It can be difficult to find skin care ingredients that are both organic and clinically proven to make a difference on your skin. That’s why I was really excited to find the Whish Sugar Scrub ($38.00, Amazon.com), Body Wash ($22.00, Amazon.com) and Body Butter ($24.00). All three products contain a high percentage of organic ingredients, but the true catch here is that these ingredients are simply organic versions of clinically proven effective ingredients like antioxidants, shea butter, aloe vera, and seaweed extract. I am personally a big fan of the entire line!
The products also advertise that they are free of parabens, sulfates, DEA/TEA, petrochemicals, and mineral oil. Although sulfates such as sodium lauryl sulfate are known skin irritants, I am actually not finding a plethora of evidence against parabens in the concentrations they are found in skin care products, nor am I finding that mineral oil is harmful to non-oily, normal-type skin. Still, if you are the type that double-locks and double-checks your doors, the fact that Whish products are paraben-free, sulfate-free, DEA/TEA-free, petrochemical-free, and mineral oil-free might let you rest easier at night.
Whish Sugar Scrub ($38.00, Amazon.com) is a combination of aloe vera (the main ingredient!), organic sugar, organic raspberry seeds, and organic bamboo. After using the product, I was pleased that it didn’t leave my skin with the oily residue of a lot of sugar scrubs. Instead, with the main ingredient being organic aloe vera, it left my skin feeling soft.
Whish Body Wash ($22.00, Amazon.com) is similarly a combination of aloe vera, raspberry butter, and shea butter. While the product definitely has excellent ingredients (and left my skin feeling amazing!), I am not as big a fan of this product as the scrub or body lotion, as it has been said by Dr. David Bank that body washes should be used for at least one full minute before rinsing to exhibit the full effect of the ingredients. With that said, in today’s time-and-money deprived society, who has the time or the money to rub a $22 body wash on every inch of their body for a full minute or more?! At any rate, if you don’t mind spending the time or the money, or just want a high-quality body wash anyway, then this is definitely a smart, savvy pick as far as body washes go! 
Finally, Whish Body Butter ($24.00, Amazon.com) is a whipped body butter that really hydrates. When applied after a shower or bath, its high shea butter content acts as an occlusive agent, trapping the water against the skin. It feels great against the skin, and I highly recommend it!
It should also be mentioned that the entire line comes in Almond (shown), Pomegranate, and Lemongrass. Let me know your thoughts if you have had any experience with the line!
PS – Don’t forget to enter the November FutureDerm Giveaway!
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October 23rd, 2008
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Exederm is a skin care system approved by the National Eczema Foundation and granted the association’s coveted Seal of Acceptance. Exederm is exclusively designed to treat sensitive skin prone to flare-ups from eczema, dermatitis, and everyday irritation. All of the formulas contained in the Exederm three-step system are completely free of parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate, dyes, fragrance, and lanolin, all of which can be irritating to sensitive skin. Now Exederm has teamed up with FutureDerm.com to give three readers the complete 3-step system!
As an added bonus, during the duration of the contest (through November 26, 2008), using the Exederm coupon code futurederm1 at checkout will get anyone ordering on Exederm.com $5 off their purchase!
How to enter: Respond below with a brief message about the skin care you currently use and why you think Exederm would be good for you. Please supply your e-mail address, as this is the only way you will be contacted if you win.
Contest rules and regulations: Three winners will be drawn at random on November 26, 2008 (just in time for Thanksgiving!). All winners will be contacted via e-mail through FutureDerm.com on November 26, 2008, and announced on FutureDerm.com on that date. In the e-mail, you will be asked to supply a mailing address. This mailing address will be immediately forwarded to an Exederm executive, who has agreed to supply and send the products to the winners in a timely fashion. FutureDerm.com is not responsible for lost or unawarded prizes. The prize cannot be exchanged for cash. FutureDerm.com reserves the right to cancel the contest at any time.
Good luck entering!
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October 16th, 2008
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A quick note before I begin about MDHB: I am really very sorry about not writing for so long. I apologize if I have disappointed my readers! I finished my first Basic Science Class, Anatomy, with a final on October 13, and am now ready to invest more time back in my website (my next exam, in Cell Biology, is November 3). I am still learning to balance schoolwork with other responsibilities, so thank you very much for being patient and understanding with me. Now onto MDHB! :-) -Nicki
Methyl dihydroxybenzoate is the latest ingredient from pharmaceutical powerhouse Allergan. Released in Vivité Vibrance Therapy ($95.00, Amazon.com; MSRP $115.00), methyl dihydroxybenzoate reduces hyperpigmentation by interfering with the actual production of melanin (skin pigment). This is unique because current popular treatments kojic acid, arbutin and hydroquinone work by interfering with the activity of tyrosinase, the rate-limiting enzyme for the biosynthesis of melanin in epidermal melanocytes, according to Dr. Leslie Baumann’s text Cosmetic Dermatology. In addition, also according to the text, vitamin E as alpha-tocopheryl ferulate may also prevent hyperpigmentation by inhibiting tyrosine hydroxylase activity in an indirect manner.
So how effective is stopping hyperpigmentation at the end (with actual melanin production) versus ceasing it towards the beginning (with tyrosinase inhibitors)? According to reports from Allergan, results with Vivité Vibrance Therapy are similar to those from using a 4 percent hydroquinone solution (the highest concentration of hydroquinone available without a prescription). In a company-sponsored eight-week study, two sets of women put Vibrance Therapy on one side of their faces and 4% hydroquinone on the other. In one group, effects with Vivité Vibrance Therapy actually surpassed those of 4% hydroquinone, with 70 percent reduction in hyperpigmentation versus hydroquinone’s 63 percent; in the other group, there was a 62 percent reduction for both.
So should you switch from hydroquinone to Vivité Vibrance Therapy? That depends. If you alarmed about hydroquinone use due to reports that large oral doses induce cancer in rats, a 2006 review in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Dr. Jacob Levitt, M.D. reports that topical applications of hydroquinone in standard product concentrations are not in fact carcinogenic to humans. So that’s not really a reason to switch. If, on the other hand, you are a darker-skinned individual and have concerns over the development of ochronosis (which has been linked to hydroquinone use), then you may want to try Vivité Vibrance Therapy. Of course, always speak to your dermatologist first.
With that said, I’m really happy to be back to blogging, and I’m going to do my best to update from now on, even with school commitments. And I’m especially glad to come back with a great find like Vivité Vibrance Therapy ($95.00, Amazon.com). Keep your awesome requests coming!
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October 14th, 2008
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Neutrogena (a brand of powerhouse Johnson and Johnson) has come up with some fabulous formulations with revolutionary ingredients through the years (their Healthy Skin, for one, is one of my all-time favorite products). So when I saw ads for the new Neutrogena Age Restorative Hydrating Cream ($14.99, Amazon.com), I was intrigued.
Unfortunately, the only new ingredient in Neutrogena Age Restorative Hydrating Cream is L-carnitine. According to this independent 2003 study, carnitine may help to prevent tissue necrosis (death) and to slow the progressive pathway after skin is burned. However, the study was conducted on the skin of rats in vitro, so it is a bit of a stretch to just assume that carnitine has similar restorative effects on human skin in vivo. In addition, although several studies have demonstrated that carnitine deficiencies result in low levels of carnitine in skin fibroblasts, there is no evidence (at least not that I could find) to support that low carnitine levels in fibroblasts make skin age faster or appear more damaged. Nor could I find evidence that applying carnitine to the skin improves skin appearance or cellular renewal rates.
The other ingredients in Neutrogena Age Restorative Hydrating Cream are primarily your standard hydrators with a silicone base. I am pretty disappointed in this product, and I hope that Neutrogena returns to introducing truly effective new ingredients soon. Product rating: 3/10. (New technology: 1/3. High concentration of effective ingredients: 1/3. Value for the money: 1/3. Sunscreen: 0/1).
Product Ingredients: Water, Tetrahydroxypropyl Ethylenediamine, Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Ethylhexyl Isononanoate, Trisiloxane, Carnitine, PEG-12 Glyceryl Dimyristate, Glycerin, BHT, Polyacrylamide, Laureth-7, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Saccharomyces Lysate Extract, Carbomer, Zinc Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate, Copper Gluconate, Sodium PCA, Urea, Magnesium Aspartate, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Polyquaternium-5, Laureth-23, Laureth-4, Sodium Hyaluronate, Trehalose, Triacetin, Dimethicone Crosspolymer-3, Citric Acid, Benzoic Acid, Disodium EDTA, DMDM Hydantoin, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Chlorphenesin, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance.
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October 5th, 2008
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futurederm |
Product Reviews, Worst Products, Worst Products |
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