Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Homemade face packs for oily skin

Tired with endless bombardment of many ads advising you how to deal with your oily skin? Don’t get confused by the commercials telling you how this gel, microfoliant or cleanser is the best. Here you have your free easy do-it-yourself homemade face packs for oily skin. But before you choose on the right one, get a few facts right about your oily skin.

There are various causes of oily skin, thus requiring different homemade face packs for oily skin: heredity, diet and hormonal imbalances being the main ones. However, pregnancy, birth control pills, the cosmetics you apply as well as hot weather and humidity, can be causes. Your skin may exhibit characteristics of being oily and in another situation the exact opposite: a combination skin.

The homemade face packs for oily skin discussed below take the above causes of oily skin and try to prescribe a recipe that is known to work, with some of the essential products fairly easy to get in your local market, for example sage, lemon, cypress, cedar wood to straw berries and cucumber – those that you forgot to plant in your kitchen garden!

Papaya Pulp remedy

Rub this pulp on your face gently and your skin will be polished freeing it of all impurities that cause pimples, spots and black heads. Do this every two to three days and you’ll have been successful in reducing the formation of pimples/acne, thereby achieving a thoroughly clean, glowing skin. This homemade face pack for oily skin is probably the fastest to make and use, without much hassle.

Blend of Raw Garlic Juice and Fresh Lime Juice

This is a “quick fix” for your skin if you have persistent pimples on your face. Simply apply the blend on them. Apply this blend once a day and it will remove and reduce the formation of face pimples quickly. A word of caution is that you should be ready to hurt from the blend sting, but just a little. This homemade face pack for oily skin is for those in a hurry to achieve a pimple-free face within days. Try it!

“Combination Remedy”
Requirements:

6 strawberries, a teaspoon of Brandy, Rose water, 2 teaspoons of fuller’s earth and equal amount of breadcrumbs.

Formula

Mash the six strawberries and add one teaspoon of Brandy. To the mix, add two teaspoons of breadcrumbs as well as the two teaspoons of fuller’s earth. Finally, add a few drops of rose water. The resulting product is a thick layer which you apply on the face and neck, giving homemade face packs for oily skin 20 minutes to act on the skin.

The Vitamin C and various acidic properties from strawberries will leave your skin very clean. Dead skin will be exfoliated by breadcrumbs while fuller’s earth tightens the pores. Brandy helps adds glow.

A variation (for face mask) of this remedy is as follows:

For this home-made face packs for oily skin you need: 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (concentrated, fresh), two egg whites, four jojoba oil drops, mashed strawberries (1 cup) and 2 tablespoons of honey.

These ingredients are then mixed together and immediately applied to the face for ten minutes. The recipe above is enough for two masks or more so you could share with a friend! This is a remedy that is most effective when applied fresh – don’t keep it.

Orange Peel Remedy

Making homemade face packs for oily skin can sometimes be an activity full of fun for girls. This statement applies to the orange peel remedy. To make it, dry orange peels and make a powder from them. This is can also be done to ensure they’re granulated for further applications. Regular filtered water and rose water is added to the powder to make a paste on your skin. Your skin tone will be more even and acne attacks less frequent if you regularly use this remedy. Simple, isn’t it?

Daily Natural Skin Care

Having a daily natural skin care regiment is something that everyone needs. Natural skin care is when you use ingredients that are in the natural form and not the artificial forms like you’d purchase in a local retail store. You can go to a local health food store or your round the corner grocery store to get most of these natural skin care products.

You should know your skin type however before starting any skin care regiment. This will prevent you from over oiling skin that is oily to begin with or over drying skin that is already dry and so on. Determining your skin type is fairly easy. If your blot your skin with a tissue and it comes back with a oily spot on it, then your skin type is oily. If your skin tends to flake then you have dry skin. If you skin is normal with either oil or dryness in the T-Zone, then you most likely have combination skin. And if you have none of these then your skin type is most likely normal. You may have sensitive skin if you have a few or more of the types listed above. Finding this out will help you to find the perfect moisturizers, cleansers, and toners with out using trial and error or causing more skin problems along the way.

Natural Moisturizers

Avocado naturally moisturizes your skin as do beet, carrots, cocoa butter, corn syrup, dandelion, glycerin, lanolin, lard, and mayonnaise. Most of those natural moisturizers can be found in various skin care moisturizers or you can purchase the oils in some of these and use them at full strength. Naturally moisturizing your skin is a lot healthier than using over the counter moisturizers by a long shot.

Aloe Vera is a great moisturizer as well as having a lot of other properties. In most cosmetics on the market, Aloe Vera is the main ingredient along with water since it has the strongest ability to moisturize the skin. It is used for sunburn relief as well as offering reverse effects on wrinkles, creases, and age spots on the skin.

If dry skin is an issue oils like almond, peanut, or olive are great in battling it. Keeping your skin moisturized is a great way to keep it looking healthy throughout the years and keeps it looking younger as well. The younger your skin looks and feels the better you’ll feel about yourself on a daily basis.

Cleansers

Along with moisturizing your skin, you also want it clean. Yoghurt, pineapple, mayonnaise, and cocoa butter are natural cleansers for your face that are safe and have moisturizing properties as well. Cleaning your skin daily is very important part of your skin care. Removing all of the dirt, grime, and makeup from the day helps to improve the look and feel of your skin.

Toning Your Face

There are a few that are great for toning your face as well. Chamomile works great for toning all types of complexions. Sage helps to tone oily skin types as well as strawberry which is also used as an anti blemish treatment. Trying out various toning regiment is a great way to find out what works and what doesn’t.

For Soothing Skin

If you want to sooth your damaged skin you can try aloe vera, oatmeal, tea, lavender, milk, and fuchsia. Soothing your skin from sunburn or other harsh elements is a very important measurement to take. It helps your skin heal from whatever may have happened to it throughout the day. If you’ve gotten a sunburn, using aloe vera should work wonders on relieving the pain along with putting moisture into your skin. Milk works great on soothing sunburn as well. It works in soothing all skin types just as aloe vera does. Tea also works great on soothing your skin from sunburn and the damages of the cold and wind.

Aloe Vera for Your Health and Skin

The Aloe plant is a native of Africa and enjoys moist sandy soil. It makes a wonderful houseplant because it does not require much maintenance. It is a very strong and fleshy plant and can produce beautiful yellow flowers if fed properly. Aloe Vera can be used for a variety of skin care treatments. It can also be taken internally to promote healing however, it is not FDA approved and scientists are not certain as to what the effects or side effects may be. Many people claim you can safely drink Aloe Vera and it has been claimed that within a few weeks of drinking Aloe Vera you will start to notice a healthier glow to your skin. Mix Aloe Vera in a glass of water to drink it.

The Topical Healing Effect of Aloe Vera

It is great to have an Aloe Vera plant growing in your kitchen. When you get cuts or burns from cooking just break off a small piece of the plant and directly apply it to the cut or burn. Five natural anti-inflammatory agents in Aloe Vera help to relieve the pain of a cut or burn, reverse the scarring and speed up the healing process. When you pinch the plant to use for a small cut or burn, make sure to pick a small leaf towards the center of the plant. The smaller leaves have less juice, which are better for topical applications. If you need a leaf for mixing with water for drinking pick, one of the larger leaves.

Use Aloe Vera for Acne

Acne is greatly effect by bad digestion and improper nutrition. Avoid fried foods, fatty foods and sweets. Add more vegetables and fiber to your diet. Try drinking Aloe Vera mixed with water before meals to aid in relieving digestion problems. Apply Aloe Vera gel to the skin twice a day to help balance the pH level to your skin. After washing your face use, an astringent mixed with Aloe Vera to help close the pores. Make sure to use a moisturizer to protect your skin and balance the oil production of the oil glands. In cases of severe, you may want to consider detoxifying your body. When you go on a detoxifying diet, the body cleanses itself of all the impurities that accumulate from food preservatives, beverages and a variety of other things.

Aloe Vera with Other Skin Conditions

It is just as important to maintain good health on the inside as well as the outside. Most skin conditions come from because of an imbalance on the inside of our bodies. In more severe conditions such as Eczema, Psoriasis and other similar skin conditions you need have optimum health first on the inside. Maintain a good daily nutrition of fruits, vegetables and fiber. Cut out fried foods, fatty foods and sugary treats. Drink plenty of water to optimize proper digestion, which also corrects constipation and liver problems. By drinking Aloe Vera and using Aloe Vera on your skin helps to hasten the regenerative process to healthier skin.

Skin Care Products Containing Aloe Vera

More skin care products contain Aloe Vera than you may realize. Microdermabrasion creams, lotions, lip balms, soaps and sun lotions are just a few of the products that can contain Aloe Vera. Use Aloe Vera straight for those fine lines and wrinkles. Use a small amount around the eyes, on the forehead and around the mouth and work in gently. Leave on for approximately 15 minutes then rinse with lukewarm water followed by your nightly moisturizer. Follow the same routine in the morning as well followed by your daily moisturizer.

Other Skin Care Uses For Aloe Vera

To maintain healthy skin consider taking Vitamin E supplements that contain Aloe Vera. Aloe Vera is also great when applied to stretch marks on the breasts and stomach as the result of weight loss or after childbirth.

Home Remedies For Acne

You all remember your teenage years, high school, parties, friends, and... Acne! Those painful pustules on your face that seem to ruin a perfectly good day and cause so much grief at school, or anywhere you go for that matter. We all wonder how to fix the problem... from face scrubs, to acne creams, to just leaving the pimples there and covering one’s head with a paper bag. Fortunately, there are several home remedies for acne that have been said to fight the pimples very well. Some of these home remedies for acne are Tea Tree Oil, zinc, lemon juice, orange peel, garlic, and many others.

Tea Tree Oil is a natural oil containing Terpinen-4-ol which has been diluted slightly and is believed to kill bacteria. Because of it’s antibiotic qualities, Tea Tree Oil can be used as a home remedy for acne as it is believed to kill Propionib acterium acnes, which is the bacteria which dwells in the skin and causes acne. Tea Tree Oil can be applied topically to the site of the acne pustule as a home remedy for acne.

Zinc has been said to be one of the popular home remedies for acne for some time. Zinc however has several drawbacks and side effects. Zinc was proven only slightly more effective than a placebo in clinical tests, and can cause digestive upset (stomach aches). It can also leave a metallic aftertaste in the mouths of those who use it. In high enough doses, Zinc can cause copper deficiency, it can cause the immune system to break down and become less effective, can cause anemia, and in some cases, heart problems. Zinc may also lower HDL (good cholesterol) levels significantly. Taking Zinc can inhibit the body’s ability to absorb iron and magnesium from food and/or food supplements. A few other drawbacks of Zinc are it’s tendency to interfere with the absorption of antibiotics, tetracycline, and fluoroquinolone. Some diuretics can interfere with the excretion of zinc causing the metal to build to toxic levels in the body. In short, zinc is possibly the least effective and most harmful home remedy for acne.

Orange peel can be pounded with water to a pulpy consistency and applied directly
to the acne affected area. The reason this home remedy for acne works is simply that the citric acid in the orange peel, along with some other components, kills the bacteria which causes acne as well as cleansing the affected area. This remedy smells particularly good as well and is very effective.

Rubbing lemon juice on the affected area is also effective. This home remedy for acne works on the same principle as the orange peel remedy, but in addition, cools the site of inflammation causing a reduction in the size of the pimple.

Garlic can be used as a face pack, or taken orally. Eating raw garlic may clear up your complexion but it probably won’t get you any more dates than your acne did. Garlic is a detoxifier, as well as an antiseptic. Taken orally it cleanses the body of toxins and excess hormones which can cause teenage and adult acne. When applied topically Garlic acts as an antiseptic and antibiotic, killing Propionibacterium acnes, the chief cause of most bacterial acne. Despite making your face and breath smell horrid, Garlic is one of the most effective home remedies for acne.

Aloe Vera gel, applied to the site of acne serves to cool the site of infection as well as reduce inflammation. When this home remedy for acne is combined with others, such as the lemon juice treatment, orange peel compress, or garlic pack, it becomes possibly the best home remedy for acne you can find because in addition to relieving the pain of acne, it can also help prevent scarring.

There are many home remedies for acne available to the aware reader, some of them have side effects or drawbacks, some are merely old wives’ tales, but some work surprisingly well.

Knowing your Skin Type

As we all know, skin care is a very important daily routine in our lives. Having healthy skin gives us all confidence and goes along with good hygiene practices. Coming up with a cleaning ritual for your face should be an important part of your daily hygiene. Just washing your face with soap and water isn’t a guarantee of removing all the dirt and grime that builds up on face everyday. You should try a deep cleanser that is safe for daily use. The cleansers that aren’t for daily use tends to dry out your skin and remove that healthy glow that we all seek.

Knowing your skin type is one of the first and most important things to know before you start with any type of skin care regiment. There are generally five different skin types. There are normal, oily or greasy, sensitive, dry, and of course combinational skin.

Normal Skin Types

Normal skin usually looks more vibrant, moist, and plump consistently. This type of skin type doesn’t really need all of the special cleansers to keep it looking great other than the usual washing and toning and in some cases a bit of moisturizer. It is a blessing to have normal skin, but chances are your skin is one of the other four types of skin types.

Dry Skin Types

Dry skin is caused due to inactive oil glands or oil glands that just don’t produce enough oil for the skin to be naturally lubricated. If your skin is dry, it probably has a dull look, feels dry to the touch, and feels sensitive and itchy at times. With dry skin, you may want to find a good deep moisturizer to keep your skin looking healthy.

Oily Skin Types

Oily skin types are just the opposite of dry skin. In this case the oil glands produce way too much oil and give your skin that greasy feeling. With all of the oil that your glands are producing, it causes clogged pores which lead to breakouts and enlarged pores. The upside to oily skin, if you can believe that there is an upside to it, is that this type of skin looks more supple and gives your face a much younger look. To defeat the oil, you should use a daily mask. Be sure that it is safe for daily use so it doesn’t dry your skin out. Periodical herbal steam treatments seem to defeat the oil attacks on your skin as well.

Sensitive Skin Types

Sensitive skin is yet another problem for thousands of people. This sometimes is one of the most difficult to get under control. This is because if you have sensitive skin you may have to battle oily, normal, and dry skin either in different seasons of the year or all year around. Sensitive skin types tend to react with their environment. If you’re using cosmetics, your skin may break out if it contains ingredients such as alcohol, artificial colors, fragrance, or oils. When you are searching for items to treat sensitive skin, you should look for products that are gentle on skin or designed for sensitive skin.

Combination Skin Types

The last but not least important type of skin is combination skin. Though it is much similar to sensitive skin, it is very different as well. With combination skin, you will usually have an oily T-Zone. The T-Zone is the area on the forehead, chin, and nose. Your cheeks, mouth, and eyes are usually either normal or dry if you have combination skin. For this type of skin, your cleaning routine will be a bit different that for other skin types. You will have to use a combination of products designed to treat the various combinations.

Keeping That Special Glow

On a daily basis you should wash your face as much as possible, remove fried foods from your diet and replace them with vegetables and fruit. Some say that washing your face with a mix of ice water and lime juice helps to keep your skin healthy as well.

Herbal Skin Treatments

Teaser - City women rush like lemmings to try the latest beauty treatments at their favorite beauty salons. Whether these beauty treatments jazz up their beauty, or prove to be a banana skin for them is something that only they can tell. But, there is one beauty treatment that women have trust in for eons. Yes, we are alluding to the herbal beauty treatment that offers some real, nonpareil benefits.

Herbal skin treatments include a variety of herbal beauty packages and ancient therapies such as herbal hair spa, herbal facial, putti massage, shirodhara, ayurvedic massage, veda spa, and milk bath. These skin treatment packages and therapies offer distinct benefits. Detoxifying and nourishing the body, treating dull and dehydrated skin, reducing stress, and alleviating body aches constitute the long list of benefits that these herbal skin treatments and ancient therapies offer.

Some Herbal and Natural Skin Treatments

Apply aloe vera juice on the affected area twice a day, as it helps buff up the skin.

Take some raw (unboiled) milk and add some nutmeg into it to form a paste. This is an excellent herbal skin treatment, and no scars are left after pimples disappear.

Take three tablespoons of honey and mix with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder to make a paste. Before going to sleep, apply this paste on the pimples and wash it with warm water the next morning. Follow this routine for fifteen days and your pimples will disappear.

Take a pinch of turmeric powder and mix it with a teaspoon of coriander juice. This is an extremely effective treatment to deal with pimples and blackheads. Before applying this mixture, wash your face properly. You can take mint juice, if coriander juice is not available.

You can use the juice of raw papaya to apply it over the affected skin. It helps in quick acne cure.

Take one tablespoon of lemon juice and mix it with one tablespoon of groundnut oil. Apply this mixture on your pimples to prevent the formation of blackheads and pimples.

A paste of sandalwood powder mixed with black gram dal is a good herbal skin treatment. Apply it on your face and keep it for the whole night. Wash your face with cold water the next morning. Follow this routine, and you will see the difference in a few days.

Before you use these remedies, it’s important for you to consult the dermatologist, particularly if you are taking any medical treatment.

Daily Cleansing

Daily cleansing of your face is a must if you want healthy looking skin. Depending on your skin type there are various ways to take care of your skin on a daily basis. Below are the various skin types from normal, sensitive, oily, dry, and combination skin. Everyone has at least one of these or more throughout their life time. Some are more a hassle than others, but once you figure out what works for you, you will survive and have healthy glowing skin.

Normal Skin Type

If you have normal skin type then you are very lucky. For this type of skin there isn’t much that you have to do other than wash your face daily and have a healthy diet along with plenty of water in order to keep your skin superb. Using a daily moisturizer is always something you should do as well as a daily cleanser to remove all the dirt and grime buildup from everyday life.

Sensitive Skin Type

If your type that has sensitive skin then there are a lot of different ways to cleanse that aren’t too harsh. Thousands do people have sensitive skin and go through the battle of trying to keep it under control. With sensitive skin, you go may go through all the skin types from normal, dry, oily, or a combination of them all from time to time. You should wash your face with cleansers that are designed for sensitive skin. These types of cleansers don’t have harsh chemicals, artificial colors, or a lot of oil based products. Natural products are sometimes the best to look for when seeking out ways to treat sensitive skin.

Oily Skin Type

Oily skin can be one of the most difficult to battle compared to all the other types. When your skin produces more oil than normal, this causes you to have out of control skin where your pores get clogged and that starts a whole chain reaction for pimples, blackheads, white heads, as well as other embarrassing blemishes that you don’t want to have.

Look for products that are formulated for oily skin. Cleansing your skin with hot water helps to dissolve some of the oil. Make sure the water isn’t too hot though or it may burn your skin. When you being a moisturizing treatment on your skin be sure to check if it has oils in the product; you definitely don’t want to add more oil to an already oily canvas. Choose something that is natural, usually oil free and gives you a shine free complexion that you’ve been looking for.

Dry Skin Type

Dry skin is yet another type that thousands of people suffer from throughout the year. Environmental elements usually are the cause of it, but sometimes it is in our bodies themselves that doesn’t allow us to produce enough oil to keep our skin naturally moisturized. For dry skin the most important cleansing products are a mild cleanser with moisturizing elements in it as well as a separate moisturizer throughout the day. Drinking plenty of water and a well balanced diet is another way of keeping dry skin at bay. Hydrating your body will help in hydrating your skin.

Combination Skin Type

Combination skin involves the T-Zone. The T-Zone is the areas of the forehead, nose and chin. These tend be either oily or dry at anytime of the year. When the rest of your face is normal, you may have the T-Zone area oily. There are products made for these specific problems of combination skin.

The combinations vary from person to person as well as day to day for one person. Treating combination skin can be tricky due to the way your body produces oils or doesn’t produce oils. Try a combination skin care line and stick with it on a daily basis if it works for you. Trial and error is sometimes the best way to find this out. Eating a well balanced diet can help in keeping combination skin under control as well.

Home Remedies For Acne

You all remember your teenage years, high school, parties, friends, and... Acne! Those painful pustules on your face that seem to ruin a perfectly good day and cause so much grief at school, or anywhere you go for that matter. We all wonder how to fix the problem... from face scrubs, to acne creams, to just leaving the pimples there and covering one’s head with a paper bag. Fortunately, there are several home remedies for acne that have been said to fight the pimples very well. Some of these home remedies for acne are Tea Tree Oil, zinc, lemon juice, orange peel, garlic, and many others.

Tea Tree Oil is a natural oil containing Terpinen-4-ol which has been diluted slightly and is believed to kill bacteria. Because of it’s antibiotic qualities, Tea Tree Oil can be used as a home remedy for acne as it is believed to kill Propionib acterium acnes, which is the bacteria which dwells in the skin and causes acne. Tea Tree Oil can be applied topically to the site of the acne pustule as a home remedy for acne.

Zinc has been said to be one of the popular home remedies for acne for some time. Zinc however has several drawbacks and side effects. Zinc was proven only slightly more effective than a placebo in clinical tests, and can cause digestive upset (stomach aches). It can also leave a metallic aftertaste in the mouths of those who use it. In high enough doses, Zinc can cause copper deficiency, it can cause the immune system to break down and become less effective, can cause anemia, and in some cases, heart problems. Zinc may also lower HDL (good cholesterol) levels significantly. Taking Zinc can inhibit the body’s ability to absorb iron and magnesium from food and/or food supplements. A few other drawbacks of Zinc are it’s tendency to interfere with the absorption of antibiotics, tetracycline, and fluoroquinolone. Some diuretics can interfere with the excretion of zinc causing the metal to build to toxic levels in the body. In short, zinc is possibly the least effective and most harmful home remedy for acne.

Orange peel can be pounded with water to a pulpy consistency and applied directly
to the acne affected area. The reason this home remedy for acne works is simply that the citric acid in the orange peel, along with some other components, kills the bacteria which causes acne as well as cleansing the affected area. This remedy smells particularly good as well and is very effective.

Rubbing lemon juice on the affected area is also effective. This home remedy for acne works on the same principle as the orange peel remedy, but in addition, cools the site of inflammation causing a reduction in the size of the pimple.

Garlic can be used as a face pack, or taken orally. Eating raw garlic may clear up your complexion but it probably won’t get you any more dates than your acne did. Garlic is a detoxifier, as well as an antiseptic. Taken orally it cleanses the body of toxins and excess hormones which can cause teenage and adult acne. When applied topically Garlic acts as an antiseptic and antibiotic, killing Propionibacterium acnes, the chief cause of most bacterial acne. Despite making your face and breath smell horrid, Garlic is one of the most effective home remedies for acne.

Aloe Vera gel, applied to the site of acne serves to cool the site of infection as well as reduce inflammation. When this home remedy for acne is combined with others, such as the lemon juice treatment, orange peel compress, or garlic pack, it becomes possibly the best home remedy for acne you can find because in addition to relieving the pain of acne, it can also help prevent scarring.

There are many home remedies for acne available to the aware reader, some of them have side effects or drawbacks, some are merely old wives’ tales, but some work surprisingly well.

Knowing your Skin Type

As we all know, skin care is a very important daily routine in our lives. Having healthy skin gives us all confidence and goes along with good hygiene practices. Coming up with a cleaning ritual for your face should be an important part of your daily hygiene. Just washing your face with soap and water isn’t a guarantee of removing all the dirt and grime that builds up on face everyday. You should try a deep cleanser that is safe for daily use. The cleansers that aren’t for daily use tends to dry out your skin and remove that healthy glow that we all seek.

Knowing your skin type is one of the first and most important things to know before you start with any type of skin care regiment. There are generally five different skin types. There are normal, oily or greasy, sensitive, dry, and of course combinational skin.

Normal Skin Types

Normal skin usually looks more vibrant, moist, and plump consistently. This type of skin type doesn’t really need all of the special cleansers to keep it looking great other than the usual washing and toning and in some cases a bit of moisturizer. It is a blessing to have normal skin, but chances are your skin is one of the other four types of skin types.

Dry Skin Types

Dry skin is caused due to inactive oil glands or oil glands that just don’t produce enough oil for the skin to be naturally lubricated. If your skin is dry, it probably has a dull look, feels dry to the touch, and feels sensitive and itchy at times. With dry skin, you may want to find a good deep moisturizer to keep your skin looking healthy.

Oily Skin Types

Oily skin types are just the opposite of dry skin. In this case the oil glands produce way too much oil and give your skin that greasy feeling. With all of the oil that your glands are producing, it causes clogged pores which lead to breakouts and enlarged pores. The upside to oily skin, if you can believe that there is an upside to it, is that this type of skin looks more supple and gives your face a much younger look. To defeat the oil, you should use a daily mask. Be sure that it is safe for daily use so it doesn’t dry your skin out. Periodical herbal steam treatments seem to defeat the oil attacks on your skin as well.

Sensitive Skin Types

Sensitive skin is yet another problem for thousands of people. This sometimes is one of the most difficult to get under control. This is because if you have sensitive skin you may have to battle oily, normal, and dry skin either in different seasons of the year or all year around. Sensitive skin types tend to react with their environment. If you’re using cosmetics, your skin may break out if it contains ingredients such as alcohol, artificial colors, fragrance, or oils. When you are searching for items to treat sensitive skin, you should look for products that are gentle on skin or designed for sensitive skin.

Combination Skin Types

The last but not least important type of skin is combination skin. Though it is much similar to sensitive skin, it is very different as well. With combination skin, you will usually have an oily T-Zone. The T-Zone is the area on the forehead, chin, and nose. Your cheeks, mouth, and eyes are usually either normal or dry if you have combination skin. For this type of skin, your cleaning routine will be a bit different that for other skin types. You will have to use a combination of products designed to treat the various combinations.

Keeping That Special Glow

On a daily basis you should wash your face as much as possible, remove fried foods from your diet and replace them with vegetables and fruit. Some say that washing your face with a mix of ice water and lime juice helps to keep your skin healthy as well.

Herbal Skin Treatments

Teaser - City women rush like lemmings to try the latest beauty treatments at their favorite beauty salons. Whether these beauty treatments jazz up their beauty, or prove to be a banana skin for them is something that only they can tell. But, there is one beauty treatment that women have trust in for eons. Yes, we are alluding to the herbal beauty treatment that offers some real, nonpareil benefits.

Herbal skin treatments include a variety of herbal beauty packages and ancient therapies such as herbal hair spa, herbal facial, putti massage, shirodhara, ayurvedic massage, veda spa, and milk bath. These skin treatment packages and therapies offer distinct benefits. Detoxifying and nourishing the body, treating dull and dehydrated skin, reducing stress, and alleviating body aches constitute the long list of benefits that these herbal skin treatments and ancient therapies offer.

Some Herbal and Natural Skin Treatments

Apply aloe vera juice on the affected area twice a day, as it helps buff up the skin.

Take some raw (unboiled) milk and add some nutmeg into it to form a paste. This is an excellent herbal skin treatment, and no scars are left after pimples disappear.

Take three tablespoons of honey and mix with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder to make a paste. Before going to sleep, apply this paste on the pimples and wash it with warm water the next morning. Follow this routine for fifteen days and your pimples will disappear.

Take a pinch of turmeric powder and mix it with a teaspoon of coriander juice. This is an extremely effective treatment to deal with pimples and blackheads. Before applying this mixture, wash your face properly. You can take mint juice, if coriander juice is not available.

You can use the juice of raw papaya to apply it over the affected skin. It helps in quick acne cure.

Take one tablespoon of lemon juice and mix it with one tablespoon of groundnut oil. Apply this mixture on your pimples to prevent the formation of blackheads and pimples.

A paste of sandalwood powder mixed with black gram dal is a good herbal skin treatment. Apply it on your face and keep it for the whole night. Wash your face with cold water the next morning. Follow this routine, and you will see the difference in a few days.

Before you use these remedies, it’s important for you to consult the dermatologist, particularly if you are taking any medical treatment.

Daily Cleansing

Daily cleansing of your face is a must if you want healthy looking skin. Depending on your skin type there are various ways to take care of your skin on a daily basis. Below are the various skin types from normal, sensitive, oily, dry, and combination skin. Everyone has at least one of these or more throughout their life time. Some are more a hassle than others, but once you figure out what works for you, you will survive and have healthy glowing skin.

Normal Skin Type

If you have normal skin type then you are very lucky. For this type of skin there isn’t much that you have to do other than wash your face daily and have a healthy diet along with plenty of water in order to keep your skin superb. Using a daily moisturizer is always something you should do as well as a daily cleanser to remove all the dirt and grime buildup from everyday life.

Sensitive Skin Type

If your type that has sensitive skin then there are a lot of different ways to cleanse that aren’t too harsh. Thousands do people have sensitive skin and go through the battle of trying to keep it under control. With sensitive skin, you go may go through all the skin types from normal, dry, oily, or a combination of them all from time to time. You should wash your face with cleansers that are designed for sensitive skin. These types of cleansers don’t have harsh chemicals, artificial colors, or a lot of oil based products. Natural products are sometimes the best to look for when seeking out ways to treat sensitive skin.

Oily Skin Type

Oily skin can be one of the most difficult to battle compared to all the other types. When your skin produces more oil than normal, this causes you to have out of control skin where your pores get clogged and that starts a whole chain reaction for pimples, blackheads, white heads, as well as other embarrassing blemishes that you don’t want to have.

Look for products that are formulated for oily skin. Cleansing your skin with hot water helps to dissolve some of the oil. Make sure the water isn’t too hot though or it may burn your skin. When you being a moisturizing treatment on your skin be sure to check if it has oils in the product; you definitely don’t want to add more oil to an already oily canvas. Choose something that is natural, usually oil free and gives you a shine free complexion that you’ve been looking for.

Dry Skin Type

Dry skin is yet another type that thousands of people suffer from throughout the year. Environmental elements usually are the cause of it, but sometimes it is in our bodies themselves that doesn’t allow us to produce enough oil to keep our skin naturally moisturized. For dry skin the most important cleansing products are a mild cleanser with moisturizing elements in it as well as a separate moisturizer throughout the day. Drinking plenty of water and a well balanced diet is another way of keeping dry skin at bay. Hydrating your body will help in hydrating your skin.

Combination Skin Type

Combination skin involves the T-Zone. The T-Zone is the areas of the forehead, nose and chin. These tend be either oily or dry at anytime of the year. When the rest of your face is normal, you may have the T-Zone area oily. There are products made for these specific problems of combination skin.

The combinations vary from person to person as well as day to day for one person. Treating combination skin can be tricky due to the way your body produces oils or doesn’t produce oils. Try a combination skin care line and stick with it on a daily basis if it works for you. Trial and error is sometimes the best way to find this out. Eating a well balanced diet can help in keeping combination skin under control as well.

Acne Problems

Acne is a condition where an individual\'s skin has long term and particularly problematic break outs. This is the result of a hormone imbalance and impacts most frequently during puberty or periods of hormone changes. Many times these break outs can result in peer ridicule or a decrease in self esteem or self confidence. The condition can have severely negative effects on a person\'s social life. The full name of the condition is Acne Vulgaris. While this inflammatory disease is annoying and can be a bit painful or unsightly, it is not any kind of serious threat to physical health.

An enlargement of the Sebaceous Glands can lead to a build up of sebum, which will clog the hair follicles and pores in the skin and result in severe breakouts. This enlargement of the Sebaceous Glands is a form of inflammatory disease, and often has nothing to do with poor skin hygiene or an unhealthy diet like some other breakouts of the skin. Acne is an extremely common problem (about 85% of people experience some form of acne during adolescence or early adulthood). High stress levels, or use of anabolic steroids can also cause forms of acne. Although in most cases hygiene is not a factor in the development of acne, it can exacerbate the problem. A “hands off” policy when it comes to acne is the best policy, as scratching at breakouts can also worsen the condition, as it is conducive to the growth of bacteria that cause pimples and breakouts of the skin. Intravenous use of opiates has also been linked to breakouts. Acne will usually diminish or disappear altogether as a person ages. The hormones testosterone and dihydrotestosterone have been linked in correlation with this inflammatory disease.

Acne is usually found on the face and forehead. Acne on the chest, back and neck is less common but still normal. Acne is somewhat hereditary but if a history of bad acne in your family does not guarantee that you will suffer from the disease. Another skin condition called Roseacea is similar to acne but usually forms later in life, during adulthood. Acne mostly affects people during adolescence or periods of increased stress due to work or family life.

While the correlation between a poor diet and the severity of this disease is generally highly debated, some foods have been found to make existing conditions worse. These foods may include food that has a high amount of refined sugars, or those with a high concentration of iodine. The impact of these foods is usually negligible, if you have problematic acne you may want to try to stay away from them. Again, the relationship between food and acne is minimal at best, so refraining from eating these foods may or may not reduce or impact acne at all.

Because of the correlation between acne and hormones, medications that manipulate these hormones may be used to treat the condition. Other medications include topical creams, and deep cleansing products that may be sold over the counter or are prescribed by a dermatologist. It is important to remember that the disease is extremely widespread, especially during adolescence and is a fairly normal experience for many people.

Acne can leave deep scars in its wake. These scars can be treated with laser therapy, in which a technician will minutely remove raised skin around the scars leaving the surface of the skin more uniform and will eliminate pitting of the skin. There are many more options when dealing with acne or the long term effects it has on the skin. If this condition is a problem for you, it is possible a dermatologist will be able to help or minimize breakouts over time. Although there is no “cure” for the disease, a dermatologist can lessen it\'s intensity or the long term damage that may occur as a result of acne.

Skin Care Tips

Sometimes we are so busy with our lifestyle that we forget about how to properly take care of ourselves. I am not talking about daily hygiene, I am talking about proper skin care. So many things can affect our skin and it gets worse as we get older. Age alone can greatly affect our skin. As we get older, our skin becomes thinner and you start to develop those little tiny fine lines and wrinkles. The glands that produce oil for your skin become less active, which makes your skin drier. Even the number of blood vessels in your skin decreases which makes your skin more fragile. This all equals to loosing the color and glow in your skin as you get older.

As part of good skin, care avoid the sun, wash your skin gently and use moisturizer regularly. This does not make aging go away but it does delay the aging process and does prevent skin problems. Here I have listed a few good skin care habits to help in protecting your skin.

The Sun Is Not Always Friendly

Always protect yourself from the sun. The ultraviolet light may be invisible but it can damage your skin, which causes deep wrinkles. Deep wrinkles cause dry, rough skin. Liver spots can also develop as well as serious skin disorders like noncancerous and cancerous skin tumors. The worst time to be out in the sun is from 10am to 4pm this is when the sun is the strongest and can cause the most skin damage. Wear long sleeved shirts while out in the sun. Some fabrics do a better job at protecting you from the sun than others like cotton is a good protecting fabric. Also, wear hats with a brim to protect your face from the sun. Always use sunscreen. Apply it about 20 minutes before going outside and reapply about every two hours if you have been sweating a lot or have been in the water.

Be Gentle With Your Skin

Use warm water instead of hot water when taking a bath or shower. Hot water can remove protective oils from your skin. Try to limit bath or shower time to fifteen minutes or less if possible. Do not use strong soaps as they strip the oil from your skin and can leave your skin very dry. Use a mild or gentle soap that has oils and fats added. For those of you with sensitive skin, do not use products that have perfumes or dyes as these can irritate your skin and could trigger an allergic reaction. Always carefully remove makeup using a soft sponge, cotton cloth or cotton balls. Be gentle when removing eye makeup since that is extremely delicate tissue. If you wear waterproof makeup, remove it with an oil-based product like petroleum jelly.

When washing your face, taking a bath, shower pat, or blot your skin dry with a towel this way some of the moisture remains on your skin. Always follow with a body and face moisturizer this is either oil or a cream. When you use moisturizer on a regular basis, you provide a seal over your skin. This keeps water in your skin and replaces the water, as it is lost. Get a moisturizer that is for your skin type. The best way to tell if you even need a moisturizer is to wait about 20 minutes after your shower or bath. If you skin feels dry then you need a moisturizer. Make sure the moisturizer you select contains SPF or a sun protection factor. The SPF should be at least 15. Again if you have sensitive skin get a moisturizer that is free from dyes and perfumes. If you have extremely dry skin you may want to use baby oil as a moisturizer. Apply it right after your bath or shower. If you skin is oily do not use moisturizer as your body makes enough oil to protect your skin already.

Summer Skin Care

Teaser – Skin behaves differently in different seasons. Summers has its own charm, but your skin might react to it differently. Read on to know about some summer skin care!

In summers our skin has to undergo a lot of wear and tear. That is why it is important for us to take extra care of our skin in this season. Keeping this in mind, we have come up with some special summer skin treatment packages to treat damaged skin, skin tanning, rashes, freckles, pigmentation, scars etc.,” says Richa Agarwal, a beauty expert and proprietor, Cleopatra Day Spa, Beauty & Slimming Centre, Chandigarh.

There are a whole host of summer skin treatments available in the market. These skin treatments include special anti-tan facials and special skin treatments to cure sun-damaged skin, heat rashes, pigmentation, acne problem, scars, open pores, and freckles. Each treatment is based on a person\'s skin-type. Apart from the treatments, you should have proper diet counselling, for diet plays an essential part in keeping our skin healthy.

When all is said and done, the best thing is to try and guard your skin against the blistering heat waves. No problems. No treatments! And the sun will not set on your beauty even in this sweltering heat!

Do you know chocolates can nourish your skin? Chocolate contains vitamin E as well as cocoa with almond oil and butter. This makes chocolate an excellent moisturizer. Besides, the chocolate aroma stimulates endorphins (a chemical naturally released in the brain to reduce pain) that lift the spirits. Different choco-beauty-packages like women’s head to toe Choco-Dip (that includes choco-facial, manicure, pedicure, bleaching, waxing, and blow-dry), Choco-Flick (that includes choco-facial, bleaching, and haircut), and choco-spa (that treats the dehydrated skin) are some choco-treatments that can work wonders for your skin.

Furthermore, skin care encompasses a whole host of beauty enhancing treatments such as body scrubs, vitamin facials, special hand and feet treatment, hair nourishment, massages, day spa treatment, and body detanning.

Beauty salons offer specially concocted beauty packages with different skin care strokes. Each stroke is a different beauty treatment that nourishes and pampers the body in a different way. All the skin care strokes revolve around the four beauty principles – cleansing, rejuvenating, nourishing, and garnishing the body.

Beauty Tips for Women

This day and time, women need all the help they can get when it comes to beauty tips and time saving. We don’t want to spend four hours on our makeup when we only have a small window of time to get ready before we have to be at our appointments.

The Eyes

For the best looking and longest lasting eye shadow, try applying a bit of foundation to your eyelids before applying your eye shadow. This will help to hold the powered shadow on the eyelid much longer than if you just apply the eye shadow. You should always try to find a neutral color to enhance your look.

If you have brown eyes, the purple eye shadows seem to make a much bolder impact than any other color. Green eye shadow does wonders for hazel eyes and gold eye shadow on green eyes. For blue eyes, you should use a blue eye shadow that is a bit lighter than your natural blue eye color. There are eye shadow kits on the market that have all the colors that will coincide with your eye color bringing out the boldest and sexiest look.

The Cheeks

The cheeks are always sometimes the trickiest part of putting makeup on. You have to find which color is more like your natural tone and what shape is your face. Is your face round, long, square, heart, or oval? Once you have determined this, you can apply the right look to your cheeks.

When applying blush you should look into the mirror while smiling. Sweep the color in an arc along your cheekbone from the apple of your cheek all the way to your hairline. Be sure to blend it thoroughly so that it looks natural and not painted on. You always want your makeup to look natural unless of course you’re headed out to a costume party.

The Lips

Your lips are one of the most important focal points on your face along with your eyes. Changing your lip color can give you a whole new look. Before applying lipstick be sure you have moisturized your lips. If your lips are dry or cracked your lipstick will just enhance that dry cracked look and that’s one thing we don’t want.

Start by priming your lips with foundation. This helps to keep the lipstick on much longer during normal use of drinking and eating. Then lightly dust your lips with powder. Pick a lipstick color that isn’t too bold and out there. Match it with your skin tone. Just like you wouldn’t want to be extremely fair skinned and have jet black hair. You also wouldn’t want to have a bright red lipstick that looked like a stop sign. Choose something soft and natural looking.

Removing Makeup

Removing your makeup before you go to bed is a very important thing to get in the habit of doing. Leaving your makeup on over night can cause your pores to get clogged which leads to pimples and other blemishes. Finding the right makeup remover is important due to your skin type. If you have naturally oily skin then an oil based makeup remover isn’t the one for you. You’d have to find one that is oil free and designed for oily skin types.

There are various ones out on the market to choose from that are perfect for your skin type. Makeup removers with natural ingredients are most likely the best ones for your skin no matter what type they are.

Fighting Acne with Makeup

Acne is a challenge no matter your how old you are, whether your male or female or what type of skin you have. Using foundation to cover acne sometimes is not the right thing to do, but there are foundations that have acne fighting properties and help to cover acne. If you can’t find one of those you can use a concealer to cover acne for a brief period of time since foundations tend to clog your pores and causes more acne.

Facial Exercises

Ok people now its work out time! You may have heard of isometrics. Isometrics is a form of facial exercise. For example, leaning your head back a bit, opening, and closing your mouth. You will feel the muscles in your neck flexing. This exercise is to keep the neck tight. Another example is when you are putting lotion on your neck take your fingers in an upward stroke. This also tightens neck muscles.

Try This Exercise

Believe it or not, the more you laugh the more you exercise your face. Laughing gets rid of all the tension in your face. On the other hand, you can try this exercise:

• Scrunch up your face, make sure the wrinkles are in your forehead. Tightly close your mouth and eyes and make sure your nose is wrinkled.
• Now do the opposite open your eyes and your mouth Next, close your mouth and purse your lips.
• Now push and take your mouth up to the right then to the left.Now grin from ear to ear.Tuck in your chin to tighten the neck muscles.

The Advantages of a Facial Workout

Facial exercise can make your facial muscles strong. Strong facial muscles make your face strong and smooth. The exercise I am about to mention is great for bags under your eyes or if your eyes are puffy. These exercises will drain the lymph glands that cause bags and puffy eyes. They will also remove wrinkles and lines and improve circulation creating a glowing complexion.

Here is one for the forehead:

• Frown and with the help of your fingers bring your eyebrows over your eyes. Pull your eyebrows and lift them when you open your eyes.
• Next, lie down on your bed and look at the ceiling for a few minutes. Lift your eyebrows upward with your eyes open. Rest for a moment and do this again. Do this about 10 times.
• Next sit straight and look straight ahead for a few minutes.
• Wrinkle your nose with eyebrows in the down position. Count to 10. Take a rest then do this about six more times.

These are for your eyes:

• To tone the muscles around your eyes press your fingers on each temple. Remember to do thisgently or you will give yourself a headache! This creates pressure to the forehead.
• Next, sit straight and close your eyes. Next, look up and then down as far as you can with your eyes closed. Do this about 10 times.
• With this exercise sit straight and close your eyes. Lift your eyebrows and stretch your eyelids up and down. Do this one about six times.
• This exercise is pretty much the same except open your eyes and relax. Lift your eyebrows and close the top of your lids.
• With this one open, your eyes while sitting straight and look straight ahead. Look up and down. Do this about 10 times.

Some Tips, Tricks and Myths

A great looking face is not always the result of proper skin care. There is much more to it than that. Let us face it folks there comes a time when gravity is not so kind. The sands of time go slack, saggy, baggy and crepey. Do facial exercise daily in addition to proper skin care. Facial exercises do not take a lot of time and they are free. You will have smoother skin with less wrinkles, lines and bags. Something that should make you feel better is that those bags and sags are muscles in your face that are going soft. All you have to do are facial exercise daily to make them taunt and strong like they used to be. Facial exercises are for all ages. The perfect time is when you are younger and do the exercise to keep looking younger.

Some women believe that doing facial exercises cause wrinkle. That is true. If they are not done correctly. If done correctly you do not need facial surgery. Some believe facial exercises baggy skin. Again, that is true if done incorrectly.

Tips for Winter Skin Care

Winter can be one of the worst times of the year to take care of your skin. Your skin either gets extremely dry or a combination of all of the above. When the weather changes, so should your skin care treatments. Your skin is slowly adapting to the environmental changes around it, but once your skin has fully adapted it is time for it to change yet once again, so your skin never really settles down during the winter. Your skin gets dry in low humidity which is what the winter brings along with it. In low humidity your skin gets dehydrated and fragile. This is where moisturizer comes into play. The more the better!

Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize

Moisturizing is about the only thing you can do to treat dry skin in the winter. Taking a hot bath and lathering on the moisturizing crème is an easy and quick start to healing and preparing your skin for the cold elements that it will face for the day. After taking a shower apply baby oil to your skin. This will help to keep the moisture in and the dryness out.

Some of the best types of moisturizer for winter weather are ones that contain oils in them, just because your body isn’t producing the oils needed to have hydrated skin. Lanolin, vitamin E oils, and avocado oils are perfect for absorbing moisture and retaining it in the skin. Protein from milk is a great way to soften skin that is dry or wrinkled. Honey is also a great moisturizer that is all natural.

Exfoliating the Dryness Away

Finding a good exfoliating regime is one of the first things besides the moisturizer to seek out. With your skin drying out constantly, exfoliating it is a good way to keep your skin looking great. You should exfoliate your skin at least two times a week to keep the flaky dry skin away. Your skin diminishes it oil production in the winter which in turn causes the dry skin. This is due to the low temperatures outside and the heat from inside which removes most of the moisture from your skin.

The Importance of Water

Water is important no matter what time of year it is, but it is extremely important in the winter. You should drink at least eight glasses of water a day to replenish the water lost from the winter air taking it out of your skin. There is one ancient Chinese remedy that is a safe method give your body a boost of energy. This includes warm water mixed with lemon. This concoction detoxifies the body of toxins and removes those that cause your skin to be dry.

A good night’s sleep is also a good step to take. While you sleep at night, your body is replenishing itself and preparing itself for the oncoming day ahead whether it be hot or cold. If you aren’t getting enough sleep at night, your body as well as your skin will not be health and glowing.

Eating the Right Foods

In the winter time we regularly eat a lot more than we do in any other season. This is good as long as we are eating the right foods. Eating foods rich in protein, vitamin A, B1, and B2 is a great way to improve your skins healthiness. By consuming these types of foods, you can help your skin build up a defense against the elements along with your regular skin care regiment. In winter time, your skin needs all the help it can get. Foods that are full of antioxidants help your skin to fight off inflammation and protect the cells of the membranes from being destroyed by the elements. Drinking green tea or eating foods with omega 3 are other great ways to help. These are rich with antioxidants. Taking a multi-vitamin is also a great way to help your skin along.

Monday, September 1, 2008

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES FOR HEALTHY SKIN

Healthy diet is essential for a healthy skin. Fruits and vegetables should be a constituent of this diet. They are rich in nutrients and have powerful antioxidants. The antioxidants guard against free radicals which are the minute enemies that accelerate the aging process. The fruits and vegetables should be taken in different varieties since some help in gaining and lose of weight.

Raw food majority contain more minerals and stronger life energy. Some fruits which help in enhancing beauty are; fresh summer fruits such as peaches, plums and nectannes. They are good sources of antioxidants and other phynonutrients. Antioxidants are essential for protecting skin from damaging ultraviolet rays and they are more effective when more than one is present.

Yogurt contains natural acids and antioxidants also found in some fruits. This nourishes and lightly exfoliates skin, while oil released from walnuts gives softness and sheen to the skin. Berries contains antioxidants and natural ant inflammatory compounds that help repair skin and prevents further damage by neutralizing free radicals in your body, to control wrinkles you can take olive oil and cantaloupe. These maintain a dewy healthy skin since they have antioxidants that help pores stay clear. The fruits also contain high carotene content which keeps skin cells healthy. Soya contains estrogen that stimulates connective tissues and promotes healthy skin. Green vegetables also help to clear pimples and black heads such vegetables are; spinach dietary. They help in reducing inflammation and neutralize cell damaging agents. You can get five or six servings of leafy greens per week together with a daily serving of orange vegetables like carrots, pumpkins and peppers. They contain beta carotene which is converted in to vitamin A in the body which heals the damaged skin tissues.

Brightly colored fruits and vegetables are full of vitamins A C and E which helps in healing wounds, since they help from connective tissues such fruits include, apricot, carrots, kales, collards, mango, spinach and sweet potato. They contain vitamin A vitamin C is contained in; chili peppers, grape fruit, pineapple, cabbage plums and orange, you are required to take the above fruits in a right quantity as follows; take at least one serving of vitamin A – rich fruit or vegetables a day, one serving of vitamin C – rich fruit or vegetables a day.

Caution

There are some fruits and vegetables that can worsen the skin condition. For instance, rosacea is a skin condition characterized by facial redness and swelling. It can be triggered by re, black and white pepper. Eczema symptoms can be worsened by peanuts, soya, and tomatoes. You are therefore required to avoid some fruits and vegetables that trigger any of the skin conditions.

You must be careful with the way you handle the fruits and vegetables when preparing or eating them. You should wash your hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds before and after handling food, especially fresh whole fruits and vegetables. Rinse raw produce in warm water. Do not use soaps or other detergents. You can use a small scrub brush to remove surface dirt. While cutting use smooth durable non- absorbent cutting boards that can be cleaned and sanitized easily. The cutting boards should be washed by hot water, soap and scrub brush to remove food particles. You can then sanitize the board.

People whose immune system may be compromised, for example, if you are very old, you have chronic illness or you are under a certain medication, you should stick to pasteurized juices and adder, since pasteurization kills harmful levels of bacteria found in food. Avoid fruits and vegetables that look brownish, slimy or dried out when buying them. This is an indication that they have been stored under poor conditions. When you want to lose weight, take fewer calories daily. This includes fruits and vegetables that are high in nutrients and low in calories such as tomatoes, cantaloupe, strawberries and broccoli. They will make you feel ‘full’ hence consuming fewer calories. You should also take water to keep your skin soft and smooth.

Care of the Nails

Good nails are essential in natural beauty. Dry cracked and bitten off nails reduces beauty of hands and feet. Diet is key to keeping healthy nails. Polishing them also improves their states. Clean them sufficiently. Never use a steep cleaner as it hardens them and causes dirt accumulation beneath. In addition French amandine is excellent to soften and prevent breaking off and becoming dull. One needs town a manicure set for proper care thus , nail brush, a still smaller one to go under the nail, a file, a polishing brush, curved scissors, a pair for each hand, nails of the right hand cannot be successfully cut with scissors made for cutting the nails off the left hand.

Home Care

Caring of nails can be done at home. One needs to deliberately use hands by using the ball of your finger and your knuckles instead of your nails. Also, use proper tools in operating implements. For instance, don’t use your nails as screw drivers to open or fasten nails and lids. Putting your nails to chemicals that are harsh threatens your nails always wear gloves while gardening, washing and heavy duty cleaning leaving your hands in water for long this breaks the adhesivesity of the nails. Finally, hand cream should be applied whenever washing your hands. This promotes a healthy skin and flexibility of your nails. Nails last longer when right measure is put on them. As much as possible, maintain your nails 2 – 3 weeks. This is by re-filling and re-shaping them. Polish, and re – balance if desired.

Nail Maintenance and Service

Maintenance of nails is vital. One can preventively maintain nails to avoid product lighting and formation of bacteria between the product and yourself. Do this by applying solar oil to your cuticles daily. In case you want to change your nail color follow the instructions; wash your hands with an antibacterial soap, apply hand cream, gently push back your cuticles with an orange stick, use non – acetone polish remover to remove your polish, applying one thin coat of base coat is recommended and give yourself enough drying time. Do not change your polish more than once a week for this can leave deposits on your nails. For a broken nail repair is paramount thoroughly clean and dry the nail tip. Any moisture on the nail can lead to bacterial green patch on the nail bed. Too, apply a small amount of nail glue to the broken area. Then, re-position the tip back into place. Apply a small amount of nail glue over the crack, wipe away the excess quickly with a paper towel; use filler powder to fill any gaps if necessary. After the glue sets, use a white block buffer to smooth out the area. Finally re – apply color and top coat.

To repair a lift, wash hands with an antibacterial soap and pour a small amount of alcohol into the lifting product to kill any bacterial germs trapped. Apply a blow dryer to enhance speed evaporation of the liquid. A small amount of nail glue under the product and messing down firmly to remove air pockets is also of profound importance. Avoid any nail glue contact with the skin as it will cause more lift. After settling, the glue should be buffed with a white block buffer. Finally, wipe away excess dust and re – apply polish and top coat. For greater looks of nails the following is a must, eat calcium rich foods, zinc containing meals are also important to promote nail growth. Spots on nails mean lack of the two minerals. Consume less sugar and less alcohol. Don’t bite your nails. Don’t remove hanging nails by pulling. Clip them with manicure scissors to prevent skin damage. Also eat fewer salinated fats. To prevent breakages, keep your nails short, ensure your diet is full of proteins. Increase your intake of vitamins A, B, C, D and E. Often, moisturize them and reduce the amount of dairy in your diet. Trimming nails regularly is important in nails management.

Caring for Teeth

We all need teeth to chew and speak clearly. Our teeth also affect the appearance of our faces as well as the all-important smile. It is therefore important to look after them properly by maintaining good oral hygiene, including tooth brushing, visiting your dentist for checkups often and taking a proper diet.

Tooth Decay

Teeth decay when a thin, sticky layer forms on the surface. The layer, called plaque, contains many bacteria. When you eat sugary foods, the bacteria in the plaque turn the sugar into the energy they need, producing acid at the same time. This acid softens and dissolves the hard surface covering the teeth, in turn slowly producing the cavity. This surface that is affected is called enamel. The whole process in which this cavity is formed is known as demineralization, or simply tooth decay (caries).

When the cavity reaches the dentine, which is the white substance underneath the enamel one starts feeling pain since this substance is sensitive to pain unlike the enamel which doesn’t contain any nerves. Saliva that is produced in our mouth, lips to wash away and neutralize the acid also contains minerals that replace those lost from the enamel during the acid attack, in a process called remineralization. Demineralization and remineralization are processes repeated anytime we eat or drink.

Brushing of Teeth

Caring for teeth properly means that when we brush our teeth the kind of toothbrush and the brand of toothpaste we use matter a lot. The toothbrush should be the one with soft bristles which helps in gradually removing plaque without injury to the gums and teeth. We can easily make toothpaste at home, for example the strawberry toothpaste which is very effective for making teeth strong and clean. Strawberries have many properties that bleach and clean teeth, and these are very useful in removing tea and coffee stains from the teeth. We can also make toothpaste from hydrogen peroxide by mixing a teaspoon of baking soda and half a teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide. we can then use this mixture at least one day in a week. This is very useful to reduce tartar and stain.

We should brush our teeth twice a day as a way of caring for teeth –in the morning after breakfast and at night. When we brush our teeth in the morning, it helps in removing plaque formed during the night since calculus develops after breakfast and bacteria activities occur at night. Brushing teeth at night helps in cleaning the surface of the tooth from food debris. Brush your teeth with little strokes by giving pressure to the tooth using the toothbrush with round tips to the surface of the tooth. The soft bristle of the toothbrush should reach the surface of the mouth. Here are some steps you should follow when brushing your teeth:

1. brush the teeth from the outer part of the front of the teeth gradually,
2. after this, brush the internal part of the lower section of the teeth,
3. then brush the inner surface of the upper section of the teeth. Then the chewing surface gently,
4. to end with the process move the bristles of the toothbrush to a complete section of the tongue to reduce deposits forming a plaque.

Dental Hygiene and Your Child’s Teeth

Caring for teeth for your baby should begin the very first point after birth. This can be done by wiping the baby’s gums with a soft, damp cloth after the baby is fed before the teeth appear. When the teeth appear, use a soft children’s toothbrush on them twice a day. At school age, you can start using fluoride toothpaste in small amounts since fluoride helps in making teeth strong by hardening the tooth enamel. Fluoride is contained in most our drinking water and if your water doesn’t contain it, you can give fluoride tablets to your child at the age of six months. Cavities are majorly caused by taking a lot of sweet liquids and sugary snacks or foods. Prevent cavities in your child’s teeth through by regularly cleaning them. It’s also important to consider what you eat and if you can, avoid sugary foods and drinks. Visit your dentist at least twice year with your child.

Care of Hands

Each and every one of us, particularly women all want beautiful and well kept hands for it is said that hands tell a stranger so much more about you than your mouth itself! And for women, how old you are. That’s how important our hands are to us as they also inform others of how well you lead your life and care about your skin and body. So, don’t be caught wearing all the fancy clothes there’s to be worn but having unkempt hands. Care of hands is what gives you the beautiful hands you aspire for.

The beauty of hand that we’re talking about here is not confined to shape only but to the texture, skin tint, the nails, skin quality and even the manner in which you use your hands. The short and long of it is that the ideal hand is one that has tapering fingers that are smooth. Care for your knotty or square fingers by pressing out the ends, and if you want a white skin, a firm palm, supple and firm wrists as well as well kept nails and fingers, you should go for a manicure, a massage or constantly clean them. It’s clear no one wants hands that are either too thin or too fat, hence the more the need for the right diet accompanied by massage and special exercises to correct any anomalies of these nature. Let’s now look at some ways of taking care of your hands.

Hygiene and Care of Hands

You ‘mistreat’ and ‘abuse’ our hands so much in everyday activity, yet they remain our accessory number one. It is thus imperative that you accord your hands the same attention that you give your face mainly through simple hygiene. Always soften your hands even if you’re doing dishes by adding about a teaspoon of almond oil to the dishwater. This will soften rough skin with the oil sealing the moisture. Care of hands by cleaning them your with sea salt lemon solution as this will slough off the dead cells on your skin. Using a toothbrush to do this two times a week will surely remove any discoloration while at the same time softening your hands. Use warm water to thoroughly wash your hands and follow this with a coarse washcloth rubbing firmly. With the skin being slightly moisturized, apply a mixture of a teaspoon of honey and an equal measure of olive oil then place your hands in small plastic bags. From here, place the hands in a pair of cotton gloves for half an hour. Heat generated from this procedure makes sure treatment penetrates. You could also soak your hands in warm milk for five minutes to make your nails stronger while hydrating your skin. The high calcium ingredients in milk will make your nails stronger while the lactic acid will gently exfoliate dead skin.

Nail Care

Use lemon juice to whiten the skin of your hand and clean the nails and apply Vaseline to keep your nails firm especially after doing dishes in hot water. A woman may use an ivory pusher or an orange stick to push back cuticle from the nails that normally occurs after cold cream or Vaseline is applied. A word of caution though: don’t cut the cuticle on your own – let your nail professional do it. When you opt for a manicure, always ensure that the orange stick is covered well with absorbent cotton or some bit of silk. And before you carry out a manicure, soak your nails in soapy, hot water and sterilize the nail brush. Use paste first when you polish nails, avoiding application of powder until after the process. It is a good practice to manicure your nails at home on your own at least two times in a fortnight. Don’t know the products to use? Carmine gives a pleasing tint that is pink in color and should be used as the paste. Use liquid polish only, but not polish varnishes that produce a sheen, as they are usually best for your nails.

Care of Feet

Persons suffering from diabetes normally suffer from feet problems because if left uncontrolled, diabetes may lead to poor blood flow and circulation, causing damage to our body nerves. For these persons, early notice and care should be taken in caring for their feet as a way of preventing or significantly delaying several problems that affect feet. Paying poor attention to this cause of foot problems only puts you into avoidable dangers which may include amputation.

Feet problems are, however, not limited to those suffering from diabetes as they also include smelly feet, verrucae, corns, infected toenails and athlete’s foot. Smelly feet arise out of excessive perspiration and bacterial and fungal overgrowth, verrucae are those flat warts in the foot sole, which may appear in clusters under the skin with the surface grey and crumbly accompanied by small, black points which usually are swollen blood vessels. Verrucae are contagious and can get to you from wet floors. Corns, on the other hand, are the hard skin formed on the areas of your feet that bear much pressure and friction for example the little toe. Fungal infection also leads to infected toenails which are usually brittle, discolored and yellowish.

Preventing Feet Problems

Sometimes, damaged blood vessels may make your feet fail to get enough blood supply. The same problem may lead to loss of feeling in your feet. Diabetes, as noted above is also a major cause of feet problems. All the three causes can gang together to bring much bigger problems from minor ones like blisters, ingrown toenails or calluses to such serious infections that might call for amputation. Taking good care of your feet thus makes it possible to ward off some of these problems to a good measure. Among other things, do check your feet daily for any sores, scratches or blisters that could be developing. Any foot pain, coldness, shiny appearance on your skin, or loss of hair on the toes or feet as wells as thickened nails are signs that you should inform your doctor about. Having your doctor examine your feet annually is a good step take.

Prevention Through Exercise

Do some exercise so you can prevent edema (swells) from forming on your feet. Exercise also improves your blood circulation and flow. Remember to exercise in comfortable shoes and no exercise at all when you have open sores on your feet.

Keep Your Feet Warm

As much as possible, wash your feet everyday with warm water and soap. Keep the feet warm but at the same time keeping them away from hot surfaces like water heaters, fire, and water bottles.

Good Hygiene and Your Feet

Proper hygiene is crucial in the prevention of feet problems. Use foot tub to clean your feet before inspecting them. Warm water is always the best to clean your feet, using nondrying soaps only. You should never soak your feet in water as this can result in washing away essential skin oils that normally provide natural protection to the feet. After washing your feet, rinse soap off and completely dry the feet using a clean and dry towel while remembering to clean between your toes. Apply a moisturizing cream or lotion to feet soles and tops to prevent your skin from over drying, rubbing it gently leaving out areas between your toes as lotion in these places might lead to increased moisture causing skin to peel off paving way for infections. A talcum power if well used ensures that area between toes remains dry.

Don’t Walk Barefoot

Walking barefoot increases your risk of sustaining cuts mainly in places with broken glass like at the local beach or in parks in the city. So don’t try it at all. Walking barefoot on hot surfaces like those of asphalt or concrete is not advisable for blisters will form. Shoes, apart from comfort also protect your feet. However, avoid shoes which expose your toes and heels – like open-toed shoes and sandals – as these types increase the risk of feet injury and infections. Wear new shoes for short periods only, usually not exceeding one hour at a time while avoiding tight socks making sure those you wear are only natural-fiber ones – cotton, cotton-wool blend or just plain wool.

Fashion Tips for Women

You definitely have come across the clique ‘dress right for your type.’ Ever wondered what it means? This is well known to all and it underlies the whole idea of fashion. It is every woman’s dream to look as smashing as a supermodel. In this regard, all manner of accusations have been leveled against women chief among them ‘visual pollution’ disguised as fashion. Some fashion styles adopted have drawn criticism and even led to social ostracism. For a woman, fashion is not merely wearing fashion clothing. It is something you can endear yourself to. Modern fashion should be consistent with your personality and fashion trend. Your skin tone, personal attitude, comfort level, body frame and other factors that determine what we can call your fashion statement.

Skin Tone

If your complexion is fair, gold blended with copper would look great. If you are medium-colored, mixed shades of white, beige and bronzy-golden would be ideal. The darker the skin tone, the more you should consider going for goldenish copper shades.

Comfort Level and Personal Attitude

Your comfort level impacts significantly on your choice of style. If you do not mind wearing western outfits while maintaining a smart urban look, Indo-Western style would boost on your charm and personality. if you are shy and of the introverted type, you could look better in a sari with boat-necked blouses. And if you are bold and outspoken, you can opt for sleeveless, deep-necked blouses or even with straps.

Body Frame

If you are plump, wear dark colors and avoid sleeveless cuts. If you wish to wear lighter shades, then go for dull colors instead of sky blue or dirty blue. Small prints and vertical lines give a slimmer look. Avoid cotton saris if you are heavily built. Instead clothe yourself in chiffon and georgette saris. If you are of a medium structure, you should choose beige and faun colors. Netted blouses are idea as they fit well in all colors. The bottom-line is, your style of fashion should coincide with your personality. For the best results, figure out your body type then follow tips specific to your weight, height and age. Some of these tips are:

For Tips for All Women

Always wear free flowing fabrics in one tone to help attain a long and slim look. Comp up with your own fashion statements and desist from blindly aping fashion trends. You could invest in a basic wardrobe, bags and shoes. The rest can be mixed and matched. Wear belts if you have an extremely thin waist. Exercise caution when adding accessories as they speak more about you than your clothes. You should always check the wash care instructions before picking cloths lest you buy something whose maintenance is higher than its cost. Importantly, wear only your size and ensure your jeweler blends in with your attire.

Fashion Tips For Tall Women

Do not wear short skirts. Tall women should wear tops over skirts to limit weight around the waistline. Long skirts make you look taller so avoid them. Buy clothes to suit your shape and check proportions of clothes before putting them on. You can alternate scarves, jackets and belts as you re-arrange the clothes to get the desired look. Wear clothes that fit since too large clothes do exaggerate your figure, something you may not want.

Fashion Tips for Petite Women

You shouldn’t wear high collared clothes. Wear long necklaces and deep necks to lengthen your neck.

Tips for Pear Shaped Women

Women with this body type should not wear tapered skirts. You should wear tops with little soft shoulder pads. Wearing light-colored tops and dark colors on the lower body gives you more attention.

Tips for Apple-Shaped Women

You can wear light and thin materials on the top and use pleating on skirts to draw attention. You should, however, avoid clingy tops. V-necks also make you look smaller than you actually are.

In conclusion, do not buy clothes on impulse. Be scientific in a way about shopping, considering your body type and colors, asking yourself some basic questions: is it appropriate? Does it match my lifestyle? Can I wear it over a season? Think in terms of outfits as you shop such that you have accessories to go with your new purchase.

Care of Eyes

Contact lenses and glasses are a common phenomenon today among the old as well as the young. Reason? Eye problems. The truth is however, we can do something about this problem. And that is taking care of our eyes. Don’t shun this if you think that your perfect 20/20 vision is enough to make you feel complacent; protect your eyes from injury and infection is key to maintaining it.

Care of Eyes

Wearing Glasses

Sunglasses can help you protect your eyes from ultraviolet A and B radiation from the sun. this is due to the fact that over-exposure to ultraviolet light will normally cause eye damage especially by making cataracts appear on your eyes faster. Buy and wear sunglasses that are right, that is, those offering maximum UV shielding. Corrective sunglasses and contact lenses are also worth trying, but only after a doctor prescribe for you. In addition to care of eyes from radiation emanating from the sun, glasses are also important to prevent eye injuries. They should be worn while one is playing or working for this purpose, as some play and work items may cause permanent eye damage like baseball, racquetballs and pokes and any sharp objects in the garden that fly when hit especially metallic items like old nails rotting in your compound.

Reducing Glare

Glare or excessive light to your eyes is a major cause leading to eyestrain especially among computer users. You should therefore control the amount of light there’s in the room where you’re using a computer by drawing curtains or blinds for effective control of light levels through the entire period you are working on your computer. While at this, do avoid facing un-shaded window for the difference in brightness between the computer screen and the area behind it could bring about eye stress or discomfort. The most effective method of care of your eyes in this case is the use of an anti-glare screen on your computer. Also, avoid working in dimly lit rooms as this causes eyestrain. Right lighting will mostly make your reading and other close tasks easier.

Constantly Check the Contacts You’re Wearing

We blink less while working at a computer, as we concentrate more and more on the work we’re doing. For those using contact lenses, this is very stressful to their eyes as the long non-blinking faces many a time leads to the drying out of the contact lenses surface leading to much discomfort and loss of visual clarity. If this is your problem, you may find a solution in Acuvue Oasys – contact lenses that make your eyes feel more comfortable regardless of whether you stare at a computer or TV screen for prolonged periods. As you do this, the best ergonomics at your computer desk depending on your visual capabilities and work tasks, by usually placing the screen five to nine inches below your horizontal line of sight making it easy to look just over the top of your computer monitor while seated in a straight-ahead gaze.

Allow yourself breaks from the computer screen as the eyes are not meant to stare at a close distance for long. You’ll thus reduce the visual stress by sometimes facing away from the screen. A good break is the one that 20/20/20 rule. That is to say, you take a 20-second break after every 20 minutes, while focusing your eyes on points that are 20 feet from your computer terminal. In a nutshell, keep roving your eyes as you look at objects at various distances.

Undergo Tests Regularly

If you’re diabetic, check on your sugar level as diabetic retinopathy is a major cause of blindness in the world. Have your blood pressure checked as retina vessels get significantly affected, sometimes leading to vision loss when you suffer from high blood pressure.

Quit smoking if you can since the over 400 chemicals in that single stick of cigarette aren’t good at all for your retina especially since they may clog it; but eat more fruits and vegetables as these, especially green leafy vegetables, have lots of antioxidants that aid the retina ward off any harmful effects.

Body Oils

Nowadays, various oils exist for various parts of the body of a human being. Most of these oils are free of chemicals and safe for most people when applied in the various body parts or the whole body. Oils that can correctly be referred to as Body Oils include essential oils like almond oil, sesame oil, olive oils, coconut oil and tea tree oil, all of which are applied in various parts of a person’s body. These are not the only ones; papaya plant oil and passion fruit oil are also in this category. These oils may contain ingredients such as cedar, rose, bergamot or even rose as well as vitamins such as E. Body oils can be grouped according to the areas they’re most applied on such as feet, hair, hands or eyes.

Oil For Eyes

For use in this category we have almond oil and Vitamin E oil that are very effective in reducing the dark circles under our eyes. A few drops of almond or Vitamin E oil are applied right under the area of the eye.

Oil For Hands

A mixture of olive and almond oil can be used before retiring to bed in the evening. Achieve softer and stronger hands through regular application of this mixture.

Oil For the Feet

Get rid of cracked heels through use of the effective antidote that is essential oils. This should be in the form of massages with several drops of essential oil, done regularly. Before jumping to bed, dip your feet into a little tub containing a few drops of olive oil in it. This should be done for just a few minutes. Remove your feet and use a soft cloth to wipe them neatly. Freshen up your feet now using a good amount of cold cream then wearing cotton socks.

Oils For the General Body

Use sesame oil to rip the benefits of a very smooth and soft skin. You could also combine this oil with coriander, lemongrass or bergamot for better results still. If cellulite has attacked you, remember to take a hot bath in water containing a few drops of any essential oil. Essential oils here are used to block pores in the skin. You can substitute sesame or any of the mentioned oils with vegetable oils for example olive or jojoba to achieve the same results.

Oil For the Hair

Many oils exist for use with your hair. If you have normal hair, use coconut oil for best results while those with dry hair should try mustard oil that does some good job on that. You could also try Emu oil or almond that work well for most people. Use aroma and vegetable oils mixed together if your hair is the oily type. And finally, reduce dandruff in your hair by using any vegetable oil that contains castor. Aloe vera effectively gives you a shiny and glossy-looking hair.

Oils For Your Face

A massage on your face using jojoba oil has been proven to work especially if you have a dry or normal skin should go for jojoba as it is effective. Sage on the other hand suits those with oily skins and so do camphor, peppermint, cypress and clove. If your skin is sensitive, do try olive oil for its moisturizing effect. And proper use of aloe vera removes inflammation and irritation in the sensitive skin.

Making Your Own Body Oil

What you need:
2 sprigs of larkspur
½ cup dried rose petals
½ cup safflower oil
½ cup sweet almond oil
4 drops of Vitamin E oil
4 drops of rose essential oil

Caution: don’t use fresh rose petals or dried ones from potpourris. Consult your local store for pesticide-free and preservative-free dried petals.

Note: don’t be frustrated too much if you don’t get dried flowers – they’re for decorative purposes only. Instead, you may want to try dried organically grown herbs.

Formula: pour all the different oils into a bottle big enough to hold 1 ½ cups of liquid and cap it. Shake well before each use. This is enough body oil for 12 good months.

Beauty Sleep

Beauty sleep is a complete, good rest that helps drastically reduce stress hormones. A good sleep is one of those freebies that nature has bequeathed us as it is perhaps the beauty treatment that you will obtain for nothing. Imagine exchanging those beauty creams, make up and facials for a free, sound sleep that gives you a fresh, glowing and relaxed look in all the places that you desire. Most of the skin medicines around contain is mild tranquilizer to help you relax, reducing stress on your skin muscles.

Importance of Beauty Sleep

It is a fact that lack of sleep leaves most people irritable but not many of us know that lack of a good sleep has untold consequences on your skin. Beauty sleep is also crucial in maintaining your general mental and physical health. During sleep your skin gets an opportunity to be hydrated. When you’re asleep, syperhydrators attract moisture to the skin and also prevent it from evaporating from the surface of the skin. Increasingly, evidence indicates that our skins are more receptive to vital active ingredients while we sleep as they’re not being destroyed by pollution, sun or make up that are there during the day.

A good beauty sleep improves the texture of the skin, especially if it is eight hours of sleep each night. During the night, skin-destroying and other harmful effects arising out of stress are fought off. However, puffy bags, fine lines or left dark circles, are all harmful consequences of sleep deprivation. With no proper sleep that your body requires you end up looking older with your skin drier than before. Enough sleep allows your skin to renew and refresh itself, further enhancing your skin’s good health and beauty.

Steps to Achieve Beauty Sleep

Experts on sleep tell us that eight hours of sleep is the standard requirement. However, our bodies differ and hence you need to know how many hours your body requires for some require less and others more. But it is agreed that anything between six and eight hours is the ideal. So how do you achieve good sleep?

Take a Relaxing Bath Before Sleep

A relaxing, bath before you sleep will bring about sleep. Allocate half an hour to a relaxing bath, brushing your teeth and hair after which you can take a glass of warm milk. You can also cleanse your face after this. All these activities prepare you for a beauty sleep. Remember not to light up the bathroom vividly as this will make your body stop producing the melatonin hormone that induces sleep. The chemistry behind a relaxing bath is that when your body temperature goes up immediately after the bath, by the time you sleep it will fall significantly hence causing sleep.

Establish A Bedtime Routine

Form a routine that you can adhere to before going to sleep. It could be that you practice yoga, deep breathing or you get a massage from your partner. Look for some simple, relaxing routine that you’ll be able to follow to help your body release tensions it may have suffered during the day. Try to rearrange your evenings to see that you get some time to help your body relax before sleeping. Remember that you shouldn’t change your bedtime so be strict in ensuring that you sleep, wake up at the same times every day, including the weekends as this helps your body acquire a sleep rhythm that regulates it when the times come; if it’s sleep time, your body knows – same to wake up time.

Exercise Regularly

A 30-minute exercise daily will help you get sleepy and ensure a good sleep at night. Make time for exercise especially in the mornings if your schedule can allow it. Taking a gentle walk after dinner or just a quiet stroll will help get you in the mood to sleep. this not withstanding, exercise should be avoided late at night or too close to bedtime.

PEDICURE

With its origin from Latin words Pedis; foot and Cura, cure. Therefore, pedicure means the care given to our feet, legs and toe nails. Largely it is a way to improve the look of our feet and their nails. The purpose of pedicure is diverse. For us to avoid hard and scale-like skins, pedicure is fundamental. When we pedicure, our skins remain soft and smooth. Related to this, we pedicure to keep our nails clean, well-shaped and shiny. Many a people do not care keeping their feet clean, fair and in good condition. Giving your feet a pedicure achieves this. Above all, blood circulation in the body is vital to good health. Pedicure improves this, by nourishing the leg skin and foot muscles.

For us to achieve the goals of pedicure, we should have a number of items. Among these Hydrogen Peroxide, nail cutters, nail flier, bleach Pumice stone, cuticle scissors, nail paint buffer, sponge, lukewarm water, small tub for foot bath pedicure shampoo, antiseptic lotion, oil, cream and foot powder and many others that maybe necessary. With all this, one needs to understand procedures for a good pedicure to be achieved.

How to Do a Pedicure

Some of the steps involved are: Removing polish from nails should be done with a lint-free cotton pad. Saturate the cotton on the nail and let it soak first. Note that rubbing Whitening toothpaste on one’s nails helps remove the polish faster. Lemon or lavender oil drops on each nail and rubbing a buffer back and forth over the nail also works. 2. Alcohol and acetone-free removers are less drying, but don’t apply on shades that appear dark. ‘Free’ stuff is used on lighter shades. Following the removal of polish from nails is clipping nails. Use quality clippers to cut straight across just above the skin the nail should not extend the tip of your toe. Files maybe used to achieve this.

Soaking one’s feet is the third step. Warm bath salted water and aromatherapy oils are used when soaking feet. Soak your feet for at least 10 minutes. Stay longer if your feet are cracked and callus. Add some milk to your bath along with essential oils and salts to loosen dead skin. Trim cuticles. Application of cuticle remover nail bases for a minute and using an orangewood stick, pushing with a circular motion removes dead skin on top of the nail allows you not to touch toe flesh. Scrubbing your feet: Apply foot scrub to a foot file or wet pumice stone to remove dead skin on balls and heels of your feet. To remove dead skin around balls, bottoms and sides of your heels and the toes. Sit on the side of the bath tub to achieve a coverage position. Stop if your feet turn bright red for this means your feet have scrubbed too hard. Dry feet thoroughly between toes and rub in a thick foot cream. Rehydrate the cuticles in a dab of cuticle oil.

After the above step, polish your toes. Use acetone remover to remove excess oils on the nails. Apply a thin base coat using 3 strokes, one down, the middle, and one on each side. Don’t paint the cuticle. Wait for a minute. Add 2 favorable coats of polish. Finish with a thin top coat. Clean any errors with an orangewood stick wrapped in cotton and dipped in acetone remover. Let the nails to dry for 40 minutes. To prevent chipping, paint any polish remaining on the brush over the front edges of the nails. Finally finish up, after the nails have died. Sprits with a moisturizing oil to set your polish and moisturize your cuticles. This will give you a good pedicure.

Take Care

Apply antiseptics if skin is broken, avoid excessive friction when buffing nails, avoid dropping sharp objects, keep hands dry when handling containers, label & cover implements used, do not file nails deeply, bluntened sharp edged implement and always sanitize hands before starting pedicuring.