The Healthy Bee

Since sunlight is a large part of our lives, many people tend to forget about the sun’s harmful effects on skin. While sun is a great source of warmth and happiness, it can also have negative impact on our lives — especially when it comes to beauty and aging.

Sunlight can be responsible for premature aging, skin cancer, and many other skin defects. Almost 90% of symptoms associated with premature skin aging are attributed to the ultraviolet lights (UVA or UVB) that come from the sun. These lights speed up the aging process by breaking down elastin and collagen in the skin.

Most other changes in the skin (that were once attributed to aging) have now been linked to extended exposure of UV radiation. Overexposure to ultraviolet radiation has a profoundly negative effect on a person’s beauty, due to the adverse effects on the skin.

UVA rays penetrate well into the skin while damaging collagen – a protein responsible for holding the skin together in a firm and smooth manner. The broken down collagen structure manifests as wrinkles – the most common symptom of aging. To make matters worse, the broken structure of collagen is incapable or re-building itself, which is why loss of collagen is a huge threat to beauty and skin care.

Overexposure to the sun can also result in freckles and sunspots, which are often found on various body parts such as face, legs, hands, etc. Freckles and sunspots generally develop upon the skin of those that sunbathe regularly.

Interestingly, suntans (which are often considered a sign beauty and health) are also the result of skin damage caused by exposure to sun. Suntans are caused by the production of melanin (the dark pigment responsible for a tanned appearance) that can only increase with exposure to the sun. In short, tanned skin is burned skin.

Sunburns are, yet another, result of the negative impact of sun on your skin. Sunburns happen when UV rays penetrate deep inside the layers of the skin killing the living cells. The body responds to this damage by increasing the blood flow in the affected area, so that the white blood cells can remove the dead cells — this abnormal blood flow results in the skin becoming warm and red causing sunburn. Scientists have also gathered substantial evidence that links sunburns to DNA damage. Additionally, recurring sunburns significantly increase chances of skin cancer development.

Although nobody can escape from the negative impact of the sun, it is important to protect your skin. Using quality health and beauty products that are made from natural ingredients is a good way to keep your skin safe. These basic skin protection rules will keep your skin safe from the sun…and you will also be able to avoid pre-mature aging.

Apply sunscreen with an SPF of 15 (or more) to all parts of your body (especially your face) before you head out into the sunshine. Applying moisturizer after enjoying the sun can also be beneficial. Lastly, it’s important to keep a close eye on your skin. If you spot anything out of the ordinary, make sure to visit with your dermatologist.



By: Jerzy George

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These days there are many skin care products in the market. Sometimes, it can be quite an ordeal to choose the best antiaging creams. As it is, each one of us has a different skin types that have different requirements. Moreover, new products are flooding the market with new claims of defying age and restoring beautiful skin. A layman can be quite muddled in the plethora of these anti aging face creams. However, there are a few ways that can help you to make out a good anti aging face cream from not so good one.

Whilst on a hunt for the anti aging skin cream, pay special attention to the products that have sun protection. The UV rays from the sun are quite damaging to the skin and are responsible for causing aging signs like wrinkles and blemishes. Since the face is the most exposed to the sunlight than any other body part, it is important to go for creams that have sun protection. A daily application of anti aging skin care cream with sun protection will ensure that your face does not age due to sun exposure.

Another important factor in determining the right kind of anti aging cream is to look for a cream that is “cosmeceutical” which is a combination of cosmetic and medicinal cream. In other words, the best anti aging face cream will not only make you look younger, it will also heal and remove aging signs from your skin. An ideal anti aging cream should include constituents like vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin D and Vitamin E. Minerals such as selenium, zinc, lycopene and antioxidants also help in healing the skin. Other ingredients such as herbal extracts also help in the lightening up of the skin tone and inhabiting melanin formation in the skin. When you decide to choose an anti aging cream, be sure that the cream contains all or most of these components

Though dermatologists and researches have classified our skin types into four major skin types such as dry skin, oily skin, normal skin and combination skin, the fact is that each person’s skin is uniquely different. Hence, the anti aging face cream will primarily depend on your face and skin type. You also need to decide on what the anti aging cream needs to accomplish. Is it to prevent the aging of the skin or to remove the already occurring signs of aging? Read the product description and the ingredients label to decide which one suits your skin best.

If you are still unable to decide on the best antiaging creams, then you need to consult a skin specialist such as an esthetician or dermatologist. There are many people who feel buying a cheaper anti aging cream would be a good solution. However, most of the time, this can back fire causing you to only have more problems with your skin. Cheap creams from unknown companies may not have the quality control that the branded creams enjoy. So even though you may spend some extra money, it is wiser to buy a branded and a tested anti aging cream rather than going for some cheap imitation.



By: Ray A. Rubio

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