a strong antioxidant and has been found to stimulate collagen production. And even though vitamin C breaks down with UV exposure, topping the serum with sunscreen (in moisturizer, make up primer and foundation – yes, I’m a psycho) keeps it active. The retinol in it actually irritates the skin (which makes some people red, but fortunately hasn’t bothered me), increasing cell turnover, which is great for treating and preventing clogging and pimples, as well as diminishing wrinkles (yes, really). Be sure to get a preparation that is stable as vitamin C oxidizes quickly.
You must also be vigilant with use of sunscreen when using hydroquinone and especially retinols, as it actually thins the skin, making it that much more photosensitive and vulnerable to sun damage.
I’m not kidding about this. You can’t get melasma (or freckles, sun spots, or any other hyperpigmentation) without the sun, and melasma will return with any sun exposure. Keep it covered in at least 30 spf every minute the sun is up, including when you’re inside because UV rays enter through windows too. If you’re outside in the sun training, gardening or whatever, kick the spf up (and wear a hat, and wrap sunglasses, and long sleeves … !!). There is a lot of opinions on at what spf it becomes over kill and useless (more on that later), but I go with as high an spf as my skin can tolerate and reapply often. I’m a psycho, I know. I told you I hate the dark splotches on my face!
As easy as this regime is, I’ve actually had to be thoughtful about the when and how of using it during the day. For instance, I was way gung ho in the first few days with the vitamin C serum and sunscreen like directed. Then I went outside for my workout, sweat like a man, and showered. As I was doing my thing post shower, I realized that I’d just sweat and washed off the serum! This stuff comes in a small bottle and you use a few drops, but it wasn’t cheap! Plus the derms office is like a 45 minute drive from my house one-way. I was going to use it up twice as fast if I kept washing it off. I know, genius, but now I know to put it on after my morning sweat session. And you do too … think it out or you’ll blow through your expensive supply way too fast. And DON’T neglect to screw the top back on and return the little amber bottle where it goes. I didn’t and knocked it over, spilling more than I want to admit. Grrrr.
Ok, so far so good. It’s been five months and the large brown splotch on my forehead has lightened considerably, and the smaller grayish spots on my cheeks and upper lip are faded away to almost nothing. I even go without foundation sometimes when I would never have chosen to do that before. Besides the even skin tone, my favorite side benefit is that I have almost no breakouts because of the daily exfoliating from the vitamin C and retinol! I have to manually exfoliate with a nubby wash cloth twice each week to stay on top a little flakiness from the retinol, but that’s ok with me. I really feel like my skin is radiant. Obviously, diet, exercise, GOOD FATS, water, sleep and peace have as much to do with it as the topicals, but I’m just saying. It’s helped!
I’m bummed but I understand that the discoloration will come and go, probably due to the things that brought it on in the first place – hormones (got those and the big M is coming) and sun exposure. Lasers and mild resurfacing are options going forward in the battle to have gorgeous skin. In the meantime, maintenance will be mostly prevention in the form of, say it with me, sunscreen.
What skin issues concern you? Acne, wrinkles, aging? What have you done about it and has it worked? Let’s talk about it!
In the spirit of honest reporting, hydroquinone is an effective tool but not without risks. It comes over the counter in concentrations of 2%, but you’ll need a prescription for 4% or 6%, which will be stronger and work faster. In 2006, the FDA proposed a ban on over the counter sales of hydroquinone because too strong a dose or even a lower dose for extended periods of time can cause skin to darken and thicken, which is not at all what you want! (When my tube of hydroquinone is finished, I’m done with it for a while. The vitamin C though will be a part of my every day regime from now on.) Hydroquinone has also been shown to act as a carcinogen in mice. It’s important to work with a real dermatologist and follow instructions to the letter. Do your research and be an informed consumer. A little bit of everything you put on your skin goes into your body, so educate yourself!
Geez, having said all that I’m feeling a little silly for using it at all! Actually, just kidding – I don’t regret it at all. For now anyway, the benefits have been worth the risk. Like I said, so far so good!
