THE BENEFITS OF VITAMIN E ON THE SKIN

I'm sharing one of my skincare secrets and I can't recommend Vitamin E highly enough. I discovered the effects Vitamin E on my skin three decades ago.

This is the brand I use

Vitamin E oil can be thick and greasy, so it’s best used before bedtime, in place of a night cream 1 to 2 drops are all that’s necessary warm it in the palms of your hands first then apply

Vitamin E oil also works to block free radicals from the body, which play a large part in the ageing process. By fighting off free radicals,  we can reduce wrinkles and keep the skin youthful-looking and it has excellent antioxidant properties and protects the skin against cell mutation in the sun and pollution. It’s also an anti-inflammatory, so it calms and hydrates sensitive skin.

Free radicals can also prevent the healing of scars, so applying vitamin E oil will help to repair and improve the appearance of the damaged tissue

Vitamin E oil may increase circulation to the scalp, it temporarily increases blood flow to the area so can help to enhance the health of the hair follicles. Vitamin E oil can also work to hydrate and moisturise dry, brittle hair.

Massaging vitamin E oil on your cuticles and lips helps preventing and soothing chapped skin.

Astrid Brown (Author) › Visit Amazon's Astrid Brown Page Find all the books, read about the author, and more

MORE HYPE ABOUT SO CALLED MIRACLE SKIN CREAMS?

Honestly where do jouralists get these stories from. As I have said countless times, so many times now I've lost count, if a substance is able to penetrate the epidermis it cannot be called a cosmetic it MUST be licensed as a medication. Only medications, such as nicotene, HRT etc can penetrate the skin, UV light and essential oils. In my last article I posted on here essential oils must be used with caution and safety ahered to as they are not innoculous substances. For a substance to affect collagen it has to be able to pass through the epidermis into the dermis where you will find collagen. If this substance does have an effect it would no longer be labeled as a cosmetic and would only be available on prescription. Somehow I doubt it can as the molecules would have to be extremely tiny. The best antiageing solution for your skin is, don't smoke, keep out of the sun, avoid stress, drink plenty of water, eat a good balanced diet and avoid alcohol and extreme changes in weight

Article below is from the Daily Mail.

Revealed: The 'miracle' ingredient in wrinkle cream that DOUBLES the production of skin-plumping collagen 

• A chemical called MatrixylT used in some anti-wrinkle creams may double the amount of collagen in skin
• Collagen is needed to keep skin elastic and give it a plump, youthful feel - but production declines with age
• Scientists say MatrixylT can help the skin produce more 

It is a multi-million pound industry that continues to grow with our quest for eternally youthful looks.

But a nagging question always remains over whether anti-wrinkle creams make any difference at all.

Now researchers at the University of Reading say a chemical used in some of these creams really can work - by doubling the amount of collagen produced by the skin.

 

Researchers say chemical called MatrixylT used in some anti-wrinkle creams really can work - by doubling the amount of skin-plumping collagen it produces

Collagen is a protein that gives skin its strength and elasticity. With the amount we make falling as we age, the protein has become a key ingredient of many creams that claim to rejuvenate the skin and smooth away wrinkles.

Many anti-ageing products claim to stimulate the production of it to make skin look younger, plumper and firmer. Others contain collagen in the cream itself.

But with competition in the skincare market so fierce, there is scant published research on the effectiveness of various ingredients - particularly the 'miracle' ones that claim to turn back time.

Previous research has also indicated that expensive collagen-containing creams are a waste of money.



Collagen (pictured) is a protein that gives skin its strength and elasticity

Two years ago, scientists at the University of Bath said the collagen molecules in the enticing-sounding lotions and potions are so large that very few make it through the skin.

As a result, they sit on the surface of the face until they are rubbed off or washed away.

In the new research, the Reading researchers decided to test the effectiveness of a particular product on collagen - a peptide called MatrixylT.

This is said to encourage the skin to produce more collagen.

The researchers found that provided the concentrations are high enough, the product can almost double the amount of collagen that the cells in the body produce.

Ian Hamley, a chemistry professor at the university, said the study showed that products containing Matrixyl would have skin-care benefits.

He said: 'Studies like this are very important for the consumer as cosmetic companies rarely publish their work so rivals can't copy their products.'

MatrixylT was tested on skin cells in a lab, but products known to contain the chemical include some L'Oreal and Skindoctor creams.

Professor Hamley added that as well as skincare products, collagen-based materials could be used to treat wounds and enhance stem cell research.

'Collagen-based materials have immense potential in tissue engineering,' he added.

The research was independently funded by the University and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and published in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics.

Maggie Brown (Author)

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HALLELUJAH AT LAST WE HAVE THE EVIDENCE AGAINST THE HYPE

Hallelujah I have been saying this for years, and it's so patently obvious by anyone who has some knowledge of anatomy and physiology and understands the skin and how it works.

FACT the skin is impenetrable to substances including water, else if it was possible if you sat in a bath long enough you'd act like a sponge, the only things that can be absorbed into the skin are MEDICATIONS and ESSENTIAL OILS. The skin is designed to keep substances out to protect your internal body and it does a pretty good job, so you are wasting your money on expensive creams. If cosmetics could do all these claims, they would have to be licensed as Medications.

Prevention is the key to prevent ageing of the skin, a balanced diet, so it has all the nutrients it needs, plenty of water, to prevent dehydration, keep out of strong sunlight as UVA rays CAN penetrate the skin into the dermis and damage collagen and elastin, the support structure of the skin. Don't smoke, it causes vaso constriction (Nicotine) so restricts blood flow to the skin so it doesn't get oxygen and nutrients not to mention all the toxins induced into the body as well.    Don't over indulge on alcohol as it is after all a toxin but it can cause vaso dilation and broken capillaries, likewise, going from hot to cold such as centrally heated homes to cold out doors without a good moisturiser, and having the car's heating blasting in your face when driving. Avoid stress or find a way to cope with it and take time to relax as stress hormones such as adrenaline cause vaso constriction of blood vessels to the skin thus depriving it of nutrients and oxygen and the other stress hormone  cortisol damages collagen and elastin.  And always use a moisturiser with a SPF of at least 12. Lastly don't screw your eyes up nor squint, so use sunglasses in bright sunlight and have your eyes tested regularly, so you can see properly.

If you can manage this I guarantee you will look younger than those who do the above. Prevention is the cure, however it's never too late to start.

Myself this is my favourite moisturiser of all time, and one of the best I've ever come across, and I used to be a college lecturer in beauty therapy and holistic therapies

Aqua Moisture Cream

£1. 99 each

(50ml, £3.98 per 100ml )

Even the most expensive cosmetic creams can't live up to claims that they repair skin from within, study finds

Cosmetic skin creams cannot ‘penetrate’ the skin as claimed by many manufacturers, a study found today.

Many pharmaceutical brands claim that nanoparticles in their products give their creams a ‘deep penetrating action’.

But scientists at the University of Bath found that such claims are 'patently' untrue and that even the tiniest of nanoparticles do not penetrate the skin’s surface. 

Beauty creams that claim to penetrate the skin have been hailed as miracle workers for women of a certain age

Their work suggests that creams are simply deposited into creases in the skin and do not carry nutrients deep under the surface.

Professor Richard Guy, a professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences who led the research, said: 'Previous studies have reached conflicting conclusions over whether nanoparticles can penetrate the skin or not.

'Using confocal microscopy has allowed us to unambiguously visualise and objectively assess what happens to nanoparticles on an uneven skin surface.

'Whereas earlier work has suggested that nanoparticles appear to penetrate the skin, our results indicate that they may in fact have simply been deposited into a deep crease within the skin sample.

'The skin’s role is to act as a barrier to potentially dangerous chemicals and to reduce water loss from the body. Our study shows that it is doing a good job of this.

'So, while an unsuspecting consumer may draw the conclusion that nanoparticles in their skin creams, are ‘carrying’ an active ingredient deep into the skin, our research shows this is patently not the case.'

The research, published in the Journal of Controlled Release, studied particles less than one hundredth of the thickness of a human hair which are used in sunscreens and some cosmetic and pharmaceutical creams.

The scientists used a technique called laser scanning confocal microscopy to examine whether fluorescently-tagged polystyrene beads, ranging in size from 20 to 200 nanometers, were absorbed into the skin.

They found that even when the skin sample had been partially compromised by stripping away layers, the nanoparticles still did not penetrate the skin’s outer layer, known as the stratum corneum.

Professor Guy added: 'We did the study very carefully but not once we were able to determine that that were able to cross the outside layer of the skin which is out protective layer.

'There is no magic associated with particles being able to wriggle across the skin, they are just too big to do that,

'We actually have lots of nanoparticles inside us that don’t get out.'

He said that the research did however help to prove that potentially harmful ingredients, such as those used in sunscreens, can not be absorbed into the body, alleviating fears.

He also suggested that it may be possible to design a new type of nanoparticle-based drug that can be applied to the skin to give a controlled release of a drug over a long period of time.

Professor Richard Guy (left) who led the research at the University of Bath found that the skin actually acts as a barrier against face creams that promise to penetrate the outer layer

Maggie Brown (Author)

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