Holistic Beauty from the Inside Out (23 page)

Grapeseed oil is lightweight, highly emollient oil that sinks right into the skin without any greasy residue. Rich in antioxidant polyphenols from grapes, this oil also helps preserve collagen and resist premature aging resulting from free radical exposure.

Rose hip oil is the champion of antiaging oils. In addition to the high content of anti-inflammatory linoleic and linolenic acids, this oil contains high amounts of vitamin C that easily penetrate the skin, unlike water-soluble ascorbic acid that has trouble reaching lower than upper layers of epidermis. Vitamin C helps strengthen skin capillaries and also maintain strong collagen fibers. To help your skin regain its youthful glow even more quickly, rose hip oil delivers a hefty dose of a natural retinoid, trans-retinoic acid, which combats age spots, scarring, sun damage, and wrinkles. All of these oils can be used straight from the bottle on freshly cleansed skin, or for a relaxing facial massage.

To increase the antiaging potential of these natural wrinkle
fighters, you can add one of the following age-resisting concentrates from nature.

Carrot seed oil has a long history of use for wrinkles and loss of firmness. Its rich antioxidant content and presence of natural vitamins A and C helps encourage healthy cell growth, which reduces the scarring and wrinkles. Carrot seed oil gently boosts blood circulation so a healthy glow and improved skin tone appear almost instantly. Carrot seed also helps the skin detoxify itself as it has a gentle depurative (toxin purging) action. To achieve these results, you can add up to ten drops of this sweet smelling oil to 50 mL (1.7 oz.) of your favorite antiaging base oil.

Geranium essential oil supports a healthy flow of sebum so the skin can moisturize itself. It also has an astringent action, which is great if you have large pores or oily, acne-prone skin. Similar to carrot seed, geranium helps promote blood circulation and protect from free radicals. The unique cellular protection activity of this oil improves skin cell turnover, which tends to slow as we age. Geranium greatly improves the cycle of replacing old cells with healthy new ones. Result? Resilient, smooth, eventoned skin. To reap maximum benefits of geranium, add no more than 10 drops of this oil to 100 mL (3.3 oz.) of your antiaging base oil of choice.

Calendula oil usually comes infused in sunflower or jojoba oil and is an excellent antiwrinkle remedy on its own. Calendula contains high levels of antioxidant flavonoids which protect the collagen fibers from natural decline and even protect the cellular DNA from environmental damage. Calendula oil has a lovely natural bronze tint to it, so you may gently massage it into your skin to achieve a sun-kissed look without harmful sun exposure.

Pomegranate, sea buckthorn, vitamin E, and green tea extracts are also great additions to your antiaging potions, as they help improve skin tone and texture, reduce scarring and discoloration, and even reverse some of the past damage done to the skin.

To reap an almost instant glow-boosting effect, try these easy homemade masks:

Lemon tea mask
: Combine 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon strongly brewed green tea, 1 teaspoon milk powder, and 1 egg white. Beat until smooth and frothy, apply to clean skin using fingertips or a pastry brush, leave to dry, and then rinse.

Egg and honey facelift
: Whisk 1 egg white and 1 teaspoon honey, apply using pastry brush on clean skin, and leave for ten minutes. Rinse to reveal gorgeously glowing, taut skin.

Fruity face rejuvenator
: Soak 1 slice of rye bread in little water so it becomes spongy; mash 2–3 strawberries and the bread till smooth, then apply in a thick “crust” all over the face and neck. Leave to dry, then rinse and enjoy a lovely re-energized skin.

GETTING EVEN: DEALING WITH DISCOLORATIONS AND PIGMENTATION

Aging skin is a combination of three factors: sagging skin tone, wrinkles, and pigment patches. Psychologists have found that skin texture and pigmentation affects perceptions of fertility and health.
¹²⁷
No wonder that, in our quest for glowing skin, we hope to erase all that annoying blotchiness.

Hyperpigmentation, a skin condition characterized by uneven pigmentation, is considered a sign of older age. According to market research by Clinique, one in four of us is concerned with hyperpigmentation, due to increased sun exposure and hormonal imbalances. Many women also experience hyperpigmentation when they become pregnant or start taking birth-control pills.

To determine the cause of your dark spots, take a look in the
mirror. Hyperpigmentation in the upper cheek area is often sun induced. This can be easily prevented by regular use of natural sunblock that reflects both UVA and UVB sun rays. Dark patches on your forehead are often a result of hormonal imbalance, as raised hormone levels trigger pigment cells. Spots on your chin and lower cheek area are often a result of acne and careless spot squeezing. In general, oily, easily inflamed skin is also more prone to hyperpigmentation because melanin is distributed unevenly in damaged skin tissue. Skin damage, as minor as exfoliation or upper lip waxing, can also contribute to hyperpigmentation in the lip area and upper cheeks.

Sun exposure remains the main culprit, which is why our hands are the first to show the signs of aging in form of dark spots. To protect the skin affected by patches of pigmentation after exposure to sun, apply natural sunblock with zinc oxide to your hands and neck and use nighttime treatments with licorice and other skin-lightening botanicals described later in this chapter.

Hormone-related hyperpigmentation will fade away naturally as soon as the reason for hormonal imbalance disappears.

Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation is the hardest to treat. After the skin was damaged, for example, by spot squeezing, scratches, bruises, facial waxing, or chemical peels, clusters of pigment cells travel deeply into the dermis. As a result, darker marks remain after any skin damage has healed. This type of uneven pigmentation requires three-pronged approach: exfoliation to remove dead cells from the skin’s surface (this also helps shed excess pigment); mild lightening using safe skin brighteners such as such as licorice and licorice extract, kojic acid, vitamin C, mulberry extract, and niacinamide (they work by interrupting the production of pigment and help evenly distribute melanin cells); and sun protection to prevent new clusters of melanin cells appearing in the treated area. It’s especially important to remember that all skin lightening procedures, either by chemical or physical exfoliation or by using melanin-inhibiting botanicals,
remove skin pigment melanin, which has sun-protective properties. Without melanin, skin is even more vulnerable to sun rays. You can also strengthen your skin’s defences by adopting antioxidant-rich diet with lots of lycopene-rich fruit and vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, and butternut squash. Lycopene protects against sun damage and may also help the skin resist premature aging.

If you are worried not about dark pigment patches but small veins around the nose and sometimes cheeks, these can be easily diminished by lifestyle changes. Smoking, alcohol, spicy foods, and extreme changes in temperature can cause tiny blood vessels under the skin surface bulge and eventually erupt. To prevent this from happening, limit your alcohol intake and avoid hot baths and saunas. Cut back on spices if you think they trigger skin redness, and eat foods rich in bioflavonoids, such as citrus fruit and broccoli, which are thought to strengthen capillaries.

Chapter Nine Quick Tips

1. How we live our lives will influence how quickly we age. Rest assured that everyone’s skin ages, but the good news is that
   we all have some control over how quickly
   it does.
   
2. The high-priced antiaging elixir may sound like a good idea (after all, we are “worth” it), but
   ageless skin is all about how you live your life
   .
   
3. Banish bad habits and
   start relaxing and gently exercising
   for a glowing skin at any age.
   
4. Gentle,
   natural skincare, regular water intake, natural sun protection, and a healthy lifestyle
   result in healthier skin texture and firmer face contour.
   
5. Green tea, calcium, hemp, soy proteins, and
   pomegranate should form the basis of your antiaging skin nutrition
   , along with ample doses of antioxidants.
   
6. Carrot seed, rosehip, geranium, and calendula oils are antiaging potions.
   Gentle cleansing, and natural toning with plant hydrosols will help keep mature skin in top condition
   .
   
7. For mild discoloration,
   use serums and creams with licorice root extract, which helps to lighten the darkened areas of your skin
   . Avoid hydroquinone cream, which bleaches the skin but leaves it vulnerable to UV radiation
   .
   

TEN

Mineral Makeup

M
ineral is the only way to go with makeup. it’s also the most economical solution. If you take an average drugstore liquid foundation, remove all the silicones, talc, preservatives, triethanolamine, toluene, FD&C dyes, mineral oil, aluminum starch, and artificial fragrances—all those things that damage our health and make our skin prone to aging—you will be left with a pinch of mineral pigments, a dollop of beeswax, and a drop or two of plant extracts.

Meet the mineral foundation. It contains only the basics needed to cover up blemishes and infuse our complexion with a lovely glow. Thanks to the latest technology, minerals can be milled so finely that they stick to the skin’s surface without any need for binding and slip agents such as silicones. Since mineral powder contains no water, there’s no need to use preservatives either. No wonder mineral foundations, blushers, and highlighters are becoming the makeup of choice for health-conscious models, celebrities, and makeup artists.

MINERAL MAKEUP IN DETAIL

Every mineral foundation relies on finely ground stones and sands to help us achieve a perfect complexion. The bulk of a mineral foundation is titanium dioxide, a naturally occurring white mineral that can be found in its purest form in white beach sand. The shimmer comes from mica, while iron oxides add color varieties. Some companies add bells and whistles, such as beneficial plant extracts and zinc oxide for added sun protection, and you already know that zinc has an important role in skin’s health, protecting it from inflammation caused by bacteria and oxidative damage.

If there are any health worries regarding mineral foundations, it lies in the texture itself. Smoothness and long-lasting coverage in mineral makeup is achieved by pulverizing or “micronizing” minerals into superfine nanoparticle dust.

Scientists are still trying to come to a definite answer regarding the potential harm of nanoparticles. A large number of studies suggest that insoluble nanoparticles of zinc oxide or titanium dioxide do not penetrate through human skin. A 2012 review of studies on zinc oxide and titanium dioxide nanoparticles said that “cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, photo-genotoxicity, general toxicity and carcinogenicity studies found no difference in the safety profile of micro-or nano-sized materials, all of which were found to be nontoxic.”
¹²⁸

If you prefer to err on the side of caution, stick to pressed mineral powder and fluid mineral foundations that do not require buffing in with a fluffy brush. When you use the powder mineral makeup, please hold your breath while you apply it.

Built-in sun protection is a big advantage of mineral makeup. With an average SPF rating of 15, Bare Minerals has the Skin Cancer Foundation seal of approval as a sunscreen. Jane Iredale claims similar protective effects due to high contents of physical sunscreens titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. But keep in mind that mineral makeup alone will not give you all the sun protection you need. You aren’t likely to cover your ears and neck with mineral foundation and even on the face the layer can be too sheer to provide reliable protection. Always prime your skin before applying mineral foundation with moisturizer or sunscreen cream with an SPF of 15 or higher.

Minerals come directly from the earth, so, not surprisingly, mineral pigments are considered some of the most environmentally friendly cosmetic ingredients. Mineral makeup does not rely on petroleum to manufacture its ingredients. Since mineral colors contain no talc, synthetic dyes, preservatives, or fragrance, their carbon blueprint is a lot smaller than that of conventional makeup products. Of course, minerals themselves come from the planet and as any item created by man, mineral makeup involves the use of energy for mining. But unlike iron, coal, diamonds, zinc, titanium, and other ingredients used in cosmetics, they do not require intensive mining such as sub-surface excavation and the heavy use of chemicals. In this way, gram for gram, mineral makeup is a lot less taxing for the environment than conventional foundations and blushers.

You can be green to boot, and reuse sifter jars by buying mineral powders in large “professional size” quantities and decanting them in small, handy pots. For example, you can use a large jar and a large brush for home application of your foundation, and a small jar with a mini “kabuki” brush for touch-ups on the run.