Someone once said that "Who we are is God's gift to us, what we become is our gift to God." This covers the fact that how we take care of ourselves is crucial in the formation of what we will be. The intake of healthy foods and vitamins may not be enough. Sometimes we find that even if we eat our lima beans, you just don't have that glowing skin and that sparkle in your eye.
You might have read in other websites what vitamins are good for your skin. I'm talking about the ones that you put on, not the ones you take in. With all the advertisements on vitamin-containing moisturizers and antioxidants and these new minerals that weren't around when your parents were born, I'll help you decide what's good for you and your skin. I'll also do you one better, I'll tell you the optimal way to use them so you get the most out of them.
Before all that, let's talk about antioxidants and free radicals. You ever wonder what's up with that? You hear it everyday on commercials and see it in packaging materials. But not one of those things ever actually explained why it's good for you and what it actually does. Now for you to understand all this, we have to take a trip down memory lane. A long, long, long trip down memory lane. Because what I'll discuss with you probably took place in your 5th or 6th grade if you're not a chemistry or pharmacy major. Buckle up, here we go.
Every living thing on this planet contains cells. And cells are made of molecules. And molecules are made of atoms of different elements. Now atoms have three parts: the proton, neutron and electron. Electrons are found at the outermost shells of the atoms. These electrons have to be paired in order for the atom to be stable. They can either borrow or donate electrons in order to have a pair to be stable. How free radicals damage these atoms are simple. From the name itself, these atoms are free and unstable and what they do is "rob" electrons from the atoms inside your body to cause instability. The unstable atoms would then cause molecule to be unstable. Then it would cause the cell to die. Then instead of a glowing skin, you get a lifeless tan.
Now to the kryptonite of these free radicals. To combat this, modern medicine has produced antioxidants in the form of vitamins and minerals. You should know though that there are innate antioxidants in your body. But because the free radicals you accumulate through smoke, dust and pollution far outweigh your body's ability to produce antioxidants you must take supplements to make it a fair fight.
The Best Supplements you can take to help your skin are the following:
Vitamin A
Vitamin C
Vitamin E
and Vitamin B Complex
No, you do not go to the pharmacy and grab a pack of multivitamins. These supplements are meant to be applied to the skin where they will produce the optimum result as compared to swallowing it. But it is very important to know how to use these.
Vitamin A
The other name for this is Retinoid (ah... yun pala yon. i hear some of you say). It is actually very hard to find face creams that contain only Vitamin A here in the Philippines. BUT! You cannot buy a gel capsule of Vitamin A and pierce it then directly apply to your face. This is a NO NO! Vitamin A in it's most concentrated form can actually cause irritation and redness. This is not used consecutively as well. There must be a rest period before reapplying vitamin A. Also, this is only applied at night when there are no uv rays to harm your skin while it regenerates with the help of this supplement. This vitamin aids in regulating cellular growth which means that while you are using this, you get a new coat of skin cells every time.
Vitamin E
We've all done this. You take the gel cap of vitamin e, wash your needle and pass it through a flame to make sure it's sanitized, then you punch a hole in the gel cap and squeeze out that thick, jelly fluid and spread it over your face. A good night's sleep later and you're looking fresh and glowing the next day. This is actually one effective way of using it. However, make sure your needle is sterilized and that you've washed your hands thoroughly. This vitamin is a great antioxidant and actually helps stop the signs of aging.
Vitamin C
If I were a vitamin, I'd be vitamin C. Turns out, not only does this boost your immune system but it is also the most powerful antioxidant where your skin is concerned. The good thing about this is that many cosmetic companies have recognized it's power and have marketed products that contain this wonder drug. You don't have to research or ask your family abroad to send you some. You just have to search in your local pharmacy and find cosmetic products with Vitamin C. The most potent and effective delivery system is a cream. Although the amount of absorption is not uniform. But hey... Rome wasn't built in a day so good skin will not appear after just one application.
Vitamin B Complex
B vitamins help your skin by improving oxygen intake through the production of red blood cells. Several studies have talked about improved moisture and improvement of acne. The main thing is it won't leave your skin dry or scaly and it will stop acne from popping up before your picture taking. Again, like all the vitamins mentioned above B vitamins are to be applied to the face, not taken orally. The renowned Olay Total Effects contains B vitamins and I have been using it for years. People say I look younger now than when I was actually young.
Now I've found a few website that offers the above mentioned products here in the Philippines (Yey!). You just have to read up some more to find if these products will suit your specific needs.
This link is an ad in sulit.com that offers a complete set of the vitamins we've just discussed. Though pricey at Php 1,900.00 I think it's a great deal considering you get all of the vitamins at 30mL each.
This other link is for UNO's magic cream. I know, I know. It's hard for you to trust a product that says magic on it. You imagine your childhood yaya's white face. For you, it's tantamount to chin chun su or whatever that pink pearl cream is called. But upon careful study of the ingredients, I found that it contains vitamin b, c and e. That's 3 for the price of 1.
Whichever way you choose to go with your product, the important thing is that now you're aware of what to look for in your face cream.
On a final note, the items above were not sent to me or purchased by me. Both are just products of careful research.
"Love of beauty is taste, the creation of beauty is art." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
No comments:
Post a Comment