Excessive exposure to UV light from the sun causes your skin to age faster than it otherwise would. If you combine excessive sun exposure with smoking you have a recipe for aging your skin as fast as possible.

The rays of the sun can be seriously damaging. At worst it is now known that one of the implications of sunburn can be skin cancer which can lead to your death. Many people are aware of the risk of skin cancer but are less aware that exposure to the sun can, over time, lead to premature skin ageing. This is technically called photo-aging.

It can be a little difficult preventing skin sun damage and improving your face skin care if you go out in the sun regularly. Of course you can always wear a shirt and a hat however it is still possible to get your face burned under a hat, for example by reflection from water. And it will certainly help staying out of the sun in the middle of the day during summer.

And sunscreens are not a total answer to skin sun protection because many do not offer complete protection from the UVA rays of the sun.

It is possible to get natural sunscreens. There are a number of components of plants, for example, that will act as a natural sunscreen and help protect you from burning. Not only that but several of these, according to some of the most recent science, can actually help reverse the effects of photo-aging.

Lycopene is one of these ingredients. If you read the health literature you may well know about lycopene. It’s an ingredient of tomatoes and the studies are showing that lycopene can have some beneficial effects on your health. For example there is growing evidence that increasing your intake of lycopene can help prevent breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men. On top of this there is now evidence that more lycopene can help reverse the effects of photo-aging on your skin and therefore help reverse skin sun damage you may have suffered in earlier years.

And lycopene is not the only natural sunscreen available, there are others sourced from plants that offer natural protection, though you ought not rely on a natural sunscreen alone to protect you from the suns rays.

And it’s not just lycopene that offers these benefits to your skin. There are other natural ingredients from plants that are also, according to the studies, likely to offer similar benefits. Whilst it is probably inadequate to rely on natural sunscreens to prevent sunburn on their own, there is certainly evidence that they will increase your level of natural protection and also start to reverse the effects of photo-aging.

An example is a new omega 3 supplement recently introduced to the market which includes lycopene as an active ingredient as well as other ingredients to increase your skin’s natural resistance to sunburn and to help reverse the effects of photo-aging. And of course omega 3 essential fatty acids are themselves known to be of a very similar chemical make up to the oil that is naturally produced in your skin and for this reason Omega3 fats are also very good to improved skin health.

If you’re interested in optimum care for ageing skin you need to understand how important it is to minimize the damage caused by ultraviolet radiation by staying indoors as well as covering up where possible.

Science is producing answers to keeping skin healthier and looking better using natural ingredients such as lycopene and Omega3 fats.

If you’d like to learn more about high quality omega 3 supplements which include lycopene as an active ingredient then visit my website.

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Stress has a huge affect on your body. It alters your pH balance, your hormones and also your immune system. This is the reason that causes a cold or flu on some occasions to introduce a cold sore. The herpes virus causes it and the virus remains dormant in your nerve cells till the time it is reactivated by an increase in the temperature of your body increase in the levels of stress, a reduction in immune system or a change in the pH of you body. When situations are favorable the virus would come to the skin surface through your nerve fibers. When it comes to the skin surface the creation of the cold sore will begin.

In order for you to treat them effectively you need to understand what a cold sore needs to thrive. Firstly, the virus needs lots of the protein arginine in the cell for it to produce new herpes viruses. To counteract arginine you can increase your lysine intake. Lysine is another protein that competes with arginine for absorption, thus decreasing or even preventing the ability of the cell to produce duplicates of the herpes virus. In other words, when the virus reaches the skin surface and finds the cells lacking arginine it will withdraw.

The lysine food includes cheese, milk, yogurt and meats. It is available in supplement form. During a cold sore episode you should take 1000 mgs to 3000 mgs of lysine. You should avoid the large amount of arginine foods such as nuts, seeds etc.

The cause of a cold sore, the Herpes virus, develops & like the warmth & moisture environment. So once you even doubt that you have or going to have cold sore, you should try your best to keep the area cold. You can try anything which you feel can create a cold environment.

The third contributory factor to a cold sore is your pH balance. A stressful lifestyle and cold will make your pH level drop beyond 7, making you the most conducive place for the cold sore to thrive and grow. Food, rich with acid content helps the virus nourish and for this reason you should strictly avoid any form of acidic food like tomatoes, citrus, carbonated drinks, vinegar and so on.

Even if you do everything that was already stated, you should always keep your face completely clean. This means washing your face every day, and washing that cold sore with peroxide to keep it from spreading.

Displaying a cold sore is very unpleasant and you have just gone over all you need to know to rid yourself of it. By using the hints above your cold sore should only be present for half the time.

To learn more about cold sore cures and cold sore treatments visit coldsorestreatments.com

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Glycolic acid is a naturally occurring acid, known as an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) which can be found in milk and fruit. Alpha hydroxy acids have been employed for a long time as moisturisers, skin softeners and exfoliants. Some examples of AHA’s are tartaric acid and glycolic acid. Salicylic acid is an example of a beta hydroxy acid and is similar in structure. Anti-aging creams often contain glycolic acid. There are a wide variety glycolic acid skin care preparations to choose from.

How Do Glycolic Acid Skin Care Products Work?

Glycolic acid is a very small molecule extracted from sugar cane. It is a single chain molecule and one of smallest of the alpha hydroxy acids. As it is so minute it can easily go through the skin where it breaks the connections that connect the dead cells to the skin. They can then be easily sloughed off leaving a soft and more youthful looking skin. In addition glycolic acid is an exceptionally efficient moisturizer. In one experiment there was a 200% improvement in skin moisture when glycolic acid was used on a regular basis over a month or two. Glycolic acid skin care products include lotions, creams, gels and peels.

Some Side Effects of Glycolic Acid Peels

Peels which contain glycolic acid are the mildest that are sold so side effects should be mild. They include some redness, stinging or irritation. Side effects are generally transient and will go away in a day or two.

A Word of Caution

Retinol or related vitamin A related products often make the effects of any glycolic acid skin care products more intense. This is specially notable for glycolic acid peels so take care if you are also using any of these types of products.

Types of Glycolic Acid Skin Care Preparations

Glycolic acid gels, creams and lotions

These glycolic acid skin care products are intended for daily use as exfoliating agents and cleansers. Lotions and creams are intended for oily, dry or combination skins. Serums are usually much lighter in consistency and are therefore more appropriate for oily skins.

Glycolic Acid Chemical Peels

At higher levels glycolic acid is used as a chemical peel to give a more intense treatment than gels and creams. Chemical peels work by literally searing the skin to allow the skin to peel off to leave soft skin below. Glycolic acid skin peels are available OTC but if if you have never used one before it is sensible to seek advice from a medical practitioner before use to ensure it is suitable for your skin. Glycolic acid peels may be used to eliminate pigmentation and fine lines. In addition they are effective in controlling acne outbreaks or to cure skin damaged by the sun.

Anti-aging Preparations

There are many anti aging skin care products available with many different components. Glycolic acid is often incorporated in these products, generally mixed with other ingredients for instance Coenzyme Q10 or retinol. A few people may have skin that is too sensitive to use a product containing glycolic acid and retinol together so be cautious when using this type of product and try out on a small spot, maybe on the inner arm, before using on your face. In addition be careful to use a high factor sunscreen when using any product that contains retinol in the daytime as this will make the skin more sensitive to the sun.

Skin Lightening Preparations

Skin lightening products are to be used on discolored areas of the skin resulting from from sun damage or aging. They should not be used all over the face. They can be bought as gels or creams and generally contain additional ingredients for example azelaic acid, hydroquinone and kojic acid.

Eye Creams

Glycolic acid skin care products appropriate to treat the fine lines in the region of the eyes include lower concentrations of glycolic acid than creams and gels formulated for the complete face. The skin around the eyes is more sensitive than other parts of the face. Glycolic acid eye creams and gels are frequently made with other ingredients, for example retinol.

Cleaners

Cleansers made with glycolic acid typically have levels which vary from 3% to approximately 10%. They may be used for every day exfoliationg and cleansing. Go for a cream with a lower level if this is the first occasion you have used a glycolic acid cleaner and step up the concentration as your skin becomes accustomed to it.

Face Masks

These kinds of glycolic acid skin care products have a higher level of the active component and are by and large used for more intensive, deeper cleaning treatments.

Toners

Toners are mostly used to bring back the skin’s pH before other therapies and can boost their efficiency.

Face Washes

A glycolic acid face wash can be used on a daily basis to give a wonderful radiance to your skin. While lots of the glycolic acid products that are for sale have a rather high concentration of glycolic acid, face washes have a much lower concentration and therefore are entirely safe for everyone to use. The single exception to this is if you have a severe skin problems, you should talk to a dermatologist before using this type of face wash although it is unlikely that concentrations this low will cause any harm.

Final Thoughts
Glycolic acid skin care products are used for a variety of skin therapies and are helpful and usually mild. Combined with additional ingredients they have a wide range of uses and are very popular and widely used in skin care preparations.

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The virus stays inactive in your body until it is triggered by fever, a cold, another viral infection, overexposure to the sun and wind, stress, menstruation, high levels of arginine in your body or a poor immune system. Then it moves through the nerves to the lips and forms the cold sore. Cold sores are very contagious and studies indicate that more than 30 percent of children carry the virus before they reach the age of ten. The average cold sore develops in six stages and it normally lasts for 10 days, but with the advice below you can shorten the healing time to 3 days, if used correctly.

Immune system

The two immune system boosters are Echinacea and goldenseal extract which can helps in preventing cold sore from appearing. Some ways to prevent cold sore- firstly once a day for 3 days take the advised medicine dropper-full. Secondly, apply Echinacea directly to the cold sore with a cotton ball and leave it for few minutes, repeat this process for at least 5 times a day. Another great immune booster is Vitamin B complex which helps in healing. Take 100mg of Vitamin B complex twice a day and it will help in keeping cold sore away.

Using Lysine

Cold sore virus is fought by Lysine, an amino acid. It competes successfully for absorption with arginine. Arginine is a supporter of the virus. Lysine is available in supplement form. 500 mg of Lysine twice a day will help in cold. It also acts as a preventive measure.

Apply Lemon balm

A very famous polyphenols treatment is there to reduce colds sore outbreaks. Lemon balm or lemon tea is available to fight against the viruses. Lemon tea has antiviral properties. Garlic also has these antiviral properties because of its kyolic content. Take a garlic clove, cut it and place the cut surface on the cold sore for few minutes or take 2 garlic tablets per day.

Quick healing

Apply salt to your sold sore with a small section of cotton wool, and hold it in place for approximately two minutes. While this will (briefly) sting your lip, it is a tried and tested method to cure a cold sore.

You can also mix 12 drops of Sandalwood essential oil, 1 drop of Ravintsara essential oil, 6 drops of Eucalyptus essential oil, and 1/2 tsp. of organic aloe Vera gel to make your own gel for cold sores. Put the gel on cotton and apply to the sore as many times as you want.

Keep in mind that you are a rare individual and if you happen to get a cold sore, know that it’s not always going to be the same thing that triggers it. A combination of keeping your immune system strong and following our guidelines for healthy living will assure you to get rid of cold sores much faster.

Technorati Tags: beauty, cold sore treatment, cold sores, remedies, Skin Care

If you’ve always wondered what is the best age defying skin care product, then it’s time you finally got a straight answer. It can be frustrating to search for reviews online, however, because many of them have been written by people promoting the products.

Unfortunately, most of the age-defying products available and sold today are just not good for your skin.

Know What Your Skin is "Eating"

Most of us don’t think about this but whatever you put on your skin doesn’t just go away. In fact, your body is absorbing it. Perhaps that’s a scary thought thinking back about all the products you’ve used on your skin over the years. You’ve actually eaten those products.

You should remember that when attempting to determine the best age defying skin care product available. I certainly would not want to put anything on my skin that is not also safe to eat.

Unfortunately, if you look at the ingredient list of most major brands you’ll find a lot of chemicals that have been created in labs and most of these are not ingredients you would ever want to put in your mouth. And that’s exactly why you shouldn’t be putting them on your skin either.

Instead, you should look for products that consist of natural ingredients.

Look at the Concentration of Ingredients

If you’re an active woman, you really need a product that is going to create long lasting effects. Most of the age defying products on the market today make this promise but it’s unlikely they can deliver.

There are two types of ingredients when it comes to age defying products: active and inactive. The inactive ingredients can be perfume and things like wax which give the product an attractive odor and consistency. However, those ingredients don’t do anything to make your skin look younger or healthier.

To attain those effects, you must rely on active ingredients. Those ingredients are critical because they are the ones which will produce the antiaging results you’re paying for. Sadly, the active ingredients in most of the major products are not included at very high concentrations. If you don’t have a lot of a particular active ingredient in the product at a very high rate, then how can you expect the product to do what you ask?

The simple answer is you can’t.

To determine which is the best age defying product, you need to look at the amount of active ingredients in each. Those ingredients should make up at least half of all the ingredients included in the product if it’s going to work effectively.

The bottom line is that if you are trying to discover what is the best age defying product on the market you need to do your homework. Compare products and choose one that is made of safe, natural products and has a high concentration of active ingredients.

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How come that it’s not easy to choose a moisturizer for dry skin? Well, there are several criteria to have in mind: season, factors that cause the condition, day-night cycles and skin sensitivity. Sometimes a combination of the above mentioned elements occurs, because skin dryness and sensitivity go hand in hand. It’s not difficult to tell whether you’ve go dry skin or not. The specifics that would answer such a question include the tight skin sensation, the small wrinkles or expression lines that have the tendency to form around the mouth and in the eye corners or the flaky look.

good moisturizer for dry skin

You should use a different moisturizer for dry skin depending on the cold or warm season. In winter, the high temperature variations require the use of a face cream and body lotion that is oily enough to keep the tissues moist and soft. In summertime, the skincare product should not be too greasy, as it only needs to hydrate. Moreover, there are two types of moisturizer for dry skin to be used on the same day: one for daytime and the other for nighttime. One major difference here would be the fact that the sun protection factor is a necessity for the daytime moisturizer.

moisturizers for dry skin

The type of the moisturizer for dry skin should be chosen in close relation with the elements that dry skin in the first place. If genes are responsible for the skin condition, then the solutions are simple, but if some dermatological problem or another ailment is involved, then investigations are required. For example, thyroid dysfunctions and diabetes are likely to be associated with skin dryness, while dermatitis, eczema, athlete’s foot, acne and psoriasis can be also present and responsible for the skin condition. Whichever be the case, under such circumstances, only a specialist can give advice and recommend a treatment.

moisturizer for dry skin

Protection and adequate skin care reduce the accelerated aging risk connected with dry skin. Therefore, the action of a moisturizer for dry skin has to be supported or backed up by prophylactic measures and a good healthy lifestyle. For example, when you have dry skin, you should know better than lie in the sun and increase skin dryness. Yet, there are many things one doesn’t know and makes mistakes out of ignorance. Therefore, try to read some materials on skincare, leaf through women’s magazines, read a tip here and there or search on the Internet for remedies, suggestions, opinions and other stuff.

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