Beginners skin science
January 10th, 2023 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Some people may think hands and feet are less important than the face, and that hands and feet don’t deserve to be taken care of with the very best serums and creams. But they do! They are if you can think of a future when you are not 20 anymore and you can’t wear super-high heels (ouch!) and your feet hurt. As we age, hands and feet age more visibly than other parts of the body (our bones and heart also age, but we can’t see those changes), perhaps even faster than our face. Let’s take advantage of the fact that we can see our hands and feet, and that…
January 3rd, 2023 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
The cartoon (The New Yorker) is great, but even a few days of this “new year resolution” will leave you with sensitive skin! Hannah
December 7th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Your nails are “just protein.” So how come you can improve your nail’s health and appearance? Just like you can improve your hair appearance and health, even though the hair is “just protein.” The same for eyelashes and eyebrows. Because although they are mostly inert protein, we can influence the process that makes them. You can do two things: improve the health and appearance as the nails are formed and prevent damage once they are formed. What are nails? Figure. Nail anatomy. From Edwards (1948) The horny plates that grow on the back of each finger and toe are the equivalent of the claws in our cats. In higher primates,…
November 26th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
These are essentials for skin care (at different stages in life) Epidermal growth factor for those over 25’s because younger people have lots of EGF in their skin Petrolatum (babies with diaper rash and adults with extremely dry skin) Essential fatty acids Essential amino acids Sunscreen (everybody) Retinoids (acne skin, aged and wrinkled skin, large pores) Antioxidant proteins, especially in cities with high pollution and very sunny environments. Yes, topical skin care matters: make your skin healthy for the many, many years you will live. The New Year is coming, so start thinking about New year resolutions and how to achieve your objectives without wasting money on ineffective products. …
November 13th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Hyaluronic acid Here the question is, “where”? In your skin, hyaluronic acid is crucial. On your skin? It will dry as a film as most polysaccharides, stretching your skin until you rinse it away. Stem cells Yours or somebody (some plant) else? Yours give your skin the power to renew, and it’s important to keep your stem cells happy and protected from the sun, strong oxidants, and stress in general. Once the sun or strong oxidant mutates the stem cell’s DNA, that cell and all the cells it will make are changed forever. This is how sunspots and skin cancer happen. “Natural” preservatives Don’t exist. Or, rather, natural chemicals at…
October 24th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
It’s obvious, isn’t it? We are what we eat, sort of. We can make most molecules we need for life; that’s what metabolism is for, and we have all the necessary enzymes. Exceptions? Humans are unable to make some chemicals that are essential for life. Apparently, we lost some enzymes here and there during evolution. The answer to this problem is that we must ingest them in our diets: the few essential amino acids, some essential fatty acids, and some vitamins. A healthy diet will have all the “essentials” we can’t make, plus the energy (in calories), the nutrients, the water, and the carbon and nitrogen we need. Do we…
October 21st, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Magnesium is good; it’s an essential element. We know that and use it as Magnesium PCA (moisturizer) and Magnesium ascorbyl phosphate (vitamin C, antioxidant), in one form or another, you will find Magnesium in our products. Will you find milk of magnesia (magnesium hydroxide) among our products? No. Why? The pH of this solution is 10.5, very alkaline. Our skin prefers to be at a pH of around 6. Magnesium hydroxide is a common component of antacids, such as milk of magnesia. Because of the high pH, it will kill bacteria, including those that produce odor, so you find it in antiperspirants. The problem is that fungi like high pH,…
September 21st, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
DaxibotulinumtoxinA for Injection (DAXI) is a “novel” botulinum toxin type A, just approved by the FDA as an alternative to Botox. It seems that its effect lasts a bit longer, approximately 6 months to Botox 3 months. Let’s not get too excited: it’s not too different from Botox. It is injected the same way, in the same area (the corrugator/procerus muscles), and acts in the same way. The difference is what you could call a “technicality”: ts shelf life is extended by pairing it with a peptide, whose only function is the stabilization of the active protein, a botulinum toxin. A botulinum toxin by any other name is still botulinum…
August 5th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
What’s the worst that could happen? Commercial products are regulated by the FDA (the USA Food and Drug Administration) and are safe because they are regulated. You can read the list of ingredients on the bottle or box. Beware of products that because the way that they are commercialized (like some imported products) can be unsafe. One example? Depending on where the product is coming from it may contain non-declared ingredients. This happens with products sold to lighten the skin. You should be safe if you buy a skincare product in the USA. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates skincare products and cosmetics. There are some considerations, though, and…
August 2nd, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
I don’t think there is a “perfect” sequence. But there is one step I know should come last: applying the sunscreen, SPF 30 or higher (50 doesn’t offer much more protection than 30, so choose a sunscreen you like). Sunscreen may require reapplication because it will go away if we touch our skin, sweat, or take a swim. More than “how many steps,” try to include the ingredients your skin needs at any time during the day. Making a routine complicated will make most people more unlikely to follow it. So, what do you want to apply under that sunscreen? What your skin needs Antioxidants will increase…
July 29th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Yes, if we are talking about a hanky. Cotton, linen, hemp, and so on are predominantly made of cellulose, a polymer that consists of thousands of glucose molecules joined together to form linear chains. Each glucose subunit is “sticky” because it can bind to neighboring cellulose molecules via hydrogen bonds. Individually, these bonds are very weak, but together they form a network that gives the fabric its strength. These hydrogen bonds break and reform, so clothes start taking on the shape that they are left, and creases form. When we apply a hot, steaming iron, the combination of heat and moisture breaks the hydrogen bonds, and with the pressure applied…
July 20th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Vegetable collagen doesn’t exist outside the labels of some skincare products. So, what on earth are they adding to this product? It’s likely a hydrolyzate (broken down) mix of proteins from corn, wheat, and soy. This is catering to the vegetarians that don’t know what collagen is, a protein that only exists in some animals. The INCI nomenclature perpetuates this anti-scientific myth, and I am very annoyed (but not surprised). After all, the INCI is made by an organism dependent on the cosmetics industry and not by the Royal Society of London. Knowing this doesn’t make it easier to accept the fact that advertising wins over science. Are people so…
July 20th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
No. Why? Probiotic implies that the product delivers “good” bacteria to dissuade other bacteria from multiplying. The FDA does not allow the sale of topical products containing bacteria. When you see an advertisement about “probiotic products” for the skin, they lie to you. For example: when a company tells you that they are adding Bacillus coagulans to their deodorant, they are either lying or breaking the law. This bacteria is used in probiotics taken orally to help after taking antibiotics leads to diarrhea. Let’s see some examples and how they actually work (when they work). Product A Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Corn Starch, Baking Soda, Candelilla Wax, Jojoba Oil, Shelf…
July 20th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
When it comes to LightStim, it means nothing.The FDA doesn’t say that LED light of any wavelength will improve your skin health. It only says that LightStim is similar to another product in the market. The red light will help lettuce seeds germinate because lettuce seeds have receptors for red light (and UV light). Your skin doesn’t. Before you spend money on an LED device for your skin, ask yourself. Am I a lettuce seed? If you are not, spend your money on a Skin Actives product. Your skin will be grateful. Hannah
July 11th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
1. You were born and your skin, just like the rest of the body, will start aging as soon as you are born. But don’t worry, a lot of it can be slowed down and even reverse. Keep reading and you’ll see! 2. Fine lines and wrinkles: 3. Loss of firmness, 4. Uneven tone, 5. Dryness 6. Uneven skin texture and dullness 7. Visible pores These signs correlate well with changes in function Decreased efficacy of the skin as a barrier —> dry skin Reduced ability to protect from UV rays —> uneven tone Reduced ability to protect from temperature changes Diminished immune response—> infections Slower healing. These signs also…
May 22nd, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
What is a solvent? A solvent is a liquid used to dissolve a powder; the solute dissolves because its molecules interact with the molecules of the solvent. For example, sugar will dissolve in water but not in oil. In skincare, solvents are ingredients used to dissolve other solid ingredients. The usual solvents include water, vegetable or animal fats, silicones, alcohols, etc. When I plan a formulation, my objective is to use actives at the optimal concentration. If the active ingredient is not soluble in water or oil, I may have to find an alternative solvent because the un-dissolved active will just “seat there”. In most Skin Actives products, there are…
May 16th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
This sounds big, but that’s because we are! Synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts. Our products contain amino acids and other nutrients that will be better used by your skin because there are growth factors and antioxidants. Your hair will be stronger because apocynin will support your stem cells while ROS* BioNet prevents damage to the cell membranes. Skin Actives has never been about the one “magic ingredient” because we understand how a living system works. We see the skin as it interacts with the rest of the body and we look at the epidermis…
May 1st, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Not content with exploiting biology, now publicists are coming after mathematics. Euclid of Alexandria (mid 3th century BC) was the first to discuss a golden ratio: “a straight line is said to have been cut in extreme and mean ratio when, as the whole line is to the greater segment, so is the greater to the lesser.” Figure. Euclid of Alexandria, in “The School of Athens,” a painting by Raphael. From that dry, boring mathematical definition to the one that the cosmetic industry chose to use: “the Golden Ratio is a blueprint to the ideal harmony of proportions. Represented by the Greek number Phi, it has been used in art,…
April 20th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Are you having fun extracting blackheads with a nose strip? They can be useful, but they are just a start. But first, what’s a blackhead? From my book Pores secrete sebum. One of the effects of the not-very-useful sebum is acne, so I can see why pores’ popularity is low. Pores get larger and more visible during adolescence when hormones increase sebum secretion. Pores can get clogged with sebum, keratin, and dead cells, resulting in an environment lacking in oxygen and favorable to the growth of the acne bacterium, C. acnes. The products of bacterial metabolism cause the inflamed pimples characteristic of acne, a real problem that good skincare can…
April 16th, 2022 by Dr. Hannah Sivak
Those “miracle” natural substances that people have been using for centuries or even millennia are useful because of the chemicals they contain. Sometimes, the stories are not true and there is nothing beneficial in those false miracle products. But when they effectively treat a human (or animal) condition, biochemists and phytochemists will work hard to identify the chemicals that confer the natural substance its power. The process is hard and time-consuming, but eventually, we find the key chemical. Sometimes, there is more than just one active chemical, like it’s the case of tea leaves (EGCG, caffeine). It gets even more interesting when the biochemist finds the mechanism of action. Finding…