Eczema is a condition that is characterized by rash-like symptoms, which may include redness, skin edema, itching and dryness, crusting, flaking, blistering, cracking, oozing, or bleeding. According to a press release for the product, the American Academy of Dermatology has found that 10-20% of the world’s population suffers from eczema to some degree. Atopic eczema is the most common type to occur, which is believed to have a hereditary component. However, some diagnosed cases of atopic eczema are caused by a specific irritating agent, and are in actuality a different form of eczema, called contact dermatitis.
Aveeno®EczemaCare Body Wash and EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream have been proposed as novel treatments for eczema. In one January 2007 study administered by Johnson & Johnson, 82-89% of all patients tested had improved symptoms of eczema after two weeks’ of daily use of each product — numbers that are highly impressive, even for an in-house study. Both the Aveeno®EczemaCare Body Wash and EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream have also received prestigious awards, including the National Eczema Association Seal of Acceptance and the Allure 2007 “Best Beauty Breakthrough” award! What makes these products so effective? Read on…
According to the supplement, oats have been used since ancient Egypt to manage dry, itchy skin. Colloidal oatmeal, a preparation of ground hulled oat kernels dispersible in water, is helpful to dry skin in four major ways:
1. Contains a helpful mixture of components that soothe and/or hydrate skin, including 10-18% protein, 60-64% polysaccharides, and lipids, enzymes, saponins, prostaglandin synthetic inhibitors, vitamins, and flavonoids. In short, oat proteins have high hydration and fat-binding capacities, and have been shown to improve skin’s barrier function.
2. Has a lower pH than human skin, which enables absorption of oils and dirt on the skin.
3. Positively charged sites of oat proteins help oatmeal bind to negatively-charged parts of the skin, anchoring the moisturizing ingredients into the skin. This helps the ingredient form a thin layer over the skin. (Pretty neat, huh? )
4. Contains vitamin E, an antioxidant.
5. In one study, cited here, oat kernel extracts inhibited prostaglandin synthesis to a degree comparable with that of indomethacin, indicating that oatmeal may reduce pain and itching.
Very exciting indeed!
Petrolatum, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Ceramides and Panthenol
All of the above ingredients in Aveeno®EczemaCare Body Wash and EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream serve as additional hydrators, preventing further irritation and drying of skin. Petrolatum and dimethicone are both occlusive agents, which seal in moisture and help prevent further moisture loss.
No potentially irritating ingredients
There are no fragrances, dyes, colorants, or steroids in Aveeno®EczemaCare Body Wash and EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream. In the press release for the product, the National Eczema Association (NEA) and their Scientific Advisory Board found “Aveeno®EczemaCare products are gentle, mild, and effective for those who suffer from eczema.”
An interesting, unintended single case study
…That would be me. For some unknown reason (maybe the stress of finals approaching?), I had my first case of eczema last week. It appeared on my neck, and I wasn’t sure what it was, but after reading up on it, I realized it was contact dermatitis. I found the Aveeno EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream particularly helpful in soothing, hydrating, and alleviating my symptoms, though it definitely takes time (I have been using it for a week now, and still have a little redness, but far less itching.)
As a result…
I highly recommend Aveeno®EczemaCare Body Wash and EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream to anyone with eczema or very dry skin. In the aforementioned Johnson & Johnson survey, 88% of consumers said that continued use of EczemaCare Moisturizing Cream improved their skin’s health with continued use, and I believe it. There are many great, proven ingredients in these formulations, and I love the fact that they’re non-irritating, hydrating, and take the itch away! Product rating: 9/10 (High concentration of proven ingredients: 3/3. New technology: 3/3. Value for the money: 3/3. Sunscreen: 0/1).
For further tips on how to manage your eczema, please click here.
…Now you can, albeit modestly so. Dermatologists in South Korea have found in a placebo-controlled study that the following mixture consumed once/day reduced the appearance of crow’s feet by an average of 15% in 108 people in 12 weeks:
vitamin C
The FDA recommends 75 mg/day for women, 90 mg/day for men, no more than 2000 mg/day.
vitamin E
The FDA recommends 22 IU/day (about 15 mg/day) for women, and 29 IU/day (about 20 mg/day) for lactating women, not to exceed 1500 IU/day (about 1000 mg/day).
pycnogenol
Recommended/upper intake limits have not yet been established.
evening-primrose oil (shown above)
Recommended/upper intake limits have not yet been established.
According to the April 2008 issue of Allure magazine, the pill is only available in Korea. However, “the combination blocks collagen-destroying proteins and increases collagen production…And each component is available separately and they can be taken together,” according to researcher Jin Tae Hong of Chungbuk National University, who was involved with parts of the study. Hong adds further, “Decreasing sun exposure is [still] the best way for young women to prevent wrinkles.”
As far as I can tell, no difference, except the smell
Upon first switching to Cellbone Technology C15ie Advanced C-Serum, the first difference I noticed between it and Skinceuticals CE Ferulic was the smell, which I wrongly associated with an unintended high alcohol content. However, inspection of the ingredients in both products (listed below) shows that both products contain hydrating alcohols. The difference turns out to be that Cellbone Technology C15ie Advanced C-Serum contains menthol, while Skinceuticals CE Ferulic does not, which was the source of the smell. Once I realized that, the smell didn’t bother me anymore.
I honestly think I am going to alternate between the two products for a while, until I get a definitive answer on which one is better, from research or otherwise. Cellbone Technology C15ie Advanced C-Serum is obviously cheaper, and contains idebenone, which I love. After all, because the exact pathway by which each antioxidant acts is not clear, using a variety of antioxidants is an oft-recommended way to protect yourself from unwanted free radical-induced damage. On the other hand, Skinceuticals CE Ferulic contains no idebenone but does add ferulic acid, which stabilizes the rather unstable L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C) in solution. In addition, Skinceuticals CE Ferulic contains 5% more vitamin E, and vitamin E together with vitamin C has been documented to have some pretty incredible effects.
Basically, if I were already using a night cream with idebenone, like Prevage, I would use only Skinceuticals CE Ferulic during the day. However, being a college student, I certainly love saving money with Cellbone Technology C15ie Advanced C-Serum and getting idebenone there too. After using both, I don’t visibly notice a difference, so the choice is clearly yours. :-) Let me know if you have any additional insights!
Ingredients in Cellbone Technology C15ie Advanced C-Serum
According to the April 2008 issue of Alluremagazine (the source for this article), you just may want to consider it. Above shows two identical twins, both 38 years old. The twin on the left had only two Botox treatments in the past 13 years. The twin on the right had regular Botox injections in her forehead for 13 years - since age 25. As a result, the twin on the right has almost no deep wrinkles, while her sister has “deeper and permanently etched wrinkles in the forehead,” according to William J. Binder, assistant clinical professor at UCLA Medical Center.
This issue is not new. Marcia Cross, one of the beautiful stars of ABC’s Desperate Housewives, has admitted to using Botox since the ’90s. According to Allure, some leading dermatologists often start their patients on Botox at age 25 as well. On the one hand, when you look at the results above — and stars like Marcia Cross — it’s easy to see why. On the other hand, how early is too early?
Since there is no ‘real’ right or wrong answer, I thought it would be fun to get your comments on this one. I set up the poll below, and please feel free to write comments as well. I look forward to your responses!
Avon Supershock Mascara ($4.99, Amazon.com) claims to be a ‘12 on a scale from 1 to 10.’ Pretty big claims for one little tube of mascara…until you pull out the gi-normous brush! But how does it measure up to other formulas? And does the brush really make a difference? (Oh, and for the record, it comes in black, brown, navy, and teal, shown above.)
Contains a high concentration of wax and beeswax
One of Avon Supershock Mascara’s main ingredients is wax, which is a common ingredient for mascaras, because it coats the lashes and allows for additional coats to be added and bind. Although Neutrogena famously released its Healthy Volume mascara sans wax a few years back, the ingredient continues to be used in top mascaras because it builds lashes so well.
Not great for lower lashes
In my opinion, the large brush makes it awfully hard to get the lower lashes (I tried it, and I ended up with linebacker lines under my eyes. Which would have been fine before a Steelers game, but it’s March!)
Purely cosmetic, but pretty good
Unlike most of the products I review on FutureDerm.com, Avon Supershock Mascara is purely cosmetic, but still does a great job making the upper lashes look longer and thicker. I recommend applying it to the upper lashes, gently curling your eyelashes with an eyelash curler, and then quickly applying a second coat. Wiggle the brush a little bit each time you apply it, and keep your mouth open slightly (a trick I read in Allure years ago, it helps you hold your face still).
The best mascara I have ever used is still Lancome Hypnose. I will keep searching for a better one!
If you are actually looking to grow longer lashes, I recommend using Revitalash ($134.95, Amazon.com) once per day for six weeks. It significantly helped to improve the length of my lashes, and the beautiful Becki Newton (Ugly Betty) says she swears by it in this month’s In Style magazine.
At any rate, for the appearance of better upper lashes, Avon Supershock Mascara certainly can’t be beat for the price!
Just in time to prepare for summer sandal weather, I discovered Curél Targeted Therapy Foot Cream ($4.79, Drugstore.com). Loaded with emollient ingredients, antioxidants, and retinyl palmitate, not only is it effective, but it’s affordable too. For more on the ingredients and my personal experience, read on!
Extremely hydrating
Name a hydrating ingredient. Guess what: it’s here. Hydrating glycerin, cetearyl alcohol (one of the good alcohols), urea, paraffin, and dimethicone - they’re all here. Due to the fact that the skin absorbs ingredients best while sleeping, if you apply a thick layer of the cream under 100% cotton socks before bed, you will wake up to softer, more hydrated feet.
Coconut milk
There is a significant lack of research about coconut milk and extracts in skin care products. Further, if you are allergic to coconut, avoid this product altogether. However, coconut milk is most likely to be hydrating due to its incorporation of lactic acid, a very effective hydrating ingredient. In fact, lactic acid is the main ingredient in LacHydrin, a prescription drug FDA-approved to treat dry skin, most commonly in post-menopausal women.
Magnesium ascorbyl phosphate is a water-soluble form of vitamin C. According to a 1997 study in the Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis, magnesium ascorbyl palmitate has greater stability than both L-ascorbic acid and ascorbyl palmitate, two more commonly used forms of vitamin C. My only qualm about stable vitamin C derivatives at this time is that their concentrations are not often revealed, while companies like Cellex-C, Skinceuticals, and Cellbone Technology release the concentration of L-ascorbic acid. Still, for a $5 foot cream, I should just take what I can get! (If we’re talking $100 facial serums, then we’ll talk turkey.)
Retinyl palmitate
Most of the time, I prefer retinol over retinyl palmitate. The reason is clear: According to a 1997 study in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 0.6% retinyl palmitate is less effective in penetrating human skin than 0.025% retinol (these concentrations being similar to those found in many over-the-counter skincare formulations).
However, in Curél Targeted Therapy Foot Cream, I like retinyl palmitate, for three reasons. One, even though retinyl palmitate is less potent than retinol, it has been shown to exhibit the collagen-stimulating, smoothing, and wrinkle-reducing properties of retinol over time. Two, retinyl palmitate has also been shown to be less irritating than retinol.
And lastly, according to the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, the optimal pH of retinol in formulations is between 5.5 and 6.0. However, combining retinol with a fatty acid to make retinyl palmitate should stabilize it somewhat when it is in an acidic formulation with lemon, pineapple, and grapefruit extracts in Curél Targeted Therapy Foot Cream. Of course, this is one of those questions I should probably ask a cosmetic chemist about to be certain. Any takers out there?
Personal experience: Favorite foot cream ever
I am not a fan of the usual peppermint scent of foot creams, and this one does not have it. Better yet, it is hydrating, and I saw an improvement after 3 nights of sleeping with it under soft cotton socks. This one’s a winner in my book! (P.S.: Three out of three other women on Drugstore.com gave it 5 stars too.)
Overall view: I love it!
This is definitely a treat for the feet! (And yes, I have been waiting six months to say that, lol.) It’s an amazing foot cream, and I love the plethora of great ingredients for the low price. Just be sure to put some sunscreen over it if you’re going to use it during the day. Overall rating: 9/10. (High concentration of proven ingredients: 3/3. New technology or formulation: 3/3. Value for the money: 3/3. Sunscreen: 0/1).
If you’ve often heard you should apply night cream religiously before bed, here’s why. Dr. David E. Bank states in the January 2008 issue of Health magazine that core internal temperature rises at night and the facial muscles and pores relax, allowing for skin care ingredients to penetrate the skin more deeply (and hence have greater effect).
For greatest effect, most dermatologists recommend using ingredients like retinoids or AHAs at night, which can make the skin photosensitive and hence more susceptible to sun damage when used during the day. (Sensitive skin note: You may only want to use these ingredients 2-3 times a week.) You may also want to use peptides to firm the skin. And don’t forget about antioxidants. Unfortunately, at this time it is unclear by which pathways which antioxidants scavenge free radicals. As such, some dermatologists recommend using different antioxidants during the day than at night (cover all your bases, that sort of thing). I personally like to use antioxidants vitamin C and E in the morning under sunscreen, which boost sunscreen protection, and then switch to coffeeberry or idebenone at night.
According to Dr. Leslie Baumann, author of Cosmetic Dermatology, the Sun Protection Factor (SPF) commonly listed on products refers to the amount of UVB protection, measured by the time it takes for a person without sunscreen versus a person with sunscreen to show a erythemal skin reaction (i.e., to show redness).
The amount of UVB an SPF is effective at blocking may be estimated using the following algorithm from Dr. Rachel Herschenfeld: SPF 30 allows 1/30 UVB rays, or 3.3% through, meaning it blocks about 96.6% of UVB rays; SPF 50 allows 1/50 UVB rays, or 2.0% through, meaning it blocks 98.0% of UVB rays. An SPF of 80 means that only 1/80, or 1.25% of rays get through, meaning that Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunscreen SPF 85 is blocking 98.75% of the sun’s rays. Pretty impressive!
And if you mathematicians out there noticed that there is a bigger increase when you move from SPF 30 to SPF 50 than from SPF 50 to SPF 80, you are correct. The higher the numbers go, the smaller the amount of protection inferred with each increase. Still, I would rather get 98.75% of the rays blocked with Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunscreen SPF 85 than 98.0% with an SPF 50!
One note: always keep in mind that the collagen and elastin in products have never been shown to actually trigger collagen and elastin production, but rather, collagen and elastin act as effective hydrating agents. With that said, it is primarily the shea butter and other hydrating ingredients in Curél Life’s Stages Nurturing Comfort Moisture Cream for Pregnancy & Motherhood that makes it so effective.
What will Curél Life’s Stages Menopause & Beyond Lotion do for my skin?
I like Curél Life’s Stages Nurturing Comfort Moisture Cream for Pregnancy & Motherhood, due to its high concentration of shea butter and the fact that it has been shown to increase elasticity 70% better than the leading pregnancy cream. However, I would use it over a stretch mark treatment, like Mederma, for the best results. Product rating: 8/10 (High concentration of proven ingredients: 3/3. New technology: 2/3. Value for the money: 3/3. Sunscreen: 0/1).
I also like Curél Life’s Stages Fortifying Moisture Lotion for Menopause & Beyond, due to its plethora of hydrating ingredients for dry skin. However, I personally prefer a hydrating body lotion with more to offer, like more antioxidants and niacinamide in like Olay Quench, or retinol and peptides. Product rating: 7/10 (High concentration of proven ingredients: 3/3. New technology: 1/3. Value for the money: 3/3. Sunscreen: 0/1).
My name is Nicki Zevola, and I am a proud medical student at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (Class of 2012)!
Please feel free to contact me at Nicki [at] FutureDerm.com. I am currently receiving too many e-mails to respond to each one personally (as I would like to), but I will try to address concerns and questions on my blog as best as possible! :-)
Please note: This site is only for informative purposes. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your doctor for your medical concerns. The author is not liable for any outcome or damage resulting from information obtained from this site.
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