The San Gallicano Dermatological Institute recently identified two compounds whose individual abilities add up to relief for sensitive skin when combined in a lotion. The first, a gluco-oligosaccharide, helps protect skin from infection without inducing bacterial resistance; the other, a collagen tripeptide, stimulates fibroblast production. The latter component happens to be acquired from fish skin.

Together, when applied topically, study volunteers with sensitive skin experienced a decrease in inflammation, roughness, and trans-epidermal water loss, as well as an increase in the uniformity of skin’s surface. Researchers also found a stabilization in pH.

The demonstrated normalization could mean that this combination will appear in future formulas aimed at treating sensitivity. However, because of the fish-derived portion of the mixture, vegans with sensitive skin would need to continue looking for another option.

“Fishy” solution for your skin is a post from: Skin Clinic MD

Skin Clinic MD related posts:

1. Thermage Skin Tighening Thermage is FDA approved for tightening and thickening skin...
2. Skin Tighening Skin Tightening: What to expect from your laser skin...
3. Solta Medical Reports Third Quarter 2009 Results Solta Medical Reports Third Quarter 2009 Results Provides full...
4. Non Surgical Facelift Non Surgical Facelift is the nomenclature that many medical...
5. Botox & Nose Jobs becoming more popular in India A pointed nose and taut skin seem to have...

You may have your mom to thank for those wrinkles…

Friends and family say you inherited your mother’s eyes, but plastic surgeons want you to know that you’ve probably inherited her bags and crow’s-feet, too, even if they haven’t shown up yet.

According to members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, women can expect to age just like their moms, as shown in a new study that measured age-related changes in 10 mother-daughter pairs between 15 and 90 years old.

“Studies of facial aging up to the present have largely been observational and subjective,” explained the Loma Linda University research team. “This study applies state-of-the-art facial imaging and three-dimensional computer modeling to measure changes in the aging female face.”

Among the findings: mothers and daughters similarly lose volume in the lower lid in their mid-30s, with common progression throughout their lives.

The knowledge that we’re destined to age like our mothers could help surgeons more acutely personalize procedures by making it easier to visualize what the patient would look like down the road. This could mean more satisfying, longer-lasting results that help keep mom’s wrinkles off your face.

Is Mom’s skin your destiny? is a post from: Skin Clinic MD

Skin Clinic MD related posts:

1. Skin Clinic News – March 23, 2009 New York Doctor Fined $20000 for Injecting Patients With...
2. Top Skin Clinic MD Posts from Jul Missed some Skin Clinic MD posts? Here are some...
3. Wholesale Botox from Canada? Image by Getty Images via Daylife Discount Botox from...
4. Skin Clinic MD: IPL Why does my dermatologist have an IPL? Medical Spas,...
5. Radiesse Filler Injections & Your Skin Clinic Skin Clinic MD: Radiesse Filler Injections A common skin...

A few more reasons to kick the habit…

Smoking can make your teeth yellow, dull your skin, make your hair stink, and emphasize little lines around your mouth. But the drawbacks aren’t just an above-the-neck issue.

A University of Michigan study found smoking has an aging effect on every inch of skin. According to researchers, the total number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day and the total years a person has smoked is linked with the amount of skin damage a person experiences from head to toe.

In the past, several studies had been done to measure the premature skin-aging affects of smoking, but they were focused mainly on the face. This is the first study of its kind to show that cigarettes can actually cause your entire body’s skin to wrinkle, yellow and become coarse.

Although there are treatments to help undo these unattractive effects, your appearance, and more importantly, your health, will be better if you simply stop smoking or never start.

Skin Clinic MD: Smoking causes body wrinkles is a post from: Skin Clinic MD

Skin Clinic MD related posts:

1. Medical Esthetician Training for your Skin Clinic Injectable products are an important contributing factor to your...
2. Radiesse Filler Injections & Your Skin Clinic Skin Clinic MD: Radiesse Filler Injections A common skin...
3. Skin Clinic News – March 23, 2009 New York Doctor Fined $20000 for Injecting Patients With...
4. Skin Clinic MD: Esthetics Training Book  The Advanced Medical Spa Esthetics Training Course & Study...
5. Medical Spa MD: Understanding Botox & injectables. From Medical Spa MD: Understanding Botox & Injectables. Injectable...

Here are some tips for fighting dry winter skin:

Clean up gently: The products you use to cleanse your can either preserve your skin’s moisture or wash it away. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, facial cleansers and toners containing alcohol tend to strip the skin of its natural oils. Look for moisturizing facial cleansers and mild, fragrance-free soaps or body washes.

Additionally, you’ll want to keep baths or showers short and use warm — not hot — water. Exposure to hot water breaks down the skin’s protective barrier.  Apply lotion within five to 10 minutes after bathing.

Choose a new moisturizer: To help lock in moisture in the winter, you’ll want to switch to an oil-based moisturizer.  Even those with oily skin will want a light oil-based moisturizer. Those with dry skin should use a heavier oil-based moisturizer. Those with combination skin might need multiple products.

When choosing a new moisturizer, be sure to check labels for non-comedogenic ingredients, which don’t cause acne. After you’ve selected a moisturizer, use it at least twice a day — in the morning and in the evening.

Exfoliate often: Sloughing off the dead skin cells at the surface of your skin is helpful because it allows moisturizer to go deeper into the epidermis.  If you over-exfoliate though your dry skin can get irritated and oily skin will react by producing even more oil.  Twice a week is recommended.

Microderm abrasion is a popular spa treatment for removing dead skin cells.

Shave carefully: Using dull blades, going against the grain, skipping shaving cream and applying too much pressure while shaving can irritate the skin, causing cuts, nicks and razor burn. To minimize the effects of shaving on already-dry skin, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends shaving after bathing, when the hairs are softest. Use a shaving cream or gel and allow it to sit on the skin about three minutes before starting. Shave in the direction the hair grows, and be sure to change your razor blades every five to six shaves.

Protect your hands: Your hands take a beating in the winter because the skin is thinner and has fewer oil glands. They’re often exposed to cold weather and wind, and the threat of flu tends to make people wash their hands more frequently.  The key to happy hands in winter is reapplying moisturizer frequently.

There also are spa treatments that can help get the hands into tiptop shape. Aberle said some clients ask for microderm abrasion treatments to rid their hands of dead skin. Others ask for exfoliating manicures. A paraffin wax treatment involves slathering the hands in a thick hand cream and then dipping them in the wax to help the moisturizer work its way deep into the skin.

Don’t forget the SPF: You might not be basking in the sunshine for hours at a time, but the sun’s rays can still have a harmful effect on your skin.  To protect your skin, apply sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 to your face and hands 30 minutes before heading outdoors. Consider moisturizers and lip balms with sunscreen blended in.

Helping your skin fight the frost is a post from: Skin Clinic MD

Skin Clinic MD related posts:

1. Clear Clinical Acne Treatment Program All you need for clear, acne-free skin. Clear Clinical...
2. Radiesse Filler Injections & Your Skin Clinic Skin Clinic MD: Radiesse Filler Injections A common skin...
3. About Laser Hair Removal About Laser Hair Removal: Treatment Before laser and IPL...
4. Fractional Laser Resurfacing Fractional CO2 laser ablation has become increasingly popular as...
5. Non Surgical Facelift Non Surgical Facelift is the nomenclature that many medical...

Dermatologists have discovered yet another gender inequity…

(HealthDay News)   Women develop more and deeper wrinkles around their mouths as they age than men do.  The disadvantage had long been suspected, but a new study provides “irrefutable scientific evidence,” said Dr. Foad Nahai, a plastic surgeon practicing in Atlanta and editor-in-chief of the Aesthetic Surgery Journal .

The authors of the paper believe they even know why women suffer more in this department.

“The gender differences were most probably due to the amount of appendages [hair follicles, sebaceous glands] and the connections between the skin and muscle of the lips,” explained senior study author Dr. Moshe Kon, head of the department of plastic, reconstructive and hand surgery at University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands.

“We had always had the impression that male skin doesn’t age as rapidly as female skin,” said Nahai. “What we didn’t know, and this study points out, is that one of the reasons that lines are deeper in women is because they have fewer sweat or sebaceous glands, the glands that make the oil that keeps our skin feeling soft … So women are producing less oil, which is protective and keeps the skin smoother.”

Previous studies had not focused in on differences between men and women in the perioral area of the face, meaning the region around the mouth.

Women tend to go for procedures to remedy such wrinkles more often than men, although it hadn’t been clear if women were just worried about how they looked or if their wrinkles were actually worse.

The authors studied the skin around the upper lip in both male and female cadavers, as well as reconstructions of those areas.

Several key differences between men and women emerged: women had fewer sweat glands around the mouth than men; women had fewer blood vessels so less blood flow to that region; the muscles around the mouth are closer to the skin than in men, which may pull the skin in tighter, causing wrinkles; and, although the number of hair follicles were about the same in both genders, men had more sweat glands per hair follicle, again contributing to more relaxed skin throughout aging.

Hormones also seem to play a role in women’s dermatologic aging process.  ”A lot of gender differences in health and disease are related to estrogens,” said Dr. Seth Thaller, chief of plastic surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

For instance, estrogens promote healing, meaning that women tend to heal from wounds faster. And postmenopausal women have reduced blood flow, again contributing to lines and furrows. And they experience a decrease in the fat secreted by sweat glands.  Meanwhile, women on hormone replacement therapy have been reported to have fewer wrinkles than those not taking the hormones.  Tissue also gets thinner as people age.  Many existing cosmetic procedures, including fat transfers, can remedy some of these changes, Cheung added.

Dermatologists discover differences in aging skin is a post from: Skin Clinic MD

Skin Clinic MD related posts:

1. Skin Clinic News – March 23, 2009 New York Doctor Fined $20000 for Injecting Patients With...
2. Medical Esthetician Training for your Skin Clinic Injectable products are an important contributing factor to your...
3. Medical Spa MD: Understanding Botox & injectables. From Medical Spa MD: Understanding Botox & Injectables. Injectable...
4. Bootox? Botox & Restylane injections for women’s high heels. I came across this article from Australia on Botox...
5. Medical Spa Marketing: Blogging for your medspa. First, if you’re not blogging for your medical spa, ...