Body Massage: The Healing Touch

Most of us experience this feeling of just giving up our fatigued bodies to a masseur who will massage away all the aches and pains caused by physical stress and mental tensions. The pain just seems to vanish out of your system once it is their expert hands. If you keep dreaming about this on your low days, well you are probably not alone for massage is a known stress reliever. Massage at its best has the power to restore the individual physically, mentally and spiritually.

What is a full body massage? How to massage?

Technically, full body massage is a hands-on manipulation of the skin, muscle and joints to relax muscle spasm, relieve tension, improve circulation and hasten elimination of toxins and wastes from the body. Massage is an ancient art. It has been known to be in practice in the Orient for over 3000 years. The expert hand of the masseur not only rubs away fatigue inducing stress but also improves blood circulation in the body. Apart from creating a pleasant sensation on the skin, it also works on the soft tissue (the muscles, tendons and ligaments) to improve muscle tone. Although it mainly affects the muscles just underneath the skin, its benefits may also reach the deeper layers of muscle and possibly even the internal organs.

Massage Therapy: Alternative medicine?

An essential part of alternative medicine, massage has gained popularity in the West too and is widely used to treat a variety of ailments. Different forms of massage include - Acupressure, Athletic Massage, Polarity Massage, Reflexology, Rolfing, Shiatsu, Sports Massage, Swedish Massage, Traeger Massage and Watsu. Aromatherapy massage makes use of aromatic essential oils known for their stress relieving effects. Manipulation of soft tissues affects many of our bodily systems; hence massage therapy stands to help many of the health problems we face today.

General Benefits of Massage

? Soothing relaxation
? Healing
? Eases tension, stiffness and pain
? Improves breathing
? Improves circulation
? Enhances well-being

The therapeutic benefits of massage

? Massage aims to develop, maintain, rehabilitate or augment physical function.
? Boost immune system function, improve circulation and speed up recovery time.
? Relax tight and tense muscles
? Ease or prevent physical dysfunction and pain.
? Reduces overall stress and fatigue
? Massage therapy is effective in the control of pain - chronic or acute, stress reduction and in creating a sense of soothing relaxation and well-being.
? Massage can be fun and can be wonderfully sensual; it can be an effective tool to revive a sagging sex life. Erotic Thai massages or even simple massages are a great way to begin a night of intimacy.

Full Body Massage helps you relax!

Although even a one odd massage does leave you with a pleasant feeling, the effects of massage are cumulative and undergoing a series or course of massage treatments, is what will give you the maximum benefits. Regular massages strengthen and tones the muscles and boosts the entire body mechanism, so as to prevent unnecessary strains and injuries. Massage has the power to stimulate the nervous system as much as it can relax, hence it can be used, depending on the individual's need.

Kevin Pederson has been managing a number of natural home remedies websites which have information on home based natural cures and remedies for some of the most common illnesses and health problems

Foods for Healthy Skin

There are certain foods that are very good for your skin and beauty. You need not to spend money on cosmetics when you can take cae of your skin at home in a natural way. eat the following foods for a healthy glowing skin.

Almond Oil
Almond oil is good for dryness of the skin and for removing scars of old pimples. Ground the outer cover of 3-5 almonds in with water and apply over the face daily.

Apples
Apply juice of green apples for fine wrinkles, cracked skin, itching and inflammations.

Apricots
Apply fresh juice of apricots on face good for sunburn, itching, and eczema.

Cucumber
Apply cucumber juice or grated cucumber over the face for skin eruptions.

Fenugreek
Apply a paste of fresh fenugreek leaves in water over the face every night and washed with warm water in the morning for preventing pimples, blackheads, dryness, and wrinkles.

Garlic
Rub raw garlic on the face for persistent pimples. The pimples will disappear without scars with repeated applications.

Groundnut Oil
Mix 1 tsps groundnut oil with 1 tspn fresh lime juice to prevent formation of blackheads and pimples .

Honey
Apply honey (1 tspn) mixed with water for all skin blemishes. This will turn your skin glowing.

Lime Juice
Apply fresh lime juice mixed to a glass of boiled milk as a face wash for pimples blackheads, and cracked skin.

Mint
Apply fresh mint juice over the face every night for the treatment of pimples, insect stings, eczema, scabies, & other skin infections.

Orange
Apply a paste of ground orange peel (dried) with water for acne/pimples.

Papaya
Apply and drink the juice of raw papaya including the skin and seed for treatment of swelling pimples, acne, or any abnormal growth of the skin. It also removes whiteheads, boils, and spots.
Rub raw or ripe papaya on your face to get a smooth and glowing skin.

More remedies for hair loss and thinning of hair are given at Foods for healthy skin & skin care treatment.

Copyright, 2005, www.FatFreeKitchen.com

[Please note that this article is not a subsitute for medical advise. You have permission to publish this article in your web sites, ezines or electronic publication, as long as the piece is used in its entirety including the resource box, all hyperlinks (clickable) and references and copyright info.

This article has been written by http://www.fatfreekitchen.com

Visit the web site skin problems like, age spots, blackheads, whiteheads, dark circles under eyees and stretch marks for more hair loss remedies and natural beauty treatment.

The Truth About Beauty

Why this fascination with beauty?

The demand for beauty services in spite of the economy?

Even when there is a recession, beauty parlours still flourish. Beauty products still fly off the shelves.

There is this saying that beauty is skin deep.

Then again, first impressions count.

Put it this way. Beauty is power. That was true centuries ago. That is true today.

When a beautiful woman walks into a bar, men flock to her and offer to buy her drinks. When an unattractive woman walks into the same bar, chances are, she would have to buy her own drinks.

A beautiful salesperson, man or woman is more likely to win the sale. Between a beautiful job seeker and an unattractive one, all other things being equal, the employer is likely to choose the good looker.

Like it or not, looks do count.

In the past, when women were dependent on men to support them, beauty was everything to a woman. A beautiful woman would have more suitors. She would be able to marry up. To marry a rich man who could take care of all her financial needs and that of her children. Long before commercial cosmetics existed, mothers would instruct their daughters on traditional beauty remedies. Simple beauty remedies like using mayonnaise as a moisturizer, or egg white as a firming mask were often used by women in the days before commercial cosmetics.

Then along came women entrepreneurs like Estee Lauder and other women from around the world. They converted traditional beauty recipes which worked for themselves into beauty creams that they sold to other women. Every woman has a right to look her most beautiful and these women were selling others their beauty secrets.

Make up was used to paint women's faces. In Egypt, the nobles, royalty and the well off would paint their eyes with khol, with crushed beetles and exotic ingredients. In Europe, women would paint their faces with make up containing toxic mercury for the sake of beauty. In Japan, the geishas would whiten their faces with creams that contain nightingale droppings.

You would think by now, we modern women would have learnt our lesson. Now, we just inject poison into our faces to paralyze our facial muscles in order to prevent expression lines from deepening as we grow older. Think of those botox injections done every 3 months to erase those wrinkles. Think of the acids we smear on our faces to smoothen them. The dermabrasion procedures done at the dermatologist in order to smoothen our skin.

Women all over the world have always been willing to suffer for the sake of beauty. Long ago, in China, women in wealthy families would bind their feet. The Chinese back then view tiny feet as beautiful, so little girls have their feet bound, to prevent them from growing big and ugly. Now that long legs are considered beautiful, some women go through a very painful medical procedure that breaks their legs, and stretches their legs by a few millimeters a day through a painful device until they attain the height they want. With their newfound height, these girls can look forward to a wealthy, glamorous future as an international model.

In Europe, centuries ago, wasp waists and curvy bodies were considered beautiful, so corsets were worn to make the waist look much smaller. These were tied so tightly that women faint easily. All for the sake of beauty. Now, corsets are in again. These days, women and men subject themselves to surgery to attain the beauty they desire. Liposuction to remove the excess fat to contour the body. Breast augmentation for bigger breasts that are considered beautiful. Nose jobs, face lifts, the works.

Thankfully, there is also a return to natural beauty remedies. This time, commercial cosmetics use natural ingredients that women have used for centuries in the home beauty preparations. These are effective and great for the skin.

What we women really should do is to focus on inner beauty, and to keep ourselves healthy. Health is beauty.

8 to 10 hours of sleep every night, fresh food, fresh air, daily exercise, drinking plenty of water every day, soap and water, or cleanser and toner, moisturizer where necessary and sun protection all day long. All that keeps your body healthy and your skin and hair, beautiful. Oh, and learn to age gracefully. After all, aging is a natural process in life.

The writer is the webmaster of Cosmetics Online, where you can find cosmetics, skincare, makeup and all the beauty products from your favourite beauty brand.

Is Your Face a Nightmare After Christmas?

The party's over and the morning after Christmas brings along the dread of watching your haggard face in the mirror. Hectic partying does that for you -- let's face it. And so we might as well start looking for ways to beat the post party face catastrophe.

WATER YOUR BODY

Your body needs it as much as your plants do! Late nights and alcohol can bring about serious depletion of moisture from your face. Drink as much water as possible throughout the evening. If it is not possible to drink much water during the party, be sure to drink a glass when you come home, before going to bed.

Next morning, over a couple of hours, try to drink a whole bottle (at least 750 ml) of fluids like water, herbal tea (jasmine or chamomile also helps hangovers), lemonade, fresh fruit juices etc. For the rest of the day, keep spritzing your face at regular intervals. You could also go in for a light, fruit-water based moisturizer.

SENSITIVE SKIN

A healthy, glowing skin, if heaped with lots of various makeup ingredients, takes no time to turn into an irritable, sensitive skin. Try to use mild and protective products and don't punish your face by applying a little bit of everything you can find in your makeup box.

Find ways to maximize your look with minimal cosmetics. Always cleanse, tone and moisturize before you apply your makeup. It keeps makeup from looking chalky and also acts as a protective layer.

C-L-E-A-N-S-E

Remove all traces of makeup from your face as soon as possible. Cleanse well before going to sleep that night and cleanse again in the morning.

Besides water, use good quality makeup removers and make it a must to use a good eye makeup remover for the eyes.

Over cleansing can strip protective oils from your skin and make your skin more sensitive. But since its absolutely essential that you remove your makeup when you return, use a gentle cleanser. A cream-based cleanser is the gentlest.

Don't forget to tome and moisturize after you have removed your makeup. Massage your skin with an enriching moisturizer for about 5 minutes to stimulate circulation and glow naturally.

EYE CARE

If you are beginning to get dark circles due to lack of sleep and poor circulation, use an eye cream.

A great remedy from the kitchen is to place potato or zucchini slices on your eyelids for about 5 minutes and apply slight pressure. This helps to drain out excess fluid and soothes your eyes.

PUFFY FACE

The best way to deal with a puffy and zitty face is to cool it down. The 'tried and tested' used tea bags and cucumber slices work well. Another remedy is using ice cubes of rosewater. Chill a tray before leaving for parties and rub it all over your face in the morning.

You can also grate a cucumber, soak a cotton ball in it and wipe your whole face with it. Fifteen minutes in a steam room or a cold shower also works wonders for a puffy face.

So now there's nothing to stop you from enjoying your Christmas and New Year Parties and Bashes. Just get equipped to beat the post-party face catastrophe and party hard!

Lata Tokhi is the Founder and Editor of Dot Com Women (http://www.dotcomwomen.com), a premier women's website and fast-growing online community. For more beauty tips and advice, makeup tricks, interviews with famous Fashion personas, seasonal styles and trends, visit the 'Beauty & Fashion' channel at http://www.dotcomwomen.com/beauty

Selecting a Professional Body Waxing Salon

When performed properly, waxing can be one of the quickest and longest-lasting hair removal methods available. However, done improperly it can be painful and dangerous, risking infection, deep tissue bruising, and torn muscle tissue, and worse. This is why finding a skilled, safe, and clean professional waxing salon is an important part of this hair removal method.

First, you'll want to scout out the prospective salons. Ask your friends, look online, look in the yellow pages. Remember, a good salon will have good things said about them.

Once you have several places in mind, time to get out the phone and make some calls. Talk to the aestheticians. Some questions you may want to ask, are... How long has she been waxing, and where did she train? What type of wax do they use? Is it hard wax, soft wax, or do they actually use sugaring? What does their procedure and consist of? Do they use any powder or lotion? What does their sanitation consist of? Also pay attention to her mannerisms. A good waxer should be friendly and make you feel comfortable. If she is cold or seems reluctant to talk about her methods this not a good sign. Also you'll want to discuss cost and the area you want to be waxed.

Now, once you have a feel for your prospects, pay them a visit and check out their facilities. Talk to the employees, they should be friendly and personable. Get a feel for the place. Everything should be clean and neat, akin to a doctor's office. Ask if you can view the area where the waxing is performed. It should likewise be clean and tidy.

So far so good. Time to schedule a visit. Remember, during the waxing procedure if anything makes you uncomfortable or concerned, you can tell them to stop right there. After all, this is your money and you deserve acceptable, professional treatment for it.

Prices can range from $30 to $100, depending on the area to be waxed and quality of the salon.

by Greta of http://hairemoval.blogspot.com/

Natural MakeUp: Organic Ingredients Make a Better Product

What makes an ingredient natural? More and more leading make-up companies are responding to the demands of today?s educated market and offering their customers make-up containing natural and organic ingredients. Women - and more and more men - are realizing the benefits of leaving behind the man-made ingredients used in cheaper cosmetics and looking for the quality and results that come from natural make up. Cosmetics that have been made using quality ingredients - natural products close to the original state, and, whenever possible, organic certified.

One of the most popular ingredients you find in any natural make-up is almond oil. It is excellent for dry, rough skin and very sensitive skin. You will see it used as a base in massage oil, body lotions and many many bath products. Because it is so gentle it can be used on even a baby?s skin. Almond oil is a natural moisturizer and protects then skin beautifully- making it a great choice for those is drier climates. Adding a few drops of your favourite essential oil, such as rose oil or lavender to almond oil makes wonderful massage oil.

Using natural and organic certified products only serves to enhance the healing qualities of natural ingredients. Reputable companies will not indulge in cheap mass produced ingredients such as petrochemicals, lauryl sulphate, parabins, laureth sulphate and low grade alcohol. Alcohol, which is used as a preservative is still an ingredient - but only food quality and plant derived - such as beet root. Fragrance and colors are never artificial ? artificial scents and additives are to be avoided when looking for a true natural make-up.

You will see the ingredient grape seed extract in a myriad of products. It has restorative properties and is a valuable ingredient in natural make-up - especially face creams and moisturizers. Grape seed extract comes from the tiny seeds of red grapes. Grape seed is extract is rich in anti-oxidants - in fact there are more antioxidants found in grape seed than in vitamins C and E. Grape seed extract will help maintain the skins? elasticity and is a key ingredient in any face cream.

Another ingredient listed on many cosmetic and natural make-up labels is Lemon Oil. You will most often find this in bath and body products, massage oil, lotions and foot care. Lemon oil is derived from a cold pressing of lemon peel. In quality natural cosmetics the oils will come from certified organic fruit. Lemon oil is believed to have energizing properties- often leaving the user feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Rose oil, sometimes called rose otto, is a popular ingredient found in many natural make-up and skin care lines. Be sure it is ?rose oil? and not ?rose essence?, which in most cases is synthetic. Synthetic rose oil has no healing benefits or therapeutic value. Rose oil is often used in skin care because of its gentleness - it is suitable for almost all skin types - especially dry or very sensitive skin. It?s also a much sought after ingredient in natural make-up because it has been attributed to the relief of depression, anxiety, spasms, tension, stress and menopausal problems. You will often see rose oil used in many bath products because of the relaxing and calming effect it has on the user. Rose oil?s delicate scent is thought to increase perception and for this reason and it is believed to have aphrodisiac properties.

Natural ingredients, organic certified ingredients are important to the quality and effectiveness of the products you put on your skin. When you are choosing a natural make-up, look at the labels and try and get a better understanding of what you are putting on your skin - and what is being absorbed into your body. Knowing what is safe and what is effective will help you make better decisions about the products you buy. Using natural sources such as plants and herbs rather than synthetic man-made chemicals is always a better choice. Look for high-quality ingredients, ingredients that are not synthetic and are certified organic on the products you buy.

LJ Bronart is freelance writer in Toronto, Canada. She hopes to promote the organic products and the use of more natural make up.

Prevent Dental Stains Without Chemicals

Do you wish your teeth were whiter? Some people have off-white teeth naturally, probably through their genetic inheritance. Others get stained teeth over time for a variety of reasons. If you would like to brighten your smile but don?t want to put the time or money into commercially whitening them, here are a few suggestions for doing it on your own.

1. Limit your consumption of tea, which contains tannic acid. This substance can darken teeth gradually over time, as evidenced by the stains left in teacups used for serving this beverage. You also may want to cut back on cola products, which has a similar but lesser effect. Any foods with deep colors, like blueberries, can leave stains on your tooth enamel. So be sure to brush your teeth after eating foods like these.

2. Rinse your mouth after eating. For best results, try to rinse with water even after snacks, including pop or candy bars. This will prevent foods from sticking to or staying with your teeth, where they can adhere to the enamel and cause stains to appear gradually. At work, use the drinking fountain or bathroom sink for a quick rinse. The quicker you rinse, the better results you will have. Some people even carry small bottles of mouthwash for a quick gargle after lunch.

3. Brush your teeth at least twice a day. Morning and evening are the best times, or following two of your main meals. This will help to remove food bits that can cause discoloration or decay. You can use whitening toothpaste if you prefer, which will provide a low-key brightening effect on your teeth without the use of harsh chemicals or abrasive products. Ask your dentist to recommend a safe whitener for this purpose.

4. Ask about tetracycline substitutes. If you are prescribed tetracycline, a popular antibiotic, ask the doctor if there is a reasonable substitute, as tetracycline has been known to discolor patients? teeth, especially those who took it frequently or for prolonged periods of time. If you must take it, check with your dentist about how to combat the potential darkening effect it may have on your teeth. Other medications may have this effect, as well, so if tooth color is a problem, ask your doctor about the potential for discoloration for any prescription you receive, or simply inquire about those you should avoid.

One alternative is to merely accept your teeth the way they are. Unless they are extremely yellow or darkened, most people will not notice them, and they should pose no particular health hazard. Another option is to try a home whitening treatment that you can do yourself. This will save money and time, but it involves a bleaching process that probably uses peroxide or another chemical. Ask your dentist about the advisability of this type of product if you are thinking of trying one. Society views white teeth as an indication of good health and wholesome hygiene, not to mention physical attractiveness, so make the most of your pearly whites.

For more information on how to prevent dental stains without chemicals, Visit The Denture Spot

The Maharishi Ayurveda Approach to Beauty and Skin Care with Nancy Lonsdorf M.D.

?Every person is born perfect. Inferiority is a mistake of the mind, a cloud covering the light. Dissolve the clouds by observing a balanced life with healthy habits. Nourish your mind and body. Connect with your own inner self. Celebrate your own magnificence and your beauty will always shine through.? -Dr. Rama Kant Mishra, renowned Ayurvedic physician and dermatologist

The Three Pillars of Beauty

Maharishi Ayurveda (MAV), the modern, consciousness-based revival of the ancient Ayurvedic medicine tradition, considers true beauty to be supported by three pillars; Outer Beauty, Inner Beauty and Lasting Beauty. Only by enhancing all three can we attain the balanced state of radiant health that makes each of us the most fulfilled and beautiful person we can be.

Outer Beauty: Roopam

The outer signs of beauty - your skin, hair and nails - are more than just superficial measures of beauty. They are direct reflections of your overall health. These outer tissues are created by the inner physiological processes involved in digestion, metabolism and proper tissue development. Outer beauty depends more on the strength of your digestion and metabolism, the quality of your diet, and the purity of your blood, than on external cleansers and conditioners you may apply.

General Recommendations for Outer Beauty

As we will discuss, the key to skin care is matching your diet and skin care routine to the specific skin type you have. Meanwhile, there are some valuable recommendations for lustrous skin, hair and nails that will be helpful to everyone, regardless of skin type.

1. Diet: Without adequate nourishment, your collagen layer thins and a kind of wasting takes place. Over time, your skin can shrivel up like a plant without water from lack of nourishment. To keep your skin plump and glowing:

A. Eat fresh, whole organic foods that are freshly prepared.

Avoid packaged, canned, frozen, processed foods and leftovers. These foods have little nutritional value and also they are often poorly digested which creates impurities that localize in the skin. The resulting buildup of toxins causes irritation and blocks circulation depriving the skin of further nourishment and natural cleansing processes.

B. Favor skin nourishing foods.

Leafy green vegetables contain vitamins, minerals (especially iron and calcium) and are high in antioxidant properties. They nourish the skin and protect it from premature aging.

Sweet juicy fruits like grapes, melons, pears, plums and stewed apples at breakfast are excellent for the skin in almost everyone.

Eat a wide variety of grains over different meals and try mixed grain servings at breakfast and lunch. Add amaranth, quinoa, cous cous, millet and barley to the wheat and rice you already eat.

Favor light, easy to digest proteins like legume soups (especially yellow split mung dhal), whole milk, paneer (cheese made from boiling milk, adding lemon and straining solids) and lassi (diluted yogurt and spice drinks).

Oils like ghee (clarified butter) and organic, extra virgin olive oil should be included in the diet as they lubricate, nourish and create lustre in the skin.

Use spices like turmeric, cumin, coriander, and black pepper to improve digestion, nourish the skin and cleanse it of impurities.

Avoid microwaving and boiling your vegetables. They lose as much as 85% of their antioxidant content when cooked in this way. Steaming and saut?ing are best.

Caring for outer beauty through knowledge of skin type

Besides these general recommendations the key to Outer Beauty is to understand the difference in skin types so you can gain the maximum benefit from your individualized skin care regimen. MAV identifies three different skin types based on which of the three main metabolic principles (doshas)- present in everyone, but to different degrees- is most dominant in your body.

Vata Skin

* Description: Vata is composed of the elements of air and space. If you have a vata skin type, your skin will be dry, thin, fine pored, delicate and cool to the touch. When balanced, it glows with a delicate lightness and refinement that is elegant and attractive. When vata skin is imbalanced, it will be prone to excessive dryness and may even be rough and flaky.

* Potential problems: The greatest beauty challenge for vata skin is its predisposition to symptoms of early aging. Your skin may tend to develop wrinkles earlier than most due to its tendency to dryness and thinness. If your digestion is not in balance, your skin can begin to look dull and grayish, even in your 20?s and 30?s. In addition, your skin may have a tendency for disorders such as dry eczema and skin fungus. Mental stress, such as worry, fear and lack of sleep, has a powerful debilitating effect on vata skin leaving it looking tired and lifeless.

* Recommendations for care

With a little knowledge, you can preserve and protect the delicate beauty of your vata type skin. Since your skin does not contain much moisture, preventing it from drying is the major consideration. Eat a warm, unctuous diet (ghee and olive oil are best) and favor sour, salty and sweet tastes (naturally sweet like fruits, not refined sugar) as they balance vata. Avoid drying foods like crackers. Drink 6-8 glasses of warm (not cold for vata types!) water throughout the day and eat plenty of sweet, juicy fruits. Going to bed early (before 10 PM) is very soothing to vata and will have a tremendously positive influence on your skin. Avoid cleansing products that dry the skin (like alcohol-based cleansers) and perform Ayurvedic oil massage to your whole body (abhyanga) in the morning before you shower.

Pitta Skin.

* Description: Pitta dosha is composed of the elements of fire and water. If you have a pitta skin type your skin is fair, soft, warm and of medium thickness. When balanced, your skin has a beautiful, slightly rosy or golden glow, as if illuminated from within. Your hair typically is fine and straight, and is usually red, sandy or blonde in color. Your complexion tends toward the pink or reddish, and there is often a copious amount of freckles or moles.

* Potential problems: Among the many beauty challenges of pitta skin types is your tendency to develop rashes, rosacea, acne, liver spots or pigment disorders. Because of the large proportion of the fire element in your constitution, your skin does not tolerate heat or sun very well. Of all the three skin types, pitta skin has the least tolerance for the sun, is photosensitive, and most likely to accumulate sun damage over the years. Pitta skin is aggravated by emotional stress, especially suppressed anger, frustration, or resentment.

* Recommendations for care

Avoid excessive sunlight, tanning treatments and highly heating therapies like facial or whole body steams. Avoid hot, spicy foods and favor astringent, bitter and sweet foods which balance pitta. (Again, naturally sweet, not chocolate and refined sugar!) Sweet juicy fruits (especially melons and pears), cooked greens and rose petal preserves are especially good. Drinking plenty of water helps wash impurities from sensitive pitta skin. Reduce external or internal contact with synthetic chemicals, to which your skin is especially prone to react, even in a delayed fashion after years of seemingly uneventful use. Avoid skin products that are abrasive, heating or contain artificial colors or preservatives. Most commercial make-up brands should be avoided in favor of strictly 100% natural ingredient cosmetics. And be sure to get your emotional stress under control through plenty of outdoor exercise, yoga and meditation.

Kapha Skin.

* Description: Kapha dosha is composed of the elements of earth and water. If you have a kapha skin type your skin is thick, oily, soft and cool to the touch. Your complexion is a glowing porcelain whitish color, like the moon, and hair characteristically thick, wavy, oily and dark. Kapha skin types, with their more generous collagen and connective tissue, are fortunate to develop wrinkles much later in life than vata or pitta types.

*Potential problems If your skin becomes imbalanced, it can show up as enlarged pores, excessively oily skin, moist types of eczema, blackheads, acne or pimples, and water retention. Kapha skin is also more prone to fungal infections.

* Recommendations for care

Kapha skin is more prone to clogging and needs more cleansing than other skin types. Be careful to avoid greasy, clogging creams. Likewise, avoid heavy, hard to digest foods like fried foods, fatty meats, cheeses and rich desserts. Eat more light, easy to digest, astringent, bitter and pungent (well-spiced) foods as they balance kapha. Olive oil is the best cooking oil and a little ginger and lime juice can be taken before meals to increase your characteristically sluggish digestive fire. Take warm baths often and use gentle cleansers to open the skin pores. Avoid getting constipated and try to get some exercise every day to increase circulation and help purify the skin through the sweating process.

Inner Beauty: Gunam.

Happy, positive, loving, caring individuals have a special beauty that is far more than skin deep. Conversely we all experience the quick and deleterious effect on our skin from fatigue and stress.

Inner beauty is authentic beauty, not the kind that shows on a made-up face, but the kind that shines through from your soul, your consciousness or inner state of being. Inner beauty comes from a mind and heart that are in harmony, not at odds with each other, causing emotional confusion, loss of confidence, stress and worry. Inner peace is the foundation of outer beauty.

Maintain your self-confidence and a warm, loving personality by paying attention to your lifestyle and daily routine and effective management of stress (I highly recommend the TM technique for its scientifically-verified benefits on mental and physical health and reduced aging.) You will also be healthier and feel better through the day if you eat your main meal at midday and make a habit of going to bed early (by 10 PM is ideal.)

Remember, kindness, friendliness and sincerity naturally attract people to you. On the other hand, being uptight or tense makes people want to walk the other way, regardless of your facial structure, body weight, or other outer signs we associate with attractiveness.

Lasting Beauty: Yayastyag

In order to slow the aging process and gain lasting beauty there are two additional key considerations beyond those already discussed,

1. Eliminate toxins and free radicals in the body: The main deteriorating effects of aging come as toxins and impurities (called ama in Ayurveda) accumulate throughout the body. These toxins may begin as free radicals in the body, or over time may become oxidized into free radicals, all of which contribute to premature aging in the body. For lasting health and beauty it is essential to avoid and neutralize free radicals, to prevent impurities of all kinds from accumulating and to remove those that have already become lodged in the body.

The most powerful cleansing therapy in Maharishi Ayurveda is panchakarma therapy, a series of natural treatments ideally performed twice yearly, that involves 5-7 days in a row of massage, heat treatments and mild herbal enemas. Ayurveda emphasizes the importance of undergoing this cleansing program once or twice a year to prevent impurities from accumulating, localizing and hardening in the tissues. Just as we change the oil in our cars regularly for optimal performance and lifespan, Ayurveda recommends that we cleanse the ?sludge? from our tissues on a regular basis through panchakarma treatments.

Best of all, panchakarma treatments are luxurious, blissful, and make you feel (and look) completely rejuvenated in just a few days time. I have had many a patient who told me that friends asked them afterwards if they had gotten a facelift, they looked so fresh and youthful!

Other free radical busters include: reducing mental stress, eating antioxidant foods like leafy green vegetables, sweet, juicy fruits and cooking on a daily basis with antioxidant, detoxifying spices like turmeric and coriander.

2. Add rejuvenative techniques to daily living:

The daily activities of life in the modern world systematically wear us down and speed up the aging process. Ayurveda maintains it is crucial to practice daily rejuvenative regimens to counteract the stressful wear and tear of everyday life. According to Ayurveda the most important rejuvenative routines for your life are:

Going to bed by 10:00 PM. This simple habit is one of the most powerful techniques for health and longevity, according to MAV.

Meditate daily. Any meditation that does not involve concentration (which has been shown to increase anxiety) can be very helpful. I highly recommend the twice-daily deep rest and enlivenment of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique, whose benefits have been verified by over 700 published research studies.

Eat organic, whole fresh food that is freshly prepared. There is an Ayurvedic saying: Without proper diet. medicine is of no use. With proper diet, medicine is of no need. Be sure to avoid those leftovers, processed and microwaved foods for better nutrition and vitality.

Perform Ayurvedic oil massage in the morning (abhyanga). Morning oil massage purifies the entire body, reduces anxiety and stress, helps prevent and heal injuries and supports circulation. It is especially helpful in creating a radiant complexion and keeping your skin youthful. Research shows it may also help prevent skin cancers.

Practice yoga asanas. Maintaining flexibility and circulation is key to health.

Practice pranayama (yoga breathing) techniques. Pranayama enlivens the mind and body. Ideally practice the following sequence twice a day. Asanas, pranayama and meditation.

Summary

Everyone's unique beauty shines forth when they have radiant health and personal happiness. Beauty is a side effect of a balanced, fulfilled life. Supreme personal beauty is accessible to everyone who is willing to take more control of their health in their day-to-day life through time-tested principles of natural living.

For most of us, beauty is not a gift but a choice. Every woman can be radiantly beautiful simply by beginning to lead a healthier life. You will be rewarded by the glowing effects you will see in your mirror each day and the powerful, bliss-producing effect your special beauty has on everyone in your life.

About The Author

Nancy Lonsdorf M.D. received her M.D. from Johns Hopkins and did her postgraduate training at Stanford. She has studied Ayurveda with some of the world's most renowned Ayurvedic physicians in India, Europe and the U.S. Dr. Lonsdorf has 17 years of clinical experience with Ayurveda and is currently the Medical Director of The Raj Ayurveda Health Center in Vedic City Iowa.

Dr. Lonsdorf has authored two books on Ayurveda and women's health:

A Woman's Best Medicine (Penguin/Putnam 1995 ; ISBN 0-87477-785-2) describing the Ayurvedic approach to the major issues in women's health

A Woman's Best Medicine for Menopause (Contemporary/McGraw Hill 2002; ISBN 0-8092-9335-8) describing the Ayurvedic approach to menopause

Doctor Lonsdorf's contact information is:
Nancy Lonsdorf M.D.
1734 Jasmine Avenue
Vedic City, IA 52556
641-472-8246
web site url: http://www.ayurveda-ayurvedic.com/

info@ayurveda-ayurvedic.com

African American Skin Care

The fact is that any type of skin condition can happen regardless of the pigment of skin you have. When it comes to African American skin care and others with darker complexions however, there are a few skin care problems that are much more prevalent.

Here are five of the most common African American skin care issues?

Acne

Acne is a chronic disorder characterized by excess production of oil from sebaceous glands causing the hair follicles generally on the face, chest and back to become plugged. Pimples, papules, pustules and comedone, (black heads and white heads) cysts and infected abscesses can be treated in acne. Acne affects most teenagers to some extent. However, the disease is not restricted to any age group; adults in their 20s - even into their 40s - can get acne. In regards to African American skin care, acne may result in long lasting discolorations of the skin. Therapy is the same for all skin types but it is very important to use topical agents that minimize irritation of the skin.

Ingrown Hairs of the Beard (Razor Bumps)

Another African American skin care issue is Ingrown Hairs. African Americans have curved hair shafts and this is true of beard hair as well as other body hair. Often after a very close shave, the pointed hair may curl back into the skin and it may pierce the wall of the hair follicle, causing a reaction resulting in bumps called pseudofolliculitis barbae. If you can, growing a beard is a viable option for helping this.

African American men should try different methods of hair removal if they suffer with ingrown hairs, which are also called razor bumps. Shaving with a special type of safety razor that does not permit a very close shave may help. Do not stretch the skin during shaving and don't shave on a daily basis. If hairs become ingrown, lift them up with an alcohol-cleaned needle (don't tweeze or pluck) just before shaving. Sometimes using a rough washcloth before shaving can help to loosen hairs about to grow inward.

Hair removal chemicals do remove hair but should only be used once a week. They must be wiped off promptly according to package directions and wash your face twice with soap and water immediately afterwards to guard against irritation.

Permanent removal of hair performed by an experienced Electrolysis Operator may be an effective solution and there are new medicated creams that may slow hair growth and help. Be sure to consult your dermatologist about treatment options.

Variations in Skin Color

African American skin has larger melanosomes (cells that determine skin color ) and the melanosomes contain more of the pigment melanin than those found in white skin. Because of the protective effect of melanin, African-Americans are better protected against skin cancer and premature wrinkling from sun exposure.

Post inflammatory hyper pigmentation is quite common in dark skinned individuals, even after minor trauma. An area of the skin may darken after an injury such as a cut or a scrape, or after certain skin disorders such as acne. To avoid or reduce post inflammatory hyper pigmentation, avoid picking, harsh scrubbing, and abrasive treatments. Darkened areas of skin may take many months or years to fade, although topical (surface) bleaching agents may help. Also chemical peels (using alpha and beta hydroxyl acids) and microdermabrasion can be helpful.?

Vitiligo

Vitiligo is a common African American skin care condition where pigment cells are destroyed and irregular white patches on the skin appear. Many dermatologists think that the cause of this common disorder is an autoimmune process, where the cells of the body attack the pigment producing cells.

The extent of color loss differs with each person; some people lose pigment over their entire bodies. Some patients with vitiligo do not regain skin color, however some cases of vitiligo do repigment. See your dermatologist as soon as possible, as the extent of the disease will determine the appropriate treatment. .

Several skin care methods are used to treat vitiligo, but none have been perfected. Topical medications, including corticosteroids and new non-steroid anti-inflammatory preparations are commonly used. In cases where vitiligo affects most of the body, it is sometimes best to destroy the remaining normal pigment. A dermatologist can determine what treatment is best based on the extent of the disease.

Keloids

When the scar from a cut or wound extends and spreads beyond the size of the original wound, it is known as a keloid. Keloids may vary in size, shape, and location. They occur more often in brown or black skin making this a very common African American skin care issue.

Keloids are a common skin care issue on the ear lobes, neck, chest, or back, and usually occur after an injury or surgery. Occasionally they occur spontaneously, especially on the mid-chest area. Keloids often follow inflammation caused by acne on the face, chest, and back.

Keloids may be painful both physically and emotionally (from a cosmetic perspective), but it's important to address keloids primarily as a medical, rather than cosmetic condition.

Depending on the location of the keloid, skin care treatment may consist of cortisone injections, pressure, silicone gels, surgery, laser treatment, or radiation therapy. Unfortunately, keloids tend to return and even enlarge, especially after treatment with surgery.

Find more great information on not just African American skin care but all skin care needs. Find up to date and step by step skin care articles, resources, products and the latest skin care news. Visit us today at http://www.Skin-Care-101.com

What Can You Do About Facial Hair Removal?

Your face is the first thing that people see. The last thing that you want is to have ugly facial hair causing others to look at you. And, it is just uncomfortable. Is there any solution for facial hair removal? Yes, there are many. You have options to removal much of the hair on your face including your eyebrows, the checks and chin, the upper lip and the nose hair. But, what is the right solution for doing so?

Facial Hair Removal For Men

First and foremost, men have many tools to help them with facial hair removal. For most men, the best method to use is that of shaving. If you are like most men, you realize the benefits of shaving with a good quality razor. You have a large selection of them to choose from as many companies are putting out better and better quality options. And, to make shaving less painful, there are shaving creams and gels that can help to reduce the irritation of the skin. Still, there are other options.

For The Ladies

For ladies who are fighting facial hair removal, there are fewer options but many that will work just fine. Shaving is not a good thing for most women. It can cause great irritation and is not necessary for the fine hair that most women battle. Most women are dealing with unwanted hair on their upper lip or strays here and there. In most cases, they will pluck them to rid them. Yes, it can hurt to do this, but it is a deep method of hair removal that should last several weeks. Still, there are other options available.

Depilatories: These are inexpensive solutions for hair removal of the face. If you are careful, they can be effective at dissolving visible hair. You can do this at home, but you will need to do it each time hair becomes visible.

Lasers? Electrolysis? These are also options. These offer permanent facial hair removal. By destroying the follicle in which hair grows from, the hair will no longer grow. While they can be costly, and may need to be done several times to be effective, they can actually help you to gain permanent hair removal as well as less painful ways of getting it.

Waxing: Ouch! Yes, waxing does hurt a bit but it is a great way of getting hair removal for both men and women. The hair is plucked from the root, which means that it will not grow back for several weeks. You can do this at your home or have a professional help you.

Which is the best option for removing hair from your face? The bottom line is that it is up to you. While not one method is fool proof and right for everyone, most of these methods can be done quite safely and to satisfy just about everyone?s needs.

As a beauty consultant Nicola is always evaluating new products. Visit her site at http://www.epilator.info for resources, views and information about hair removal.

Copyright Epilator.info. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and the live links are included intact.

How to be Photogenic?

Everybody likes to look good. Though many people look good naturally but when it comes to photographs the images do not justify their beauty. Although, snapshots are not the exact presentations of your look or personality, they become the objects of judgment according to many people. If you do not display a photogenic face, you are often ditched or taunted by people. So it is a good idea to try to develop a photogenic face. You can have a photogenic face if the photographer takes proper care of lighting, camera angles etc. The following steps could help you look better.

Wear suitable clothes especially the ones that will add a glow to your skin tone. The color patterns should be carefully studied. Choose an angle that will reflect a good texture of your hair and show the smooth texture of your skin. Stand or sit in a proper posture to make you look smarter. Give a natural smile, because a forced smile will make you appear as if you have forcefully stretched your lips. Compare your snapshots with your friends who have a photogenic face.

When all these tips do not effectively work out, then try out digital technology by editing, cropping and artificially enhancing your snaps to look better. You can find many photo retouching service providers online.

Paul has been providing answers to lots of queries through his website on a wide variety of subjects ranging from satellite phones to acne. To learn more visit http://www.askaquery.com/Answers/qn1560.html

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What Causes Aging?

Although we experience the aging process as a progressive physical deterioration of our bodies, the aging process, according to some preliminary case studies appears to be more easily understood at another level of our being.

This is what is called the energy bio-field level. Many of us have heard of the term aura. Well this is in a small way a reperesentation of that energy bio-field. This bio-field has been shown (see Michael Talbot's The Holographic Universe) to contain embedded in it one's entire life history.

In other words, what you experience as your personality, your consciousness and the memories of your life appear to be stored in this bio-field in energy form.

I have over the last ten years been working with a new tool called the Mind Resonance Process(TM) that heals an individual of past emotional traumas which are stored in their consciousness and hence in their bio-field.

I have made repeated anecdotal observations that reveal that when such trauma is released by MRP an individual begins not only to feel younger but actually starts to look younger. These observations have inspired me to try to document the changes by monitoring age related markers such as DHEA levels and testosterone levels in middle aged men in upcoming studies.

It is known that both DHEA and testosterone levels decline in a rather predictable manner in mid life. I am planning to administer MRP to men in this age bracket to show whether MRP can be shown to reverse these trends.

What does this all mean? Well, it suggests that aging is related to the accumulated emotional trauma that we experience and carry in our bio-field as toxic information. This toxic information then cascades down (see The Divine Holographic Energy Field) and disrupts the functioning and integrity of the physical body at all levels. The result is illness and aging.

What I am now seeing with MRP is that this information can be released permanently and that this appears to re-organize the bio-field so that it can heal the body spontaneously. This appears then to manifest as a more youthful and healthy body.

Aging then, at the bio-field level appears to be the result of an accumulation of toxic traumatic emotional memories stored there as disruptive information. What is interesting is that all of this can be cleared (see Eliminating the Past and We Are Not Our Persoanlities)with MRP.

So the next question is, is aging really necessary? In an article entitled Do You Love Your Body? I make the point that it is the toxic environment created by this stored toxic information, at the bio-field level, that convinces or forces us to abandon, our physical bodies. If this environment were cleaned up however would there be as much motivation for one to choose to jettison their body? I doubt it.

I elaborate on this in a longer article entitled A Tuned Bio-Field: A New Definition of Consciousness (Parts 1 &2).

Dr. Nick Arrizza is trained in Chemical Engineering, Business Management & Leadership, Medicine and Psychiatry. He is a Key Note Speaker, Author of Esteem for the Self: A Manual for Personal Transformation (available in ebook format at; http://www.telecoaching4u.com/ebook.htm), Stress Management Coach, Peak Performance Coach & Researcher, Specializes in Life and Executive Performance Coaching, is the Developer of a powerful new tool called the Mind Resonance Process(TM) that helps build physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well being by helping to permanently release negative beliefs, emotions, perceptions and memories. He holds live workshops, international telephone coaching sessions and international teleconference workshops on Physical. Emotional, Mental and Spiritual Well Being.

Personal URL: http://www.telecoaching4u.com

Indoor Tanning Beds: How Safe Are They?

A tanning bed is a cosmetic device that emits ultraviolet radiation such as UVA and also UVB to generate artificial tanning. Historically, medical devices that emit UVA were developed and adopted for modern indoor tanning. Since UVA (Ultraviolet A of the sun) has less biological effects such as reddening of the skin than UVB (Shortwave Ultraviolet rays), these early tanning beds were considered to be ?safe?. However, it was soon realized that continued use of these devices could also cause sunburns, wrinkles, skin cancer, and were not very effective at inducing tans, so they were eventually phased out. Today, devices that emit a combination of UVA and UVB are predominantly used.

One of the strongest criticisms to the use of indoor tanning beds occurred in December, 1994, when the American Medical Association (AMA) adopted a resolution calling for a ban on the sale and use of tanning equipment, except for medical purposes. However, this resolution was rejected by the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an organization that regulates the sale and marketing of indoor tanning equipment.

It has now been established that modern tanning beds and sun lamps typically emit about 93% to 99% UVA radiation - three times the UVA radiation given off by the sun. Tanning occurs when the skin produces additional pigment (coloring) to protect itself against burn from these ultraviolet rays. Continued exposure to UV rays can result in a number of unwanted complications such as eye injury, premature skin aging, light-induced skin rashes, and chances of developing skin cancer. UVB can even cause actual skin burning.

There are three types of common skin cancers - basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma ? and they are all linked to UV radiation. The first cause, according to medical research, is mutations caused the damage inflicted to DNA. Secondly, UV also activates oxygen molecules that damage DNA and other cellular structures; and lastly, localized immunosuppression, that blocks the body's natural ability to protect itself from cancer. The first two types - basal cell and squamous cell - are treatable if detected early but malignant melanoma is often fatal.

A study conducted in Sweden concluded that people who used tanning beds more than 10 times a year were seven times more likely to develop malignant melanoma than those who did not use tanning beds as often, establishing the fact that tanning beds are a major factor that contributes to the development of malignant melanoma.

Other studies have shown that over exposure to ultraviolet rays can also burn or damage the retina, and alter the structure of the lens forming a cataract, which if left untreated may result in complete blindness. Ultraviolet rays can also cause premature skin aging since a tan is damaged skin that is more likely to wrinkle and sag, and when in combination with certain cosmetics and medicines, may cause adverse skin reactions such as rashes and cold sores.

In spite of all the health risks associated with indoor tanning beds, it is estimated that 28 million Americans are tanning indoors annually at about 25,000 tanning salons around the country. The indoor tanning industry in the United States also continues to thrive, raking in as much as $2 billion a year.

Tanning HQ http://tanninghq.com/ articles and information about the tanning and keeping your body looking beautiful.

Skin Care Basics

Skin Care, everyone knows to take care of our skin, but do we pay attention to the details? The quick answer, probably not. A lot of us still run around in the summer time without sun screen to block harmful UVA and UVB rays. The fact is that the sun is harmful to your skin. We need to take precautions both in the summer and wintertime.

The reality today is that Skin Care has become a big buzzword, not just with dermatologists but also in the business and beauty world. We need to start paying more attention to our skin, and all over not just our faces. So what can we do?

Well Lets start by taking a look at the staple steps of skin care.

First off what skin type are you? oily, normal/combination, dry, sensitive or sun- damaged

Oily: Oily skin tends to be shiny with expanded pores, and is prone to blackheads & blemishes. It's possible to feel tightness.

Combination/normal: This skin type has medium pores, a smooth & level texture, effective circulation, healthy color. Combination / normal skin can tend toward dryness and tightness around the cheek area, but also feel oily in the t-zone.

Sensitive: Sensitive skin tends to be thin, frail with fine pores. Generally sensitive skin flushes easily, and is known to broken capillaries, and can be frequently allergic or rashy.

Dry: Dry skin feels tight which is the main sing of dryness you'll find especially after cleansing your skin. May have small wrinkles, flaking and/or red patches.

Aging or sun-damaged: Similar to dry skin. Aging and sun-damaged skin also feels tight with visible smaller wrinkles, and slack skin tone. You'll find the tone mainly around the cheeks and jaw line.

Once we know what skin type we are it's easier to pick the products we need to use for our daily skin care routine. Now onto the steps

Cleaning: Now unless you are prone to acne, or other breakouts just keep it simple with a cleanser. You want to use a simple wash that your skin doesn't react to and is designed for your skin type. You should try to wash twice a day in combination with exfoliating.

Exfoliate: The most important thing to maintain beautiful skin care is to use a gentle exfoliant daily on your skin. Our skin cells get replaced approx. every 3 weeks, so by clearing away old and dead cells, making way for the new ones we help maintain our glow.

Moisturize: Flat out...everyone should moisturize. Even those of us that have oily skin. Of course some should moisturize their skin more then others, but everyone should. A good rule of thumb is when your skin feels tight it's time to moisturize.

Sunscreen: The biggest cause of wrinkles as we age is damage from the sun. It's important to remember that skin care is a life long journey not just as we age. So ensuring we're protecting our skin with sunscreen both in the early and later years is important. Also consider that the sun doesn't just burn or damage our skin in the summer time, it's a good idea to have some on when doing activities in the winter on sunny days.

These are the simple steps that make up a successful skin care routine. It's important to get into a habit like this daily. This is the key to maintaining great skin well into the later years of our life. Try not to get caught up in the gimmicks of the world. While different injections, and creams can give short-term beauty it's not 100% known how all these products make out over the long run. Concentrate on basic skin care, and slow and steady wins the race.

For more information and resources on taking care of your skin visit Best Skin Care Resources.

Is Your Skin Care As Pure As It Can Be?

To achieve a more radiant skin and beautiful complexion, it is vital to use only the purest skin care products, particularly those made only with raw, living and natural ingredients. In this article, I explain why this is the best external skin care possible, which, together with a healthy diet, right lifestyle and a positive mental attitude, helps the skin to become softer, firmer and achieve an unmistakable glow.

From the outset I?d like to emphasize that becoming more beautiful is available to anyone now, regardless of their present health, condition or age, who is willing to create beauty through changes in the diet, external skin care and mental outlook.

What we put on our skin is just as important as the food we eat. The skin is the body?s largest organ and plays a crucial role, not only in the elimination of toxins and in regulating our internal temperature, but also in terms of absorption.

Therefore it is critical to use skin and personal care products that, first of all, are free from toxic chemical ingredients. Some of these ingredients include:

a) Propylene glycol: Found in practically every skin moisturiser, propylene glycol is used as the base ingredient in the manufacture of brake fluid and industrial anti-freeze. It greatly damages and ages the skin. It also causes rashes and dry skin.

b) Lauryl sulphates: These corrosive chemical ingredients used in industry to manufacture garage floor cleaner and engine de-greasing are also one of the main ingredients in practically every major brand of shampoo, bubble bath, face wash, shaving gel & toothpaste. Lauryl sulphates eat away at the mucous lining of the skin, are highly irritant to the eyes and cause urinary tract infections.

c) Parabens: synthetic chemicals which have been linked with breast cancer. They are used as preservatives in many shampoos and personal care products.

Secondly, it is important to use skin care products that are made only with raw, living and natural ingredients such as raw cacao (cocoa) butter and cold-pressed oils. This is because the skin greatly nourishes from the life force, antioxidants, minerals, vitamins and essential fatty acids present in the natural ingredients.

The benefits are numerous. The life energy in the ingredients is highly nourishing and healing. Antioxidants for example, help to reverse skin ageing and inflammation and help heal scar tissue. Minerals play a key role in beautifying the skin, hair & nails. Sulphur, for instance, is a central component of collagen & connective tissue, which provides elasticity & flexibility to the tissues. Vitamins such as A, C and E are moisturizing, soothing and healing to the skin. Essential fatty acids help to remove toxins from tissues.

To ensure that the life force and all these nutrients are retained, skin care products must be made at temperatures below 40C. If ingredients are heated above this level during the manufacturing process, most of the antioxidants, minerals, vitamins and the life force in the ingredients are destroyed. A good example of this is cold-pressed olive oil, which has long been considered a topical remedy for wrinkles and facial lines. Not surprisingly, olive oil is the best source of raw vitamin E. However, it is also is extremely sensitive to temperature and light and becomes completely corrupted when heated.

Heated oils and fats when used in skin care products ?even in the so-called most natural ones- are actually one of the worst offenders to skin beauty. They contain highly toxic transfatty acids, which may be absorbed into the cell membranes, causing them to become porous and weak. Heating oils and fats also leads to the creation of free radicals, which are unstable oxygen molecules that have lost an electron. Collagen, a protein molecule that constitutes 80% of the dermis, is particularly susceptible to free radical damage, which includes wrinkles, lingering scars and stiff collagen

In contrast, cold-pressed fats and oils kept at low temperatures help to beautify the skin, strengthen the cell membranes and restore nutrients to the tissues.

In short, the best external skin care is to use products made using only 100% raw and living ingredients. At present, the only company in the world producing a range of such products is Raw Gaia. More information can be found at http://www.rawgaia.com

(c) Hector Bolanos, 2006.

Hector Bolanos is the sales & marketing director at Raw Gaia, a natural skin care company. He can be contacted at enquiries@rawgaia.com and on +44 (0)1273 311 476

The Mirror of Beauty

The probe of human mind has marked every inch of success but the art of drawing parallels for what beauty is, has remained a great mystery. For some philosophers, beauty is the degree of attraction and admiration, provoked in an observer. But it is argued that the same beauty does not affect everyone the same way. It varies dramatically. A few think thanks have defined it as a degree of perfection, but perfection in one field may not be of any interest to an observer. So beauty is very difficult to explain fully, but it may be said that it is a game of comparison. Suppose there is only one woman in the world, now question is whether she is beautiful or not. The answer unambiguously is that you can?t say anything because you don?t have another woman to compare with.

But sailing beyond the ocean of imagination, one realizes that there is a factor that determines the degree of beauty, i.e. a personal dictionary, which translates the mortals and assigns degree of beauty. The holy words of human history will peep out from the gale of truth and will strongly proclaim that Juliet was a goddess for a Romeo a god for her and rest, the particles of dust. Heer for ranjha was enough, and he for her, to lead whole their life together with few straws of love. But remember, if all the lovers of the world of the world are invited to a party to ask who amongst all is the most beautiful, they certainly shall stamp the claim of beauty on the hearts and souls of their own beloved which indeed is not their narrow-mindedness but a natural fact that ?beauty lies in the eyes of beholder?.

One day a great historian whispered in my ears a story? ?once upon a time there was king so fond of beauty that he called his most loyal and faithful negro slave and ordered him to go from east to west and from north to south and fetch him such a paragon of beauty that neither moon would have risen with such splendors nor the oysters of ocean would have given birth to such magnificent pearls; neither ladies of paradise would have looked so charming not the preachers of beauty would have been able to give such bewitching example, neither any artist would have created such mind blowing portrait nor a poet from the depth of his imagination would have been able to compose such riveting verse; neither any dove would have its pinion soar such marvelously not the Aphrodite would have marked such excellence. And if I say for her that she is the most beautiful spirit God ever created, then the claimants of beauty should have said:? we are like lumps of coal in a mine and she a diamond among us.? So, go my man whose head crown of my faith rests, on whose shoulders stars of firm belief shine and on whose chest medals of sure obedience are stamped. Go and present me the beauty that should be praised and witnessed by the twinkling stars.?

The negro servant bowed down and went away calmly to the peaks from where the sun pierced its shining fingers into the dark curtains of night, from where Shakespeare and Shelley enjoyed drinks of inspiration, from where the portrait of Mona Liza was found and from where moon extracts its gleaming light; and thus he went through plains to mountains, through valleys to deserts, through unfathomable cares to celestial cities and through each and every inch of this world where life seemed breathing.

After indefatigable efforts, he went to the king, presented him what seemed the goddess of beauty to him, his Negro daughter. At this, the king asked, ?did you not find any soul more beautiful than this??

He kept silent for a while, then raised his head and said: ?Your Excellency, my blood shall be showered in your feet if I speak but the truth. You asked me to bring Aphrodite but I brought my Negro daughter; the reason was my loyalty. Your Excellency, for you her black complexion may seem coal in the dark but for me it is as beautiful as back rose or a diamond. To you her dry hair may look like that of a witch of some old myth dancing in woods but for me her hair is no less than the curtains of paradise. To you her wrinkled hands may seem as a deserted sight of this land but to me they seem as gods, to cope up the world?s fate in it has sketched these lines on it. To you her eyes may seem as those of angels when embodying eyes have mistaken but to me success. To you her wide nose may seem as dark, unfathomable caves of stone ages but to me it is no less than Noah?s Ark. Therefore, Your Excellency, my obedience and loyalty to you compelled me to bring my daughter to you.?

Then the historian smiled and said, ?Yes! Beauty lies in the eyes of beholder.?

In quest of defining and explaining the beauty, two schools of thought have emerged so far. One proclaims importance of inner beauty and the other preaches the pleasure presented by worldly beauties. But in fact all beautiful things are not necessarily good, charming and attractive but all good and true things are always beautiful. Therefore, it is well said by Keats:

Beauty is truth, truth beauty, That?s all ye know on earth And all ye need to know.?

The school of thought preaching inner beauty bore these words on the preface of its textbook:

?History is evident that the world has given birth to many worldly beauties which only could help to quench the thirst of people and awake beast in them. Many beauties passed by without any notice but the beauty of soul and conscience has claimed triumph over hearts of millions and marked its eternal existence. The people blessed with purity of soul, truthfulness of their conscience, goodness of their deeds and firmness of their faith have succeeded to scratch their name on the forehead of this earth and lead their nation to the peals of glory. And thus they are still breathing in the hearts of many mortals. Nobody asks whether Aristotle was handsome or not, whether Alexander was strong tall in stature or not and whether Anarkali when buried alive inside the walls posed like a queen or not. People do not ask such questions, but everybody does ask that how they climbed to success inch by inch. The open secret of their success, in fact, is their character, behavior, determination, zeal and enthusiasm which contributed towards their success and inner beauty.?

On the contrary, the school of thought preaching worldly beauty is thanking his God in these words:

?Thanks my God, for you have blessed us such beauties, whose single glance shuns off our day-long tiredness, whose heart may prove as a place of eternal peace to our souls, whose sight reminds us of your Excellence. Thanks my God, you have bestowed upon us such beauty, the wish to achieve, which proves a source of fuel for our body, mind and soul. This beauty has decorated this terrifying and worthless world; and it cheers us up when we are cooped in the cells of gloom, worries and misfortunes. Oh God! Really the beauty that you have blessed us with is a source of living in this frightful world.?

In fact, since the creation of this universe, beauty has been neglected and stigmas of frailty have been marked on its forehead. Beauty seems to be an emblem of nothing but thirst rubbing machine. Those who dwell in this world have been really mistaken in understanding the true beauty. When the beauty reigns its lost crown these mortals will see with their eyes open and sense smelling the truth that worldly beauty was just a mirage. Praise be to the Lord, who gifted us these praiseworthy inner beauties which indeed enabled mankind to kindle flames of love even in the dark. And, therefore, we must stop lauding the beauty only. We should also extol its creator, the Almighty GOD.

NAVEED AHMED CHANDIO, A person with bundles of knots to untie. The thinking fuel for him has been love, beauty and the inner rebelion. Most of the times, he would prefere to let the things be interwoven for the beauty of life remains in having some reason to fulfil. He is a fairly good student of Nature and feels proud of it. The unthoughtfulness, cruelity, trachery and hatred are few things that he never liked or perhaps he never got aware of. Naveed chandio lives in karachi, Pakistan.

Dermaglow For Natural Skin

Bring natural beauty to your skin with the launch of Dermaglow an extensive assortment of skin care treats to heal, soothe and protect. Developed in Canada by pharmacist Dr Calvin Davies, Dermaglow have captured the essence of magical botanical ingredients to feed your skin and bring paradise to your senses. Pure, natural and with nothing but goodness straight from nature itself, choose a variety of luxurious and sensual goodies that will leave your skin buffed and polished to perfection.

ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS
Calm and comfort skin through all weathers and shield beauty from harmful rays with a full spectrum of UVA & UVB protection. Face Protector has an SPF15 offering protection against every element including wind and water. Bring more than moisture to thirsty hands with Intense Hand Cream and keep heels from harm with Intense Heel Cream a serious repair and protector made with Shea Butter and Aloe Vera to truly lighten your step. Healing Salve shelters skin with Comfrey, Burdock Root, Chamomile and a whole list of other soothing botanicals. For immediate relaxing relief from congestion and muscle ache, Heat Balm takes action with its rich blend of Ginger Root, Cayenne Pepper and Eucalyptus Oil. Check lips into therapy with a rich recipe of Soya Oil, Shea Butter, Echinacea, Peppermint and Tangerine Essential Oil. Containing the secret to a perfect pout, Lip Therapy will soothe, soften and keep lip moisture sealed tight!

EXTRAORDINARY EYE CARE
For an instant eyelift apply Instant Lift Serum - a phenomenal serum that puts the signs of ageing in reverse. Witness results in minutes as Sandalwood Oil tones and firms, whilst Ginger Root Extract and Hydroplex HHG moisturize and revitalize. Open eyes to firmer, toned and smooth skin with Eye Contouring Gel. Let the power of pure Kigeline stimulate over 55% improvement in skin firmness, whilst Wheat Protein diminishes the appearance of wrinkles, nourishes and keeps skin hydrated.

MAGICAL MARINE PROTEIN
Regenerate skin with a unique deep-sea fish complex, similar to our own skin and ideal for even the most sensitive complexions. Natural Marine Protein feeds skin the nutrition it needs to diminish the effects of ageing. Fortify skin inside and out with the miraculous Marine Protein complex by taking daily Dermpro Mineral Supplement Caplet and applying Marine Protein Cream to expose supple, clearer, healthier and gorgeous complexions.

SIMPLY SENSATIONAL SENSITIVE SKIN
Transform your daily cleansing routine and combine unbeatable products to cleanse and calm both skin and spirit. Nature's Blue Azulene delivers soothing properties for sensitive skins and relieves the redness associated with Rosacea. Azulene's amazing healing properties are derived from Chamomile to calm and soothe. Concentrated Cleanser gently washes away the stresses of the day and Renewing Toner brings life & vitality back to tired skin using a potion of herbs to freshen and benefit all skin types. Give your skin overnight renewal with Azulene Night Cream, and let the natural Azulene, Jojoba, Aloe Vera, Vitamin E and Avocado Oil bring you sweet dreams. Freshen morning skin with Azulene Day Cream to protect skin from daily strain and help flush away toxins. Indulge skin with Azulene Miracle Mask-applied twice a week this botanical blend will nourish, relieve redness, draw out deeply embedded impurities and balance skin and spirits.

For more information on Dermaglow telephone +44(0)800 328 7612 or e-mail info@dermaglow.co.uk; web site http://www.dermaglow.co.uk

Real Beauty Fitness

Fitness and beauty can be one and the same. Being fit and healthy will automatically make you look better. A healthy inside creates a healthy outside.

Fitness through exercise can help you to maintain a healthy body weight and improve muscle tone.

Our looks reflect the sum total of who we are and how we live, and the best we can do in life is to make the best of what nature has given is, without excuse, apology, or pretense. If we try to live otherwise, we find ourselves acting on a stage with other actors and actresses--great pretenders without real friends, without real lovers, without real relationships.

While we realize that there is such a thing as natural beauty, which is beyond all standards of culture and history in some sense, there are also relative standards of beauty.

We all know about fads, styles, and adornments that are in one season and out the next. This includes cosmetics, hair styles, clothing, and even body weight and size.

These standards may vary from country to country, year to year, or even among different age groups in the same country and year.

For example, full figures are considered the ideal in some historical periods, but slender figures are valued now--at least in Western countries.

The point is that cultural standards change--and we may choose to follow or ignore them--because the cultivation of natural beauty is not dependent upon fads.

In order to get along harmoniously, whether at the level of dating, courtship, or marriage, men and women have to get past physical looks and into the more important qualities that make up human relationships, such as kindness, friendship, and areas of mutual interest.

There is such a thing as a beautiful personality. There can be beauty in the way a person thinks. An attitude or smile can be beautiful. Love is certainly beautiful, and all of life is beautiful when we are in love.

A person is truly beautiful when he or she is healthy. Any disease or illness affects all parts of the body, sometimes for many years before the symptoms are manifested. If the body and mind are not healthy, then a person cannot feel or be truly attractive.

Good health brings a glow to the skin, a ring to the voice, a twinkle to the eye, and a spring to the step that no beauty school can teach.

Learn more at Beauty Fitness.

Ruby Boyd is the owner of a Natural Health and Beauty website that offers information on how to achieve health and beauty fitness goals naturally.

You may contact me at: 3rdsista@bellsouth.net

Using Water to Get Glowing Vibrant Skin

I?ve mentioned your skin?s need for water before, but it?s such an important topic that it deserves a section all its own.

We sometimes forget our skin -- until something goes wrong! Your skin is the largest organ of your body. The skin protects us from infections, guards us against harmful effects of the sun?s rays, and helps to regulate our body temperature.

But what most of us think about with the skin is how it looks. All of us have seen those with unhealthy skin or complexions. Their skin has a sallow look, pasty, or drawn. It?s not a pretty sight.

And, of course, what the skin needs is moisture. When the body is inadequately hydrated, there?s not enough moisture in the skin tissues, and that can contribute to the drawn and haggard look so many have.

The skin also needs hydration to clean the body of toxins. Your body is constantly in contact with things that are not good for us. Those things can come from the food we eat, the air we breathe, and things we come into contact with by touching. (And in some places in the world -- thankfully not usually in North America! -- even water itself can bring in those toxins).

The simplest way the body gets rid of toxins is through washing. Washing your hands is probably the very best thing you can do to prevent infections, whether your own or someone else?s. Bathing or showering (and shampooing) also get rid of toxic materials our bodies don?t need.

But the cleaning works internally, too. Water courses through your body, a never-ending stream flushing out harmful substances. And if there?s not enough of that water, your body itself can become polluted, something like a river in a time of drought, when there?s just not enough water to clean out all the junk.

Your body can operate like that, too. Because there?s not enough fluid to clean out the toxins, they accumulate in the body?s tissues. The whole body can start to act sluggish, but the place where we see it first is in our skin. And while we are quick to put on lotions and skin treatments, the primary and most important ?skin treatment? you can use comes in a glass -- and it?s available from the tap!

Again, the most important means of taking care of your skin is our regular, 20 glasses a day water plan. Keep drinking on a regular basis. You will find that it becomes a wonderful habit very quickly, and you come to miss it if you?re separated from a water source for very long.

Prevention is of first importance, but if you find you?ve been exposed to something toxic (such as secondhand smoke), first wipe your face with cool (not cold) tap water, and then drink a couple of glasses of water right away. You want to give your body a chance to get rid of the toxins right away, and there?s no better way than water.

You may also notice times when your skin looks drawn or haggard, even when you?re drinking enough (or at least think you are!) In most of these cases, what has happened is that you have become busy or pre-occupied, and haven?t been drinking enough. Whatever the reason, start pumping the water right away. You will even find that water will help you to look better if you?ve temporarily not had enough sleep. If you have to miss a few hour?s sleep (or even a whole night) really load up on the water. It will make you feel better and look better until you can catch up on sleep.

Jim Huffman, RN specializes in natural and alternative healing therapies. His first book is 'Dare to Be Free: How to Get Control of Your Time, Your Life, and Your Nursing Career,' and is aimed at helping other nurses find satisfying, dynamic careers. His website is http://www.NetworkForNurses.com and his health blog is at http://www.shababa.blogspot.com

Beauty: Inner Outer

Heart is filled with happiness when it sees or feels something beautiful. There is magnetic magic in beauty. In general, any person gets attracted by beauty. It might be an object, nature or a person. If a person goes for beautiful object or nature, it will not change that person?s life but if the same goes for a person of beauty, then comes the situation of his or her life being changed.

Regarding binding our lives forever, it is our pleasure and a matter of satisfaction to look for beauty in the other person but it is not always good and healthy to go for outer looks alone. As we often hear the saying, ?Beauty is skin deep?, we need to look for inner beauty also. When there is outer beauty, one?s mind is happy. When there is inner beauty one?s soul is happy. Only when there is a balance between these two can there be harmony at a place or between two hearts.

It is not always true that a beautiful person is beautiful at heart too and that there will be peace at home. In the present era, youngsters very easily get infatuated and deceived by outer looks and they go ahead without pausing and they very quickly get married prefixing this term ?Marriage? with ?Love.? Later when they get used to that beauty, they start looking for inner beauty rather than outer looks. They repent for what they have done without giving much thought. But all this repentance is in vain as they are already bound with another person.

In order to lead a happy life, inner beauty is very important. One can live with a lame or a dumb person. But one cannot lead a happy life with an insensitive and heartless person. For any life to be satisfactory or fulfilling, understanding is essential and primary. So if you plan to marry a person just by getting attracted to that person?s looks, pause a little. Observe his or her qualities, mentality, behaviour for a while and then proceed. Never blindly take important decisions in haste.

Last but not the least, never judge or compare with any person. No one on this earth is perfect. If you see a beautiful person, you think that person is gifted with happiness. If you see a person who is not that beautiful, you tend to feel sorry for that person. But what do you know? She or he might be leading a very happy life though not beautiful. Though a beautiful person, that being?s life might have been a big chaos. So, it is wise to ponder on the truth that true happiness and satisfaction lie in a ?Heart? rather than in ?Skin.?

?For eye-catching beauty, live a Life of Grace.? - Sharmila Sanka

About the Author

With pride that I have been blessed with a human form, I always craved to grab any opportunity in order to utilize this human birth to the fullest and at last I found the answer to my craving mind and it was no other than ?Spirituality.?

My little heart panged for the desire to quench my thirst of ?releasing the heaviness? which resided inside of it since years. It hungered after the soul within asking to reveal more of life ? Materialistic and Spiritual in the form of Articles and Quotations which had the sole purpose of sharing it with other human beings not for name or fame but to tame this little mind towards the higher goal of ?Global Peace? on this earth plane.

Sharmila Sanka
3910 SW Sycamore Street
Bentonville, AR 72712
USA
479-271-8278
sharmilasanka@yahoo.com

SkinCare or SkinPoison?

Your skin is a living organ. It breaths, drinks and carries topically applied substances through to the rest of your body. Caring for your skin is like eating. We have become very concerned about what we eat in recent years - this is very good. But, an idea that is only beginning to bloom is that you eat through your skin too. What do you want your body to eat? This question needs to be considered when choosing your skincare and bath products.

Currently, the personal care industry has no regulation. This is very unnerving, especially when the FDA Office of Cosmetics and Colors states that ?a cosmetic manufacturer may use almost any raw material as a cosmetic ingredient and market the product without an approval from the FDA?

Manufacturers are allowed to twist their claims, by exaggerating or even outright lying. With this slack industry, it becomes nearly impossible for the consumer to know for sure what they are getting. Labels like ?organic?, ?cruelty-free? and ?hypo-allergenic? can have little to no meaning. Manufacturers can even hide behind an organic label without disclosing all of their chemical ingredients.

The Environmental Protection Agency states that 89% of 10,500 ingredients commonly used in personal care have not been adequately evaluated for safety. Among these ingredients are carcinogens, penetration enhancers, allergens and harmful impurities that can cause cancer, inhibit fetal growth, cause nerve damage, disrupt hormones and cause other severe reactions.

So what?s a pampering bath loving soul to do? Educate yourself, read labels, shop from companies who have signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics (that?s us, close to the bottom of the list), and keep your eyes out for our next personal care article.

Ivy Mills has been researching chemical sensitivity and natural alternatives for over five years and has brought her knowledge to the marketplace in her company, Valhalla Essences. Her personal experiences have fed a passion to help others with the same problem. Ivy welcomes others to share their stories and experiences on her blog, Peaceful Power.

Reducing the Appearance of Wrinkles

Wrinkles. One of the most dreaded words in the dictionary. At the first sign of a wrinkle, our reaction is pretty much universal. Horror! After we calm down, we begin to wonder just what we can do to eliminate this much dreaded effect of aging and how do we keep other newer and deeper wrinkles from following. If we already find ourselves with wrinkle mania in full bloom, we look for solutions to turn back the hands of time and restore our skin to its once youthful state. Fortunately, there are options available to us to reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Let's take a moment to discover what causes these wrinkles. First and foremost, aging. As we grow older our skin naturally looses collagen and eslastin that help to keep our skin firm and taunt. Also, our skin cell reproduction slows down and the rejuvenating effect that new skin cells have on our skin?s appearance diminishes. These types of wrinkles are known as intrinsic, they cannot be avoided. It is Mother Nature at her best (or worst!). Other factors, like the environment and sun damage, can also cause skin to wrinkle. Smoking also causes the skin to produce less collagen, inevitably leading to an increase in wrinkles. These types of wrinkles are called extrinsic. They are life style choices that are, for the most part, under our control. These extrinsic influences are the leading cause of pre-mature aging patterns in our skin. Now that we know why we have wrinkles let?s talk about how to reduce them.

One of the more popular ways to reduce the appearance of wrinkles is plastic surgery. Not only are face-lifts an option but also there are now less invasive procedures, like chemical peels, laser treatments, and collagen injections. The number one procedure for reducing wrinkles used today by women of every walk of life is Botox? injections. Botox? works by relaxing the injected muscle and allowing those awful furrow lines and other deep wrinkles to all but disappear. This is temporary, though, and has to be repeated every few months.

Coblation is also an option for reducing wrinkles. Less invasive than surgery, radio waves are used to remove the top layer of the skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and sun damage. Although this procedure does leave you with newer, younger looking skin, it is not as effective as laser treatments. It is safer, though, and the healing process is considerably shorter since the radio waves do not go as deeply into the lower layers of skin.

Although all of the above mentioned remedies are good options, they are also expensive. There are a large variety of wrinkle reducing creams on the market today that contain ingredients like Retinal. These will help to firm your skin and lessen the look of fine lines, but not necessarily the deeper set wrinkles.

Brian Fong
http://www.NaturalVisage.com/

There are options available to us to reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Collagen and Fat Injections for Smoother Skin

Most surgical procedures, such as chemical peels and laser resurfacing are meant to remove the outer layers of skin, forcing new collagen growth which eventually fills in the wrinkles. The opposite approach is to fill in the wrinkles with an injectable substance such as collagen or fat. This fills in the defects giving the skin a smoother appearance.

The most common filler is bovine collagen. Since there is a risk of allergic reactions, a skin test is required before its use. There are now bioengineered collagen products that are non-allergic and do not require a skin test, as well as synthetic fillers. Another choice is a transplant of your own collagen or even fat removed by a mini-liposuction procedure just before injection.

Usually you will receive a local anesthetic and the collagen product will be injected directly under the surface of the skin. There may be some bruising or swelling in the treated areas.

The collagen injection restores the skin?s natural collagen and you skin will look younger as it fills out.

Just like your own natural collagen, injected collagen will eventually start to break down and need to be replaced. You might have to repeat the treatment several times a year. However, injected fat tends to last a lot longer and the results may be permanent, especially if it was injected into other areas in the face containing fat.

According to a report issued by the Harvard Medical School, a new product is being developed that is designed to produce new collagen as needed. Called Isolagen, it uses a sample of your own skin to clone fibroblasts, the cells that produce collagen. Since this is a new procedure, its long term effects are still unknown.

Anyone who watches movies or TV knows the results of overdoing these types of procedures. Many famous actresses wound up with lips reminiscent of Bozo the Clown from overzealous collagen injections. Make sure you use a doctor experienced in this procedure and be frank with him on the results you expect to receive.

When properly done the results should be undetectable and natural looking, giving you another weapon against wrinkles and creases in your face.

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to offer medical advice. Consult a qualified physician if you are interested in any of these procedures.

Jean Bowler was a ballet dancer and instructor, a teacher, a personal trainer and a cosmetics consultant. She is editor of Ageless Beauty ? http://www.ageless-beauty.com

Reduce Wrinkles Prevent Aging Skin With A Scientifically Proven Approach

Many skin products that claim to reduce wrinkles and/or prevent aging skin generally consist of static chemicals that prop up the skin temporarily or give it a more appealing appearance.

Healing and/or reversing the effects of skin damage must go deeper than that if one is to achieve more effective results. It must actually strive to repair the damage itself.

Damage to skin is often the result of persistent assaults to the DNA of cells that sustain and support the organ we call or skin. The damage is most commonly the result of exposure to harmful sunlight and/or toxic chemicals applied to the skin in the form of skin care products over one's life time.

The effects of such factors on the skin can include a change in the overall texture, a decrease or unevenness in the tone, thinning, the development of age spots, wrinkles all of which undermine overall appearance.

This process which many accept as the aging process is also accompanied by a decreased ability to produce collagen, a protein that is responsible for the integrity of the top layer of the skin, also known as the epidermis and thus leads to thinning of the skin. Collagen is normally produced by cells called fibroblasts under the skin. These fibroblasts tend to produce less collagen as one ages. Aging as you likely also know is in large part related to the overall integrity of the functioning liver (please see my article: If You Look After Your Liver You Will Live Forever).

The liver's function is to detoxify the body regularly. If it starts to under function toxins can accumulate in various organ systems, including the skin, and disrupt their normal functional capacities. This along with the damage done to the skin directly by factors mentioned above are in part the reason that fibroblasts under function with age. Much of this under functioning is the result of damaged DNA fragments in the nuclei of these cells.

Unless skin care products can repair or reverse this damage in some way one is being fooled into believing that any real benefit is being afforded by them.

A new scientifically tested product known as ART developed by Gary Young N.D. has been designed to specifically address this very issue.

Two enzymes in ART i.e. Photolyase and Endonuclease act to a) replenish damaged DNA fragments and b) repair damaged sections of DNA with these replenished fragments respectively. The net effect is to restore fibroblast activity and collagen producing capacity.

These enzymes are also supported by the presence two Essential Oils that have been used to address skin cancers: Frankencense and Sandalwood

The benefits shown to accrue from this approach have been documented wrinkle reduction, increased elasticity of the skin, softer skin, increased and more even skin tone, and a firmer appearance to the skin. All of this in under two months of using ART.

To view before and after photos or to get more information on ART you can visit: http://art.youngliving.com/science.html

Alternately you can visit my web site below.

Nick Arrizza M.D. is trained in medicine and psychiatry. He is also an international healer and coach as well as the developer of the powerful Mind Resonance Process(TM) MRP.

Web Site: http://www.youngliving.org/arrizza

Commercial Acne Treatments vs. Home Remedies

There are a number of both commercial and home remedy acne treatments, which are designed to help treat acne. The most popular of home remedies is the recommendation to wash your face twice each day, with the best times to be in the morning and before you go to bed at night. Keep in mind that it is best to avoid scrubbing too hard as this may aggravate, or even result in, acne.

There are many benefits to both commercial acne treatments and home remedies. Among them, commercial or prescription acne treatments are often medically recommended. On the flip side, home remedy acne treatments are not medically tested, but they are natural, free and usually contain ingredients that are not harmful. This is not always the case with commercial or prescription acne treatments, which often carry the potential for serious side effects. In addition, they can be quite expensive.

No matter which acne treatment you use, be careful of possible irritation. The last thing that you will want is to aggravate an acne-prone area with a treatment product as this would defeat the entire purpose. The best way to begin with any cream or lotion treatment is to apply the product to a small test area of skin in order to make sure there are no incompatibilities with your skin. In addition, make sure to read any warning or cautionary product labels to make sure that you are using the contents properly. In order for acne treatment medication to work, it has to be used correctly.

If you are searching for popular over the counter acne treatments, you are likely to find a variety of choices. Among them, medicated pads for wiping over the face, lotions, face wash, etc. Prescription acne treatments are often provided to those who need a more aggressive approach at acne treatment and may include the same product categories at a higher level of medication. Home remedy acne treatments include lotions containing aloe vera, a facial mask consisting of 4 tablespoons of honey and one grated apple, an oatmeal and water paste, etc.

This article is to be used for informational purposes only. The information contained herein is not intended to be used in place of, or in conjunction with, professional medical advice regarding the use of any commercial or home remedy acne treatment. Prior to beginning any treatment regimen, the patient must consult a licensed medical doctor or dermatologist for advice and/or to determine the best course of action for his/her individual situation.

Find amore about Witch Hazel acne treatments, bacne scars and many other acne natural treatments on http://www.TheAcneMedicine.com