Skin Care Products

Can you really believe everything you read? When it comes to selecting skin care products, the answer might surprise you. A debate rages on as to whether products containing all natural ingredients are really better than those containing synthetic ingredients. With both sides of this issue taking a firm stand, and publishing 'official' report after report, it is the consumer who most often becomes lost in the maze of unfounded marketing promises and supposedly 'guaranteed' results.

This seems to be the million-dollar question, literally. Skin care product manufacturers right now are spending millions of dollars researching everything from alfalfa to yucca in an attempt to not only gain a competitive edge, but to grab more of consumers' dollars.

With marketing departments working overtime, manufacturers of skin care products work hard to cleverly combine catchy phrases, attention-grabbing packaging and testimonials from 'experts' in the field of natural product research and development. The end results of these efforts are expensive moisturizers, cleansers, shampoos, masks, exfoliants and cosmetics that claim to work miracles on your skin, safely, and most importantly, naturally.

But are these claims true? Once again, that depends on which side of the fence you're on when it comes to supporting natural products versus synthetic products. Before you take a side on this hotly contested issue, there's one very important fact that you need to know.

The federal government has yet to define guidelines and regulations governing use of the term, 'natural'. That means marketers can use the term any way they choose, irregardless of the ingredients used in their products or the manufacturing processes used to produce those products.

Although a skin care product might very well contain natural products like aloe or vitamin E, what you're not being told is that the processes used to extract these components often utilize many synthetic materials. And even once natural ingredients are extracted, they're usually combined with synthetic products such as preservatives and stabilizing agents that help prolong shelf life.

One of the biggest risks involved with using natural ingredients is the potential for an allergic reaction. Lots of people have food allergies, so putting products containing plants or plant extracts on their skin may increase the risks of an allergic reaction. And even if a full-blown allergic reaction doesn't occur, natural ingredients often cause skin irritation and/or sensitivity.

Focus more of your attention on putting natural ingredients into your mouth and not onto your skin. One thing everyone can agree on is that eating a diet loaded with antioxidants and vitamins is extremely beneficial to healthy skin. The body is very efficient at processing natural foods and using the blood stream to transport these nutrients to the skin.

Find a skin care product line you trust and that works well with your skin type. Then become a loyal customer of that product line. Your skin will be happier as a result.

Moisturizers are a complex mixture of chemical agents specially designed to make softer and more pliable the external layers of the skin (epidermis), by increasing its hydration (water content). Naturally occurring skin lipids and sterols as well as artificial or natural oils, humectants, emollients. lubricants, etc. may be part of the composition of commercial skin moisturizers. They usually are available as commercial products for cosmetic and therapeutic uses, but can also be prepared at home using common pharmacy ingredients.

Besides imparting or restoring normal levels of hydration to the skin, moisturizers can have several additional intended and unintended effects on its users, including building a barrier against the loss of water through the epidermis, repairing scaly, damaged or dry skin resulting from external environmental aggressions or internal changes (such as in acne or naturally dry skin), repairing or postponing age effects on the skin, etc.

Mechanism of Action

Moisturizers act on the most external of the skin layers, the so-called corneal stratum (stratum corneum, the anatomical term in Latin), which is largely formed by squamous cells or keratinocytes (an epithelial layer which is quite dynamic, i.e., it is being constantly shed and replaced by the growth of new cells coming from the deeper layers of the skin, therefore its name). Most, if not all, agents present in moisturizers are unable to penetrate these deeper layers such as dermis and hypodermis.

The stratum corneum has approximately 30% water, of which a third is tightly bound to hygroscopic molecules and lipids in the skin. This fraction of water content is proportional to external relative humidity, and the thickness and flexibility of the stratum corneum increase with added water content. Evaporative loss of water of the skin increase in certain circumstances, especially if relative air humidity is decreased (in the dry season, in air-conditioned spaces, etc.). The remaining two thirds of water content are part of the biological tissue, such as keratin, and usually do not change in non-pathological conditions. Impairment of the bound fraction may occur in response to endogenous or exogenous conditions such as hormonal level, toxins, disease (such as hyperkeratosis), etc.

Composition

Although simple and effective moisturizers can be prepared from two or three simple chemicals, such as stearate, olive oil, water and glycerin, commercial preparations are astoundingly complex and varied in composition and may include:

Humectants, such as glycerin, urea, lactic acid and sorbitol;
Natural moisturizing factors (NMF) include low molecular weight substances such as ammonia, aminoacids, glucosamine, creatinine, citrate and ionic solutions such as sodium, potassium, chloride, phosphate, calcium and magnesium.
Emollients, such as lanolin (the earliest complex organic substances used in facial and body moisturizers, which is extracted from wool). Lanolin act as a barrier (occlusion effect) against loss of water and also as a softener of stratum corneum, by means of lubrication and smoothing. Other emollients are oil-water emulsions of varying composition and may include several esters and oils such as octyl dodecanol, hexyl decanol, oleyl alcohol,decyl oleate, isopropyl stearate, isopropyl palmitate, isopropyl myristate, hexyl laureate, and dioctyl cyclohexane.
Emulsifier, preserving and fragrance agents are also part of commercial preparations.

Since moisturizers are among the most used and prescribed products for the skin, unfortunately the cosmetics industry many times advertise loudly for scientifically unsubstantiated effects. Physicians, cosmeticians and consummers alike should be aware of the real science behind skin moisturization, and know what is possible to achieve and what is not.

For example, the addition of vitamins (A, B, C, D and E), nutritive agents, proteins and phytotherapeutic agents has been common in the industry, supposedly in order to add to the moisturizer the capability to treat several skin conditions such as cellulitis, age and photo damage, edema, loss of collagen, wrinkles, etc., with little or no scientific evidence for such. Of course, this has the effect of increasing the tag price of moisturizer creams to incredible market values, although the basic and really effective components are very inexpensive.

Choice of Products

The products that we put on our face can do a lot to either protect us from wrinkles and other blemishes or actually make us have those things.

For example, we've covered how dry skin is going to be more prone to wrinkles. Alcohol of course is a drying agent. If you were to use products that contain a large amount of alcohol, which is usually the main ingredient in many astringents and cleansers, you're going to be overly drying your skin. Check your skincare products and see if there is alcohol in your cleansers. If so, toss them. Find something else.

Makeup is another problem area for many women. Many centuries ago, makeup used by Egyptians and Romans actually contained mercury; some were also made from animal fat, tar, and had high levels of lead.

While most makeup manufacturers have come a long way toward making their products much better for your skin and some even have good moisturizers and sunscreens built right in, some are still very damaging to the skin because of the ingredients in them. These include preservatives and other chemicals that are necessary for the makeup to hold its color and liquidity and to remain fresh on the shelves for months, but these ingredients can be harsh on your skin and face.

The ingredients that are not good for you skin include:

Petroleum/Petrolatum/Mineral Oil/Liquid Paraffin. These are considered cancer causing by some researchers and have been banned or restricted for use in cosmetics and makeup brands in some countries. These ingredients are often used as moisturizers in some makeup brands. They can clog your pores and cause breakouts.

Propylene Glycol. This is a natural ingredient composed of vegetable oil and alcohol. However, it often causes skin irritations, allergic reactions and toxic reactions as well. Propylene glycol is rarely used in cosmetics but should be avoided.

Fragrance. There can be some 200 ingredients in fragrances used in cosmetics, and usually they are used only to mask the odor of other chemicals or to give the makeup a "cosmetic" odor. Most fragrances however cause symptoms such as headaches, rashes, dizziness, skin irritation, and unevenness of color.

Coal Tar/Dyes/FD&C Colors. Obviously there needs to be some coloring in many cosmetics; what's the point of wearing makeup if there's no color? However, many dyes found in cosmetics are somewhat harmful to your skin and scalp. Be careful of those who have these ingredients listed at the top of their ingredient list; this means that there is an over-concentration of coloring and can be harmful to you.

Parabens. A paraben is actually a highly toxic chemical. It causes allergic reactions, skin rashes, and breakouts. Cosmetics that use parabens have only a small amount in them, or otherwise the product could not make it to store shelves, but be wary of those with this ingredient. If possible, avoid this ingredient as well.

Imidazolidinyl Urea/Diazolidinyl Urea. These are a primary cause of contact dermatitis. They may degrade to formaldehyde and are very toxic. Rarely do cosmetics use these ingredients, but be wary of them and avoid those with any high concentration of these ingredients.

Formaldehyde. This is a cancer causing agent. It also causes a variety of ailments including skin irritations, respiratory problems, and immune system toxicities. It's rare that you would find this ingredient in cosmetics today but it does happen, so be careful.

Talc. This is an ingredient that clogs pores and causes skin irritation. It has been linked to cancer and respiratory problems. Some foundations have talc as an ingredient in order to absorb oil, but this can typically just make your skin breakout with acne and other blemishes.

These ingredients are not just found in makeup and cosmetics but also in skincare products, even those used by men. It's important to review the list of ingredients in any product and choose those that are not going to make your skin worse.

Of course, a small amount of these chemicals is probably not going to be a problem, but some cosmetics contain more than they should. Opt for those that have fewer ingredients and that contain natural ingredients.

EXFOLIATES

The purpose of exfoliates is to remove the top surface of the skin, which includes things such as dry skin or dead skin cells.

This sounds much harsher than it really is. Most products that you purchase as an exfoliate remove just the very smallest layer of skin.

It's important that a person exfoliate on a regular basis, but you also need to be careful of overdoing it. Using an exfoliate too often or using a product that's too harsh means that you'll be over-drying your skin.

The reason this is important is because people often exfoliate when they have dry skin, but if the product is too harsh, they're going to be left with dry skin. And then they exfoliate again, and it creates a never ending circle of abusing your skin.

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