tips for beauty

A natural wrinkle cream containing antioxidants, proteins, plant extracts and nourishing oils could be exactly what you need to improve your skin’s health and appearance.  Here’s a look at the benefits of specific ingredients.

Grape Seed OilGrape seed oil can be used for cooking.  Some chefs like it because of its unique “filming” ability.  It forms a film over the pan and the vegetables being cooked.  This allows them to use less oil.When applied to the skin, the film acts to hold moisture in.  The benefits of use may include reduced wrinkles, scars and stretch marks.  It can help improve circulation.  Because of its antioxidant activity, it protects against free radical damage (one of the causes of cellular aging) and it may reduce your risk of skin cancer.You can purchase grape seed oil at gourmet food stores and use it “as is”.  Or, you could look for a natural wrinkle cream that contains it.  It may be particularly beneficial for repairing damage around the eyes.

Wakame Kelp ExtractsWakame is one of the most nutrient-rich varieties of kelp.  Kelp is simply another name for seaweed.  It is sold in health food stores around the world.  The extracts must be properly prepared in order to be used on the skin.The minerals in wakame are necessary for balancing the skin’s moisture content.  The extracts have antioxidant activity and contain B vitamins that help to provide protection from sun damage, another cause of wrinkles.But, the primary benefit of wakame has to do with the skin’s hyaluronic acid content.  Along with collagen and elastin, hyaluronic acid is essential for smooth, firm skin.  Without wakame, the skin’s hyaluronic acid content decreases with age.  Wakame keeps that from happening.

Coenzyme Q10Any natural wrinkle cream worth its price will contain coenzyme Q10.  There is more scientific evidence supporting its benefits than there is for any other single ingredient.Coenzyme Q10 is a popular dietary supplement.  It is particularly beneficial for the heart.  It keeps heart rates stable and helps with some kinds of murmurs.The concentration of coenzyme Q10 in all of the cells of the body starts to decrease with age.  The skin’s COQ10 is quickly depleted during sun exposure.Scientists have had to reduce the size of the COQ10 molecules in order to allow them to penetrate deep into the skin.  A natural wrinkle cream containing this reduced form is beneficial for reducing wrinkles and reversing sun damage.  It not only protects against free radical damage.  It reverses it.
Vitamin EYou might not know that most of the vitamin E for sale in the US is synthetic, derived from petrochemicals.  There are only a few companies that still use the naturally occurring form of the antioxidant.

The benefits of use may include a reduction in fine lines and the prevention of age spots.  It can also be used to replace the irritating artificial preservatives that so many companies use.

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Natural skincare products may be safer and more effective than the conventional items created by major cosmetic companies.  Here’s a look at some naturally occurring compounds and what they can do for your skin’s health and appearance.

Vitamin B5, also known as D-Panthenol, is present in many foods in small quantities.  It is an essential nutrient.  A deficiency in the diet can cause many symptoms.  Those that are visible include skin lesions and problems with the hair.

The vitamin is necessary for the body to make structural proteins from amino acids.  The skin’s cells and fibers are composed of those structural proteins.

So, skin creams enriched with vitamin B5 support the skin’s cell renewal process, which would speed healing.  Anti-aging benefits (fewer wrinkles, improved texture) would be seen as well.Maracuja is an extract derived from passion fruits.  It is an emollient, which is a substance that softens and soothes the skin.  It is particularly beneficial for combination complexion types, because it helps to balance sebum production.

Sebum is the oil produced by the human body.  Excessive sebum production is a cause of oily skin.  Deficient production and stripping sebum away are causes of dryness.

Seaweed is an ingredient found in many natural skincare products.  There are a number of seaweed varieties.  One of the most nourishing is wakame.

Wakame contains many of the B vitamins, as well as minerals like sodium and calcium.  These nutrients help to maintain the skin’s moisture balance.

Sorbitol is found in seaweed.  Sorbitol is a humectant.  Humectants are compounds that increase the moisture-holding capacity of the skin’s outer layers.

Wakame has the unique ability to inhibit enzymatic activity that would normally break down the skin’s hyaluronic acid content.  A growing number of natural skincare products contain hyaluronic acid.

It has become a very popular ingredient, but its inclusion is misguided.  Dermatologists say that hyaluronic acid molecules cannot penetrate into the skin.  Therefore, the ingredient provides no benefit.

However, the skin’s hyaluronic acid levels are known to decrease with age.  The decrease results in slow cell renewal and turnover, lost firmness, lost thickness and splotchy complexions.

By inhibiting the enzymatic activity responsible for the low hyaluronic acid levels, wakame helps to stimulate the cell renewal rate, improves firmness and evens out tone.
Allantoin when used in natural skincare products can help to reduce redness and inflammation.  The compound is found in comfrey root and plants.  The plants were used historically to treat a variety of inflammatory conditions.  Allantoin is the active compound in the botanicals.

Reducing and preventing inflammation is important, because it is one of the things that degrade the skin’s collagen fibers.  It is also one of the causes of cellular aging.