Skin Health

YEAST Candida albicans (C. albicans), yeast, the root of all evil. Okay not exactly, but in the world of disease, too much yeast in the body appears to be at the root of many of the ailments that we deal with today. As a matter of fact, this ties into my previous post about having too much acid (forming foods) in the diet. When you unwrap most of the diseases plaguing us today, skin included, and compare symptoms as well as prescribed treatments, candida is there, hanging out at the root. It isn’t often presented that way; and while, it...

Overzealous face washing, can actually cause more harm than good. Constant washing, especially with products designed to combat oiliness, can strip skin of its own natural oils and compromise its barrier, which can set you up for irritation and derma-dehydration. Avoid cleansers that contain harsh surfactants, which rid skin of too much oil and leave it unnaturally dry. Read the labels. Some common surfactants include sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES), and ammonium lauryl sulfate (ALS). Instead, look for gentler cleaning agents, which may be derived from coconut oil, olive oil and shea butter, among others. Rub...

Razor Bumps, aka Folliculitis, the enemy of man’s desire for a clean shave. You want to know what causes it and how to abolish the assault on your facial hair follicles! That brings us to the what. Hair Follicles, the sea of tiny sacs that produce individual strands of hair and hopefully a nice, full, shiny coat of man-hair on your face. However, when infected and inflamed, we call that follicu-litis. Now let’s pause for a second because I often hear people complain about the use of medical terms but in some cases it’s necessary. For example, a lot of folk...

WHAT EXACTLY IS AN ESSENTIAL OIL? It's a most remarkable substance extracted from flowers, buds, seeds, leaves, twigs, bark, herbs, wood, fruits and plant roots. The aromatic oil generally possesses a lower density than water and is extracted by hydro-distillation, steam distillation or dry distillation with the exception of citrus fruits. In citrus the oil is extracted (pressed) from the rind by a mechanical process (no heat). AROMATIC Plants each possess their own unique scent. The aroma of each oil results from the combination of the aromas of all components of the plant material itself. Unlike synthetically derived fragrance oils (parfum),...