Skin discoloration such as hyperpigmentation, freckles and age spots can occur from many reasons such as years of spending time in the sun, hormones, pollution, stress and free radicals. Any one of these can cause an excessive amount of melanin to be produced which then causes those dreaded brown spots to show up. To reverse the appearance of these brown spots and reveal your healthier, younger skin DDF has created the Discoloration Reversal-POD. Their sponge like applicator exfoliates and hydrates your skin on the area where hyperpigmentation occurs and allows for deep skin penetration of the new Micro-Radiance Complex so maximum results for a more even-toned skin are achieved.  Available at SkinStore.com

Ok, this woman holding the bottle of esente above is not only the founder of the company but can you believe she is a 50 year old grandmother! Her name is Victoria Nash and if her youthful look is the result of using the esente line of skin care products we all need to give them a try.  

The esente line was created to be both preventative as well as restorative, offering many benefits that are referred to as the “e” factor - eliminating imperfections, enhancing cell function, extracting impurity, exfoliating and many others. 

Science, of course is behind the Physioceutical collection.  Pharmaceutical grade ingredients combined with ocean derived Oligo elements, peptides and other natural ingredients offer tremendous long term benefits to keeping skin beautiful, youthful and radiant. For more information visit esente.com and for your chance to win a free esente sampler just click here to enter. 

One of my most favorite skin cleansers around is the Arcona Toner Tea Bar. Packed full of antioxidants, the Toner Tea Bar includes green and black tea to protect your skin against any free radical damage. It also keeps skin tight and toned while minimizing the appearance of pores. It really makes you skin feel amazing with consistent daily use. 

Looking for some serious skin care try out the Euoko line of radiance enhancing products to combat major skin issues likes wrinkles, age spots, hyperpigmentation and sagging.  Packed with super concentrated ingredients that have been scientifically studied, this line of products even though pricey with their Extreme White Concentrate Ampoules costing over $700 may hold the key to youthful, radiant skin.  

For some reason a couple of weeks ago I gave up my morning coffee and swapped it for a cup of green tea instead.  I’m not sure how or why this transition took place, I’ve always loved a cup of joe first thing in the morning.  The smell of coffee brewing can make it more addicting then the actual caffeine but for some reason i just didn’t like the taste anymore. This is not to say i will never have a cup again but i find it strange that after years of being an avid coffee drinker the switch to tea happened so easily. 

I am happy to hear however, that switching to drinking green tea has many health benefits such reducing the risk of many cancers.  Antioxidants such as various polyphenols that are high in green tea make this possible.  Green tea also keeps your heart strong and your blood pressure normal and it can takes years off your life by keeping your arteries healthy which will prevent heart disease and stroke.  For those of you who need a metabolism boost drinking 2-3 cups of green tea a day will help to increase calorie burning so you lose weight.  So even if you still want to drink your coffee maybe throw in a couple of cups of green tea.  My favorite - Jasmine Green Tea.  It can only do your body good.

Yes, there is a fountain of youth and it arrived at my front door today in a canister with big black letters that read TOKI.  A japenese product developed by Lanelabs, TOKI means porcelain-like skin and all the women in Japan have it and the women in america want it. 

Toki is unlike other anti-aging products we use since most are a topical cream or serum and cannot penetrate deep into the dermal or lower layers of the skin. 

TOKI is rather a powdered lemon flavored collagen drink that you mix into a hot or cold beverage and drink up to 3 times per day.  It contains Active collagen, Calcium and Mucopolysaccharides that include hyaluronic acid which is produced by the body naturally and gives our skin it’s volume and elasticity, but as we age we do not produce as much.  By taking internally in the form of a drink, essential nutrients are able to travel through the blood stream and into the dermis layer improving your skin’s texture and appearance.  Clinical studies have shown that TOKI can actually diminish fine lines, wrinkles and age spots.  It can also improve overall elasticity of the skin resulting in a more youthful appearance and of course porcelain skin. Sounds good to me - well here I go my first TOKI experience added to my morning green tea… tastes good.  I will keep you posted on my results.  In the meantime click here for before and after pictures as well as additional information.

I started taking this supplement about a month ago called Methylsulfonylmethane or short form MSM.  It’s basically an odorless, tasteless form of natural sulfur that is found in low levels in our body as well as in seafood, meat, vegetables, fruits and cow’s milk.  I stubbled upon it accidently after researching vitamins and antioxidants. From the many articles and forums I read through I found many women that had been able to get rid of melasma after several months of use and even though this hasn’t happened for me yet I have, however, experienced it’s other effects which includes a more even complexion, softer skin and not just my face but I noticed a huge difference on the skin of my heels which became alot softer and less dry and cracked. Another noticable effect was some of my old scars had softened up and became less noticeable.  The daily dose I am currently taking is 1000mg 3 times per day of pure MSM.  It is recommended to start on a low dose and work your way up so your body can adjust to it.  Taking MSM with Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) will increase it’s effects since they work synergistically together and Vitamin C is essential for collagen synthesis.

Since MSM is naturally occuring in the body you cannot overdose on it and it is completely safe.  Sulfur can actually help slow down the aging process since it is an essential mineral for the formation of collagen which as we age our body is unable to rebuild damaged collagen so we therefore develop wrinkles.  Our body does not produce enough MSM so taking a supplement keeps a steady amount circulating in our system.  What your body does not absorb will pass through your body naturally. It’s up there with water. MSM is the fourth largest mineral in the body.  It helps the cells to become more permeable and therefore increasing the flow of nutrients to the cells and removing toxins. MSM is called natures “secret beauty mineral” because not only does it make your skin more youthful but it also promotes strong and healthy joints, hair and nails.  I have to say my hair has been growing faster and also looks more glossy since taking this.  MSM aids in detoxing the body and controls acidity in the stomach as well as helps in the production of choline in the liver and has many other benefits I have not mentioned.  Just one more supplement to add to your list of many…

Stay cool and hydrated this summer with the Coola SPF 30 Cucumber face protection. Loaded with vitamins A, C, D and E, antioxidants and organic extracts of cucumber, walnut and orange.  Skin will feel silky smooth while protected from the sun’s harmful rays.

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We all know the importance of consuming enough fish in our diet, especially the fish high in Omega 3 and low in mercury such as wild salmon and tuna and the advantages this will have to our overall health.  The problem is most of us don’t eat our 3-4 servings of fish per week and this can wreak havack on our bodies causing heart disease, diabetes, joint pain, learning disorders and skin problems to name a few.  Omega 3 fatty acids are  important for us since our bodies do not produce this source on it’s own.  By eating enough fish or supplementing with Omega 3 we can avoid alot of unnecessary health problems. 

PharmaOmega makes this easy for us.  They have created different formulations of Omega 3 for specific needs like keeping our heart healthy, fighting inflammation, for pregnancy, children, focus etc.  Omega 3 is great for children of school age who have difficulty with concentration.  It helps to improve their behaviour and attention span. For mom’s it ensures a healthy pregnancy and after. Omega 3 is great for aches and pains and it’s also called “brain food” for a reason, it helps to keep our minds healthy.  Omega 3 has also been known to inhibit cancer and diabetes.  The list goes on… you’ve heard the benefits now make sure you get your daily dose.

So as i mentioned in my last post I was going to expand a little on each of the network antioxidants that were mentioned in the book “The Antioxidant Miracle” by Lester Packer, Ph.D.  Dr. Packer focused many years of his research on the powerful effects of Lipoic Acid as an antioxidant. His findings on lipoic acid have shown incredible protection against aging including stroke, heart disease and cataracts.  The levels of lipoic acid in our bodies decline as we age and therefore cause the aging process to occur but supplementing with lipoic acid the levels of the entire antioxidant network - vitamin C, Vitamin E, CoQ10 and Glutathione were increased. Lipoic acid in fact has been able to turn off the bad genes that can cause premature aging as well as cancer.   Also an interesting fact about lipoic acid – the other network antioxidants are either water soluble or fat soluble.  Lipoic acid is both which means that it is not only able to recycle the other antioxidants that have conquered free radicals but also itself keeping our cells healthy and free from damage.  No wonder it is called the superantioxidant. 

Moving on to CoQ10 — Coenzyme Q10 offers protection against the harmful UVA and UVB rays therefore protecting us from skin cancer and skin damage or premature aging.  COQ10 helps to rejuvenate brain cells, regenerates vitamin E and is used in treating gum disease… so anyone who has bleeding gums you need to take this.  It’s available in toothpaste and mouthwash as well. 

Vitamin C another network antioxidant is water soluble and not produced by the body so you need to either get enough from fruits and vegetables or take a daily supplement.  Vitamin C aides in the production of collagen which helps to keep our skin looking youthful. It is also beneficial in boosting our immune system so colds are kept to a minimum and also works by increasing levels of Vitamin E. 

Taking daily supplements of Vitamin E helps to protect skin from UV radiation and ozone and keep it looking healthy as we age.  Vitamin E is beneficial for arthritis sufferers and for men at risk for prostate cancer and in women it may stop the growth of breast cancer cells. Vitamin E is also good for the heart.

The last network antioxidant is Glutathione.  Produced in the body and is a water soluble antioxidant. It’s important for healthy liver function and a strong immune system.  Instead of supplementing with Glutathione, taking daily doses of lipoic acid will increase your levels of this antioxidant.

It’s really amazing to see how each of these antioxidants can have an effect on the other and i’ve only mentioned the basics.  For more detailed information on the Packer Network Antioxidants pick up a copy of The Antioxidant Miracle. It might do your body good.

I picked up an excellent book a couple of weeks ago at the drugstore that I couldn’t put down called The Antioxidant Miracle by Lester Packer, Ph.d.  Dr. Packer is a scientist who specializes in antioxidants and how they function in our bodies.  He is the director of the Packer Lab at Berkley, California State University, and who for the last few decades has focused on 5 key antioxidants that when combined produced increased effectiveness than when just taken by themselves. The network antioxidants include Lipoic acid, CoQ10, Vitamin C, Vitamin E and Glutathione. 

If you are interested in reversing or preventing the signs of aging, keeping skin supple and wrinkle free, preventing cancer, diabetes, gum disease, increasing your energy, not to mention your sex life! as well as reversing bad genes you need to read this book.  Even though it’s been years since it’s been written the information still holds true and knowledge is power and if taking antioxidants will keep you healthy and strong way into your older years then we all need to know about it.

Lester Packer goes on the explain the benefits of each antioxidant in the antioxidant network.  His main focus was on the effects of lipoic acid and even though I won’t go into too much detail here on each I will touch upon what he mentions… sorry too much information to write in one post.  Firstly, in order to understand antioxidants you need to understand their opposite side “free radicals”.  Free radicals are in all of us and they are necessary - they can be helpful or hurtful.  When free radicals attack we need antioxidants to neutralize their effects.  Antioxidants are basically stopping the free radicals from destroying your healthy cells.  Now since the antioxidant has stopped the free radicals and eaten it up it is able to recycle and regenerate itself with the help of other network antioxidants. I find this completely amazing.  With age our body does not produce enough antioxidants to do this therefore it is necessary to supplement.  Certain antioxidants are not even produced by the body such as Vitamin C so taking a daily dose is recommended especially if you are not getting it from nutritional sources. 

Through Dr. Packer’s work, Lipoic acid was shown as being the most powerful antioxidant in the entire network - it actually helped to increase the levels of effectiveness of Glutathione, Vitamins C and E and CoQ10.  In another post we will go on to discuss each of these antioxidants, their importance and how it affects the other network antioxidants.  But I highly recommend picking up a copy of The Antioxidant Miracle since the information is so vast but easily read and understood.