Eyes are the windows to your soul! They tell your thoughts, emotions, stress levels, and unfortunately, they also tell your age. Premature aging usually starts around the eyes and there are many reasons why. I’d like to take a second to share why your eyes tend to take a beating, as well as some of the things that you can do to keep them peepers gorgeous!
Why so tired?
Due to the thin layer of tissue that makes up the eyelids, there is very little room for the supportive layers of the skin. The dermis is 1 mm thick in the eyelid. That’s the thickness of a post-it note! That means there is less room for collagen, blood vessels, and fat that gives the rest of our skin durability, youthfulness, and a healthy appearance. It’s kind of like the skin is always on a diet, even though it’s thin enough! Another anatomical feature of the eyes is the high amount of nerve endings near the tear ducts. This makes the eyes very sensitive, so they itch easily, which means we tend to scratch the area quite a bit. Pulling and scratching the eyelids vigorously increases the formation of wrinkles and creases.
Another HUGE cause of premature aging around the eyes in women, is the use of cosmetics. Women usually apply large amounts of make up to the eyes, day after day, year after year, without removing it properly. To make matters worse, mascara, a favorite cosmetic among women, contains harmful ingredients and has a tendency to adhere to skin, blocking skin care products and oxygen.
It’s easy to see how all these factors make the eyes an easy target for premature aging. Now let me go over several options to slow down that aging process and reverse some of the damage that is done.
Bat Them Lashes!
Like I mentioned earlier, mascara is a very harmful substance on the skin. However, it makes the eyes look FABULOUS. So what are your options to avoid the damage and dark circles that this sticky cosmetic causes?
My favorite option are lash extensions. These semi-permanent lashes are adhered one lash at a time. Extensions are customizable so you can choose just how glamorous or how natural you want to look. The lashes come in different length, shades, and thicknesses, so you can always get the look you want. Lash extension companies state that the lashes last six weeks, but usually a touch up is needed every three weeks.
Also, lash tinting is another more affordable way of getting that dark lash look. Using specially formulated tint, aestheticians can tint your eyelashes black. It lasts about two weeks and is safe to do every three weeks.
Pamper your peepers!
Your eye products will make a HUGE difference in the aging process of your eyes. Please refer to our blog concerning how to select skin care products to give you the basis on choosing a good cream. We carry some very unique eye products in our clinic that I’d like to highlight.
Naseberry Eye Exfoliant
Rarely do products offer safe exfoliation for the skin of the eyes, so dead cells just sits on the surface as we pile on creams and make up. Make up removers leave a residue, so very few nutrients actually penetrate. The Naseberry Eye Exfoliant safely removes dead skin while conditioning the skin with natural antioxidants like raspberry, eyebright, green apple, and black carrot. All of these reduce dark circles, prevent puffiness, and prevent milia.
Raspberry Eye Masque
This super-nutrient cream can be left on overnight as a night treatment. It reduces fine lines, increases skin strength, and maintains hydration. I love this one for when the weather gets cold. It has raspberries, eyebright, yellow sweet clover, Vitamins A, B3, B5, C, E, & K, primrose oil, and rosemary. It packs a punch and is my favorite choice for aging skin near the eyes.
Tighten Up!
The last but not least suggestion I make for those struggling for younger eyes is Thermage. This is a noninvasive tissue tightening treatment that can be done on any skin on the body. There is a special treatment just for the eyelids. Usually the best results happen 3-6 months after the treatment, but commonly we see results right away, especially around the eyes. It’s safe, fast, and has no downtime. Now that’s my kind of way to do rejuvenation!
In conclusion, keeping young is always about keeping healthy no matter what part of the body we focus on. I hope this blog helps you find solutions to staying beautiful!
Please come in and see me for a consultation!
Diana De La Torre
Medical Esthetician
One of my favorite things about living in Austin is how health savvy the people are about their food. I love that I live in a city where it is actually embarrassing to admit you went to McDonald’s. I love enjoying meals at restaurants where thought is placed on how food is prepared, how the livestock was raised, and which farms the produce came from. We are very aware of making sure what we put in our mouths is healthy.
However, I find time and time again, when consulting with my fabulous, foodie neighbors, that many times, they overlook a very important way that chemicals and nutrients enter the body: the skin.
Depending on the properties of any given product or chemical, your skin can absorb up to 60% of what touches it. For this reason, choosing the right product for your skin is just as important as choosing the right foods for your body. I won’t go into how to choose a product line since I’ve already addressed that in a previous blog, but I will go over some common misconceptions that my healthy living clients will find interesting.
I’m just a soap and
water kind of girl….
I hear this statement often from some of my most health conscious clients and it’s a very unhealthy way of thinking. I understand that not everybody has the time or drive to perform a five step facial every morning, or the budget to go to a spa every month, but your skin needs more love than just soap and water. Much needed nutrients and hydration comes from your moisturizers for example. Given the exposure to pollutants, temperatures, chemicals, and sun radiation that your skin experiences on any given day, stepping out of you house without a good cream, is like stepping into a war without armor or weapons. When left vulnerable, your skin has only one option, to produce melanin, in other words, to make color. Cute little freckles happen because cellular damage happens. Those age spots, tan lines, and freckles of today, are the wrinkles, moles, and skin cancer of tomorrow. It’s not just about sun block either; many antioxidants will give your skin the ability to resist damage. Vitamin C for example or Co-enzyme Q10 will help your cells fight mutations caused by the elements.
Creams make my skin
feel greasy….
When skin is properly hydrated, it should feel supple, soft, and a little moist. Dry skin sometimes has a velvety feel to it due to dry skin flaking off on a microscopic level. I’ve had many clients with dry skin complain that their skin feels “oily” or “greasy” after using good products because they have grown accustomed to the misleadingly soft feel of dry skin. Once again, outdoorsy, athletic people are more prone to dryness due to skin’s exposure to the elements. Getting used to the feel of hydrated, protected skin only takes a few days and is worth the years of premature aging that it will prevent. Also, there are moisturizers that set to a matte finish, meaning they leave no residue on the surface. These are great options for those who don’t enjoy the feel of product on the skin and they are great for oily skin types as well.
If my skin is dry,
I’ll just drink more water…
Consider this: only 3% of what you eat and drink makes it to your skin. It is next to impossible to drink enough water to hydrate your skin adequately as water evaporates quickly from your skin as it would from any other surface. Things like fans, A/C, and dry weather will suck the water right out of your skin, literally. A simple daily moisturizer and night cream not only traps much needed water in the skin, but it creates barriers needed to protect from this exposure. Your skin is an organ like any other. It is the first step in our immune system and the only barrier our body has from the world. Avoiding the use of products is like starving your skin. You wouldn’t starve your heart? Why starve your skin?
I hope this blog helps you on your quest for total health and beauty. Feel free to contact The Escobedo Skin Center with any of your concerns or questions.
Diana De La Torre
Licensed Esthetician
VASER OR LASER OR BOTH: YESTERDAYS FAT IN TOMORROWS TECHNOLOGY
It wasn’t that long ago that people were experiencing significant downtime to remove unwanted fat around the abdomen, legs, and back. We all have those pockets of stubborn fat that refuse to respond to diet and exercise. It’s not that we aren’t doing our best to address these spots…sometimes genetics hinders our ability to mobilize that fat properly. Alas, there are several new solutions: the new Vaser LipoSelection and Laser Lipolysis. We merge both technologies together and call it 3D LipoSculpting.
Vaser LipoSelection has to be the greatest invention since sliced bread. Using a third generation ultrasound technology, fat cells lyses using gentle ultrasound waves. Unlike the traditional forms of liposuction (the jab and stab), one doesn’t experience any downtime. The ultrasound waves do not harm the connective tissue matrix OR the integrity of the blood vessels. I tell patients if you lose more than 15 drops of blood, you have lost too much! In addition, the formless skin does not drape like that of traditional liposuction since the connective tissue is not disturbed. All three of these features make Vaser my number one choice for gross fat removal without the adverse events of the past.
Laser Lipolysis may incorporate any laser device such as Smart Lipo, Cool Lipo, Slim Lipo, Lipo Lase, or Lipo Lite. A laser is used to melt the fat, coagulate the blood vessels, and tighten skin. Each device has its pros and cons, but the bottom line is that laser lipolysis offers the additional benefit of tightening the skin on the spot. The one downside of laser lipolysis is its propensity to leave an area uneven should it be the only device used during a procedure. That is why I use the laser to go over areas previously treated by Vaser that might need additional tightening such as the lower abs; male breasts; and inner thighs.
For our 3D LipoSculpture Service, we incorporate the Vaser and the Laser to generate the best results. We have all the greatest tools to get the best results. We treat three different types of patients. For the overweight patient with significant adipose tissue we use Vaser. For the gym bunny with average body fat we use laser lipolysis such as Smart Lipo; and for those with significant skin laxity we use both Vaser and Laser. It’s great to have everything at your disposal so you can select the best tools for the greatest results.
In summary, I find that clients sincerely are surprised by how fast we can remove adipose tissue using Vaser. They are more pleased that we don’t use any sedation or mediations for pain. They love the idea of returning to work the next day and they are elated that they see a new contour in about 5 days—wow! The next time you are troubled by those hard to respond sites, think about calling us for our new 3D LipoSculpting Service using the New Vaser LipoSelection and Laser Lipolysis.
Do not fear BOTOX. Educate yourself!
As an esthetician, I work with Dr. Mike to create customized treatment plans for each patient in our cosmetic dermatology clinic. In about 80% of our consultations, we recommend BOTOX as an excellent alternative to aging prematurely. Many of our patients are thrilled to know that there is a simple solution to stubborn forehead lines, smoker’s lines, and crow’s feet. But about half of them grimace and say something akin to, “Oh, no, I don’t want poison injected in my face.”
As common
as this response is, especially in a city like
So, let’s get the obvious out of the way. Yes, BOTOX is derived from a species of bacteria that can make you very sick, and, yes, there was a doctor in Florida who illegally tried to create home-made BOTOX with terrible consequences. That is the very reason Allergan, manufacturer of BOTOX, spends millions of dollars each year to ensure the safe and well-controlled manufacturing of this medicine. In fact, the consumer knows exactly who makes BOTOX and where it comes from. Can you say the same for more commonly accepted medications? Do you know who makes the aspirin in your cabinet, or the cough syrup in your refridgerator?
Additionally, ruling BOTOX out as a viable preventative for wrinkles because it is a “poison” or toxin is an ill-conceived way of thinking. Imagine if we thought this way of aspirin. Aspirin reduces pain and it can prevent heart attacks by ‘thinning’ blood. Yet this same preventative effect that saves lives, increases the risks of bruising or of bleeding out if one were cut.
We understand that the benefits of preventing a heart attack are worth risking a little extra bleeding with our paper cuts or bigger boo-boos. We don’t see aspirin as a poison simply because it alters a function of the body. That is what medications are all about, after all. So why use this inverted way of thinking to BOTOX, especially since it is much safer than thinning your own blood? All it does is reduce a little muscle movement around the forehead, eyes, or mouth. Nothing like a little relaxation to take the years away, I say!
For more perspective on how little harm a few drops of BOTOX are, let’s talk about the actual amount of medication used in the average treatment. One unit of BOTOX is similar to one small drop of water in volume. One unit of BOTOX is diluted by saline water at a ratio usually of 3 to 1 or 5 to 1. Of those 30 drops, only about 10 of them at the strongest dilution rate are the actually medication. 10 drops! That’s 1/3 the alcohol found in a 4 oz glass of wine!
BOTOX has been used for decades to help people, both cosmetically and medically. Its applications have helped thousands of people with neuromuscular problems since the 1980s. It can reduce migraines, excessive perspiration, facial twitches, and muscle spasms. It is an effective, safe, and affordable choice for reducing wrinkles, softening expression lines, and maintaining a younger look.
Educate yourself and give it a shot! All you’ve got to lose is your wrinkles!
Everywhere women turn there is an advertisement promising miracle results for all your skin care needs. From Oil of Olay to Aveda, the skin care industry is filled with poor quality products that produce little to no results, supported by phenomenal marketing that boasts amazing effects. Women (and sometimes men too) are jaded by the hundreds of dollars they have spent for watered down “snake oil.”
So, how do my clients navigate through a saturated market full of false hope? I believe the key lies in educating clients on the importance of understanding home care. I like to teach them how they can decipher the secret code of a true quality products, versus diluted preservatives with a little water thrown in for consistency.
Let’s start with my five rules of thumb……
1) If you can
purchase it in a mall, catalog, pharmacy, or grocery store, it’s probably not
an effective product.
Famous brand names have made their homes in malls everywhere. I have many clients who swear by these big name brands, but they usually have genetically good skin. My clients who struggle with true skin disorders have learned early on that investing in good products is a necessity. In order for store-brand products to be readily available in store after store, for the low prices they offer, they have to be cheaply made. Think about it! It’s simple economics.
2) If the first three
to five ingredients are the active ingredients, you have a winner!
Just like in food labeling, the FDA requires that skin care products list their ingredients with the first ingredient being the highest concentration. Typically, in low quality products, the active ingredients are listed near the bottom of the list. This indicates that the product is mostly preservatives, fillers, and water. It will also help to learn the scientific names of these products. For example, Vitamin E is labeled as tocopherol.
3) Is the person
recommending the product a licensed skin care specialist?
Experienced licensed
estheticians are usually the best people to ask about products. They are
sometimes more educated in skin care than dermatologists! A good esthetician
will research and personally try out the product line that they choose for
their practice. They will understand how each ingredient works on skin and
recommend the ideal product for you. Pyramid companies like Arbonne,
4) Ignore the
marketing and the fragrances.
Most skin care companies spend more money on celebrity endorsements, catchy marketing, and container design than they do in research and development. In other words, they spend more money trying to convince you that products work, instead of investing in developing products that actually yield results. Another tactic that companies use to sell low-quality products is adding an appealing fragrance. Fragrances may make a product pleasant to use, but they present many problems. Artificial fragrances increase the risk of rashes and allergic reactions because they are commonly paired with harmful ingredients that preserve the scent. Naturally scented products, on the other hand, are okay.
5) All Natural or Not
At All?
Organics are growing in popularity and are actually my preference in skin care. The reason I prefer true organic products, is because they are more readily absorbed in the skin than synthetic ones. However, there are many excellent synthetic lines that work wonderfully. The rule of thumb here, is that if you choose an organic skin care line, make sure it’s really organic. Many famous “all natural” lines are in fact 100% manufactured. Aveda, for example, hides behind great fragrances and clever marketing, when in fact, they are a synthetic line.
I hope this information is useful to you and your journey in finding beauty everyday.
Feel free to call us if you have any questions about skin care.
Does Sugar Cause Wrinkles?
Face Facts About Sugar
The surprising reason eating too much can cause wrinkles -- and 5 steps to ensure that it won't
Courtesy of Prevention
If the promise of a slimmer waistline hasn't curbed your sweet tooth, maybe the desire for smooth skin will. It's a bitter pill to swallow, but experts now believe that a lifetime of overeating sugar can make skin dull and wrinkled.
At blame is a natural process that's known as glycation, in which the sugar in your bloodstream attaches to proteins to form harmful new molecules called advanced glycation end products (or, appropriately, AGEs for short). The more sugar you eat, the more AGEs you develop. "As AGEs accumulate, they damage adjacent proteins in a domino-like fashion," explains Fredric Brandt, MD, a dermatologist in private practice in Miami and New York City and author of 10 Minutes 10 Years. Most vulnerable to damage: collagen and elastin, the protein fibers that keep skin firm and elastic. In fact, collagen is the most prevalent protein in the body. Once damaged, springy and resilient collagen and elastin become dry and brittle, leading to wrinkles and sagging. These aging effects start at about age 35 and increase rapidly after that, according to a study published in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Besides damaging collagen, a high-sugar diet also affects what type of collagen you have--another factor in how resistant skin is to wrinkling, says Brandt. The most abundant collagens in the skin are types I, II, and III, with type III being the most stable and longest lasting. Glycation transforms type III collagen into type I, which is more fragile. "When that happens, the skin looks and feels less supple," says Brandt. The final blow: AGEs deactivate your body's natural antioxidant , leaving you more vulnerable to sun damage--still the main cause of skin aging.
One group that knows all too well sugar's ravaging effects: people with diabetes, who--because they can suffer from years of undetected high blood sugar--often show early signs of skin aging. "Depending on how well their disease is controlled, diabetics can have up to 50 times the number of AGEs in their skin as those who don't have diabetes," says Karyn Grossman, MD, a dermatologist in New York City and Santa Monica, CA, and chief of the division of dermatology at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica.
The good news about sugar-damaged skin: It's never too late to turn back the clock. One way is to build new collagen with products that contain retinoids--look for retinol in OTC serums and lotions or prescription creams such as Renova, Avage, and Differin. The Escobedo Skin Center offers a variety of Green Tea, Caffeine, and Retinol products to reduce the effects of aging. To keep this new collagen supple, prevent AGEs from forming by taking steps to minimize the damage sugar causes to your skin. Say no to Sugar and yes to Water!