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Posts in Category "Ask a Skin Care Specialist"

How can I retain youthful looking hands?

As it says in the famous song: “You give your hand to me, and then you say hello”...the hand comes first!

Our hands, the same as the face, are the most expressive and visible part of our body. Besides enhancing our emotions, hands are doing millions of other things. By far, hands are the most exposed and the most uncared for parts of our body. If you want to know how old a person is, look at their hands.  Hands begin to show signs of aging much earlier than the face. The reasons why our hands age faster than the face are not only environmental, but also…

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What can I do to rejuvenate my neck and chest?

I have heard this question so many times. Women complain about wrinkles and discoloration on the neck more than on their faces. At least you can put make-up on the face and concealer under the eyes, but the neck is a big give-away. According to the author of popular book “I Feel Bad About My Neck” Nora Ephron – "Our faces are lies and our necks are the truth." The neck and décolleté areas are highly visible parts of our body, and the most evident indicators of aging skin. Most of us take special care of the skin on the face but often forget the…

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My New Year resolution is to take better care of my skin. What can I do?

Year after year, everyone wants to kick off the New Year with a fresh start. The most common resolutions include hitting the gym at least 3 times a week, losing weight and eating healthy. In addition to these healthy resolutions, you might also decide that this is the year to start taking better care of your skin.

Here are a few New Year skin resolutions you should consider as 2011 gets underway:

  • Develop a daily skin care regimen that addresses your particular skin concerns and leads to meaningful improvement.
    Choose skin care…

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What are the benefits of chemical peels for the treatment of skin discoloration?

Anyone who has had uneven, blotchy skin or a skin condition called melasma knows how challenging it is not only to treat these skin disorders, but to also prevent a recurrence.  Understanding the causes of skin discoloration is a great first step to correcting it.

Skin inflammation: Acne or any skin trauma such as a scratch or burn often leads to post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), which can take weeks or even months to go away.

Melasma: Irregular patches of pigmentation are commonly caused by pregnancy, birth control pills,…

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What makes the skin around the eyes so fragile and vulnerable to the aging process?

You may have noticed that the first signs of aging are typically seen around the eye in the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, dark circles and even puffiness.

Here are a few reasons:

  • Skin thickness: Skin varies in thickness depending on the location of the body. The thinnest skin is on the eyelids (0.05 mm thick) and the thickest skin is on the palms and the soles of the feet (1.5 mm thick). As we age, skin loses its elasticity and becomes even thinner due to a natural decrease in collagen production.
  • The amount of oil glands:

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What are the anti-aging benefits of using topical antioxidants with retinol?

Our skin - the largest organ in the body - performs many important physiological functions and is particularly susceptible to free radical damage. Skin acts as the primary barrier against fluid loss and environmental abuse, and is constantly exposed to ultra-violet (UV) light and other oxidative stressors. This free radical damage causes wrinkles, loss of skin tone and elasticity, hyperpigmentation and aging. The face, neck, décolleté and hands are the most exposed and vulnerable parts of the body. Therefore, they require additional, targeted antioxidant…

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What's the best way to improve skin texture and smoothness?

Exfoliation. Skin exfoliation is a natural process associated with the constant regeneration of skin cells in the epidermis. Skin cells generate in the deepest layer of the epidermis, move toward the surface, shed invisibly, and the cycle continues. This natural process of skin exfoliation slows down with age. Babies renew their cells every 14 days, teenagers every 21-28 days, middle-aged adults every 28-42 days and it takes up to 50 days to renew cells by age 50 or older.

The best way to improve skin texture and smoothness is by accelerating this natural process of…

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What can I do about brown spots and uneveness?

Hyperpigmentation is the medical term used to describe the condition in which certain areas of the skin become darker. Hyperpigmentation is often the result of sun exposure but other common causes are hormones, especially hormonal changes due to pregnancy or the pill. Genes are also factors in determining how likely you are to get brown spots. For example, olive complexions are more predisposed to pigmentation. There's also PIH (post inflammatory hyperpigmentation) which is caused by injury to the skin. Acne and eczema are common culprits for PIH.

There are a couple of…

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What should I look for in an Aesthetician?

Aestheticians can play an essential role in maintaining and improving the health of the skin. Since each patient is unique, I often stress the importance of cultivating a long term relationship in order to maximize the effectiveness of treatments. The first step is finding one you love. Here are five qualities everyone should look for:

  • Knowledge - She should have a thorough understanding of conditions, procedures, medications, products, ingredients and all things dermatological.
  • Communication Skills - She should be able to understand …

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If I could use only one anti-aging product, what should it be?

Sunscreen.

I'm still troubled by the number of my patients that don't use an adequate amount of sun protection. Even if it's cloudy and you are running one quick errand, you still need sunscreen. Consider these lesser-known facts:

  • Windows (e.g. automobile) will not protect you. Windshields are laminated for safety reasons and filter most UV radiation. However side and rear windows allow as much as 79% of UV radiation to pass through1. UV radiation also passes through…

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