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You only need to take a quick look around the Internet to discover the many preparations available for those that are affected by dark skin spots on their skin. Sometimes it is just a darker skinned woman who wants a lighter tone to their dark skin, but other times the dark skin is caused by hyperpigmentation. Whatever the reason, you can get help with the aid of a homemade skin lightener.

There is more to lightening skin than just the correct product. You will have to find an effective method of skin lightening if you want to achieve success. The cause of dark skin spots, age spots or freckles is the melanin content in the skin. It is melanin that determines the color of our skin. If the melanin is unevenly distributed the dark spots or age spots can occur. So along with a homemade skin lightener you will need to find a proper method as well.

When you decide to try a homemade skin lightener the first thing you will need to check for is the safety of the product. Many recipes contain completely natural ingredients and are very safe for the skin. Others, however, have been found to contain ingredients like hydroquinone, mercury and steroids are found in other homemade or illegally made treatments. Hydroquinone has been shown to cause skin cancer and is not something you will want to put on your skin. Mercury can poison the blood and steroids cause the skin to thin and can cause unsightly stretch marks. Does that sound like something you want to treat your skin? Many people have had disastrous results when they included these ingredients in their homemade skin lightener.

Ingredients like kojic acid, which can be found in mushrooms, has been shown to have a good skin lightening effect. Also the extract from licorice plants and papaya fruit have skin lightening properties. These are the kind of ingredients you may wish to include in your homemade skin lightener. It is necessary to get the right potency of these plants for them to be of any use at all. Check out your local health food store for some of these ingredients to try in your homemade skin lightener.

While you are using a homemade skin lightener you should be sure to wear a good protective sunscreen. UVA and UVB rays from the sun are responsible for the tanning of our skin, skin cancer and premature aging. Stay out of the sun during its most potent time of day, which is between the hours of 10 AM and 3 PM. Sunscreen cannot do the job alone; you must do your part to protect your skin from the damaging sun with the use of hats and clothing.

Vitamin C in a 500 mg supplement taken every day while you are using a skin lightening product can help reduce the production of melanin by your skin. You will not see results with just the vitamin so you are better off using a supplement during your skin lightening treatment. Add this daily supplement to the treatment you are trying with your homemade skin lightener

Skin lighteners can have a drying effect on the skin so make sure you use a good moisturizer while you are trying a homemade skin lightener. Helping your skin maintain its youthful and dewy look will go a long way to helping you look younger and healthy. And along with a homemade skin lightener, that can make you look more beautiful each day.

Looking for a solution for age spots that works? We were too.

We purchased several of the top skin lighteners and skin brighteners on the market and put them to the test. Read our reviews to find out which ones worked and which you should avoid entirely (some can actually do more harm than good).

If you’re struggling with dark spots on your skin, read our review before you buy anything else.

So below I’ve put together a quick list for you of a few of what I feel to be the top most important things, the “secret” if you will, to improving how you look and feel from the inside out. Really take a look at them and honestly ask yourself what areas of your own life could improve a little or maybe even a lot, and then start with just the first step.

1: Healthy Diet + Water + Exercise:
How is your diet? Are you eating a healthy, high fiber diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables? The truth is how healthy our skin is and how healthy we feel physically really comes down to how well we are treating our bodies by the food we put into it. If your daily diet contains a high level of sugar, fat or chemical additives, then what you’re doing is polluting your body as well as your skin with excess toxins that it may not be able to get rid of properly. Diseases such as cancer thrive on excess levels of sugar and fat in the body. On the other hand, fresh fruits and vegetables containing high levels of nutrients and antioxidants can prevent disease and some experts would even argue, cure disease. However, eating a regular diet with plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, fiber, good proteins and carbohydrates, as well as essential fatty acids, will significantly help the body improve its detoxification and a clean body means cleaner organs, blood and also skin.

In addition, be sure to also drink plenty of water. The body needs plenty of water for proper functioning of the organs and also in maintaining proper hydration of the skin. And don’t forget regular exercise too. Exercise is not only good for healthy weight management, it is also important for the body’s overall circulation and oxygenation. Exercise gets the “body’s juices going” and you just feel healthier and better overall after you’re done. So the first important secret to looking and feeling good from the inside out is having a healthier diet, drinking plenty of water and exercising regularly.

2: Take Natural Herbal Vitamin Supplements:
Are you taking any vitamins or supplements everyday? The next secret to looking and feeling good from the inside out is to take a good natural herbal vitamin supplement. With our busy and hectic schedules everyday, it really is very difficult to get all the recommended amounts of vitamins and nutrients our bodies need on a daily basis so taking a good natural herbal vitamin supplement in combination to a healthy diet, drinking plenty of water and regular exercise, I feel is also essential. Look for a complete “whole food” concentrated vitamin supplement that is rich in vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, fiber, antioxidants, good probiotic bacteria, digestive enzymes, and essential fatty acids.

These herbal supplements are excellent for increasing energy and vitality, promoting good circulation and bowel regularity, strengthening the body’s immunity and also reducing free radical damage. These herbal vitamin supplements can be found in a pill or capsule or also as a powder to combine with water. I prefer using the powder form with water because it also helps me increase my body’s fluid level. Whichever form you prefer, both will be very effective. So the second secret to looking and feeling good from the inside out is to take a good natural herbal vitamin supplement daily.

3: Have Good Skin Care Habits:
How are your skin care habits? Do you have good habits? Another secret to looking & feeling good from the inside out I thought important enough to add to this list is the importance of having good skin care hygiene and habits. For healthier skin, gently cleansing at least 1X-2X daily of all dirt, oil and impurities is essential. Also equally important is to exfoliate your skin at least 1X a week or more depending on your skin. Exfoliation is important because it helps unclog pores by extracting old dead skin cells from the skin’s outer layer surface. Exfoliation also helps control oil and improves the skin’s tone and texture leaving it looking newer and fresher in appearance.

Lastly, I recommend also using a good toner because no matter how well you have cleansed or exfoliated your skin, there is always some dirt, oil or debris remaining. However with a gentle, oil-free, natural toner, any remaining dirt, oil or impurities are removed, and the skin is left looking and feeling clean, fresh and naturally hydrated.

Download the free Natural Concealing Makeup, 5 Step Guide to Flawless, Beautiful Skin now at http://www.naturalconcealingmakeup.com/index.htm

For more quick & easy tips, tools, news and information so you can live a more natural, healthy, spiritual, and abundant life…

Subscribe now for the free monthly ezine, “Natural Life & Spirit” at http://www.naturallifeandspirit.com

By Laura K. Halik, expert author and internet marketer specializing in natural products and solutions for a healthier life and environment.

The skin is actually the largest organ of the human body and absorbs high levels of substances with which it comes into contact. After all, that is why we use many skin treatments and it is estimated that our skin absorbs 60% of chemicals it touches. More and more of us are becoming aware of what we eat in terms of avoiding synthetic ingredients, so surely the same should apply to our skincare? By using natural and organic products we can drastically reduce the amount of chemicals we absorb and benefit from an enormous range of natural products, many of which have been used effectively for hundreds of years.

It is not always easy to select which products to use, however, not least because items labelled ‘natural’ do not have to meet specific guidelines other than that 1% of the product’s ingredients must be natural! It is therefore important to carefully check product labels to ensure the true provenance of the ingredients. In the case of organic products, it is still possible that they may also include some chemicals so it is worth looking for the Soil Association certification symbol as they have strict guidelines about ingredients. The added benefit of organic products is the fact that the ingredients have been produced in an environmentally friendly manner.

There is now a wide range of natural and organic skincare products on the market, many of which are competitively priced against other products. They are available from online stores and also high street shops.

Hayley Jones is the Web Marketing Director for http://www.uk-energy-saving.com

For more on this topic go to http://www.uk-energy-saving.com/natural-beauty-products.html

To answer that question, one must under the skin as an actual organ, and differentiate between the natural aging process and unhealthy aging; yes, aging is natural!

The skin, the largest organ in the body, is responsible for many aspects of our health including immune function, heat and electrolyte balance, barrier function and of course, our “good looks!” The skin is made up of three basic layers: epidermis, dermis and subcutaneous fat. The epidermis, the most superficial layer of the skin, is made up mostly of skin cells called keratinocytes; this layer of the skin is the part of we often scrape off during shaving or light abrasions from falling off the bicycle. Damage to this layer does not cause scarring. The dermis, the middle section, is made up of collagen, elastin and a complex matrix that together provide support, elasticity and volume to our skin. Damage to this layer of the skin can result in permanent scarring. The deepest layer, called the subcutaneous fat or hypodermis, is responsible for not just volume, but our fat metabolism (obviously!), and heat control.

So what happens when we age? Well, we all age and that is just a fact of life! During natural aging, the skin begins to get thinner and we have a slower turn-around in generating new skin. We begin to lose volume in the face; i.e. we lose actual bone mass, get thinner dermis, and even subcutaneous fat (unfortunately in the areas we least like to lose fat!). If you were to look a young face, you will see that besides lacking rhytids (wrinkles) the younger face is round and voluminous; the nasolabial folds are full, the chin is prominent, the cheek bones are well delineated and the lips are full and everted. With aging, we get loss of mass in these areas and look “sunken”- in addition to getting wrinkles.

One can also accelerate the aging process even further without proper care for the skin. Main reasons why skin can age too quickly are sun damage, inadequate hydration, smoking and hormonal changes.

This brings us to the second question I encounter daily: “what can I do to look better?” This is a harder question because it depends on the individual’s bone structure, the level of skin damage present, any underlying medical problems, as well as desired effect to be achieved. In general however, there are many options available to address the multiple manifestations of aging. Brown spots, oily skin, and uneven skin pigmentation (usually an epidermal) can be addressed with bleaching creams, light cryotherapy, chemical peels as well as laser treatments. Red spots (telangiectasia) can also be addressed by electrosurgery as well as certain laser treatments.

However, wrinkles are a deeper and more complex problem and need a different approach. There are two forms of wrinkles: dynamic and at rest. Dynamic wrinkles are the result of movement and best respond to Botox. Wrinkles at rest can benefit from either deep chemical peels, certain, or certain laser treatments. Volume loss can also affect various areas of the face and can be corrected by fillers. Examples of fillers include Restylane, Jevederm, Radiesse and various formulations of collagen. It is important to use the correct filler product in the appropriate anatomical subunit of the face, using precise injection technique for that area. Please note that we have not mentioned surgery once! That is because the idea of pulling skin tighter and tighter is an outdated approach. While surgery is still the treatment of choice for certain aging scenarios, the new thinking in facial rejuvenation focuses on using a combination of various procedures named above to address the multiple manifestation, and underlying reasons for aging.

In short, the secret to sexy skin is simple: love your skin! It is up to you to protect and maintain its needs, so it can take care of you. Always, keep an eye on all the moles and have all new growths examined carefully by your dermatologist, avoid agents that accelerate aging, and use your sunscreens daily. Finally, consult your dermatologist when in doubt – put our lifetime of schooling to use!

Yours,
Tanya Kormeili, MD

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