Yonka-Paris GUARANA SCRUB

For the 30-plus years I have been using Yonka they have never had a facial scrub. The Gommages (formerly 303 & 305, now called Gommage Yonka) were the only—and essential—way to exfoliate the face. Enter GUARANA SCRUB. This is a detoxifying, exfoliating facial scrub with mircobeads.

I’ve always said that using Gommage is more effective at eliminating dead skin than a scrub is. With that said, some of you don’t use, don’t like, or won’t use Gommage. So now you can use this new product! And for those of you who use the Gommage religiously, having a wonderful scrub to use a few times a week is a great addition to any skin care routine.

Try Guarana Scrub, I know you will love it! It’s easy to use and leaves your skin feeling refreshed and healthy, while removing dead skin along the way. 

From Yonka headquarters: “This exfoliating cream gently cleanses and purifies the epidermis, revealing new, fresh and radiant skin. Guarana Scrub removes dead cells and impurities that slow down the natural renewal of the outer skin (epidermis). Your skin will feel silky with a smooth, refined texture.”

Essential ingredients:

• Guarana and organic brown rice micro-beads—exfoliating, detoxifying
• Vegetable glycerin—hydrating
• Cornflower, calendula, linden, German chamomile, St. John’s wort—softening, soothing
• Essential oils of geranium, lavender, and rosemary—toning phyto-aromatic effects

Directions for use:

Use as often as you want: at least once per week, or 2 to 3 times a week. If you’re gentle, you can use Guarana Scrub daily.

• Apply the cream scrub to a moist face and neck—avoid the contour of your eyes and lips
• Gently massage, making sure to get into the nooks and crannies of your face, especially around the nose and chin
• Rinse thoroughly
• Pat dry without rubbing
• Use your Yonka Lotion spray toner
• Moisturize with your usual day or night cream plus eye treatment
• Enjoy healthy, glowing skin!

Many times when I use the scrub, I will mix 1/2 cleanser and 1/2 scrub for an alternate way to clean and exfoliate. 

For more information, see:

• Exfoliation: Thoughts on BufPufs, Gommage, Washcloths and more!
• Tarzan exfoliates
• Gommage Yonka—Soft Peel Miracle

Guarana seeds

Do you have dry, itchy skin on your body?

Below is the case of a woman with dry skin due to hormone changes, but the information provided can help anyone with dry, itchy skin.

I had my ovaries removed 3 months ago and my skin on my entire body is so dry, it’s driving me crazy. I can literally scrape the dead skin off!

I am on estrogen medication, and when I asked my doctor what I could do, he said the dry skin is part of “the change” and that maybe in 6 months or so it will get better.

I live in Florida, so dry skin shouldn’t be such a problem in my life. Is there anything I can do to keep my skin from itching and get rid of all this dry skin?

This is a common problem for women who are going through perimenopause or really anyone living in a dry climate. To add to that, this client also had her estrogen-producing ovaries removed, so her skin just doesn’t have much of a chance to lubricate itself. Although, as the doctor said, there may not be any cures for the dry skin, I do believe there are things you can do to help the dryness from driving you crazy.

I asked this client if she had ever used body oils. Her answer was no. I asked if she had oil she used in her kitchen, she said yes. I told her to pour out about 1/4 cup of the oil into a container she could take into her shower with her. Here are the instructions I gave her:

• After she had done everything in the shower,  keep the shower water running and take some of the oil and start spreading it over her body.
• Start with the legs, but don’t put oil on the bottoms of your feet! Otherwise you might slip and fall in the tub.
• Apply the oil in a medium layer to your entire body, back, front, up and down.
• Massage the oil in to the skin, then let the water rinse any oil off that will come off.
• Once you are out of the shower, don’t rub with your towel, but pat dry. This way the oil will have a better chance of staying on your skin.
• You can apply an oil after you have gotten out of the shower or bathtub, but don’t dry your skin off first; apply any oil to wet skin, massage in and let it have it time to soak in.

You can also use this oil method in a bathtub, also being careful not to get oil on the bottoms of your feet, so when you’re exiting the tub you don’t slip and fall. Pour some oil into the bath water and while you’re there, smooth the oily water over all of your dry spots. Since oil is lighter than water, it will stay on the surface so be sure to massage any oil in where the water line was once you’re out of the tub.

An alternative to using plain oil from your kitchen is a get a manufactured product made specifically for (body) skin. Yonka has several body oils in its lineup and there are many other product lines that do as well. These will be more expensive, obviously, than a kitchen oil but look around and find one you like and one that has an aromatic that is pleasing since this scent will remain on you for a while after its application.

I wouldn’t put clothes on immediately—or at least I wouldn’t dress up. Bed or house clothes won’t matter as much if any oil residue gets on them. The more you massage the oil into your skin, the less it will affect any clothing you put on after the shower. You also get the benefit of blood circulation from the massage (as well as from the heat from the shower you just took).

Although I’m not a fan of mineral oil products for the face, when it comes to dry, itchy skin on the body these heavier, non-penetrating oils may be just the ticket to help with true-dry skin. Body lotions with mineral oil as a top ingredient are easy to obtain in most any kind of store that caries body products. You will probably find that these types of lotions will go far to helping your dry skin.

Exfoliation gloves make an excellent choice for getting rid of the dead skin on your body. You simply slip the gloves on, apply a bath gel, and go over all parts of your body. These gloves are easily rinsed out and can make exfoliating not only easy but fun as well. Be sure not to rub too hard, lest you cause skin irritation. And do be sure to thoroughly rinse the gloves before hanging them on the towel rack to dry, or throw them in the washing machine. More information on this exfoliation process can be found in the link below.

You may not be going through menopause, but perhaps you live in a cold and/or dry environment. The same oil application can help you too. During winter here in Colorado (and I know in Chicago), if the cold air doesn’t get you, the heat inside the buildings will! Using oil on your body with truly dried out skin is the most effective way to get rid of that dry feeling.

For more information, see:

• BODY: The many ways to exfoliate This, too, is an important step to get the skin on your body feeling less dried out!
• Returning to an old favorite—Exfoliation Gloves
• Dry hands? A simple solution for happy, hydrated hands

Reactions to products: Is it eczema?

I’m 23 years old and have very sensitive skin. Any product I use wears out its welcome after three months. About three weeks ago I began waking up with lines on the bridge of my nose. Two weeks ago I noticed lines forming under my eyes, and this week the skin under my eyes looks dry (but isn’t) and is full of lines and wrinkles. It even seems a little loose. What is happening?

My skin was smooth with tiny, barely visible lines three weeks ago; now it’s as if it has aged 10 years overnight! Why would this happen, and will my skin ever go back to the way it was before? Could this be an allergic reaction?

Based on your symptoms, I would say this is a classic allergic reaction. Crepey skin, especially when you find wrinkles overnight, is definitely a symptom of an intolerance to something used, and is probably a dermatitis called eczema. The eyes are so sensitive, and many times an allergic reaction to a new skin care product will occur near the eyes, even if the offending product was used on the entire face.

Depending on the severity of the reaction, you may need to see your dermatologist and get a prescription cream to help calm your skin down. First you could try a topical cortisone cream (found at any drug or grocery store) and see if this helps. You must, however, read the directions and be very careful about how close to your eyes you apply the cream. The doctor will be able to prescribe a higher strength steroid cream if the over the counter type isn’t effective enough.

Look at the ingredients of the offending product and see if you can find anything you know you are allergic to. Sometimes just fragrance in products can cause reactions like the kind mentioned above. Your skin, once calmed down, should resume its natural, normal state. How long this will take varies with the individual. But surely within a week or perhaps a bit longer, you will have your old skin back.

Recently I went to purchase some new products—an experience that turned out to be a living nightmare! First, I got my skin analyzed and was told that I have normal, combination skin. I purchased a papaya exfoliant, clay mask, and a moisturizing mask for dehydrated skin.

After several weeks of exfoliating and masking, to my horror I woke up one day with welts all over my face, redness, burning, and itching. My eyes we re almost swollen shut! I have never reacted like this to anything before. Needless to say, I am mortified that my skin may have been permanently ruined.

My doctor has prescribed methylprednisolone [cortisone] for six days. It has brought the swelling down a bit, but I still have redness and itchiness, not to mention that my skin feels very taut and dry—appearing to have wrinkled up (I didn’t have any wrinkles before this!!!!).

Everything I have tried on my face to alleviate the burning and itching has not worked, except for petroleum jelly, which soothed it considerably. I am worried and don’t know what to do next. I am thinking of going to an allergist.

 

Would you have any advice for me? Is my skin ruined forever? Please respond as soon as possible because I desperately need your expert advice. I am afraid of the cortisone I am taking, but feel I have no choice since my symptoms are severe. I am desperate!

Your reactions sound like a dermatitis, probably eczema: red, itchy skin that feels like it is burning, along with severe dryness and crinkling. A topical cortisone cream will probably relieve the symptoms, but that doesn’t tell you why you had the reaction in the first place. If you are game, you could also take The 72-Hour Test (see below) to help narrow down which product caused the problems. It may have been all of the products, but maybe not.

Of course, you may not be willing to develop those reactions in order to figure out which products you can or cannot use. In that case, an allergist will probably be able to figure it out for you. There may be common allergens contained in one or all of those products that the specialist can tell you about. If you are going to do the 72-Hour Test, I highly recommend you wait until your skin has completely recovered and even wait a few more weeks to be sure you aren’t still in reaction mode.

This client told me that after about a week of severe redness, itching, swelling, and pain her skin did finally calm down. She made an appointment to see an allergist, but wasn’t able to get in to see someone for almost four months.

For more information, see:

• Allergic Reactions to Products & The 72-Hour Test
• Dermatitises (skin inflammations) explained
• Sensitive Skin: Q & A

Costly radiation: tanning beds—unnatural UVA exposure

Tanning beds, or as I call them, “cancer beds,” are like a microwave is to a conventional oven in terms of sunlight. They emit accelerated and irregular UV radiation, amounting to abnormal UV exposure. The sun puts out ultraviolet light in a particular intensity and proportion. Tanning beds rearrange how these light rays are being emitted. And who really knows what the effects are on the human body? Do you want to be a guinea pig in an experiment involving ultraviolet radiation?

Many people are using tanning beds thinking they are safe. Unknowing tanning salon members are usually told the beds don’t emit UVB radiation, and that their skin won’t burn and they can tan “safely” without any worries. Wrong! Although people who use a tanning bed will be getting less UVB than if they were in the sun, they are still receiving more UVA (2 to 3 times more) than from natural sunlight.

While UVA doesn’t cause as many exterior signs of damage, it does cause tremendous damage you cannot see. As you may know, UVA causes long-term damage, such as premature aging through damaging collagen and elastin fibers. UVA can also damage DNA, causing possible skin cancer risks in the future. There are several articles on this blog about the different affects of the UV rays, one is listed below with a link.

Another negative to predominantly UVA exposure is you have virtually no warning signs of overexposure. Personally, I think any exposure to the radiation from a tanning bed is too much. When overexposed to UVB, your skin will turn pink, then burn and feel painful. You won’t have these warning signs with overexposure to UVA. Later in life you may notice a rapid increase in lines and wrinkles along with overly flaccid (loose) skin. You may have cancerous or precancerous lesions making their presence known. But by then, of course, it’s too late to undo the damage done from time spent in a tanning salon.

So keep in mind that when you get this kind of unnatural UV exposure, you will essentially have no warning signal if you’ve received too much radiation. Unfortunately, some people feel impervious to these consequences. Even though they know tanning beds are bad for them, they continue to use them anyway—even if it’s just once in a while—truly throwing caution to the wind.

Fortunately, more and more information is being accumulated about the dangerous effects of this unnatural type of UV exposure. I have yet to read an article on tanning beds that gives them the stamp of approval. The only place you can find encouragement to use these radiation beds is in the brochures handed out by the tanning salons themselves. Don’t be fooled; these beds are dangerous—in the short-term and definitely in the irreversibly damaging long run.

For more information, see:

• Sun Protection: UV spelled out
• A nice mention from Jack LaLanne Jack quoted me in his book!
• Tanning Beds: all links so far

I’m sensitive to sugar—are you?

I have not only written a lot of articles about sugar and skin health, but I’ve also mentioned how sensitive I am to sugar and how it has affected my skin since I was in my 20s. The following is just one example of how sensitive I am to sugar.

One holiday season I was given some delectable chocolate-covered almonds. Dark chocolate, to boot—my favorite. I didn’t want to eat them because I knew I would break out. But I didn’t want to throw the gift away, so I put them in the freezer, hoping I would forget about them. Of course, the best layed plans; there I was and there they were—just waiting for me to come eat them whenever I chose to. And I did.

If you’ve read some of my previous writing about skin and sugar, you know I’ve said that to the best of my ability I don’t eat sugary foods two days in a row. But I had a deadline and was working long hours at home, and by the end of the day I just wanted a little taste of sweet—so I reached for these freezer goodies. I ate only three candied almonds each night, for three nights. By the third night I had breakout that was obvious and also a few places inside my mouth that were sensitive—just waiting to become canker sores.

I’m telling you about this in the hope of illustrating how sensitive to sugar some people can be. And if you are one of those people and you eat the equivalent of what I ate or more, then the skin problems that you are currently experiencing are very likely the product of your sugar addiction. I make no bones about it—sugar can wreak havoc with your skin.

Eating three of anything isn’t very much, but for me and my body’s sensitivity to sugar, it was enough to cause skin problems. I mention this because I have had countless clients come in saying they don’t eat that much sugar. And I’m here to say it simply doesn’t take that much—for some people.

I’m no angel. I have my moments and can be seen going down the grocery store frozen food aisle with a pint of Häagen-Dazs ice cream in my cart (Yes, I eat ice cream!) or my latest favorite: Milk Duds. But that is an exception, not the rule for me. And through years of experiencing how sugar affects my body, I know what will most likely happen when I eat that glorious ice cream. For me, eating sweets is a decision based on awareness. And that awareness has come through trial and error and eventually solid data accumulated through my own life experiences.

I will say, now that I am menopausal, sugar doesn’t make my skin break out as much as it did even just 5 years ago, but it does (still) affect my blood sugar. This fact continues to keep me watchful of how much sugar I am ingesting.

By the way, immediately after eating a sugary food, I march into my bathroom and brush my teeth. I’m sure my dentist would be proud of me! We all know from being kids that sugar causes tooth decay, which is a fact that doesn’t change when you are an adult. Once I have thoroughly brushed my teeth, I proceed to drink water. Water will help dilute the concentrated sugars, hopefully helping my body to process these toxins more easily.

Even though I may have a little breakout from eating the ice cream or other sweet delight, I want to live a well-rounded life and abstaining from everything all of the time is definitely not how I want to live. I don’t eat sugar very often, but when I do, I try to do healthy things to offset the negative effects of my activities.

HOT TIP: You don’t need sugar—you are sweet enough!

You’re right on about sugar. I’m not much of a sweet eater, but if I do indulge in something sugary, I notice the pimples in a day or two. Thank you for your help!

For more information, see:

• “I don’t eat much sugar”—really?
• Helpful hints to lessen sugar intake
• CANKER SORES—ouch! A few go-to products to help heal these painful mouth ulcers