Celebrating without a Wrinkle

Christmas is a joyous time when we celebrate the best in us as we become more focused on the needs of others.

And for mid life baby boomers this festive time can momentarily depress us with the sudden appearance of sagging skin at our cheeks or additional lines around our eyes and mouth- known or not known to us to be suggesting the negative occurrences in our bodies.

We put our personal needs aside to indulge our love ones. We exhaust ourselves shopping for just the right gifts and preparing to host and attending celebrations.

Then there are the late nights with too much food and drink - hopefully just - while partying.

Add in the cold dry weather and the decreasing sunshine to further challenge our bodies’ endurance.

So what can you do to minimize the affects of holiday celebrations on your looks and your health.

Here are 5 easy suggestions that will give you big results for your efforts.

Get enough sleep by napping before a late night. This “beauty sleep” will give you the energy to keep your metabolism optimal
Keep your skin moist to ensure capillary health and good circulation. A quick and simple way to do this is to wear a serum under a rich moisturizer.
Keep warm so circulation is optimal so cells are nourished. Easily done by wearing a hat and gloves anytime you are outdoors. A hat helps with hair health too.
Exfoliate and moisturize your body to keep it youthful. It also improves circulation and you will find you feel warmer than usual this time of the year. And if you make it a habit your skin will be irresistibly soft by Valentine’s Day.
Drink warm liquids. Calming herbal teas, nourishing soups and comforting hot chocolates can help keep you warm and moist inside out.

“What Should I do when I get home late and don’t have enough resolve to cleanse off make up?” is a common question from client. Cleansing facial skin nightly of make up, dirt and pollution debris is important. But if you can only manage to drop into bed, then I would highly advise applying a rich mask, heavy moisturizer or facial oil over your unwashed skin before sleeping.

This will help you reduce the negative effects of self indulgence as moist skin is healthy skin and is therefore more resistant to old make up and pollution debris. This simple act will keep skin cells moist so that your morning after skin will be more normal and less dehydrated, dull or sensitive.

Beauty + the Global Warming Beast

How Global Warming affects Your Health and Appearance and How Small Daily Acts can create a Beautiful World

Are you are paralyzed to the point of neutrality by the news on Global Warming? Are our government leaders and our world leaders frustrating you as they declare 10% reduction of CO2’s by 2050 as you learn that the Arctic is becoming downright balmy and the melting glaciers are causing island nations to become history like Atlantis?

Do you feel like the only person who understands that Nature is not being heard at the negotiations in Copenhagen, yet Her timeline and Her ratios are the only ones that really matter? Well you are not alone!

Global warming is not just being felt in the weather. This year many of our clients have noticed unusual problems with their skin. Acne and skin sensitivity has become a problem for those with a lifetime of clear even complexions. It has also become a problem for those who take good care of their health and skin.

The unexpected and unseasonable changes in our weather are affecting our skin and health. On the macro level we need to push our leaders to be wise and to be visionary in balancing our priorities of economy and environment. On the micro level we can contribute positively to the preservation of our planet with small everyday act of conservation and consideration.

It’s Win-Win as the things we can do will also make us more beautiful both physically, mentally and emotionally.

We can mitigate the effects of the weather on our health and the appearance of our skin with the help of Ayurveda. Becoming more aware of the day to day characteristics of the weather, we can balance its affects on our physical and mental health with diet, activity and herbal supplements. With a basic understanding of skin health, we can rebalance our skin daily with 3 simple vital skincare products. You neutralize the effects of the fluctuations in humidity and the temperature with the appropriate serum, face oil and a good moisturizer. Sunscreen in a foundation will make you a sure victor.

Your call for lower CO2 emission will result in better air quality, which will reward you with the lessening of the effects of pollution in prematurely aging our skin. Thereby saving us the mental anguish of “anti-aging” or doing something irrational like injecting our faces with toxins we wisely try to avoid in our foods and our cosmetics.

Repairing our ozone reduces the harsh affects of the sun’s rays on our skin. Skin cancer is not the only negative effect of over exposure to sun. Premature skin aging is a more eminent result and even the young suffer the aftermath of a sunburn with blotchy or overly sensitive skin.

Walking or cycling, even taking public transit can lessen the sedentary aspect of our lives along with lowering our personal CO2 emissions. You can save money spent at the gym and create more meaning and interest in your exercise.

Eating locally can greatly reduce your carbon foot print but it will make eating to balance your day to day health easier. George Ohsawa, the founder of the Macrobiotic diet, advocated the importance eating of naturally and locally grown foods to promote personal health and even happiness. For more on this and on George Ohsawa go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrobiotic_diet .

Finally – stop cluttering your life with the spoils of so called successful bargain hunting trip and contribute to good Fengshui. Fengshui is the art of placement or decorating your home to improve your prosperity and health in life. For more on Fengshui go to http://www.malcanarrol.com/.

Clutter is one of the biggest sins of Fengshui and a real pain if you clean your own home.

Simple rules for to incorporate low carbon footprint habits in your life are;
Feel connected to your environment
Use natural products
Buy Locally produced and grown products
Choose Re-Use before Re-Cycle
Be a Minimalist and be proud of your frugality

Sleeping for Beauty

Sleeping for Beauty

Most of us “alternative healthees” accept the importance of healthy diet, exercise and natural skincare as precursors to good health and personal beauty.

For my seasoned clients, holistic skincare also includes rest and relaxation.

On entering the age of wisdom or Vata (spirit), did you expect to be free of the need to look "good"?

Actually taking care of our looks can be beneficial to our overall health.

Personally without the growing signs of aging on my face, I would probably inadvertently overwork my body to poor health. i.e. I am writing this at midnight; fueled by an organic green coffee happily consumed too late in the afternoon.

I follow healthy diet, exercise and grooming regimes but my lifestyle is negatively impacted by my workaholic tendencies. So my understanding of "Face Mapping" from Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine helps me to listen to my dehydration wrinkles, my overly sensitive skin and my puffy eyes, so that I begrudgingly schedule in rest and relaxation.

While my diet and skincare helps me cover up short term abuses – my haggard face screams at me, when I over do it; so my long term health is not irreparably affected.

When my feet are swollen, it’s "just" edema but when my eyes are puffy, I listen and curtail my nights at the computer so that my Kidney energy can regenerate. While I need to address the immediate needs of my eyes' dry delicate skin with a good eye cream;-- only adequate sleep will revive my kidney function and relieve my edema (get rid of my puffy eyes) before it becomes a diagnosable disease.

When I was diagnosed with digestive problems, I merely avoided the foods I was allergic to. I experienced some relief but nothing close to good digestion. But when I learned that the stubborn red, puffy cheeks and adult acne could be caused by a weakened spleen and low kidney energy; I finally found dramatic improvement to my poor digestion and my skin’s appearance.


One more example. I have had dry hands and feet since I was young. It was so unimportant to me that I did not even regularly apply cream to moisten them. But the dry skin on my face finally had me pursuing relief. Again it was my poor tired kidneys. So I finally listened to my dehydrated skin, ---relaxed and rested my mind body spirit more often.

But workaholics and high stressed people can experience poor sleep. And for those of us going through peri-menopause, decreasing Estrogen can intensify poor sleep and dehydrated skin.

So how can we end the cycle and increase our ability to get a good night’s sleep?

Lets start with what we suspect could be affecting our sleep.

If you have a tendency to overdo it with work; your over worked adrenals can disturb a good night’s sleep. The adrenals can also be the problem if you consume too much coffee or white sugar. So using coffee or sugary snacks to force your body to work longer will make your adrenals weaker in the long run.

If you are awakened by being too warm or in a sweat and you are in your forties of fifties; then suspect peri-menopausal symptoms. There are studies that indicate that in many cultures that eat a vegetarian based diet experience fewer or no peri-menopausal symptoms. I found that a vegetarian diet reduced my hot flashes and my resumption of meat comes with corresponding degrees of hot flashes. My TCM advised me that my hot flashes affected my kidney energy, so more incentive to change my diet.

Other problems that could disrupt our sleep are stress related. Chronic dehydrated skin; waking to urinate or waking with a thirst ; --can indicate low kidney function. The kidneys determine the body's hydration levels. Overwork and aging can weaken Kidney function. I recommend getting the help of a naturopathic doctor or TCM to boost Kidney function. But in the mean time make sure you consume enough healthy clean fluids like water fresh juices, soups and herbal teas to keep the kidneys in good working order.

Those of us who abuse our bodies with over work and then in our fatigue give into cravings for refined and fatty foods that challenge our liver can also experience disrupted sleep. Again I recommend getting the help of a naturopathic doctor or TCM to help us detox our livers and other elimination organs. But in the meantime eat a liver friendly diet of low fat and no refined foods.

While you explore how you can improve your sleep, you can give you body some rest and relaxation with exercises like yoga, tai chi and a meditative walk.

So – you see-- “Nothing moisturizes our skin like a great night's sleep”.

Bruising can lead to Better Health

During a training session, a staff member had brought up a client's concern about bruising more than usual.

She wondered if it warranted a visit to her Doctor, Naturopathic Doctor or Traditional Chinese Doctor.

She asked us the question even though we were clearly estheticians and not doctors because of our holistic approach to beauty. Our response while specific to the client can help you understand the inter-connectivity of your body's systems and how your body communicates with you.

Bruising is caused by the damaging of the capillary walls - i.e. impact. The ease or frequency of bruising will give a clue to the condition of the capillary walls. The condition of our capillary walls will affect our blood and lymph circulation which in turn will affect our overall health. Our immunity and vitality are affected by our blood and its circulation. A lymphatic system in good working order ensures we are disease free.

The condition of the blood and lymphatic system also affects the rate we age and is easily seen in the skin. Bruising is a sign of trouble that can be accompanied by any of -- red sensitive skin, acne, dry dehydrated skin; telling us that two of the most important systems of our body is in trouble.

The client was in her 50’s, the Vata time of her life, and was slim with dry skin, a dominant Vita nature. It is currently autumn; which is Vata time of the year. Therefore her capillary walls are probably more easily bruised due to the dominant condition of Vata in her life. Since one of the main characteristics of Vata is dryness, it is safe to guess she is bruising more now due to her age, the season and the inability for her dry skin to protect her capillary walls. Therefore she is bruising due to her blood vessels being more dry and brittle than usual.

It is common to dismiss her concern as part of aging, but it is more helpful to her if she understands that the bruising is occurring because her capillary walls are growing more delicate. And like dry brittle skin, we can slow down the process with a change in our daily habits.

How can she improve the condition of her capillary walls? First she needs to maintain moist skin so it can better protect the blood vessels from external damage from the weather, sun and impact. This is where I repeat myself about the importance of moist skin-- so to prevent me from boring every one – please go to http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-am-too-young-to-be-aging.html to explore ways to keep your skin dewy and moist. Doing this will not only reduce bruising and improve circulation but you will look way more youthful.

A holistic program to maintain better circulation would include regular exercise, healthy diet and daily dosha balancing. You can learn about your doshas at http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/04/ayurvedic-doshas.html and how to balance them at http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/05/enjoying-weather.html

Or get it all in one book “Beauty 2.0” at Pure + simple http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=1605&category_id=257&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=27#Excerpt

or at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Beauty-2-0-Holistic-Natural-Modern/dp/0981262406/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258332847&sr=1-1

Now if you are bruising more frequently but you do not believe it is due to weaker capillary walls, then I recommend looking at the changes in your daily activity that causes the frequency and the impact of what is causing the bruises ;)

A bit of Cancer with that younger looking skin?

How much risk are we willing to accept for the pursuit of an misguided perception of or a narrow definition of beauty?

What are you willing to risk to get rid of that annoying wrinkle between your brows?

• Are you willing to inject something called bovine toxin into the coveted area of your third eye to try and get rid of it?
• If the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) warned you that it can cause muscle weakness, blurred vision , droopy eye lids and more, would the short term result be worth the long term risks?

Would you still do it if statistics showed that only about 40% of people who try botox continue to use it? Are you so driven about the short term gain that you would not even care? The low rate of repeat injections is due to first time recipients are not screened properly as botox is successful only in removing the wrinkle caused by repetitive motion or due to negative side effects experienced.

Are you objective when choosing methods to remove that darker spot on your cheek?

• Does the inexpensive route of bleaching creams feel both budget friendly and convenient.
• Did you know that when you choose this method of skin lightening that you have inadvertently chosen to risk getting skin cancer.
• Did you know that the spot only disappears for as long as you continue to use the cream?
• And would you trade hyperpigmentation for hypopigmentation? Vitilago can be triggered by the continual stress of lightening agents on skin cells.
  
  

Many of us are unhappy with the blotchy or wrinkly skin that seems to creep up on us as we age. Hyperpigmentation is caused by chronic skin inflammation caused by sun exposure, irritation and hormonal fluctuations. Due to over sun exposure in our childhood and harsh skin treatments in our teens; some of us are seeing hyperpigmentation as early as in our twenties.

Wrinkled skin comes with the dehydration and poorer circulation of aging. Poor skincare and lifestyle along with careless sun exposure are the main causes. Poor lifestyle choices can be neutralized with nutrition and skincare.

There are many choices to reduce hyperpigmentation and they will also reduce other signs of aging. They range from Intense Pulse Light, Microdermabrasion, Acid Peels to the inexpensive lightening cream. These options offer different degrees of relief from hyperpigmentation depending on the brand of equipment used and the skin characteristics of the client.

The humble lightening moisturizer looks like the one with the least risk, but this is not the case. The most common active ingredient in lightening creams is hydroquinone. The use of hydroquinone is banned or restricted in many countries but allowed in Canada and in the USA. Hydroquinone is the most effect skin lightening agents for non- hormonal hyperpigmentation. But used in effective doses, it has also been known to be a cytotoxic agent that is mutagenic and cancer causing. But the foolishness of its use is more apparent as users risk hypopigmentation (vitilago) and Onchronosis,hyperpigmentation accompanied with skin lesions.

While hydoquinone substitutes like Kojic Acid have not been proven to be health risks, there is controversy. So as the ingredients on the label changes, commonsense still cautions that using anything daily that can change the colour of our skin (by disrupting basic cellular processes like melanin production) will probably not be a good solution longterm.

So better solutions for lightening skin would be skin peeling and light therapy which work more on the physical removal of the guilty mutated skin cell. All methods mentioned will also reduce those wrinkles. Choosing the right method for you requires consideration of your skin-tone and ethnic background.

The most cost effective in the short run is chemical peeling. You can do skin exfoliation daily at home with an alphahydroxy peel (best for light hyperpigmentation). go to http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=552&Itemid=27 to find some excellent natural skin peels like Pure + simple Lactic Acid in a base of kelp. Or visit a professional clinic or spa which can use higher percentages for darker, deeper hyperpigmentation.

For medium skin tones like Asians, the use of microdermabrasion causes less risk increased hyperpigmentation or of possibility hypopigmentation with the added benefit of skin rejuvenation. I recommend sea salt over aluminum crystals as the medium used in your microdermabrasion treatment. It is definitely safe and the sea salt helps skin hydration.

Intense Pulse Light is successful for the darker more stubborn pigmented areas for all skin tones and you get wrinkle removal as a side benefit. I discovered that there is a noticeable difference in safety, number of treatments and in the final results with the different brands of machines when we did our research to purchase our Intense Pulse Light Machines.

I prefer preventative measures which include using sun screens and non -irritating skincare so anti-aging the smart way starts in our younger years.

Be wise about sun exposure by balancing the benefits of vitamin D with the risk of skin aging and skin cancer. The magic formula is dependent on skin tone. Light skin tones need more Vitamin D and are more quickly damaged by sun exposure. Taking Vitamin D as a supplement is also recommended for everyone in Canada to ensure healthy bones and skin. See http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/07/anti-aging-stage-3-4-sagging-skin.html for more info on vitamin D for skin anti-aging.

So when looking to improve your appearance understand the emotional element before you do your research. No amount of make over will replace real self esteem. And if our self confidence relies too much on our appearance, we may make irrational and risky decisions that have long term impact on our future well-being.

Aging with Sagacity with Simone + Nuala

So now that you are holistic about your physical aging, who can guide us through emotional aging. How do we leave behind the being the model adult we spent all our lives striving to achieve. And embark onto another learning journey to our later years with sagacity and avoid the foolishness of “not acting our age”?

Ayurveda calls our years after forty, the Vata stage of our life. In popular culture, we call this period our twilight years. Whatever is our Dosha; Vata, Pitta, Kapha; we all become more Vata as we enter this time of our life. That means as we age, we become more in touch with our creativity and spirituality and we also get the dry skin, the creaky bones and forgetfulness.

In my twenties, I had the fortune have fallen in love with the works of Simone DeBeauvoir so that I came into contact witrh a positive and realistic preview of my coming middle age years. One of those books was DeBeauvoir's third volume (later years) of her autobiography which was poetically titled, “When Things of the Spirit come First”. I have benefited from her example of holistic beauty emulating from her acquired wisdom and strength of character.

But in our Youth Loving culture, there are few positive, realistic models of middle age for us to learn from. So again, I am fortunate. I discovered Nuala O’Faolain (

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuala_O'Faolain ) while listening to CBC Radio driving from one Pure + simple location to another. I ordered my first Nuala O’Faolain book, "My Dream of You" at http://www.amazon.ca/My-Dream-You-Nuala-Ofaolain/dp/1573229083/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256084225&sr=1-3 .

The book inspired me to live and love my middle age mind, spirit, face and body for its strengths and its follies. It also showed me that I do not need to learn to go into my later years quietly. I went on line and ordered her other books but it was a sad consolation to learn that she had passed away last year.

Nuala; her writing enables you to feel familiar enough to be on a first name basis; became a published author after her mid fifties. So go for your dreams, late bloomers.

She writes with the honest, raw emotions of transiting from adult woman to wise woman. Her clear language transcends culture. Her ability to observe her emotions in complicated relationships of step families will stir up your own emotions. Her candidness of her dysfunctions may help you to come out from behind yours. Denial or repression are impediments to your personal journey to wisdom and wholeness.

Having difficulty with this new reality of your “later years”? Read Nuala. Celebrate romance at sixty. Identify with the complexity of stepfamilies with its conflicting feelings of love and jealousy for the offspring of new lovers/spouses. And be okay with not acting mature or wise all the time. Enjoy the freedom of real choice from the fruits of your life experience.

L'Chaim .... To Life!

Anti Aging -- Holistically Please

A client of mine apologized for not seeing me for a while. She sheepishly admitted to receiving Botox Injections and fractionated Therapy to look younger. I was curious why she displayed guilt in our conversation.

Was it the feeling of disloyalty? I did not feel she was disloyal. She wanted Botox and need an able supplier of it.

Was it the idea of cheating Mother Nature. Or was it the safety or ethics of the methods she used.

While the issues of ethics is personal, the utilitarian argument for or against certain Anti-Aging treatments can be reduced to the value of the benefits and the cost of the side effects** to the recipient.

As a holistic skincare advocate, Anti-Aging done piece meal tends to give lopsided results and cheat us of the benefits of the deep understanding of ourselves and the aging process. According to social philosopher, Francis Fukuyama, “…aging is the result of the gradual accumulation of damage to a wide range of different biological systems.”

Aging or Anti-Aging is most satisfying when based on self awareness and holistic health. Successful aging through Holistic health and self awareness includes knowledge of your body’s physiology, your expectations and your psychological and emotional make up and needs.

Simply paralyzing your muscle to prevent the wrinkling ameliorates the need to understand how your skin and muscles work and the subtle effects of your internal organs, your mind and emotions on your face. Not to mention the risk of introducing poisons into your body's systems reguarly.

So what is the best way to begin your journey to 'wisdom-ignited' facial rejuvenation? I would recommend Ayurveda. Ayurveda will have you looking at your physical, mental and emotional self and helps you to see your strengths, which you tend to ignore, along with the weaknesses, you so easily obsess over.

I use Ayurveda to keep me in constant connection to what I put in my mouth and what is occurring in my external environment. No I am not neurotically documenting what I eat and the temperature outside. To counteract my dominant Vata Nature ----(see blog entry http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/04/ayurvedic-doshas.html for the 3 Doshas and their characteristics ) ----in this very Vata time of the year ----(see http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/05/enjoying-weather.html for the different influences of the seasons ) ----

In fall, I eat hearty nourishing foods like squash, stews and meat. I keep my appearance at its youthful best, by ensuring my skin (all of it not just my face) is moist. Keeping my skin moist and exfoliating it, maintains my good overall circulation. And good circulation is probably the best agent of holistic youthfulness.

Your journey to attain more attractive skin holistically can be as easy as visiting any Pure + simple location. Pure + simple offers only facial services so all of our Estheticians are skincare specialists. You are very welcomed to meet with me, if you are patient and can book an appointment on a Sunday. Got to http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=75&Itemid=53 for contact information of your nearest location.

If you want to learn more first, one of the best books that brings together our overall health and our appearance is Beauty 2.0 by Kristen Ma, Ayurvedic Practitioner and my daughter. It will go through the options of Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Skin Science to help you attain the skin you desire naturally while challenging you to increased self awareness.

You can purchase a copy of the book at Pure + simple http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.product_details&flypage=&category_id=585&product_id=1605&Itemid=27 or at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Beauty-2-0-Holistic-Natural-Modern/dp/0981262406/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1255386027&sr=8-3

Anti-Aging is not something you put on your face or have a doctor eradicate or tuck. Anti-aging is part of your life practice and is a challenge that awakens self-discovery. Anti-Aging is not a goal; it is exercise; it is diet; it is your state of mind; it is your feeling of belonging.

Self awareness makes looking better, profounding beautiful. Make holism your goal and you will inadvertently find the Fountain of Youth.

**The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ruled that all botulinum toxin products, including Allergen Botox and Botox Cosmetic, Myobloc (SolsticeNeurosciences) and Dysport (Ipsen Biopharm), must incorporate new safety labeling changes, including a boxed warning on packaging. The ruling follows reports that botulinum toxin can spread from the area of injection, causing loss of speech, muscle weakness, loss of bladder control, troubled breathing and swallowing, blurred vision and drooping eye lids. (from ICN July 2009)

**The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA

Disaster Plan

I attended a seminar in Emergency Management for Business a couple of weeks ago. This is something I would have considered unrelated to my life as a private citizen and as a business owner. But the looming threat of a pandemic and my desire to provide a safe place for clients and staff prompted me to attend.

You read this blog because you are interested in personal growth and health. As you improve your life and happiness with a healthy disciplined lifestyle and with quality safe products, you discover that your health and well being rests greatly on your community, your government and now to geo-political occurrences in the rest of the world. Natural disasters caused by geophysical occurrences like volcanoes and tsunamis have remained constant in frequency since being recorded from the year 1900. But the disasters caused by change in climate have been increasing at a steep rate since the 1980’s

These include the aforementioned pandemics and the much discussed and much denied global warming. There are current natural disasters that are related to global warming like drought, forest fires, floods (yes drought and floods), dust storms. No longer are these disasters only happening in third world countries as there is a drought in the western USA and drought is the cause of dust storms in Australia.

Gwynne Dyer, one of my favourite journalists, discusses the news on global warming with “Hadley Climate Centre in England, one of the world's most respected sources of climate predictions, recently released a study showing that even rapid cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions, turning the current one percent annual growth into a three percent annual decline within a few years, would still warm the world by 1.7 degrees Celsius by 2050.

That is dangerously near the two degrees C rise in average global temperature which is the point of no return. Further warming would trigger natural processes that release vast quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere from melting permafrost and warming oceans. These processes, once begun, are unstoppable, and could make the planet four, five or six degrees hotter than the present by the end of the century.”
http://www.gwynnedyer.com/articles/Gwynne%20Dyer%20article_%20%20US%20Climate%20and%20Pragmatism.txt

The United Nations warns that the changes in climate can impact our ability to function effectively in democracies as our procrastination to act will force us to compromise our rights in urgent circumstances. Find more at http://blog.taragana.com/n/tackle-climate-change-or-imperil-democracy-168759/

The World Health Organization warns that with the increase in weather caused disaster increase comes the increase in illness from heat stress to infectious diseases to pandemics. To read the whole report go to http://www.environmental-expert.com/resultEachArticle.aspx?cid=33596&codi=62107&level=0&section=5

Gwynne also warns us of the ineffectiveness of our democratic governments as in “Get upset about it if you like, but this is how the system works. Obama cannot ignore the fact that climate change denial is still stronger in the United States than anywhere else, and that much of the US Congress is a wholly owned subsidiary of the fossil fuel industries. He’s going as far as he can, for now. He can’t go any farther even if what he’s doing is not good enough, which it isn’t.” http://www.gwynnedyer.com/articles/Gwynne%20Dyer%20article_%20%20Climate%20Change%20-%20Two%20Cheers.txt

So what should we do? My advice is to take a two pronged approach. Do what we can as constitutients in a democratic country and as citizens of the world. But also make some personal preparations for foreseeable disasters. Advisable as our communities are preparing for flu pandemics and we have just seen a few violent storms and mild hurricanes affect some of our neighbourhood communities outside of the Greater Toronto Area.

Susan Gilbert, Emergency Management Specialist, advises that we train staff and ready our business operations for emergencies and disasters. She also advises we make personal and business emergency management plans for plausible disaster that may come our way.

We are devising a plan to mitigate the effects of the soon to come second wave of H1N1 (Swine) Flu. As a spa owner, I am preparing my employees, who come into very close contact with the public, with some changes in their behavior.

The steps are advisable for all of us to follow include are hand washing after physical contact with each client both retail and service mandatory. Our front desk holds a large container of natural hand sanitizer for both employees and clients after any transactions.

We already wear face masks to prevent the transmission of day to day germs. Staff is to stay home if they feel under the weather. Workaholics are now being discouraged. We have devised a support plan that will allow staff to ask for help in getting the necessities of food and medicine as many of our staff are single and far from their homeland.

With the help of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, we have increased our immunity with holistic advice like keeping our nasal passages moist with saline water and oil and the consumption of immune herbs like ashwaganda, astralagus and ginseng.

I just watched a documentary on PBS "Unnatural Causes" http://www.pbs.org/unnaturalcauses/ which demonstrated how the eco-political environment created inequalities that created different levels of stress to different segments of society. Those who suffered the most from stress were less in control of their lives. Whether your stress is ultimately caused by the macro environment or not- the stress lowered immunity.

So while there is much change and turmoil in the world and is increasing its impact on our lives, I recommend that we practice mediation or Chi Kung to lessen our emotion's impact on our health and our response.

Therefore, while we may not be able to control what our political leaders, our economic leaders or our neighbours may do. we can practice some new healthy habits as stated above. We can tailor our own emergency management plans (disaster plan sounds fateful) from what we know about ourselves and the probable emergency situations.

We can bring more harmony and peace of mind into our lives by further simplifying our lives and nurture our love for our world and those in it.

Namaste.

Recessionary Retreat

The days are getting shorter and the weather is increasingly cooler. These changes are causing our circulation to become sluggish and our emotions to become down and out.

While you are not in dire straits, you may not want to splurge on a holiday to a warmer place or treat yourself to a day at the spa. You may have to choose between eating well or treating yourself. Or if you are like me, you may find budgeting and planning so torturous that you may forgo the pleasure of resorts for small frequent treats.

So when you have a spare $100.00, I recommend you go to King + Bathurst.
This up and coming neighbourhood of young professionals and creatives will lift your spirits and not your credit card balance.

Get a great cut from Sharon at John Steinberg (http://www.johnsteinberghair.com/) then drop into Lee (http://www.susur.com/ ) for a trendy bite. I recommend the Singapore Slaw which can be a meal for one and a health promoting glass red wine from organic grapes.

Or put the glow back in your skin with natural and organic products with a Pure + simple Facial (http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogsection&id=5&Itemid=42n ). Then pop into Coco Rice Thai (http://www.cocorice.com/ ) for a healthy meal combination from their Dinner Special Menu for under $15.00.

Ah! So you say that you want something for $50.00 because you need to get a lift from being depressed over being low on cash?

Okay -- now you need to have an open mind and be brave. We are going to Chinatown. Yes, you saw it right, “Chinatown”. Hey, you only have $50.00 and while winter may be depressing, it also greatly reduces the odour of food garbage. So relax.

You can have reflexology for $25.00(taxes included) at a group of store fronts on south side of Dundas Street just west of Huron Street.. But, as a nubie, I recommend you start at Oriental Natural Beauty Wellness Spa (

http://orientalnbwspa.com/Home.html .

Jackie, the team leader is a favourite of a client of mine named Linda. I recommend the strong and experienced hands of SaSa or Sunny. Yes I have been there more than 2 times in less than 2 weeks. I had to share the experience with my boyfriend, my daughter and her boyfriend and then my sister. So in 2 weeks I have become familiar enough to give a dependable therapist recommendation. And my feet will never be the same again.

You can just drop in but they are becoming quite popular so I recommend calling a head to not be disappointed. I noticed that young men and women are dropping in to start a fun evening out as these places are open until 9:00 pm.

Then for $10.00 you can get a tea and a seafood/Vegetable Noodle including tax and tip across the street at House of Gourmet (

http://maps.google.ca/maps?sourceid=navclient&rlz=1T4SNYI_enCA343CA343&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=house+of+gourmet+toronto+menu&fb=1&gl=ca&hq=house+of+gourmet&hnear=toronto&view=text&latlng=9610377212151363735 ).

So your bill for a mini spa comes to $40.00 if you tipped your reflexologist $5.00.
You can spend the whole $50.00 if you want to eat better Seafood Vegetable Noodle at Lee Gardens (http://www.leegardenrestaurant.ca/). Go early as there is a line up out to the street after 6:00pm every day.

If you want to spend more, they can offer you massage or facials – but as Linda advises, “Do you want a facial with someone who has been touching feet most of the day?”. Start with the reflexology, after all this is the $50.00 and less recommendation. If you have more money to spend - go to King and Bathurst.

To paraphrase Walmart, “Know Yourself, Live Intelligently and Save the Planet”.

Yes - Change a few words; and Change a mundane selfish way of life.

Tired of Anti Aging?

Tired of Anti Aging?

You don’t like what you are seeing in the mirror. Your decide to change your moisturizer or if you really are unhappy, contemplate more drastic measure of cosmetic facial procedures like botox or collagen injections!.

Before you decide on the solution spend more time on the cause. Sure remedying your immediate skin needs locally while you exploring the bigger picture is an excellent start to better looking skin.

The cool, dry air of autumn can challenge our ability to look fresh and feel vital. Yes-- if your skin is under the weather then -- so is your over all wellbeing. Therefore when we experience unattractive skin problems, we need to go beyond the four skin types of Dry, Normal, Combination and Oily.

Our frustrations with our appearance (our face is a large part of that for most of us) is greatly influenced by our genetic make up or -- what we at Pure + simple call -- our Doshas and by our daily skincare and lifestyle.

Those of us who are chronically dry (Vata) and of us who are chronically reddish or sensitive, perhaps acne prone (Pitta) will need very different solutions to the same problem of dry aging skin and to the drier cooler weather.

And to further complicate -- or if you are more positive, to further customize the solution to the individual -- we can consider other factors that influence our health and skin; like our daily stress level, our lifestyle, work habits and of course our diet and lifestyle. Add to this list any medications or supplements we are taking and any afflictions our bodies are tending to.

Therefore the more you understand why your skin is in the undesirable condition (your own personal definition) and the elements in your life that contribute to it, the better the solution will be from skin care to overall changes to your lifestyle and diet.

Something to consider when you begin to achieve your new look is the following example. A woman in her fifties, with dry dull skin, who wants flawless skin but also would prefer to not want to wear make up to help camouflage any “flaws” would have more challenges to achieve her goals than a thirty year old with the same goals. She also will to invest more in skincare and lifestyle changes than another woman with similar variables but less stringent expectations.

Generally most mature skin types will find relief by increasing the moisture content of her skin with a good quality collagen serum and a rich protective moisturizer. The more discriminating can increase the youthfulness of her skin can attain this intention with a few treatments of either Microdermabrasion (we recommend the healthier alternative of sea salt to aluminum) or Intense Pulse Light (IPL) or both. Again it depends on the current skin condition and the expected end result.

Holistic health additions can include simple diet and lifestyle alterations that respond to seasonal changes like eating root vegetables and stews in fall to counteract internal dryness can increase positive results for skin.

Looking for more natural solutions to pharmaceutical medications will lessen the dehydration of skin and most likely to your internal organs, too. Stop dehydrating habits like cigarette smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages will not only increase overall hydration but lessen skin breakouts, sensitivity and redness. You body will also lessen its need for antioxidants due to the lower toxic load.

Phew!

Enough work for now. We will tackle the more challenging solutions that include our mind and emotions later.

“Don’t drink the Water”

“Don’t drink the Water”

For your reading pleasure I have a included a link to “Don’t drink the Water”, by Dave Matthews at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMAnYUwIhk0

We are 75% water and need to drink at least 8 cups of water daily to maintain our body health and beauty. But what type of water we drink and the type of container we carry it in can tell much about us to others. Do you drink tap water , filtered water or bottle water. How do you carry this water around with you?

All of us who are both ecologically and health focused have shun bottled water to avoid both the dangers of absorbing bisphenol A through polycarbonate bottles and to stop junking up our world unnecessarily. Go to the http://www.care2.com/causes/environment/blog/recycle-plastic-water-bottles/ to see the extent of the plastic water bottle problem.

Those of us, who are more aesthetically sensitive, paid the price of a Sigg bottle to look healthy and chic.

The popularity of the Sigg bottles was always questionable as the concept of the plastic liner and the aluminum shell was both redundant (2 materials) and counter productive (plastic to replace plastic?) when we also had the choice of choose glass and stainless bottles. But who was I to question the well stocked shelves of Sigg bottles in health food stores and “enlightened” drugstores (serving upscale clientele). Even my bright young staff happily carried their precious water in Sigg bottles.

But what was the rational thinking behind replacing disposable plastic bottle with an aluminum bottle with a plastic liner?

Well Sigg just got busted by Adria Vasil, better known as the Ecoholic, at http://www.nowtoronto.com/columns/ecoholic.cfm Ms. Vasil reports that the Sigg bottle liners contain the much feared bisphenol A.

We can be angry with dishonest marketers, but it is more productive to question our own susceptibility to deception. We don’t need to be able to understand advanced science to intelligently contribute to the health of both the planet and ourselves. We just have to let go of the crazy consumer in us. When we consume, we can choose products for their honesty of function and their ability to leave a small safe footprint on us and the environment.

So if you want to drink safe healthy water in a healthy container – May I suggest getting a Nimbus water filter http://www.nimbuswatersystems.com/ on your kitchen tap and fill your delicious sweet water in an easy to clean stainless steel bottle http://greenbeans.ca/GB-KK.htm or a reused glass bottle from Voss Icelandic Water http://qpro.ca/voss.php

Mind Body Health

What does Mind Body Health mean to you?


For me it mainly meant maintaining body health so I could accomplish my goals and my mental pursuits.

From the age of nineteen when I read my first Adele Davis book on natural health, I have spent a lot of time and effort on learning and living a healthier and healthier physical life.

Even though I gained much mental and spiritual growth from my daily Yoga and Chi Kung practice, the main impetus was physical health improvement.

But I have experienced great leaps of personal growth from the help of fortunetellers and therapists the few times I have seen them. In my early thirties, as a single mother of a toddler, I visited Andrianna King, a psychic that totally changed my perception of who I was. She told me that I was living according to that 25% of myself that was a risk taker. And to find happiness I needed to allow the 75% of myself as security seeker to be fulfilled. I changed my career from designer to sales representation. This change increased my income greatly, lessen my work load and gave me consistent work hours allowing me to better care for my daughter.

As I entered my forties, I saw a therapist who was very helpful in discovering my ADD. For some the knowledge can be received negatively, but all advice allows us choice in creating a better life for ourselves. ADD was an “aha!” moment for me. It unlocked the fundamental reason for some of the adverse behavior and the negative outcome of those behaviors in my life. Surprising happy outcomes included better physical health, more self confidence and a higher awareness level.

Last year, I accompanied a friend who needed a ride to visit a fortuneteller in Mississauga. Steven Kien Dao was highly recommended but fortunetelling has always been both an instant psychiatry session and a lark. I have found good fortunetellers can me insight that may take months or even years in therapy.

We met Steven in his apartment and he politely greeted us but told us not to talk to him except to ask questions. This was reassuring of the value of our visit to me. Steven was very helpful to both my friend and I as he got to the heart of the matter of what was blocking our personal success and happiness.

Before he revealed to me that I would be happier being single, he introduced it by saying he has no idea what my marital status was and what he had to say came without judgment of good or bad. This unexpected wisdom made his advice even more credible. This advice was very freeing even to the then almost fifty four year old. I had believed that I could not pair up like everyone else because either I had not found my perfect soul mate for me or I had to correct some imperfection that made me hard to live with. Phew!, two less things to do. But the best outcome was my appreciation of the special person who has stood steadfast by me.

Since I have owned a successful business for 8 years, I initially refuted his advice to love money more. I was also surprised since his fee of eighty dollars was lower than I expected and he explained the fee was honourary and he did not want to charge more. I later realized that like most sages his advice was free of cultural beliefs and he understood the relativity of each characteristic for each individual’s success. I finally embraced finance, which I found the most unattractive duty of owning my business. And just in time to make sure I had created the security of a sound business foundation for my employees and myself.

During the past year, I have found his advice has guided me to higher success in both business and personal life. While I have always been a happy person, it was due more to an optimistic outlook than to a life with little hardship and failures. Last year my life was more effortless and more fortunate. From this experience I have realized that much of our hardships and failures are due to our misaligned beliefs and actions.

I was so happy with my experience that both my daughter and I visited Steven this year. Steven again gave good fundamental advice. As her mother I knew Steven gave advice would not only improve her leadership skills through better communications but in turn help her achieve her potential personally.

For me I am again allowing his advice guide me and I will know the success of his advice and my ability to change next year.

If you would like to invest also an hour and eighty dollars to see how you increase your power over your future outcomes, you can contact Steven by telephone at 416-846-0588 and by e-mail stevendaok@hotmail.com

Changing for Fall

We are heading into autumn and as the seasons change, we change. The weather will affect our health and our appearance as it becomes cooler and drier.

We can lessen its affect with a change in diet and skincare. Those of us in our mature years of forty plus can benefit from eating moist and sweet foods of fall harvest like root vegetables. We can serve them cooked in stews or bake them in casseroles or pies. This is the best time for us to eat red meats.

As for skincare, we need to increase moisture replenishment with an addition of a serum or if you are already doing that, add an oil. Increased moisture retention can be attained with a heavier cream. This will ensure you look fresh and dewy even in the gloomiest days of October and November.

Keeping skin moist has another benefit. It will help keep your circulation optimal to lessen your sense of cold especially in your hands and feet. For more information on the impact of moisture on your health go to http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/03/vanity-is-good-for-you.html or any past blog.

It will also ensure your skin cells are replenished with nourishment and hydration and ensure that cellular debris is removed. This prevents that dull congested look you have accepted as a consequence of the colder season.

If you do not have regular facials, this is an ideal time to have a facial to correct any abuses your skin encountered in the summer like dehydration from carefree skincare or skin damage from over exposure to sun. Ask your esthetician for recommendations that will keep you skin looking moist and youthful.

I personally greet new seasons with a one day fast to give poor overwork organs a rest and to clear the colon. This allows the liver and other organs to detoxify.

And if you do not get enough sleep; 7-8 hours a night; 24 hour fasts can help replenish much need human growth hormones (remember the 3rd stage of aging : sagging skin?). This may be due to the fact that a regular housecleaning keeps your circulation cleaner and nourishes cells better and removes toxins more efficiently.

The nights grow longer advising us to sleep more. Learning to relax is very beneficial to skin and overall health. To encourage better relaxation take up calming exercises like Yoga and Tai Chi. Massage you body with oil or your favourite moisturizer each night. If that seems too much, try massaging your hands and feet and scalp only. You will not only feel more relaxed but feet and hand will be warmer and softer.

Then just make yourself a hot drink and give yourself a relaxing evening.

Let’s get Physical

for Beautiful Skin

It’s been a long time but I have lots of news from Korean Body scrubs to future postings on Traditional Chinese Medicine Facials to Floatation Therapy.

Why Korean Body Scrubs?

Korean Body Scrubs will give you silky smooth skin and contribute much to your overall health. It exposes you to a holistic bath culture that incorporates the power of nature on your wellbeing with materials like Jade, Crystal and ice in your sauna. I love the simplicity of a therapist, two exfoliating mitts and hot water and you will be surprised at the results.

But at this moment in time it can also test your tolerance in customer service, of sanitary practices and your sense of aesthetics. Your modesty will also be tested as your therapist will be scrubbing and massaging you places you never thought of. Since English is usually barely understood you will need to have the sense of adventure for the unexpected both wonderful and not so wonderful.

You can also extend your adventure by experiencing Korean cuisine at its most authentic and wholesome with authenic Zen vegetarian to its most unhealthy with the inexpensive barbeques. And the best place for the choice is New York City where the spa services are next door to a myriad of Korean restaurants.

I have become addicted to Korean Body Scrub ever since I saw buckets of my dead skin on white ceramic tiles of the Tribeca Spa of Tranquility (http://www.tribecaspaoftranquility.com/) in New York City,

I would never dream of spending good money on a boring body scrub when I have exotic choices like chocolate body wraps, Jamu and raindrop body massage. But a persuasive spa receptionist talked into this “scrub like no other I have experienced” when the cellulite treatment I had my heart set on was not available.

The treatment began with a hot steam to help removed remove dead skin more effectively. Then off to a wet room with a vinyl covered bed and shower where a muscular Korean woman energetically polished by skin until it looked young and smooth. -Oh- did I mention that she is probably going to be” traditionally” garbed in lacy black bra and undies.- no, you will not get the feeling she is either delicate or appealing - Then a relaxing aromatherapy massage can follow if you choose.

If you are in NYC and are adventurous go to Yi Pak (http://yipakspa.com/). You can save about $100.00 but you are entering an “alternative” environment without the funky charm. You are entering into a world of mack tack wood grain, questionable sanitation practices and communicating through sign language and feeling misunderstood and tolerated.

Or you can spoil yourself at the Aura Spa (http://www.spaaura.com/). This is miniature version of a Korean Bath House where you can choose to enter a jade steam or dry sauna or an ice room ---all beautifully constructed stone domes. You are pampered with all the usual spa amenities and great friendly staff.

After the spa there are good restaurants in the area. After a detoxifying and energizing treatment it makes great sense to eat a healthy meal in a tranquil environment. The natural choice then would be Han Gawi, (http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/). This beautifully designed vegetarian restaurant transports you out of the hustle bustle of NYC into the harmonious space of an old Zen temple. Your meal is a healthy balance of root vegetables, sprouts, nuts and fruits. Try the fresh fruit juices – I really loved my pear juice so much I repeated it in place of dessert. Or if you are in a celebratory mood try the exotic Asian cocktails with Sojuto (Korean liquor ) with green Tea and fresh fruit juices. The meals are so well prepared and delicious, no carnivore will miss the meat.

If your healthy meal must have meat or on a budget you can dine a couple of blocks away at Shanghai Mong (http://newyork.timeout.com/restaurants/midtown-west/1364/shanghai-mong ) where you can dine on deliciously prepared vegetables, wild rice and seafood for an average $12.00 a person.

When you are in Toronto your choices range from limited to challenging (scary to some). The least challenging place is Seoul Zimzilbang (http://ilovesauna.com/about-us.html). You will get a one hour scrub and massage for $100.00. Arrive an hour before your appointment and do the sauna circuit. Your therapist will insist you get in the hot tub for 15 minutes (expressed in smiling sign language) to prepare your skin. Be prepared to be misunderstood and to have errors in your appointment time/date and the added frustration of a stream of new inexperience receptionists. But the therapist (even though I have become a regular, we have never really spoken to each other so I don’t know her name, nor she mine) is excellent at scrubbing and massage that you don’t even feel cheated by the short half hour of massage.

The only other place I know of for Korean Body Scrub in Toronto is L & S Health Care Centre (http://koreanbodyscrub.com/lshealthcare/index.php). The neighbourhood is one of the oldest but also probably one of the scariest in Toronto without the charm of the same downtown. Be prepared to have panic attacks about the facilities but once your service begins, you will relax. I found Susan, my therapist, great at her work and very warm and friendly. A great deal, as you get sauna (only a steam sauna here), scrub and one full hour of massage for $120.00.

I have no recommendations for Korean dining in Toronto except maybe to head over to Bloor and Christie or to Yonge and Finch where the better Korean Restaurants are. I would love your recommendations here. But sorry, you will not find any Han Gawi here.

I am happy to answer any of your questions so contact me here or through Pure + simple website at http://www.pureandsimple.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=75&Itemid=53 .

Help for Chronic Sensitive Skin

Get Negative for Sensitive Skin

Lovers of great art know that it is the negative space that is the key to a masterpiece. So it is that it is the ability to relax the key to healthy skin and overall health.

Sensitive skin resulting in skin redness can result in dehydrated skin, rosacea or acne. At Pure + simple (http://www.pureandsimple.ca/ ), we have had much success in improving these skin conditions with hydrating skin with a natural collagen serum and a protecting it with a natural moisturizer. For even better results, clients follow a Pitta diet (see http://our-metamorphosis.blogspot.com/2009/06/foods-for-pitta.html ) that cooled their bodies with a higher ratio of vegetables. A Raw food diet is great way to balance Pittas with cooling foods and a vegetable based diet.

Lately I have been challenged by some clients who had very sensitive, very dehydrated and acneic skin. These cases were not responding to the good skincare and since the clients were already eating a great diet similar to the Pitta diet, I empathized with their frustrations.

As I traveled from the Scientific Seminars in Chicago to the Cosmetic Ingredients Show in Munich, I kept these special clients in mind. But anti-aging was the buzz so there was no new information to help.

But serendipity occurred. I found a skincare and supplements line that touted the benefits of alkalizing to improve sensitive skin. I immediately bought the face cream, body lotion and the alkalizing supplement and tea. This serendipitous discovery spurred me to re-read “Alkalize or Die” by Dr Theodore A Baroody. You can buy the book at http://www.amazon.com/Alkalize-Die-Theodore-Baroody/dp/0961959533

My skin had suffered from acne, skin sensitivity and with all the healthy diets and skincare, I still live with dehydrated skin with hyper-pigmentation. Even when I followed a vegetarian diet, I found that my ph constantly tested acidic.

So perhaps alkalizing was the key to help these very sensitive and inflamed skin clients’ get healthier and get more beautiful skin.

I tested the products I bought and followed the alkalizing diet. I found I was feeling better and my Pre-menstrual Syndrome was less severe. Yes I know, it’s about time for menstrual periods to abandon me.

I contacted some of those clients and offered them a sample of the face cream and suggested they follow the diet.

These clients couldn’t understand why they were afflicted with problem skin when they were disciplined with their diet, lifestyle and exercise. If these clients find success then the stubborn skin problems are a warning of declining health due to their body’s acidic ph and diet is only a component.

Could the other part be an over disciplined stressed life. These clients did not give themselves timeout from stress. Stress creates acidic ph levels. This over acidity leads to allergic reactions like eczema, heat and dehydration skin redness inflammation. As it becomes more chronic it can lead to poor digestion, arthritis and other inflammatory diseases.

So how does one better help to alkalize one’s body? Meditation is that negative space that alkalizes our system to neutralize the acid that is the result of stress or negate ve emotions.

For those of us who find diet can only help so much, meditation is may help to successfully balance our body’s ph. Some of my clients are so driven that when I suggest meditation, they respond they already do Yoga. And they are not the referring to the most relaxing Yoga, Hatha Yoga but the more athletic ones of Moksha and Ashtanga.

Meditation is freedom from physical and mental effort. For you those of who need something to keep you focused in meditation try Chi Kung. For information on Chi Kung and classes go to http://www.shaolinwahnamcanada.com/classes.htm.


The general rules for an alkalizing diet are vegetable and fruits are highly alkaline while vegetable proteins are neutral and simple carbohydrates and meat are highly acidic. For more information go to http://www.sethigherstandards.com/energize-your-life-by-alkalizing-your-body/

Please let me know if this helped you fel and look better.

Skin Aging Stage 3 + 4 : Sagging Skin

How to Prevent and Remedy Redundant Skin

Keeping skin moist goes a long way in keeping your skin dewy and youthful. But if you are eating well and taking great care of your skin, you can still feel unhappy about the tone of your skin.

That’s when you have “Redundant Skin”. This sagging of the skin becomes visible anytime after our fortieth birthday. So how can we delay this “scary” sight coming to our mirrors?

To find the cause we have to go deeper than the epidermis and the dermis. It is a combination of the thinning of the subcutaneous skin layer and of bone loss.

As we pass our fortieth birthday we start to notice the thinning of our skin. This occurs as our skin is less resilient as the subcutaneous layers thin. Subcutaneous Layer is maintained by Human Growth Hormone (HGH). Sleep is the best way to keep or increase HGH levels. External HGH supplementation is not recommended because available sources have been found unsafe.

At about the same time we can start to see the shrinking of our wrist bone. Most of us don’t take much notice – after we have bought into the belief that “thinner is better”. But we do take notice when we see the “Redundant skin” on our faces cause by the same bone loss. From a young age, we all know to get enough calcium to prevent osteoporosis so why the visible bone loss? We need liquid Vitamin D supplementation to ensure the conversion of Calcium for bone + skin health.

So the prevention of skin aging begins in our youth include the following;
1. Protect skin from sun, cold and dryness
2. Eat to balance health
3. Sleep adequately
4. Take liquid Vitamin D

To remedy skin aging
1. Use a natural serum to plump up skin cells
2. Use a good natural moisturizer to slow down moisture loss
3. Take a maximum dose of liquid Vitamin D
4. If your sleep habit is short or broken, incorporate suitable remedies from napping to sleeping in.
5. Stop believing “thin is better” and eat you to balance your Ayurvedic type, your lifestyle and the weather
6. IPL and Microdermabrasion treatment to smooth and tighten skin
7. If you are still unhappy a face lift can be the only solution for extreme redundant skin.

Skin Aging : Stage 2

Preventing and Remedying Aging Skin

Why do we call anything that maintains youthfulness, “anti-aging”? We blame “aging” for what is the result of “not caring for ourselves”. Depending on the luck of our genetics and our attention to our personal care, we will notice changes in our skins appearance in our thirties and forties. Lines are deeper and more permanent. Pigmentation is more prominent and wide spread. Our skin appears duller and more uneven. Our pores are larger and there appears to be more bumps and moles. Now the problem is goes deeper than our epidermis to our dermis layer. The long-term lack of skin hydration is now causing more permanent and deeper damage.

Prevention is simple.

1. Keep skin hydrated.
2. Get enough rest,
3. Eat lots of vegetables and fruit.
4. Drink enough water.
5. Limit unprotected sun and extreme temperature exposure.
6. Take liquid Vitamin D to keep skin and bones healthier
7. Balance skin moisture and hydration level with proper skincare.

Hydrated skin keeps capillaries walls elastic and the dermis functioning optimally. When epidermal skin cells are dehydrated, they cannot perform well in protecting capillary walls which result in skin redness. Long term redness will result in darkening of the skin. When the epidermis does not protect the dermis, Collagen and Elastin production is downgraded causing skin to lose tone and more moisture and for skin cells to reproduce differently. Skin tags, moles, inverted pores and hyper pigmentation are results of wayward skin cell production.

So how can we fix this type of skin damage?

1. Start to practice better lifestyle and personal care by following the prevention suggestions above
2. Intense Pulse Light (IPL) can give dramatic improvements and advanced-aged skin-repair
3. Microdermabrasion and skin peels can improve skin appearance for those who need less dramatic improvements
4. I am currently researching the results of new safe treatments using Ultra-Sound and Radio Frequency

I am too Young to be Aging

I am too Young to be Aging

At fifty-four going on fifty-five in September, I look forward to the new experiences that will come to me as I grow older and wiser.

But I am still a client for healthy proactive “anti-aging” skincare as are my regular clients. So off I went to Chicago to listen to chemists introduce new ideas and new natural ingredients for better looking skin.

We all know that poor lifestyle and over exposure to the elements will accelerate the aging of our skin and our appearance. The speed and amount of damage as well as the ability of the skin to repair itself depends on our genetics and in Ayurvedic term our Doshas.

What are the signs of skin aging?

The first signs are surface and are mainly in the Epidermis. Not protecting skin from ambient moisture loss and living in desert like or extremely cold climates can cause fine lines, enlarged pores, and redness along with light hyper-pigmentation. Fine lines and redness can also occur temporarily as we dehydrate our bodies with blimps in our diet or stress levels. An overnighter for work or school or an evening of over consumption of alcohol and cigarettes will have similar results. Prescription drugs and antibiotics will cause dehydration during the course as well. These light and sometimes temporary signs of skin aging can appear as early as in our twenties.

This type of skin aging is easy to remedy as the causes are in the Epidermis, the top most layer of our skin.

Remedies

Remedies can be as simple as applying a serum before your moisturizer to having a good facial. Exfoliation can be very helpful in smoothing out the complexion. This can be a homecare product like an AHA gel or a jojoba scrub or be a spa treatment like a Microdermabrasion.

Since the capillaries are in the skin to carry away debris, cellular waste and toxins, using natural products can contribute to the longterm health of the skin and capillaries.

Choosing gentle exfoliants made from natural ingredients for home use would support skin repair without long term damage to skin cells and capillaries.

Avoiding aluminum when receiving Microdermabrasion will lessen exposure to controversial ingredients that are known to affect long term health.

For individual advice please feel free to contact me at jean@pureandsimple.ca or go to http://www.pureandsimple.ca/ for product and spa information

Innovative information and remedies for deeper wrinkles and pigmentation, chronic redness and redundant skin will be discussed next.

Foods for Vata

Foods for Vata

I am continuing with the requested recipes from the book party and accompanying it with information on how to balance your state of mind body and spirit with food.

Finally we are at Vata and not fast enough as Vatas are not used to being last.

These quixotic change agents get bored easily so they tend to act quickly. Their quick metabolism gives them the willowy silhouette so in fashion today but also gives them the disadvantage of lower stamina, inability to gain weight, premature aging.

Their strength is in the spiritual and conceptual. They adapt easily to change, take risks and embrace innovation. But in imbalance, they have the tendency to show signs of premature aging, to suffer from nervous disorders, to appear flaky, to seem forgetful and to be chatty.

If you are not a Vata but exhibit any of the above symptoms, you can be suffering from a Vata imbalance and can also follow the following advice to return to balance.

Things that can tip the scales to manifest these negative tendencies can be triggered by Vata Weather – cold, dry – eating Vata Foods –popcorn, ices, cabbage, dried meats, salads – or hanging out with Imbalanced Vatas – people who are overly frenetic, changeable, scattered or unstable.

The general rule is to eat nourishing and warm -- favouring flavours that are sweet, salty and sour and minimizing eating those that are spicy, bitter astringent.

The big no-nos are dry crispy (crackers, dry nuts), stimulating ( caffeine, white sugar), gassy (carbonated drinks, cabbage) and cold foods.

And the balancing foods can include red meat, dark meat of fowl, root vegetables, dairy (cheese), oils, and whole grains rice.

A sample daily menu can be;

Breakfast

1. Eggs with whole-wheat bread with a glass of milk
2. Smoothie with fruit and yogurt with herbal tea
3. Cooked whole grains with raw nuts and fresh or dried fruit
4. Melon (summer)
5. Whole grain bread with nut butters with Herbal tea with honey.

Lunch

This will be your main meal for the day

1. Salmon with vegetables and brown rice
2. Lamb with vegetables and sweet potato
3. Whole wheat pasta with meat sauce and vegetable
4. Dessert can range from crème brule to cheesecake or as per Snack suggestions

Snack

Vatas can graze. So snacking between meals is encouraged.

1. Whole grain Muffin sweetened without white sugar
2. Yogurt
3. Any pastries made with whole grains and without white sugar
4. Sweet fruits like melons, papaya, mangos
5. Soaked nuts and seeds

Dinner

Dinner is lighter but is highly nutritious. Vatas can also snack, of course choosing nutritious snacks --- or suggestions see the above snack section.

1. Vegetables with whole grain pasta without cheese or cream sauce
2. White fish with vegetables and brown rice
3. Legume and vegetable stews
4. Veggie burger with steamed vegetables or salad ( depends on season) – No fries

Vata Hors d’oeuvres ( from the book Party)

The criteria for these dishes are;
The food ingredients follow the Ayurvedic diet for Vatas
Use whole organic food ingredients
Minimal waste – edible containers
The dishes chosen can follow the “hundred Mile” whole foods diet, which is very suitable for Vatas
The ingredients in the recipes are easily substituted
I recommend modifying them to suit your taste


1. Wild Rice + Peanuts (if not Hundred Mile diet - you can add a small box of saffron
a. Steam 10 – 20 leaves of collards or any dark green leaf vegetable
i. Drain and carefully place leaves flat to cool
b. Cook 1 cup of herbs wild rice as per package instructions
i. When cooked – put aside
c. Cut up fresh herbs – choose from scallions, basil, sage, garlic greens, garlic, parsley
d. Put 3 cups of cauliflower clusters in a pot of boiling water
i. Lower temperature to simmer
ii. Put into food processor or blend to make creamy and let cool
iii. Take 2 cups of the creamed cauliflower (the left over cup is

1. saved for the fish) and add in the following;
   1. 1 table spoon tahini
   2. ¼ teaspoon sea salt
   3. handful of the cut fresh herbs
   4. if not following Hundred Mile Diet – you can add any of the following
   a. 2 tablespoons hoi sin sauce
   b. 1 tablespoon Tamari sauce
   c. Tablespoon of curry
   d. A box of saffron
   e. 1 teaspoon of turmeric
   f. 1 teaspoon of cumin
   g. ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg

e. Mix together the wild rice, 1 cup of Ontario peanuts with skin, fresh herbs and the cauliflower based sauce
f. Place the mixture on a collard leaf and fold leaves over to cover and then roll

2. Salmon trout on Belgian Endive
a. Baking the fish
i. Use the fresh herbs from the Wild Rice + Peanuts recipes
ii. Finely dice up onions, grate fresh ginger
iii. Olive oil a pan and sprinkle on the onions, sea salt and ginger
iv. Place filets of salmon trout on the pan skin on the bottom
v. Rub oil on the filets
vi. Sprinkle on the cut fresh herbs on the top side of the filets
vii. Put into oven 350 degrees for 10 minutes
b. The sauce
i. 1 cup of the creamed cauliflower
ii. 2 tablespoon of tartar sauce

• c. Mix the sauce with fish
  d. Cut up Belgian endive into leaves
  e. Place the fish mixture onto the firm part of the leaves

3. Pumpkin cheesecake

a. Go to http://www.joyofbaking.com/PumpkinCheesecake.html for the recipe
b. Replace white sugar with stevia or xylitol.
c. Replace brown sugar with Demerara sugar
d. Replace the ground ginger cookies with more graham cracker crumbs and 1 tablespoon of dry ginger
e.