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Archive for August, 2010

Here is the main key to finding anti aging products for oily skin. Avoid creams or lotions containing petrolatum or mineral oil.

Petrolatum and mineral oil are petroleum derivatives. They are basically byproducts created when crude oil is converted to gasoline.

Along with causing greasiness and clogging the pores, they are prone to contain cancer-causing contaminants. So there are many reasons to avoid those products for you appearance and your long-term health.

Researchers recently announced a push towards prevention in the area of cancer research.

Treatments will continue to be developed, but they believe educating the public about preventative measures is the most important thing doctors can do at this point.

Many of us arrived at this conclusion years ago.

As more and more of the artificial chemicals in food, water and personal care products were found to be possible or probable carcinogens, we started looking for safer alternatives. But, the main subject of this article is excessive oiliness.

Excessive oiliness makes your complexion look shiny and increases your risk of pimples, regardless of your age.

In addition to buying the right anti aging products for oily skin, you will need to be sure your other cosmetics are free of petrolatum and mineral oil. The ingredients sometimes turn up in unlikely places.

Generally speaking, people with oilier complexions have fewer wrinkles. That should make you feel a little better.

They have fewer wrinkles, because they have more of the protective oils that help to keep moisture inside the skin’s cells. Lack of moisture in the cells leads to dryness and excessive dryness is one of the many causes of wrinkles.

Pimples are a result of clogged pores and a visible sign of inflammation. Anti aging products for oily skin should not contain any pore-clogging ingredients.

In fact, the best ones contain anti-inflammatory compounds, because chronic inflammation damages the skin’s elastic collagen fibers. Damage to the fibers causes sagging and increases wrinkles.

One of the compounds available today provides a number of anti-aging benefits, including reduced inflammation. The compound is called Functional Keratin.

Developed using patented processes, Functional Keratin can actually be used on any complexion type. It resolves dryness issues without causing excessive oiliness.

Keratin is a main structural protein abundant in the skin’s cells. It works to pull moisture into the cells.

Functional Keratin has been shown to stimulate the production of new cells, reduce inflammation, balance the skin’s moisture content and improve the skin’s firmness in a relatively short period of time.

Companies making anti aging products for oily skin use natural vegetable or plant-based oils as carriers for active ingredients like Functional Keratin.

Plant oils are non pore-clogging. They do not cause greasiness, because they are very similar on a molecular level to the oils naturally produced by the skin’s sebaceous glands.

Another ingredient to look for in anti aging products for oily skin is maracuja.

It actually helps to balance the oils produced by the skin’s sebaceous glands, which prevents oiliness without causing dryness.

Introduction: Like other aspects of health care, dental products containing fluoride have been around for so long that they are seldom questioned by health professionals. Over 35,000 articles have been published on various modalities and effects of fluoride, making fluoride well studied but often boring. It works; let’s move on is how dentistry and medicine largely view it. But, when the popular media, internet or patients raise questions, it might be good to have a short reference manual at hand. Several good resources are available and listed in the appendix, but here is a quick and dirty summary of fluoride when you need a quick fact. Just make sure you combine it with another controversial substance – Caffeine.

History: Fluoride has a colorful history that started in Colorado Springs in 1901. A young dentist, Dr. McKay, moved to town and found two things that alarmed him. One, everyone in Colorado Springs had brown mottled teeth. Second, almost no dental decay existed. At a time when dental decay was rampant back east, this indeed was a remarkable finding. He was able to attract the attention of a prominent dental researcher who then found other areas in the country where the condition was repeated. Soon the correlation between brown stains and lack of caries was established.

Later the cause of the staining was found to be high levels of fluoride in various water sources. The director of NIH at the time, Dr. Trendley Dean, then made the intuitive leap that fluoride at low enough levels may reduce decay rates but not produce unsightly brown staining. In a feat of epidemiological research, he found the junction that maximized caries prevention while minimizing fluorosis. Dean’s fluoride level of 1ppm was later tested in Grand Rapids Michigan in 1944. Eleven years later caries rates where shown to be reduced 60% with no significant side effects. The age of fluoridation was born. In 1964, Stanly Kubrick’s Dr. Stangelove made water fluoridation a communist plot. In 1967 Crest introduced fluoride toothpaste. The rest is history…

Mechanism of Action: Fluoride has two modes of action. When ingested, approximately 50% of fluoride is deposited into the teeth and bones, 50% is excreted. In bones, fluoride moves in and out as bones remodel. In teeth, fluoride incorporates into enamel and does not remodel once it is formed. As the tooth if formed and calcifies, fluoride is incorporated into the crystal structure of the enamel along the protein scaffolding laid down by specialized cells called ameleoblasts. At 1 ppm, fluoride does not interrupt the crystal formation of the tooth, but at levels above that some disruptions in crystal formation begin to occur. At 2ppm, visible disruptions in tooth structure can occur, and at 4ppm and above, ameleoblast cell alteration causes significant amounts of disrupted protein matrix.

The enamel structure warps, loses its translucence and may chip and picks up food stain. This condition, coined Fluorosis runs a spectrum of severity, but does not make the tooth more susceptible to decay. Fluoride only works systemically while the teeth are forming. Fluoride does not cross the placental barrier and is a trace element in breast milk, so rarely are primary teeth effected, Permanent teeth begin calcifying at birth for first molars, about 2 years for central incisors and about 4-6 years for second premolars. Introduction of systemic fluoride at various ages and at various amounts then accounts for the level of caries resistance and fluorosis seen in the adult dentition. Often ingestion of fluoride toothpaste during the toddler years affects the front permanent teeth esthetics. From the early studies out of Grand Rapids, it is obvious systemic fluoride plays a role in caries resistance. But in this day and age when water fluoridation is available to about 60% of the US and fluoride toothpaste is ubiquitous, considerable debate exists about how much systemic fluoride plays in modern day caries resistance.

The second mode of action is Topical. Topical fluoride describes the fluoride ion being present in the mouth and available to tooth surfaces. On the tooth surface a constant demineralization is occurring due to plaque acid and to a lesser extent acidic foods (which are usually well buffered by the saliva). In these areas, the negatively charged fluoride ion is attracted and serves as a catalyst to begin a remineralization of tooth structure with salivary calcium and phosphates. Enamel is formed of hydroxyapatite crystals, but in the presence of fluoride ion, the hydroxy ion is substituted and a fluoroapatite crystal is formed on the outer enamel. The fluoroapatite crystal is less soluble and more acid resistant, thereby becoming more caries resistant. The more often fluoride is present in the saliva, the more caries resistant teeth become. This is especially true of newly erupted teeth that have not yet reached full mineral content. These teeth are especially prone to decay, but benefit the most from topical fluoride.

Topical fluoride comes in many forms. Water fluoridated at 1ppm will increase salivary fluoride 100 to 1000 times and remain high for 1 -2 hours. The more water washing over the teeth the longer the balance is tipped to remineralization. The same action to an even greater salivary concentration occurs with regular use of toothpastes, mouthwashes or professionally applied fluorides. While higher dosed fluoride modalities will target and help to reverse hypomineralized tooth structure or “white spots,” frequency of exposure to fluoride will lessen caries rate most dramatically.

Fluoride varnish works on a microscopic level to form Calcium fluoride microcrystals visible as small globules on the surfaces of fluoride treated teeth. “This calcium fluoride may serve as a source of fluoride for the formation of fluoroapatite, and the latter phase is formed when pH drops in plaque, not during topical application.” (Rolla et al Adv Dent Res 1994) Since the amounts and size of calcium fluoride globules relates to pH, an acidulated fluoride gel applied for a short period of time likely produces the same reservoir of calcium fluoride as a varnish that sticks to teeth longer. Studies comparing the caries reduction of the two modalities show no clear superiority. Fluoride varnish that is induvudualy packaged, dispensed in metered dosages and applied on a three to six month basis may have advantages over a weekly fluoride rinse or professionally monitored, semi annual gel trays. The issue on modality delivery is nore likely a choice of convenience for the provider and compliance for the patient.

Lastly, Fluoride comes in different salt solutions so it can remain stable until solublized into the active fluoride ion in water or saliva. Neutral Sodium Fluoride is most common in toothpastes because it has long shelf life and can be easily flavored. Stannous Fluoride is less stable and more disagreeable in taste, but the Stannous or Tin ion has shown some trends towards reducing gum inflammation. Other compounds exist, but the active ingredient remains the fluoride ion.

Dosages: Like any nutrient or drug, fluoride has levels of effectiveness and toxicity. The National Academy of Sciences has set the adequate intake or AI of fluoride to be 0.05mg/kg/day. Based on 1ppm fluoridated water and minimal intake of fluoride from dental products, most children will approximate this AI based on caloric needs and fluid intake based on weight.

The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine has set an upper limit or UL of dietary fluoride for children. This UL is set to prevent moderate (cosmetically objectionable) fluorosis. The UL is essentially double the normal fluid intake for children. In extremes of diet where most of the caloric intake is coming from beverage manufactured with fluoridated water, fluorosis may occur.

Fluoride toxicity may occur at approximately 5mg/kg in a single dose for children. This intake, usually from eating toothpaste, results in stomach ache, vomiting, sweating and hypersalivation. Although the evidence is lacking, a lethal dose is around 32mg/ kg. At this dosage death would result by cardiac arrest in 2-4 hours. First aid would be to induce vomiting and give a binding agent for fluoride, milk in the home or activated carbon lavage in the hospital. A typical 4.3 oz child’s toothpaste contains about 132 mg of fluoride. If a year old child weighing 10kg ate the entire tube at a sitting (without somehow vomiting her guts out at half a tube), this would be less than half the potential fatal dose. The American Dental Association recommends no product that is bulk packaged (toothpaste, mouthwash) contain more than a total of 264mg of fluoride.

For Fluoride varnish, a single dose application contains 0.5mg. About half of that, 0.25mg, is recommended for children less than three years old.Fluoride Controversies: As long as fluoride has been used to prevent dental decay, groups have been protesting its use and assigning negative side effects. Many, but of course not all possible side effects have been studied. Below is a short synopsis of those findings.

Cancer- A well known antifluoride person, Yiamouyiannis, gained popularity claiming fluoride caused cancer in the 1970′s. Studies by Yiamouyiannis claimed fluoridated cities had higher cancer rates, and these widely advertised studies gained the ear of congress. Multiple more rigorous studies found severe flaws in the original study and no correlation of fluoride to cancer deaths. But, in 1990, four male rats died of bone cancer in an NTP study after ingesting 79ppm F water. The study authors concluded “equivocal evidence” linking high fluoride to bone cancer. This ignited a fire storm until the study was repeated with no recurrence of that cancer rates. A special committee appointed by the US Public Health Service later reached agreement that all available human and rat studies showed no detectable cancer risk from fluoride intake.

Bone Fracture or Osteoporosis – Widely circulated images of Indian adults with crippling skeletal fluorosis led to the much publicized view that dental fluorosis was an early indicator for skeletal fluorosis causing bone fractures and osteoporosis. In some parts of India and other areas, unregulated water containing fluoride in excess of 25 ppm does cause bone fragility, this condition is unknown in the US. A town in Texas reported a water fluoride content of 10 ppm water fluoride, but bone scans of lifelong residents showed only the barest increase in bone density. In fact, elderly people where prescribed 30-60mg of fluoride per day to increase bone density in the 1970′s. Fluoride did increase bone density but did not prevent bone fractures. Extensive reviews of the literature show in fact no clear evidence to say fluoride exposure through water and other sources either causes or prevents hip fractures. If there is an effect one way or the other it is too small to be detected in the 14 epidemiologic studies to date.

Thyroid Function, Kidney Function, Autism, Down Syndrome, child development – At various times in our history, claims have been made to suggest exposure to fluoride caused various maladies. No review of the literature suggests any such cause and several studies specifically looking for links have found no evidence to indicate fluoride as a toxin related to any disease. Many books or non peer reviewed articles in circulation dating back the 1950′s claim other wise. Such references may contain evidence from anti fluoride proponents including: The Natick Study 1997, Thyroid Power harperesource 2001, Drs. Richard and Karilee Shames, Dr. R.D. Masters and M. Coplan, Dr. Hardy Limeback.

Professional Topical Fluoride Applications – Clinical Efficacy and Mechanism of Action. B Ogaard, L Seppa, G Rolla. Advances in Dental Research 8(2): 190-201. July 1994.

Dentistry,Dental Practice and the Community 6th Ed. Brain Burt and Stephan Eklund. Elsevier Sanders. St. Louis. 2005

Fluoride Technical Study Group report 1/10/2003. Fort Collins. Archived with the City of Fort Collins Utilities.

You want it all. You want to look great, feel great, be great–and why not? That would be wonderful! But when you do not feel good or accomplish everything you set out to do, it is discouraging and stress-inducing.

I believe we have reached a saturation point. We live in a busy world where things move very quickly. In our multi-tasking madness, we have exhausted ourselves. The time has come to slow down. We have to stop the constant moving, doing, and striving to be everything to everyone. We need to stop giving attention to everything and everyone that demands it.

Stop. Breathe. Right now, stop and breathe. Put your hand on your abdomen and take a deep breath. Breathe deeply enough to see your hand rise. This is how you want to breathe. But most of the time, we do not breathe this way. Some of us never breathe this way. When you are under stress, your breathing gets shallower. Not enough oxygen gets to your brain and organs, and you get tired or sick. Is this how you want to live your life?

It is time to create space in our lives for what is truly important. We have so much to do, and we want to do so much, it is inevitable that all of it will not get done. So let us stop driving ourselves crazy, and focus on what is truly of significance.

The most important step in your journey toward living a happy life lies in taking care of your health. It does not matter how much money you have because without good health, you cannot enjoy yourself or take care of the people and things that are most important to you.

We are meant to live happy, healthy lives. Take a few seconds to visualize that. You are meant to move easily and breathe easily. You are meant to nourish yourself with healthy foods and healthy activities. You are meant to feel good and rested and healthy every day. And no matter where you are on the continuum, you can get started today on living a happy, healthier life. Empower yourself. Take control. Make the decision that you are important and from now on, you are going to take care of yourself and your health before anything else. Your life and those lives you touch everyday will benefit from your good health.

We have been in a “hurry-up” mode for so long that it is difficult for many people to figure out how to slow down. One great way to begin is to look at how you spend your days. Honestly look at how you spend each minute of every day. Often we have developed habits that no longer have any purpose. Look at your activities and ask yourself, does this activity benefit me anymore? Does this benefit anyone else? If you are honest with yourself, you will discover many of these things are unnecessary or could be done by someone else. Eliminating just a few of these unnecessary activities can create extra space in your day. The purpose of this is not to immediately fill those moments with more work. The purpose is to create space to take care of your health. Once you have eliminated time wasters, you can use the following actions to create a life of good health and joy.

One of the keys to good health is getting enough sleep. It is possible to make this a priority. Turn off the television set. Leave the work. It can wait. Not getting enough sleep can affect our decision making, our moods, our creative thinking, and even make us weigh more. Studies have shown that lack of sleep decreases regulation of hormones that control our appetites. Think of times you have felt unusually hungry, and craved carbohydrates after a night of too little sleep. Set a reasonable bedtime and stick to it. Your reward will be fresher thinking, fresher skin, and more energy. Take the time to drink plenty of water. This action is so simple yet so important. Keep hydrated to flush out toxins, have healthier looking skin, and boost your metabolic rate. Often we mistake thirst for hunger, so drinking enough water can help you control the amount you eat. Take a good multivitamin. Along with the water and the right amount of sleep, you will be amazed at the change in your energy levels. Every hour, no matter what you are doing, take a few moments to stand up, stretch, and move around. We were not meant to sit at desks and computers or anywhere else for long periods of time. Stretch, move, breathe. Every day show gratitude. Saying thank you is a de-stressor that makes you feel good. Negative thoughts cause stress. It is hard to have negative thoughts and thoughts of gratitude in our mind simultaneously. Make time for friends. Healthy relationships help us stay healthy. This does not mean you have to accept every invitation. Give yourself time to think about your response to the invitation. Is this something you truly want to do? Will you regret giving up sleep or time with your family or spouse? Sometimes, parties are not where we truly want to be. We overindulge in food and drink, then chastise ourselves the next day for the extra calories we consumed and the fatigue we feel.

How you spend the minutes of each day add up to how you spend your life. The way you live your life and the choices you make determine how healthy and strong you will be. Are you making choices that strengthen you or weaken you? If you are making the choices that are making you happy and healthy, that is fantastic, and I say, keep up the good work! If not, you have the power to choose a different way. A happy, healthy way.

How do you truly want to live your life?

One of the most preferred methods these days to boost the whiteness of an individual’s teeth is to use a teeth whitening product. Whilst dentists are definitely in a position to whiten your teeth at their office, and frequent dental care is actually a good solution, home whitening products got an increased interest in getting whiter teeth without a big trouble. For many individuals, the ability of having the option to whiten their teeth from home without visiting the dentist, with the benefit of using this method at a fair price is just too good to pass up.

At this point, it’s easy to be suspicious about how nicely a teeth whitening product can work. Nonetheless, science is backing up the outcomes that individuals state to receive with these kinds of products, and it’s really a pretty basic thing. There are a couple of methods to whiten your teeth: to remove the unsightly stains which exist or to “bleach” your own teeth to obtain a whiter color. Nearly all home products utilize the second approach, which is perfectly secure and makes use of hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide to whiten the teeth. They do this by using special gels that you put on your teeth, generally with a tray which you bite on or a stripe that you put on your teeth for a short time period.

Sure, it is much easier and cost effective to get white teeth nowadays than it was years ago, thanks to these types of whitening products. These kinds of advancements and the cost effective products that are introduced in shops have helped numerous numbers of folks to upgrade their smiles and achieve self confidence.

Have you ever seen someone who has lost a lot of weight? Did you notice that their skin seem to sag especially on their faces. This is because the fat cells that had been supporting their skin and keeping it taut were now gone. When they lost the fat cells, they lost their skin support. Really, this same thing happens as we start to age. We develop wrinkles and our skin begins to sag because we lose the fatty tissue that lies just below the skin surface. In order to return our skin to its former firmer and wrinkle-free self we need to find a way to replace what has been lost. Only the best firming lotion is able to do this safely and effectively.

However, how do you find the best firming lotion for you? Do you check for skin firming lotion review articles on the Internet? Perhaps, but many of these so-called reviews are done by the makers of the product so they may not be reliable. Do you check with a dermatologist to get their recommendation? This would be a good idea if you had the time or money. If you really want to know the straight story about how to find the best product for you, you could just continue to read this article.

I have sorted through the many skin firming lotion review articles available online and I have researched several dermatologists reports found there too. I then compared the information that I had gathered and compiled a list of what was most commonly found among them.

Most dermatologists agree that using alcohol, mineral oil, astringents and other harsh chemicals on your skin should be avoided. These substances do nothing to correct your skin problems but in fact can make them worse, cause additional problems or potentially pose a risk to your overall health.

Dermatologists also agree that many of our everyday bad habits like poor nutrition, smoking, over exposure to the sun or using tanning beds are at the root of aging skin. These habits lead to the production of free radicals. Free radicals work against the elastin, collagen and keratin that combine to support the skin leading to their decay over time.

When looking over some of the skin firming lotion review articles, I found that among the ingredient list on the best firming lotion products was functional keratin. This specially processed keratin is so close to what is normally found in the body that it actually tricks it into producing more collagen and elastin.

After my research, I have concluded that there are indeed products that can call themselves the best firming lotion products available today. You just have to know what to look for and what to avoid.

In recent years, the natural personal care market has grown by leaps and bounds. In fact, this niche now comprises a growing segment of the beauty market. Consumers have developed a strong interest in beauty items such as natural shampoo and conditioner, soap, facial care and body care products. This is more than just a passing trend as more and more consumers discover the myriad of benefits associated with these items.

One of the main advantages driving consumer consumption of natural products is the fact that they are, in fact, “nature” based. This means that consumers do not have to worry about the presence of such items as sodium lauryl/laureth sulfates in their facial, hair, and body care items. In addition, there is no PABA or parabens contained in these items. This is extremely important to many consumers who are concerned about the impact that such ingredients could have upon one’s health.

There are many other benefits linked to natural personal care products as well. Consumers who are also concerned about the use of animals in the production and testing of products will be pleased to know that this is not an issue with some natural personal care products. This is because no animal by-products are used in these items. Furthermore, there is no animal testing conducted in the manufacturing of some all natural products. This ensures that conscientious consumers can enjoy high quality health and beauty care without worrying about the impact of such goods on the animal population.

Many natural personal care products are also environmentally friendly because they are bio-degradable. This is a benefit that cannot be associated with most commercial health and beauty items. Through the use of completely natural personal care items, consumers can rest easy knowing they are not damaging the environment.

A wide range of natural health and beauty items are now available today. Consumers can choose products for every aspect of their hygiene regimen. Some also offer another distinct advantage and that is the use of certified organic ingredients that are considered to be far superior for the health of the entire body. These products include certified organic Aloe Vera gel and other natural products such as hair shampoo, soap, body care and facial care.

Many consumers who have tried natural personal care products are now so firmly convinced of the benefits of these items they have completely switched from non-natural products. Such consumers often see the purchase of natural health and beauty care products as a sound investment in their overall health as well as a way to contribute to the improvement of the environment around them.

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