The extension of the average human lifespan and the large ageing baby boomers population have generated a well of anti-ageing products and technologies that are aimed at targeting the “side effects” of ageing, helping in body contouring, wrinkle reduction, skin tightening and more.

Can Bottox stop depression?

Botox was one of the major break-through products introduced to combat the signs of ageing by reducing wrinkles caused by stressed facial muscles due to the fact it blocks activation of muscles; hence temporarily paralyzing facial muscles. Before it was introduced to the anti ageing industry, it was used for other medical conditions, for example treating crossed eyes, uncontrolled blinking facial spasms and more.

In 2006, Eric Finzi, MD, PhD, and Erik A. Wasserman, PhD, from Dermatology and Cosmetic Surgery Associates in Greenbelt, Maryland, and Chevy Chase Cosmetic Center in Maryland experimented with treating depression using Botox. They conducted a small pilot study on 10 subjects (9 subjects suffering from major depression and one subject suffering from Bi-Polar disorder.) Their study demonstrated a significant improvement in the subjects suffering form depression and an easing in symptoms of the one subject suffering from Bi-Polar disorder. Unfortunately this is the only study conducted on this matter and no other information is available on trials on this interesting concept. It makes sense that Botox will alleviate depression due to the numbing affect on the muscles responsible for frowning and sadness. Try to feel sad while your eyebrows are lifted and relaxed, it is a very strange experiment as the feeling that comes with this expression is of well being and happiness.

Maybe Botox helps the ageing population by improving the general feeling one has about him/her self and about life and not only by reducing the wrinkles.

Maybe the new expression for positive thinking should be “Have a Botox outlook on life”…think about it (without frowning).

Does sunscreen provide complete protection?

The Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of a sunscreen formula states the effectiveness of this cream when applied at an even layer of 2 milligrams per square centimeter, for blocking the effect of UV sunrays that cause sunburns. The SPF level is defined by comparing the effect of exposure to the sun causing burns to a body area with the evaluated sunscreen compared to the burns to a non coated area. SPF 15 means that compared to a body area without sunscreen, the area with sunscreen will require 15 times more UV to be equally burned compared to the same area without sunscreen.
SPF is evaluated per 2 milligrams of sunscreen per square centimeter, unfortunately most people apply less sunscreen than needed. This causes the SPF value to be reduced dramatically hence the person thinks he/she is protected but in reality the effectiveness of the sunscreen is reduced. Thinking that you are protected when in reality you are not is very dangerous as you might linger in the sun for longer.
Another problem with sunscreens is the fact that many of them protect mostly against skin burning, caused by UV-B.  There are three types of UV rays emitted from the sun, the skin cancer foundation has a good explanation about UV classification on their web site. The different types of UV are: UV-A, UV-B and UV-C. Both UV-A and UV-B pass the ozone layer and reach the earth, most of the UV-C is absorbed by the ozone layer and does not reach us.
UV-A is the most dominant UV radiation reaching us from the sun. It is present throughout the year and during all day light hours. UV-A penetrates glass and clouds and has a deeper penetration depth into the skin than does UV-B. UV-A is a main inducer of skin ageing, wrinkles and skin cancer. It is the main contributor to tanning, it does so by inducing changes in the cell’s DNA, the skin darkens due to synthesis of melanin to protect the skin from further damage form the UV exposure. Tanning salons use mostly UV-A as the tanning source, the intensity in the salons can be 12 times higher than the natural UV-A levels from the sun.
UV-B penetration depth to the skin is superficial and it plays a major role in skin burning. As apposed to UV-A, UV-B is present in lower levels during different hours of the day, different seasons and various locations on earth and it does not penetrate glass. Similar to UV-A, UV-B contributes to skin cancer, and skin ageing.
Sunscreens were created originally to prevent skin burning and to block mainly UV-B. In recent years manufactures of sunscreens have added UV-A protection too, however the level of protection from UV-A is not included in the SPF classification. It is important to verify, when purchasing a sun block, if the formula claims to protect from UV-A and UV-B. If not specified it is probably UV-B protection only.
The problem with sunscreen is that people feel protected from the damaging rays of the sun while they really are not safe. Most people will assume that if they apply sunscreen on exposed areas, they can allow themselves to walk freely in the sun during the extreme UV hours (10AM-4PM). This is a very dangerous assumption as applying the sunscreen needs to be in the correct amount and the sunscreen needs to be of good protection values. In addition, no sunscreen provides complete protection and it is wise to always stay away from exposure during the extreme hours mentioned above.
Another misconception is that after about 4PM and in early morning hours (6AM-10AM) there is no need for sunscreen as the UV radiation is lower. Very wrong assumption! As mentioned above, UV-A is present most hours of the day, so be ware!
Most people are not aware that they need to apply sunscreen when driving or sitting in a car, or if sitting in front of a sunny window at home, the windows will not protect you, (unless they are coated with a UV protection film).
Below are the Prevention Guidelines of the Skin Cancer Foundation for wise protection from the sun:

“Prevention Guidelines
•    Seek the shade, especially between 10 AM and 4 PM.
•    Do not burn.
•    Avoid tanning and UV tanning booths.
•    Cover up with clothing, including a broad-brimmed hat and UV-blocking sunglasses.
•    Use a sunscreen with a SPF of 15 or higher every day.
•    Apply 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of sunscreen to your entire body 30 minutes before going outside. Reapply every two hours, or immediately after swimming or excessive sweating.
•    Keep newborns out of the sun. Sunscreens should be used on babies over the age of six months.
•    Examine your skin head-to-toe every month.
•    See your physician every year for a professional skin exam.”

If your skin has been damaged by years of exposure to the sun’s damaging rays you might be happy to learn that you can help reduce the damage by treatments offered by various technologies. Sun spots (liver spots) can be removed by skin resurfacing technologies and photo-rejuvenation technologies. In addition, a RF technology exists, that targets reduction of wrinkles, collagen regeneration, skin tightening that improves skin texture and lessens the ill affects caused by UV radiation.  For example, TriPollar RF treatments, have been proven to effectivly reduce wrinkles and tighten the skin.  TriPollar based products are maufactured exclusively by Pollogen Ltd.    You do not have to wait till you are in your forties or later to begin treatments; the earlier you begin the better.
To finalize this write up, it would be nice if we adopted the fashion of un-tanned skin as our ancestors admired during the renaissance and earlier periods. Of course this should not include the discrimination against darker color skin that accompanied the earlier age admiration of non tanned skin.
And finally, if you do spend significant time in the sun, make sure to follow the guidelines mentioned above and minimize the damage to your skin.

I have been grey since my late thirties and have not had the urge to cover the grey. I believe you are as young as you feel or as old as you see yourself. To be honest, it has not been easy to withstand the pressure from society,  friends try to refer me to their favorite hairdresser or even better, say kind words like ”you look very young but you will look much younger if you dye your hair”. The hardest hit was when I came to pick up my son from kindergarten and heard the kids yelling “Your grandma is here to pick you up”!!!! But still I did not fall into the hair dying loop (once you start, it is hard to stop).

Ageing is a state of mind

Fortunately, grey hair has become accepted in some western countries. Images of graying models are accepted and are considered sexy and fashionable. It is not about the hair color, it is about how you carry your body, your skin complexion, what you wear and the energy levels you portray.

Ageing is a state of mind, rather than dyeing hair to conceal gray, I prefer dancing, going to rock concerts and staying young at heart. I think that if you feel younger when you dye your hair, than go ahead and do it, feeling younger makes you younger.

Declaring emancipation from hair dyes does not mean letting age take its toll and leaving all to nature. Personally, I use anti-ageing moisturizing creams every day and try to maintain a rigid exercise program to keep my body and spirit in high energy levels. I am fortunate to work in the aesthetic industry so I have accesses to variable technologies that target the ageing skin. I have found Radio Frequency (RF), particularly TriPollar RF face treatments to be to be very pleasant, relaxing and effective from the very first treatment. What I like about these treatments is the fact that the results are not so drastic so I do not look like I had a face lift. Don’t get me wrong, the results are noticeable, acquaintances that had not seen me for a while have all commented on my fresh looking skin and fine complexion. The wonderful thing about it is that it looks natural and is indeed a natural skin rejuvenation process triggered by the treatment; the skin creates new collagen during a few weeks causing the results to improve over time.

So, if you are in the early graying phase and have been pulling the gray out (ouch!), first, pulling them out will not induce growth of more gray than you pulled out so if you want to continue pulling, go ahead. However, you will have to pull out many more hairs as you progress in age, so let it be and learn to accept the random gray hairs and view it as exotic. Later when your hair is mostly silver it can help to adopt the positive attitude towards your hard earned silver crown and learn to enjoy the respect and beauty earned with silver hair. So, go wild – go gray and enjoy a youthful approach to life with a silver crown on your head.

Voss Andreae sculptures are inspired by his scientific knowledge

The exhibition “Bodies”, that has been circling the planet, takes the integration between science and art a step further and turns science into the art pieces.
However, art and science are further linked by art work that is inspired by biological and physiological structures. Julian Voss-Andreae is an artist that combines his scientific background with his creations. He studied physics at the universities of Berlin, Edinburgh and Vienna and focused on Quantum physics for his graduate research. Voss Andreae has created large sculptures that are inspired by his scientific knowledge. Among his sculptures is the installation Unraveling Collagen.  According to Voss Andreae: “Unraveling Collagen is based on the structure of collagen, the most abundant protein in humans. In this sculpture I placed the initial emphasis on the structural role collagen plays in our bodies. The triangular cut-outs reveal the dominant force lines, reminiscent of contemporary steel construction. Collagen is mostly known for its role in aging: It is responsible for skin elasticity, and its degradation leads to wrinkles that accompany aging. During the creation of the piece, I departed from the actual molecular structure and opened up the intertwining helices towards the top which connects the piece metaphorically with aging.”
It is quite fascinating and symbolic that Voss Andreae chose to create the unraveling collagen rather than “healthy young collagen”, it is the natural process of nature and is actually a truer symbol of life and time line of the living body rather than a perfect intact triple helix collagen fiber.
“Fighting” the aging process of the collagen is the target of technologies in the beauty and aesthetic industry. It is the desire of most ageing women and men too, to slow down the signs of ageing and to repair the damage already done; this is achieved by stimulation of new collagen growth and tightening of the existing collagen hence mending of the “unraveling” collagen.

Collagen is mostly known for its role in aging

Picture taken before cleaning the beach

I have selected to photograph very dirty beaches in my vicinity, clean them and then photograph them after they are clean.
The planet is ageing in a very ugly manner; a walk on the beach in some areas is a depressing adventure,  the footprint of our consumption is everywhere. I have actually found tooth brushes, facial cream tubes, moisturizers, combs, hairspray cans and much more, spread on the most amazing beaches. Most of these items did not land on the beautiful sand because of the beach goers; they actually ended up on the beach through the sea and through city gutters.
As consumers, it is our responsibility to dispose of garbage responsibly, we can also help by purchasing only things we need and when we do purchase, don’t necessarily choose the cheapest, it is important to purchase items that will last and will not end up in the landfill after one use.

I started my B&A project a few months ago. I apply sunscreen (SPF 30) over my favorite antiaging moisturizer to keep my middle eastern skin protected, I wear long sleeve shirts even on hot days and I try to operate early in the morning or late afternoon. While cleaning, I always meet people that join the “party”, some help clean and some will help carry the bags to the nearest garbage collecting zone.
I must admit that since I have started looking closer at the garbage at the beaches, I am careful about avoiding taking bags when I shop and am vigilant about recycling bottles, batteries, cans and what ever can be recycled.
Help the planet avoid “ageing”, join the antiageing treatment for the beaches and areas around you by joining cleaning groups and by disposing of garbage responsibly.
Below are some photos of some cleaning projects I executed.

After cleaning, the beach looks so appealing

Even skin aging and wrinkles are associated with sugar consumption, so face it, there is no place for denial, any way you look at it…sugar is bad for you, too bad so many of us are  addicted to it…but how can one help the sugar addiction, when it adds that little sweetness and passion to life.

The cause of ill effects of sugar on the skin is the glycation process, in which the sugar in our blood attaches to protein molecules to form harmful new molecules called Advanced Glycation End-products (AGEs). The more sugar consumed, the more AGEs are developed.

Many clinical studies have been performed on the effect of high level of AGEs on collagen. Studies have found that excessive AGEs will cause collagen in different areas to go through changes that eventually will cause the collagen to become brittle and in skin this will cause wrinkles and dry, dull, and sagging skin.

Not only this but excessive sugar is also associated with inhibition of Human Growth Hormone (HGH) activity, since HGH is associated with tissue repair and rejuvenation, obviously, this will affect the aging process too.

The good news is that it is not too late to turn back the clock. First, you can decrease the amount of sugar you consume (not only pure sugar but fruit and carbohydrates in general). In addition, it is possible to generate new collagen through stimulation of the fibroblast present in our dermis and hypodermis. Stimulation of Collagen skin regeneration can be induced via the TriPollar Radio Frequency technology. Tripollar treatments can also help reduce circumference. The apollo and regen are two TriPollar technology devices that induce secretion of liquefied fat from the fat cells in the hypodermis adipose layer, thus reducing their size and leading to a decrease in circumference along with added skin tightening. Unfortunately, treatment with these devices is not an alternative to exercise and diet if one is a sugar addict.

It is important to note that a sugar rich diet cannot be balanced by collagen regeneration or other anti-aging treatments as the accelerated aging caused by excessive sugar will cause damage to the new collagen generated too.

The bottom line is always a negative outcome to sugar consumption, even anti-aging treatments will not help the ill affects of sugar if we swallow the chocolate while we treat our skin for anti aging and wrinkled skin.

Acording to EnDouceur, Dermolissage can be used effectively for the treatment of dry skin, Acne, Hyperpigmentation, Rosacea, Telangiectasias (broken blood vessels) and rough skin.

A very effective treatment for aging skin rejuvenation and tightening would be to combine the Dermolissage, which treats the superficial skin layer, with a device that targets the aging skin from deep from inside, for example the TriPollar RF treatment.

A good combination treatment will include a 10 minutes facial anti aging treatment with the TriPollar RF technology. TriPollar will induce immediate results of tightening the existing collagen and will also induce a long term anti wrinkle process by building of new collagen due to stimulation of the fibroblasts. Following TriPollar treatment, performing a Dermolissage diamond microdermabrasion session will be very beneficial as the TriPollar will ‘prepare’ the skin for the Dermolissage treatment and enable an enhanced penetration of the treatment solutions used during the diamond microdermabrasion. This combination treatment is great for targeting the skin’s most superficial layer while also affecting its inner layer and inducing long term anti aging effects of collagen growth.

One way for preventing sleep wrinkles is to sleep on your back; Chinese women recognized this fact ages ago and always slept on their backs using concave porcelain pillows.
Another option is using a pillow (not a special anti wrinkle pillow) that minimizes facial sleep wrinkling, pillows with natural fill, such as duck down and feathers. This kind of pillow supports the head while providing softness, eliminating pressure on the skin, thus reducing sleep wrinkles. There are also anti wrinkle pillows available made in particular for preventing sleep wrinkles. An anti wrinkle pillow supports the head while keeping the face and eye tissue away from the pillow.
There are claims that silk rather than cotton pillow cases will also minimize the formation of sleep wrinkles. In the UK, this claim has recently been targeted by Britain’s Advertising Standards Agency which forced the advertiser to remove the claim that silk pillows have anti aging benefits, as there are no clinical studies proving that cotton pillow cases will induce more wrinkles or that using silk pillows will reduce them.
Another product targeting sleep wrinkles is a special pillowcase that is imbedded with copper micro fibers which according to the manufacture, serve to correct the skin during sleep due to copper’s ability to stimulate collagen production thus reducing the presence of lines and wrinkles.
Unfortunately, if you have developed sleep wrinkles, they may be difficult to treat with just the use of an anti wrinkle pillow. As we age, our skin loses its flexibility, skin that becomes wrinkled while sleeping will no longer readily recover after sleep, as it did when we were younger. Since sleep wrinkles aren’t the results of muscle contractions, products like Botox will not remove them. To treat them, the existing collagen needs to tighten and new collagen needs to form in the dermis in order to smooth the skin. A gold standard method for treating wrinkles is via TriPollar® RF, a clinically proven method with significant data of treatment safety and results. Visit the site www.pollogen.com for more information.