It's time for Seriously Skincare Saturday! I need to make a banner or something! I also have noted as of late I use way too many exclamation marks in my blogging and commenting - but I guess I want to convey excitement or importance and it's hard in written form sometimes.
Also it is important to note that I am not a dermatologist, doctor of any kind, or health professional. I'm just a self educated consumer and skin care consultant with my own opinions - feel free to research on your own or disagree with me (but I warn you I am rarely wrong ;)
Anywhoo onto the 3 layers of skin (picture from depositphotos.com)
The Epidermis - the part with the star and the label 4 layers, that's the part you usually "see". If you have ever "rug burned" your self then your into the pink part of the epidermis, that's why it's mildly bloody.
The Dermis - here's the part we really want to keep healthy. It's where the collagen and elastin are hopefully all linked together like in the picture above. Each little cell hopefully has "normal" amounts of melanin (the stuff that "colors" your skin) and hopefully you have enough lipids (fats) peptides (proteins) and hydration for all the cells so they can make it up to the Epidermis (what you end up seeing as your skin) without problem. The hair roots are also here, nerves, sweat glands and sebaceous (oil) glands as well.
The Subcutaneous - you don't want to get down here! It's where the Veins (or Arteries depending on where you are) feeding your skin are. There is also a lot of FAT. And after you break through subcutaneous your into your muscle so that's why there are 3 levels of BURN!
1st degree burn - Epidermis
2nd degree burn - down to the Dermis - not good
3rd degree burn - ouch ouch ouch down to Subcutaneous - not good at all
I am going to harp on this repeatedly - tanning beds use mostly UVA rays which are the ones able to penetrate the DERMIS. UVB can usually only damage the Epidermis. Why people lay in a machine that pushes UVA rays into an unprotected body (and when you burn your getting a 2nd degree burn) is beyond me.
The above picture is from SkinCheck.org which I highly suggest checking out they have wonderful information on moles and skin cancer.
The Dermis is the key to skincare, what comes "up" from there is what you will see (what you see when you look at your face right now (epidermis) can be sloughed off - you need to take care of it and that starts with Sunscreen!!! You need a tablespoon to protect your face. Do you use a tablespoon of your daily moisturizer with SPF. I don't, that's a lot! So I supplement with ACTUAL sunscreen - there are plenty these days for the face and please don't forget the rest of your body!
Do NOT rely on the SPF in your makeup - it's not enough. And you know your makeup brakes down during the day from sweat and oil (that's why most of us wear primers!) so obviously the SPF is being broken down as well. And as many of you know wearing moisturizer with SPF 15 + sunscreen SPF 30 + foundation with SPF 15 does NOT =SPF 60. It just equals the highest SPF you put on (the sunscreen at 30) and maybe buys you a little more time. 2 hours is the max amount of time in sunlight before SPF breaks down, but as I said sweat, oil and water on the face can make that happen quicker so just be aware.
I'm going to stop here and we will pick up next Saturday with skin types, then move to anti-aging the week after.
Thanks for reading!
Jasmine
