Thinking About Beauty Standards (Via Skincare)

This blog isn’t what you think it is. We are discussing “What is beauty?” but our answer doesn’t have anything to do with shape, color, or age. Science suggests a number of biological factors contribute to what society recognizes as “beautiful,” but the topic is always subjective and tends to change slightly with trends in what few select people to decide about that year’s runway fashion and the latest in beauty inventions.

The most noticeable part of the body is often overlooked.

The skin. And that is what we want to discuss today in this blog.

Skin appearance is a big part of what we consider a signal for health and “beauty,” no matter your gender, age, style, or background. We want to challenge you to think about caring for your skin as a means of self-care and wellness versus a race to achieve what is difficult to define and what is impossible to attain in terms of society’s ever-changing definition of “beautiful.”

The Body As An Ecosystem

The skin is a key part of your body’s health ecosystem. The skin is the largest organ. It is a critical barrier protecting the body from alien chemicals and infection. The skin barrier is also the delivery system for “food” to the skin cells; hence the entire skincare industrial complex. More on this later.

Certainly, overall skin appearance and certain skin conditions (i.e. acne, melasma) can predispose individuals (not guaranteed but an increased likelihood) by our genetics/DNA. There is also plentiful research showing that environmental factors can play a factor in activating those genes like stress, sleep, diet, exercise, your daily skincare routine, and sun exposure.

Over the past three decades, Environ Skin Care has been a leader in creating the most innovative and advanced techniques to combat the effects of environmental factors like sun damage and pollution to make clear, youthful-looking skin attainable for any skin type at any age.

“Food” for the skin can be thought of as both:

1) what you put INTO the body and

2) what you put ON the skin.

Caring For Your Skin

There’s rarely a way to hide all of the skin. Whether it is your skin exposed on the legs, knees, arms, neck, or face, the skin shows all. It is important to care for the appearance of your skin over the lifespan by using 1) sunscreen and 2) effective skin care products on a daily basis in addition to 3) seasonal treatments with a professional skin care expert.

Despite the multitude of issues that may affect the appearance of the skin such as teenage acne, dryness, oiliness, hyperpigmentation, rosacea, cellulite, wrinkles, thinning, and more, there are preventative methods that can address all of these common, nearly-universal and beautifully flawed issues.

We are all of course, imperfectly, imperfect. And the essence of beauty is all about accepting and loving all our imperfections while putting our best face forward.

Armor for the Skin

We know a few things that can protect the skin. Keeping the skin protected from UV rays is the first piece of advice you will hear from your skin professional. Make sure your sunscreen is classified as “broad spectrum,” which should shield both UVA and UVB rays. Also, choose a sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15-30 and reapply every 90 minutes if outdoors for an extended time period. The Environ sun care range and the ISDIN sunscreen both meet these requirements for sufficient sun protection.

The sunscreen we provide contains a sophisticated formula that helps provide UVA and UVB protection while not inundating the skin with unnecessary chemicals. The sunscreen we carry contains advanced ingredients which work in synergy to assist in providing sun protection for the skin before, during, and after sun exposure. The sunscreen contains essential antioxidants, which assist in reducing the skin’s sensitivity to the effects of external influences, and ingredients known to help with the hydration of the skin.

Feed the Skin: Vitamins and Nutrient-Rich, Colorful Whole Foods

Ever hear the phrase, “You are what you eat?” It should say, “You show on your face what you eat and drink,” to be more accurate. Diuretics like coffee and alcohol can make the skin appear dry, and on the flip side, eating nutrient and colorful-rich foods can make your skin glow. We know eating healthfully is hard for many, but so is dealing with pests like breakouts and dryness.

Prevent visible signs of damage with the right topical ingredients AND in what you consume.

Your skin care should have a form of tolerable, gentle Vitamin A like Environ’s easily absorbable and highly effective retinyl palmitate, as well as Vitamins C, and E, antioxidants, peptides, and growth factors. Rather than separate products for each of these, Environ uses these powerful vitamin-rich components in the products together. Research shows Vitamins A, C, and E are most effective in specially-formulated combinations with one another.

The skin is continuously depletes these vital vitamins and antioxidants, so it is important to replenish the skin, daily, with effective topical formulas. Vitamin A, for example, is a widely-researched skincare ingredient. Vitamin A is known to improve the effects of prior skin damage to the skin, help prevent future sun-damaged appearance, and assist in replenishing the body of depleted Vitamin A levels.

Environ’s motto: Start low, and go slow, with Vitamin A!

Both the beginning and advanced skin serums contain increasing concentrations of Vitamin A. Vitamin A (retinol, retinyl palmitate, etc.) continues to serve as the cornerstone ingredient for many Environment formulas.

Quench the Skin

In every season, there are many factors that may contribute to dry or dehydrated skin, two similar but different skin conditions. Moisture-depleted skin can occur from the lack of moisture in the air during winter, sun damage over chlorine/salt exposure in the summer, or a failure to drink enough water any time of year.

A few tips can go a long way. Post-shower, always apply vitamin-rich body lotion or body oil to lock in moisture. A natural-based lotion like grapeseed or almond oil is like water for the skin.

You also want to look for lotions and oils that contain similar ingredients to that of your face moisturizers, yes read that again! You not only want to give your skin the best but your body too. Many skin experts and cosmetic plastic surgeons say they often hear feedback from clients that they often took good care of their skin but “forget” about their body areas like the neck, knees, and arms.

Ingredients to include in body care are hyaluronic acid, Vitamin E, lactic acid (a gentle chemical exfoliant), and non-comedogenic oils (non-clogging). Environ’s body lotions and vitamin-enhanced oils nourish the body with a combination of potent vitamins A, C, and E extracts, antioxidants, and other powerful hydrating elements.

Cleanse the Skin

Remove makeup, cleanse, and tone the skin daily with gentle, nourishing products. Take the time to exfoliate regularly in order to help rid the skin’s surface of dead skin and dirt, which impede the ability of topical skin care products’ effectiveness.

Lactic, mandelic and asiatic, and glycolic acids are just a few exfoliating agents that are gentle enough to use regularly once the skin is in a healthy-appearing state and is approved by your local skincare expert. The Environ Revival Masque employs such effective ingredients. The award-winning masque works to gently loosen the glue-like ceramics on the surface. It is approved for use as a 20-minute treatment or as an intensive overnight masque. Use up to 2-3x per week.

The Beauty Industry Effect

“Beauty” is marked in so many ways. Young teens are especially vulnerable to this type of messaging. It’s important to combat society’s toxic influx of messaging with a message of self-love and acceptance.

Despite a common misconception that those working in the beauty industry seek to point out others’ flaws, it is very much the opposite. As skin care professionals, we encourage all to loudly embrace your uniqueness and bring your best unique qualities forward. The best thing about the industry is being able to use effective tools, products, and services to achieve visible, noticeable differences in concerns that speak to underlying skin-health issues, not as issues that we’re trying to “fix.”

These changes can be felt deep down and transformed into increased confidence!

Surface-level beauty only goes so deep. Real beauty comes from self-love and the confidence that comes from within and shines out for all to see!

a woman posing for a picture –

Let’s get in touch and discuss how we can best serve you on your journey to caring for your best skin ever.

If you liked this blog, stay tuned for more from Corrective Skincare of Southern Nevada.