the beauty blog
Just as the sun rises every morning, introducing a fresh start, remember - you, too, are never too old to begin anew. This is a gentle reminder that the magic of starting fresh knows no age limit. After two transformative decades in the holistic skincare, I am excited to share my insights and hopefully, ignite that spark in you to start whatever it is that's been waiting in the wings of your heart.
It's hard to believe we're already midsummer and oh man is the heat on! 😅
Sunshine is a top source of Vitamin D3 needed for balanced hormones, a strong immune system, brain, bones and teeth, as well as has energizing and uplifting effect on our soul.
So how can we reap the benefits of these golden rays without worrying about free radical damage from UV radiation? Do we wear sunscreen or don't we? Sun protection is a subject in hot debate.. some even say sunscreen can do more harm than good! Which camp are you in?
Have you ever heard a story of 2 twin siblings separated at birth that meet later in life and look completely different from one another? This phenomenon can be explained by epigenetics.
The genes we inherit from our parents hold the instructions for building all our body parts and contain lots of information that make us unique like hair, skin tone, body shape and eye color even predisposition to certain health issues. However, the old ideas that genes are “set in stone” or that they alone determine development have been disproven. Nature vs. Nurture is no longer a debate—it’s nearly always both! our environment and lifestyle choices can change the way genetic information is accessed and used.
As the cooler weather is upon us, we need to amp up our skincare routine to protect against chronic dryness and flaking. As with all skin conditions, dryness needs to be addressed both internally and externally. Here's a few of my personal strategies for dry, sensitive skin and to combat seasonal dryness 🌲
🍁 Don’t over-exfoliate or use scrubs. This disrupts your lipid barrier, leaving your skin compromised and susceptible to environment damage.
Truly radiant skin cannot be found in a bottle alone. It requires a holistic approach to caring for your skin. By topically applying key antiaging nutrients COUPLED with a nutrient-rich diet and skin supporting supplements, we can prevent premature aging and slow the hands of time, preserving our youthful glow. Our anti-aging mission is to support deep cell hydration, minimize inflammation in the body and skin, optimize cell function and repair mechanisms, and ensure proper blood flow and lymphatic drainage in order to effectively remove waste and assimilate nutrients.
The Youth Preserving Elixir is power-packed with skin-nourishing ingredients that focus on strengthening the skin’s ability to repair DNA, produce healthy collagen and elastin, and protect itself against free radical damage.
It's a very exciting time in the skincare industry. Slowing the hands of time is of great interest to many, and with modern advancements in technology and ingredients, anti-aging strategies can preserve the youth and vitality of our skin for many years to come. Currently, the hottest topic in the anti-aging industry is PREVENTION.
Turns out that youthful skin starts at the top! AKA, your scalp. Yup. Simple enough right?! When analyzing the face lift, skincare researchers recognized that the part that gets cut is never the face, but rather parts of loose scalp in order to "lift" the skin on the face back to its original position. So um duh.. reducing aging on the skin of the scalp ensures it remains healthy and in prime condition, slowing down sagging and in turn helping maintain a firmer, more youthful face.
Due to chemicals, environmental exposure and the weight of gravity literally holding everything together, it's been found that our scalp ages about 20 times faster than the skin on our face.
Did you know that healthy barrier function is perhaps one of the most important aspects of skin health and aging?
According to medical skin experts, optimal skin health reflects the following key elements:
Healthy Barrier Function
Flexibility and Strength
Even Color
Good Circulation
Hydration
“Bounceback”
As our skin's first line of defense to the outside world, the outer layer of skin, the Stratum Corneum (CF), is a protective, waterproof shield consisting of dead, protein-rich skin cells containing Natural Moisturizing Factors (NMF) which help bind water to the cells. Surrounding these cells are lipids such as ceramides, cholesterol and fatty acid. Together this protective matrix of protein, water, and oil function to prevent water evaporating from the skin and from external threats and irritants entering our skin. If our barrier has been impaired by over washing, exfoliating, harsh ingredients, excessively hot showers or neglect, we are vulnerable to invasion of pathogens, environmental pollutants including chemicals, heavy metals, EMF's and other sources of damaging particles.
Do you ever wake up feeling on top of the world, look in the mirror and think, "WOW!! My skin looks AMAZING!!" BEST. FEELING. EVER!! Wouldn't you agree?! I wish this for everyone. From personal experience, I know how debilitating skin problems can be. In my early 20's, I dealt with painful cystic acne that kept joy, freedom, and inspiration at arms length. All I could think about was how much I hated my skin. Luckily, it cleared within 6 months, but I will never forget how self conscious and unlovable I felt.
This is why I've devoted my life's work to helping others achieve skin that reflects vitality and well-being. Because when we are healthy on the inside, our skin radiates health on the outside. I call this Complexion Perfection. And that is something we can all strive for.
Stress is being called The Black Plague of modern times and is the leading cause illnesses, depression and anxiety. Stress is a simple fact of life for most of us, and can sometimes serve as motivation to meet challenges or goals. But when gone undetected and unmanaged, constant daily stressors such as long commutes stuck in traffic, relationship/family problems, financial or work pressures can wreak havoc in our lives, eventually stealing our joy, health and beauty.
The “fight or flight response” we have while under stress is our body’s natural survival mechanism to a perceived threat. Today’s stressors don’t commonly involve live-or-die situations like our ancestors faced. Unfortunately, our body doesn't know the difference between "perceived" and "real life" threats. When we are in a continual state of chronic stress, our immune system is overtaxed and depleted making us susceptible to premature aging, a plethora health issues and ultimately a shortened life span. Sadly and all too often, coping with modern day stress involves self medicating with drugs or alcohol, comfort foods, watching hours of mind numbing TV.
