Skin and Hair Care

Are you tired of getting cracked lips or dry skin? Do you have a hard time finding hair products that work for your hair? People are always trying to find different products that don't irritate their skin or that apply to their exact hair type. Here are some helpful tips to get you in and out of the store without wondering if the products that you purchased are going to actually work.

Pick a cleanser that is gentle on your skin. When you wash your face, some of that soapy water tends to get into your eyes. If it doesn't burn your eyes, than you know the cleanser is gentle on your skin. A few good examples include:

• CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser ($12)
• Olay Foaming Face Wash ($7)

Use an exfoliant. Exfoliants are important to keep your face feeling smooth and looking young while cleaning your pores.

• Alpha Hydrox exfoliant- Enhanced lotion which contains 10 % Glycolic AHA and also contains anti-wrinkle properties.

Use a moisturizer on your face. Moisturizers keep your skin healthy and feeling great! The moisturizer that you choose should include antioxidants, vitamin E, vitamin C, and vitamin A.

• Olay Regenerist ($19)
• Clinique Moisture In- Control ($38)
• Bobbi Brown Intensive Skin Supplement ($60)

Condition your lips before bedtime. Keep one of these products right next to your bed and apply right before you go to sleep. You will never have dry or cracked lips again!

• Px Prespectives Lip Specialist Triple Action Therapy ($15)
• Neutrogena Lip Nutrition ($7.59)
• Loreal Bare Naturale ($9.95)

Get rid of your dry heels with stridex pads. I know it's hard to believe, but stridex pads can actually get rid of your dry heels! Stridex pads ($5.99) contain salicylic acid which is an exfoliant. Right before bed, rub the stridex pad on your dry heels. Then, use 100 % Cocoa butter ($2.15) or vaseline petroleum jelly ($1.82) and rub it onto your heels. Put clean socks on your feet and after about a week, you will never get dry heels again!

Find the right shampoo for your hair. When you go to the store for shampoo, it is important to find a shampoo that is for your exact hair type, whether you have normal hair dry hair, or oily hair. If you look on the bottle, it should tell you what type of hair the shampoo is for. Some examples include:

• Suave Daily Clarifying ($3.49)
• Neutrogena anti-residue Shampoo ($7.99)
• Pantene Pro-V relaxed natural ($8.79)

Finding a conditioner that works. If you have long hair, we will always want to use a separate conditioner. It is important that you find a conditioner that works for your hair.

• Pantene Pro-V ($8.79)
• Bumble and bumble Creme de Coco ($26.99)

I hope these few tips can help you with your next shopping trip. I know that it has helped me!

Preventing Wrinkles

No matter how hard we try, we will never escape wrinkles. As our body ages, so does our skin. However, there are certain precautions we can take to make sure that the onset of wrinkles does not happen prematurely. This article outlines a few things that you can do to prevent wrinkles from forming prematurely.
Protecting your skin from the sun is extremely important. As you age, the genes that control the production and strength of collegan, inflammation, and your skin's ability to retain water begin to behave in a way that encourages the formation of wrinkles. A study found that aged skin that hadn't been exposed to the sun had about 3,800 genetic mutations, while skin that had been exposed to the sun had around 10,000 mutations in the same genes! Sunblock is very important and should be used in your everyday life.
Free radicals can be created when UV rays penetrate your skin. They can then latch onto your DNA and cause the mutations that cause wrinkles. In order to prevent this, eat and drink foods and beverages that are high in antioxidants. Examples of these are blueberries, green tea, and pomegranates. You can also use creams and moisturizers that contain antioxidants.
Sunglasses are a must if you want to protect your eyes, but they also help to protect the delicate skin around your eyes. Squinting your eyes all the time directly contributes to wrinkling. Make sunglasses a regular item that you carry with you where ever you go.
Most people don't know this, but sleeping on your back can also help to prevent wrinkles. When you sleep on your back, it prevents sleep lines from forming. You don't have your face against a pillow which can cause creases in your skin. These sleep lines can eventually form into wrinkles.
Smoking is a big no no! If you do not want wrinkles, you must stop smoking now! People who smoke are 5 times more likely to show excessive wrinkling compared to people who do not smoke. The squinting and lip pursing that comes with smoking directly creates wrinkles over time. Smoking can also damage collagen.
Controling your facial expressions can also help to prevent premature wrinkles from forming. You can do away with the frowning and the eyebrow raising as well as the squinting, but you must never stop smiling!
Happiness is very important to your health, but it can also keep you from looking older. In a study of identical twins, (having the same genes), researchers found that divorced women looked older than their married or widowed twins, and women on antidepressants looked older than their twins who weren't. It is hard to say if the antidepressants or the depression itself causes wrinkles, but it is apparent that being in a healthy relationship can stop you from showing your age.

Foods for your Face

A trip to the grocery store can be stressful on some people. Eating foods that taste great but are also healthy for you can become difficult to find. Sometimes our taste buds don't agree with what our body needs. However, there are some foods that are not only good for you, but they taste great and they can also help with your appearance. Next time you are out, add a couple of these foods to your grocery list.
Dermatologist Eva Shanban says that strawberries, or any bright red fruit, are healthy for your skin. Strawberries have plenty of antioxidants and skin tightening properties. If you mix the strawberries with yogurt, you can apply this mask to your face for about 20 minutes. Yogurt contains alpha-hydroxy acids that smooth the skin. Yogurt is also filled with bacteria that is good for the skin. Optomologist Sandy Feldman says that lean, red meat is essential for good eye health. Spinach and carrots are also good for the eyes because they are packed with vitamins. Limitations should be placed on how much alcohol you consume because alcohol can damage the nerve of your eyes and cause permanent damage. Cosmetic dentist Dr. Perusch Madahi says that drinking a glass of OJ once a day can help with your gum health. Do you remember those strawberries? He also says that strawberries can help whiten your teeth because the fiber helps to remove the stains.
So instead of going to the grocery store with an unorganized list of foods that you are craving, try to substitute some of these healthy snacks in for some of the unhealthy ones. Pretty soon you won't think twice about what kind of yummy snacks you want to purchase!

Protecting Your Skin

One of the many challenges that people face while they get older is looking younger. Protecting our skin from the sun’s harmful rays can make a big difference in how our skin will age. It can affect the onset of wrinkles prematurely, and it can cause melanoma. There are many different products on the market that are made available for people to use to protect their skin.


According to Heidi Waldorf, M.D. of Waldorf Dermatology & Laser Associates in Nanuet, NY, she recommends choosing a sunscreen that contains titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, avobenzone, or mexoryl as its active ingredient.














This product contains Alpha Lipoic Acid, Green Tea Extract, and the patented Zoe. This product also helps to reduce wrinkles with UVA/UVB protection. It is fragrance free and is also water resistant. $12.95










This product contains the retexturizing ingredient Xylitol to counteract roughness and keep skin looking soft and healthy. It also contains the antioxidant Thiotaurine. It is specifically designed for the face to defend against powerful UVA/UVB rays. It is extremely water- and perspiration-resistant and the cream is PABA- free. $33







New SunSure Technology uses less chemical sunscreens to achieve a higher SPF with longer lasting protection. This sunscreen is waterproof, anti-aging, and protects against UVA/UVB rays. It is also oil free, hypoallergenic, and non-migrating. $6.25




This sunscreen moisturizes with aloe and vitamin E. It is pediatrician and dermatology tested, as well as PABA-free. It is water-resistant and protects against UVA/UVB rays. It also protects against insects and tics. $12




This product contains zinc oxide and titanium dioxide which is clinically proven to protect against UVA/UVB rays. It also contains vitamin E which repairs damaged skin cells. It also contains Humectants and Emollients which are moisturizing agents.