My hair loss issues and use of Rogaine
Here is my hair loss story, which I wrote a few years ago. I had tried 2% Women’s Rogaine a few years back, and used it twice a day for 8 months, but I didn’t see any improvement in my hair, so I gave up. I didn’t have any side effects from it, except for a flaky scalp. At the time I thought I was just experiencing chronic non-permanent hair loss (Telogen Effluvium) due to either a low thyroid, low iron, poor absorption of nutrients, or some other mystery reason. It’s crazy that I’ve been researching hair loss for so long and have seen countless doctors but none of them know anything.

Most recently, I’ve experienced thinning temples and I think my hairline is receding, so I’m starting to realize the fact that both of my parents have thin hair probably means I also have genetic hair loss (Androgenetic Alopecia). So last week I started on 5% Men’s Minoxidil (it should be safe for women if you are not pregnant, trying to get pregnant, or are nursing, but you should talk to your doctor first). Actually what I bought was Spectral DNC, which is like Men’s Rogaine, but it also contains Aminexil, Retinol, Copper Peptides, and some other ingredients that supposedly promote hair loss, and unlike Rogaine, it doesn’t contain alcohol. The alcohol in Rogaine caused my scalp to get dry and flaky. Ugh.

Since the day I started on the Spectral DNC, I’ve had a low-grade headache. Headaches are a possible side effect of Minoxidil, probably due to the fact that it lowers blood pressure. Even though you just spray Minoxidil on your head, the ingredients can be absorbed systemically to some degree. The fact that a topical solution is giving me headaches is a pretty good indicator of that. There are some other possible rare but severe systemic side effects from Spectral DNC, as well as from Rogaine. I was looking up when/if the headache would go away on Google, and I discovered all of these people talking about Rogaine causing accelerated aging, wrinkles, enlarged pores, dark circles, and bags under the eyes. OMG! The horror! Do I want to be bald or do I want a face full of wrinkles? I know thinning hair and massive wrinkles run in my family, so I definitely can’t rely on good genes to help me out.

Does science show Rogaine causes wrinkles?
I spent hours trying to track down scientific studies that show the link between Minoxidil and aging. Apparently Minoxidil can cause a degradation of skin’s collagen, which is what would probably cause the accelerated aging. From what I’ve read, the studies used a much higher concentration of Minoxidil than you would apply daily, and I haven’t found any studies that actually test applying topical Rogaine and studying the results on people’s skin. Skin problems are not listed as any of the side effects on the packaging of Rogaine or Spectral DNC. All I know is that a bunch of random people on the internet are reporting problems. Maybe these people are obsessed with their hair, like I am, and they now also spend more time looking at their faces in the mirror, and they just didn’t notice the wrinkles that have always been there, but I doubt that’s the case most of the time.

Now what?
Now normally I wouldn’t completely trust some random people on the internet, but what if it’s true??? The problem with wrinkles is that they’re really hard to get rid of. That’s why I spend so much time talking about prevention. Maybe your skin would improve a little bit if you stopped the Rogaine, but wrinkles are usually pretty permanent. I don’t know if I’m willing to take that chance?? But I don’t want to be bald either. When I was using the 2% Rogaine, I didn’t notice that I had an increase in wrinkles, but some days I’ll look in the mirror and think I look 50, while other days I think I look 25. But overall, I don’t recall a dramatic change. A lot of people don’t report the increase in skin problems for at least a year of use, though. With Rogaine, if it works, you need to use it forever or you will lose the new hair/thicker hair that you gained, so that’s a lot of potential wrinkles, if it really does cause them.

Conclusion
At this point I’m still freaking out and don’t know what to do. A rational person would quit the Minoxidil because of the headaches. But I’m not rational - I’m desperate for hair and nice skin. Maybe I will cut back to just once a day, even though the directions say you must use it twice a day. Maybe I will just test one very small patch of my hair for the next few months – just to see if it even works on my hair. If I don’t see any results, I will quit using it again. If I see results, then I’ll be at a crossroads – risk wrinkles for thicker hair? If the headaches never go away, I will probably have to stop using it anyway, or I may quit the Spectral DNC and pick up some 5% Rogaine to see if that reduces the headaches. Finally, when applying Rogaine, make sure to let it dry before geting into bed, to prevent it from getting on your pillow and then getting onto your face. Also make sure you wipe away any extra if it drips onto your forehead, and wash your hands with soap and water after applying the solution.

I know a lot of people don’t feel comfortable talking about hair loss because it’s so upsetting, but have you used Rogaine? If so, have you seen a negative impact on your skin? What are you doing to treat your hair loss?

Related posts:

1. Will Rogaine Regrow Eyebrows?
2. Prevent Wrinkles By Tinting Your Car Windows
3. My Hair Loss Story

Retin-A Gel
Retin-A has been around the longest, and I remember using it in high school for acne. I believe I got the gel version, and after about a week my face was so red and on fire that I couldn’t bring myself to use it anymore, so I suffered through high school with pimples instead. Even though I followed the instructions and started out slowly, and I had oily skin at the time and lived in a humid climate, it was still too much for my skin. If your skin can tolerate it, the advantage of Retin-A Gel is that it comes in a generic version, which can save a lot of money.

Retin-A Micro
This gel product is the newer form of Retin-A, and it’s also used to treat acne. It has a special microsponge technology, which release the tretinoin slowly over time, so this helps minimize skin irritation. I tried Retin-A Micro maybe 5-7 years ago when I got acne once again in my late 20s. Despite the new microsphere technology, I still couldn’t handle Retin-A Micro and once again found myself with red, flaky, painful skin, so once again I gave up. A lot of people have great success with Retin-A Micro, and it’s best for oily skin, so it’s definitely worth trying if you have oily skin and acne. This would also be a great product to try if you have oily skin and want to combat fine wrinkles, facial roughness, or uneven pigmentation. Unfortunately, I don’t believe Retin-A Micro comes in a generic, but if you have good health insurance, that shouldn’t matter.

Retin-A Cream
I tried Retin-A Cream last year to see how it would work for my fine wrinkles, slight hyperpigmentation and enlarged nose pores. I made the mistake of not checking the ingredients of Retin-A Cream, and I totally broke out after a few days, and every day after using it. It turns out isopropyl myristate is one of the first few ingredients in it, which is a major pore clogger. The cream is much more hydrating than the gel version, but I had to give up on this product after a week due to the acne it caused. This would be a great cream to use if you aren’t prone to acne because it comes in a generic, so it’s cheaper than the name brand.

Renova
Finally I decided to try Renova, which does not contain any pore cloggers, plus like Retin-A Cream, it’s good for normal to dry skin, and it’s meant to treat wrinkles, and smooth out the texture and tone of your skin. The first time around I thought I was being smart by getting a generic version, which was still expensive, but the generic was made by a compounding pharmacy, and they didn’t use the exact same ingredients as Renova. The cream also expired after two months, but I probably would have had a lot left over since I only intended to use the product every other night. The generic Renova also made me break out like crazy! Ugh. Not all compounding pharmacies use the same ingredients, but I wouldn’t risk it, and you aren’t really saving much money by having to throw out a half-used container every two months.

Finally I bit the bullet and paid the big money for the brand-name .05% Renova (it’s like $170 but should last me a year since I don’t use it every day). Success! Most insurance companies don’t cover Renova because it’s indicated for wrinkles, so if you have acne and your skin can handle it, Retin-A Micro will help with wrinkles and acne, and your insurance might cover it. So I’ve been using Renova for at least six months now, and it doesn’t cause any breakouts! Yay. It still took a lot for my skin to get used to it, and my skin was peeling for at least a month when I first started using it every other night. I didn’t get any redness or pain, though. In other parts of the world – Asia, Mexico, and Europe, for example, Renova is call Retacnyl, which is exactly the same thing, so if you don’t live in the US, you can probably save yourself a ton of money by getting Retacnyl.

I haven’t seen too much change in my skin since I’ve been using Renova, but that’s probably because I’ve been using .1% Differin for the last several years, which has probably already improved my fine lines.

Differin
Differin is another prescription acne treatment, and it’s generally more tolerated than Retin-A Gel or Retin-A Micro. It contains adapalene, instead of tretinoin, which is a different type of retinoid. It doesn’t come in a generic. I’ve had good success with Differin helping my acne, in conjunction with other acne products, and I haven’t had any of the peeling, stinging, or redness that I had with Retin-A Gel. Differin comes in an acne-safe cream or gel, so if you have dry skin, try the cream first, and the gel is better for oily skin. However, I use the gel on my currently normal to dry skin, and my skin can tolerate it well. For acne, some people do better on Differin, and some do better on Retin-A Micro. The reason I wanted to try Renova is because I wanted to see if it works better on my wrinkles than Differin. I have yet to find any studies that say how well Differin works on wrinkles, and if it does reduce them, I wanted to see if Renova was even better. From what I’ve concluded, most doctors believe Differin does work on wrinkles, but that a tretinoin like Renova may work better.

Conclusion
Renova, Retin-A, Retin-A Micro and Differin all come in different strengths, so talk to your doctor about what strength is right for you. Bottom line: Do Not use Retin-A Cream or generic Renova if you have acne. If you have acne and dry or sensitive skin, try Differin before trying Retin-A Micro. If your skin can handle it, Retin-A Gel generic is cheapest for acne, and Retin-A Cream generic is cheapest for wrinkles. Do you use one of these products? What do you think?

Related posts:

1. My Dermatologist Visit
2. How To Pick A Retinol Product
3. Old-School Beauty

C E Ferulic by SkinCeuticals

As an antioxidant treatment, I’ve been using Paula’s Choice Skin Recovery Super Antioxidant Concentrate, which goes on nicely and it’s not overly expensive, but as I’ve said before, I can’t see a difference in my skin from it. Since antioxidants are there to prevent damage, you aren’t necessarily supposed to see results, but that’s no fun! I had read awesome reviews about the SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic online, and people claimed it made their skin glow like crazy. Their husbands were telling them they looked ten years younger, and their pores and wrinkles appeared minimized. Of course I’m skeptical about fanciful claims, but since I use an antioxidant serum daily anyway, I really wanted to try the CE Ferulic.

*Buy Skinceuticals C E Ferulic*

I was able to get some little sample vials from a friend, so I didn’t have to shell out the pricey $138 or so to get the fullsize product. The ingredients of SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic are: Water, Ethoxydiglycol, L-ascorbic Acid, Propylene Glycol, Glycerin, Laureth-23, Alpha Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Triethanolamine, Ferulic Acid, Panthenol, Sodium Hyaluronate. The sixth ingredient is Laureth-23, which is a pore clogger, so normally I would never try this product on my acne-prone skin, but the hype surrounding it was too great to pass up!

Results from CE Ferulic
I used CE Ferulic daily (or every other day) for several months in the morning. After washing my face, I would apply a few drops of the serum, wait a few minutes, then apply moisturizer, sunscreen and foundation. The product smells bad (like hot dogs) but the scent goes away after a few minutes. I like the way the product goes on my skin – it’s slightly dewy but not overly oily, and since it’s not very hydrating, I still need to wear moisturizer over it due to my dry skin.

After a few months, I saw…..No difference in my skin! My skin looks like it always does and the texture, tone, and small wrinkles have not changed at all. Since my skin was pretty okay to start with, I guess that’s why I saw no results, and plus the product is supposed to Prevent, not Fix your skin. For all the people that saw great results, maybe they had current sun damage, and this helped with that, or maybe they hadn’t been using other good anti-aging products before, so that’s why this gave them visible results, or maybe they were just lucky.

CE Ferulic made me break out
Here’s the sad part about CE Ferulic for me – it made me break out almost every day! I’m not sure if it was from the Laureth-23 or something else in the serum, but I would end up with one or two little red bumps or little white clogged pores almost every day. I kept using the serum anyway because I wanted to share the results with you, and I was curious to see if I would end up with a visible improvement in my skin. If you’re not acne-prone, this product shouldn’t be a problem at all, though.

Is CE Ferulic worth it?
Due to the cost and the acne, I’m personally not going to continue with CE Ferulic. As an antioxidant serum, I believe it’s a great product, it will enhance the protectiveness of your sunscreen (you still need to wear sunscreen), and it will help prevent future skin damage. Since so many people rave about it, some people really do see results, but even if you don’t see results, it’s still preventing damage, which is great.

*Buy Skinceuticals C E Ferulic*

Related posts:

1. Antioxidants: An Insurance Policy For Your Skin
2. Asian Skin Care
3. Eat Chocolate To Prevent Sun Damage

Green Cream – Level 6
Even though I normally use TX Systems Afirm for my retinol cream, for some reason I was bored and thought I’d try something new. I also was using the prescription acne/wrinkle cream Differin, but had a mix-up with my prescription, so I decided to see what would happen if I went off Differin and just used a non-prescription product.

When I wrote about different retinol products to try, someone suggested Green Cream. I was initially hesitant to try it because the fifth ingredient in it is a pore-clogger, so it doesn’t seem like a good idea to use on acne-prone skin (even though retinol itself is good for acne). But I threw caution to the wind and bought it anyway, since no one who reviewed it on makeupalley.com complained of getting breakouts from it.

I’ve been using the Green Cream Level 6 (.6% retinol) for a week now and have had no problems with it, and no breakouts so far, luckily. The product comes in three levels – Level 3 (.3% retinol), Level 6 (.6% retinol), and Level 9 (.9% retinol). Level 3 is for people with sensitive skin, or someone that hasn’t used any retinol products and wants to start out slow. Level 6 is for most skin types, and Level 9 is for people that can tolerate higher percentages of retinol. My plan is to work my way up to Level 9 to see the maximum benefits. All levels of the Green Cream contain much more retinol than drugstore products, so if you really want to see results, buying retinol products at the drugstore just isn’t going to do much.

The Green Cream is a little bit drying, which can be expected from any high-potency retinol product, but my face hasn’t even peeled, which is good, because a lot of retinol products have caused me to peel. I’ve noticed my face is more sensitive to certain ingredients (glycolic acid, chemical sunscreen ingredients) and that can be expected, at least initially. It will take 6-8 weeks to start seeing the full benefits from the product, so after a week, my face looks the same as always.

The packaging on the Green Cream is excellent, because it keeps the retinol potent by protecting it from light and air. Overall so far I’m happy with the Green Cream, and hope to see results from it. Technically I wouldn’t recommend it for someone with acne-prone skin since it does have that one pore clogging ingredient, but I’ve had no breakouts from it, even though I’m very acne-prone. And in case you’re wondering why it’s called Green Cream – it’s because the product is green (they picked the color randomly). If you aren’t acne-prone, Green Cream should be a great high-potency retinol product to try.

UPDATE!!! The second ingredient in Green Cream is Ethanol, and despite all the research I’ve done about ingredients, I initially overlooked the fact that Ethanol is a type of alcohol (and the type that is bad for your skin because it’s overly drying and harsh). Because of this, I am no longer recommending Green Cream and would choose a different retinol product instead. People still see good results with Green Cream, but there are alternatives that are gentler for your skin.

Related posts:

1. How To Pick A Retinol Product
2. Herbal Green Peel – Not Worth It
3. Olay Regenerist Deep Hydration Regenerating Cream

Topical Antioxidants
I would recommend using a topical antioxidant once or twice a day. Lots of moisturizers come with them, but you need to make sure your moisturizer comes in a tube or bottle that is not exposed to light or air, or the antioxidants will stop working. So any jar moisturizer is useless antioxidant-wise. It still annoys me to no end that my favorite moisturizer Clinique Moisture On-Line is packaged in a clear jar, so while it hydrates my face extremely well, that’s all it does.

Currently I use Paula’s Choice Skin Recovery Super Antioxidant Concentrate in the mornings. It’s a light serum designed for normal to dry skin that you can put on under a moisturizer, makeup, and sunscreen. Paula’s Choice also makes similar serums for normal skin, and for oily skin. These products don’t clog pores, and they contain all sorts of antioxidants, in stable packaging. Ideally I would like to find a moisturizer (in stable packaging) that I love, that contains a lot of antioxidants, but this hasn’t happened yet. Actually, it would be great to find a product in stable packaging that has loads of antioxidants, works to moisturizer super dry skin, and has a high SPF, with a high percentage of Zinc Oxide as its main sunscreen ingredient. That’s my dream product! I’m sure it’s out there waiting for me to discover it!

What I don’t like about the Paula’s Choice antioxidant serum is that it doesn’t appear to do anything. My skin doesn’t look better when I use it, and after using it for a year or two now, it hasn’t improved the appearance of my skin. It’s like an insurance policy – it’s there to protect you, but that’s about it. There’s also no way to know if it works or not, so I feel like I’m going on blind faith, since I’m just hoping that it’s preventing future wrinkles. Also check out my review of the antioxidant serum CE Ferulic.

Types of antioxidants
It seems like each week a new antioxidant is discovered, and is touted as the next big thing. Right now Coffeeberry is getting lots of hype, and last year Idebenone was the “it” antioxidant. Green Tea, Vitamin C, Kinetin and CoQ10 have all also been in the spotlight as “wonder” antioxidants. The problem is that visually it’s hard to really see much of a difference when you use them.

Both Idebenone and Vitamin C are supposed to actually produce visible results – namely a reduction in fine lines, and an evening out of skin tone and texture. Plus they are also supposed to prevent future damage.

Personally I need to do a lot more testing and research to really figure out which antioxidants I find the most valuable. If Prevage (Idebenone is its main ingredient) didn’t cause my face to break out like crazy, I’d probably use that every day, because I’ve read that it’s one of the most potent antioxidants. I should look into finding another product with Idebenone to test. Hmmm… Another product I want to try is SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic, which contains Vitamin C and E. Lots of testing is being done as we speak on antioxidants, so new and exciting breakthroughs will continually be happening.

What antioxidant product (in stable packaging) do you use? Finally, here’s a yummy way to prevent sun damage!

Related posts:

1. Skin Care Packaging
2. Clinique Continuous Rescue Antioxidant Moisturizer
3. CE Ferulic By SkinCeuticals

Wrinkles and Acne
The other main reason I was there was to get a presciption for topical acne/wrinkle products. I have been using Differin for several years for acne, however I don’t know if it’s the best treatment to use for fine lines as well. I have used Retin-A Micro in the past, but it was pretty harsh on my skin, so I wanted to avoid that. After some research, I discovered that Renova looked like a promising alternative. Renova is basically Retin-A, but in a moisturizing base. For some reason, I thought Renova contained pore-cloggers, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.

The doctor gave me a prescription for both Renova .05% cream, and Differin .03% gel. Differin is usually preferred over Renova for acne, however now that my acne is minimal, Renova should be strong enough for my acne, and it will give me a chance to see if it works better on wrinkles than the Differin. If I end up hating the Renova, then I will just go back to Differin. I had been using the .01% Differin, but the doctor said the new .03% isn’t any harsher, and that I might as well try the stronger one. Renova is generally not covered by insurance for acne (but my insurance doesn’t cover Differin either) so I order my products through a reputable online pharmacy.

Blackheads
The only acne I can’t seem to get rid of are the blackheads on my nose. They are super annoying, and they are always there! I also asked the Dermatologist for a prescription for Tazorac, because I’ve read that is the best treatment for blackheads. Luckily he gave me some sample tubes of it, which I will only use on my nose. Tazorac is similar to Differin, but it’s stronger, and also harsher. It’s probably better for someone with oily, non-sensitive skin.

Eyebrows
Finally, I told the doctor my eyebrows have been thinning a lot – especially the outer edges of them. They also feel itchy all the time – like something is crawling on them. Ugh. He said they look fine, and since there’s no redness or scaling, that there’s nothing he can do. He said it’s probably just heredity, or possible an auto-immune problem, but he had no suggestions. I briefly mentioned I have been struggling with hair loss for five years, but he had no comment or suggestions.

This is why I hate going to the doctor – they rarely have helpful answers to anything. It’s extremely frustrating going to the doctor, only to feel worse than before you got there. That’s why I do all my own research, and figure out what will be the best choice for me on my own. I just get frustrated when I have a problem I can’t fully solve (hair loss, thinning eyebrows) and the doctor knows less than I do.

Anyway, I will keep you informed on my experiences with the Renova and Tazorac!

Related posts:

1. Dermatologist Visit
2. Blackheads
3. Renova vs Retin-A Micro vs Retin-A

Even though your car windows will protect you from UVB rays – the ones that cause you to tan and burn, the windows don’t block out UVA rays. That’s what causes you to get wrinkles, plus it damages your collagen and elastin, and prematurely ages your skin.

I just got my car tinted this weekend, and my only regret is not doing this 10 years ago!!! The tint is supposed to block out 99% of UV rays. Even though I wear sunscreen every day, sunscreen doesn’t offer 100% protection from the harm of the sun, so I want all the protection I can get. I don’t even drive that much, but even a half hour, or an hour a day in the car is a lot of incidental sun damage. I rarely drive with my windows down, but I still have way more sun spots on the left side of my face, than the right, so that’s proof that even the best sunscreen is not perfect.

Should you tint your windows?
Here in Vegas, the UV index goes off the charts for several months of the year, so I would recommend everyone in places like Las Vegas, Hawaii, Florida, and Southern California to get their windows tinted, if you care about preventing wrinkles. The UV tint also protects your car’s interior from fading. If you live in a colder climate where the UV index is usually low, then it’s probably not necessary if you wear sunscreen daily, unless you are in your car several hours a day.

The tinting I got cost $175, and it comes with a lifetime guarantee. Even though I got the lightest tint, the only thing I don’t like is that there’s more glare inside my car in the daytime, and it makes it slightly harder to see out the windows. I haven’t found out yet how well the tint blocks the heat. Make sure to confirm the tinting comes with 99% UV protection.

On a side note – remember how I was questioning if airplane windows have UV protection? They don’t!! Wear your sunscreen when you fly, because the UV rays coming though the windows are intense! Next up for me is looking into UV tinting for my condo windows! Yes, I’m obsessed! And because I do believe some sun exposure is good for you, here’s my post about the importance of Vitamin D.

Related posts:

1. Yikes! The UV Index Is 11+
2. Protect Your Skin When You Fly
3. The Best Sunscreen and Sunblock

My beauty sins:

Rogaine to regrow eyebrows
I just started using Rogaine on my eyebrows! What the heck, you are probably thinking! Remember when I wrote about my thinning eyebrows? They still haven’t grown back in where they were waxed, and the outer sides of them are totally gone. They actually look fine right now, but if they thin out even more as I get older, I will not be happy. Rogaine 2% is approved only to be used on women’s heads to regrow hair. I’m definitely not endorsing using it on your eyebrows, but I want to see if it can work to regrow my eyebrows! There’s not really even any evidence that it will work, since my eyebrow hair loss is not probably not genetic. And there could possibly be side effects, like facial hair growth in other areas, and I’m sure it’s dangerous, since I’m applying it close to my eyes. If I go blind, you can definitely tell me “I told you so.” So even though I write about skin care, I’m still tempted to do things I shouldn’t be doing, all in the name of beauty.

This is also my warning about eyebrow waxing and tweezing! Make sure you don’t wax or pluck hairs you might want to see again one day, since the hair may be gone for good! If I had to do it all over again, I would have been a bit more conservative with the waxing, and wouldn’t have as much hair taken away each time. I followed the trends, and had really small eyebrows for a while, and now I want them a bit more natural looking. By the time I noticed the hairs weren’t coming back in anymore, it was too late!

I cut my own hair
Here’s another secret that is sort of embarrassing…I cut my own hair! Because of my hair loss issues, and bad experiences at hair salons, I hate going to them, and just cut my own hair. It’s really easy to do, and even if my hair doesn’t look perfect, I don’t care, because I’m just happy I still have hair to cut! When I used to get my hair cut professionally, it really didn’t look any better than it looks when I do it myself. Also, I hate the way hair stylists yank at my hair and pull out huge balls of hair, when I have no trouble gently combing my hair without making a huge frizzy mess. If I had more money, I’d probably brave going to a hair salon again, and I’d get recommendations first to find someone that is gentle!

I dye my own hair
I also dye my own hair, which is sort of bad because I don’t actually like the way my hair color looks. I dye it about two shades lighter because my hair blends in better with my scalp when it’s lighter. Again, if I wasn’t afraid of the hair salon, and had more money, I’d want to get it colored professionally. I’d also like highlights, and when I do them myself, they look sort of uneven since I don’t really know what I’m doing! I gave up dying my hair for a year when I first had my hair loss issues, but I’ve come to realize my hair looks better dyed, and lightening it has not had a negative impact on my hair loss at all.

What are you beauty sins?
So, what are the beauty sins you commit? Common ones include not washing off your makeup before bed, tanning, smoking, not wearing sunscreen every day, and picking at zits. I’ve done all of those a million times in the past (except smoking). Dangerous beauty no-nos include using Accutane without a doctor’s supervision, buying high-strength unregulated skin care products and doing at-home peels, and doing hair straightening treatments that use high levels of formaldehyde. And then Botox, Restylane, and LipoDissolve injections can possibly be dangerous if you get an unskilled doctor, or an unscrupulous injector that doesn’t use the authentic solutions purchased straight from the manufacturer. Finally, I guess cosmetic surgery is the most dangerous of all treatments, since the side effects can be so severe.

I completely understand people’s desire to look beautiful, and understand why people are willing to take on risk in the name of beauty. Just be careful, and research everything to minimize your risk!

Related posts:

1. Will Rogaine Regrow Eyebrows?
2. Castor Oil For Eyebrows
3. RevitaBrow Review

How I pick a Retinol product
I have a prescription for Differin, a Retinoid, but since I don’t have good prescription coverage, I like to sometimes use over-the-counter Retinol products to save money. Retinol is also good for people that don’t want to bother going to a Dermatologist to get a prescription cream.

- I look for a Retinol product that lists its percentage of Retinol. It’s impossible to know how much Retinol is in a product, unless the product tells you, and few do this! You can look at a product’s list of ingredients, and the closer Retinol is listed to the beginning of the list, the more that is in there. I personally don’t want to waste my money by “guessing” how effective the product will be, though.

- Proper product packaging is a must. To stay potent, Retinol must be kept away from air and sunlight. This means it’s going to lose effectiveness if it’s in a jar, or see-through container. Tons of Retinol creams come in jars! You want a product that comes in a non-transparent tube or pump bottle.

- If you’re acne-prone, make sure the Retinol product doesn’t contain pore-clogging ingredients. And from this same link, you will find ingredients to stay away from that irritate your skin (like alcohol denat.).

- I check the Product Reviews on MakeupAlley.com and look up each product I’m interested in, and read user reviews. Keep in mind that every product will have some bad reviews, but you know you’re onto something good when it receives almost all favorable reviews. If more than one product sound good, I go with the cheaper one and try that first. Less popular products may not be listed on the site though:(

- I would start with a product with at least .15% Retinol, and work my way up to higher concentrations, if my skin can handle it. Follow the product instructions for proper use.

Retinol products that meet my criteria
I find it easy to pick a Retinol product, because there are so few that meet my criteria! There are a ton of Retinol products that might possibly have large concentrations of Retinol (RoC, Avon, and Philosophy all sell Retinol products but don’t list percentages, so there’s no way to know if their products are good, or a waste of money).

Txsystems Afirm 3x
This is what I currently use. The 3x version comes with .6% Retinol, and you can get the product in .3% or .15% versions. The lower concentration versions are good if you have sensitive skin, or if you are new to using Retinol. Sometimes you may initially peel a bit, and you will need to work your way up to the stronger formulas. Of the products I am listing, this is the only one I’ve personally tried.

Skinceuticals Retinol 1.0
At 1% Retinol, this is the highest concentration of Retinol that I’ve seen in a product! I haven’t tried this product, and would want to, however it contains some ingredients that could clog pores. If you don’t have acne-prone skin like me, you have nothing to worry about, but if you do have acne, I’d skip this. This also comes in a lower strength .5% version.

Neova Retinol ME 0.30%
This also has pore-clogging ingredients, but it would be fine if you aren’t acne-prone. It also comes in a .15% version.

La Roche-Posay Biomedic Retinol 60
Yet another Retinol product that contains pore-clogging ingredients. Again, if you aren’t acne-prone, it should be fine. Like the Afirm, this comes in .6%, .3% and .15% strengths.

Replenix Retinol Plus Smoothing Serum 5x
Ooh this one looks fine for acne-prone skin, and it comes in a 1%, .5%, .3% or .2% version.

Most of these products range from $30-60. Depending on your insurance, you might be better off getting a prescription for Differin, Renova, or Retin-A if you don’t mind seeing a Dermatologist. If you know of a good Retinol product I missed, let me know! I want to know about ones that list their Retinol percentages, and come in proper packaging. It would be especially nice to find a drugstore product to recommend! Finally, you can read my post about Renova vs Retin-A.

Related posts:

1. Green Cream Retinol Treatment
2. Beauty Product Ingredients MIA
3. Anti-Aging Superstars

I like to guess if celebs have Botox
As you know, I am a fan of Botox, and I like to guess if celebrities have it. It’s sort of a game for me. If Botox is not overdone, you really cannot tell that a person has it. It looks very natural. For celebrities like Marcia Cross and Nicole Kidman, it’s just a given that they use it extensively. Or is it? I was shocked to read the Nicole Kidman cover story in the December 2007 issue of Marie Claire. Nicole swears she’s never used Botox, and that she’s completely natural. She attributes her perfect wrinkle-free skin to sunscreen use and not smoking.

If you were a celebrity, would you lie about cosmetic procedures?
Use of Botox or Restylane is nobody’s business but your own. However, I personally have no problems telling people I’ve used Botox, and if I get more treatments in the future, I will surely tell anyone that asks about them. If I were a celebrity, I’d be like Kathy Griffin who fesses up to everything she’s done (lipo, eyelift, nose job, Botox). I don’t like lying, especially when something’s obvious (like Ashlee’s Simpson’s nose job), so I would tell the truth. The other reason I wish celebrities would tell the truth about what they’ve had done is because I want to know their secrets! I want to know how Christie Brinkley still looks 30. I know some people do have really, really good genes…

I’m not saying Nicole Kidman is lying, because I have no idea, but I do hate it when celebrities lie about their procedures, because it confuses me! I’d rather have celebrities just answer “no comment” than lie and say they are all natural if they aren’t. I guess I just feel bad about myself when a perfect celebrity claims that they are all natural. I admire celebrities like Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz because they claim that they are anti-Botox, and they look all natural because they have natural wrinkles and expression lines! I wish I didn’t want to get rid of my wrinkles, and could just be happy about them!

Sometimes there’s no hiding the fact that you use Botox
Mark McGrath, the singer from Sugar Ray, has had deep horizontal lines across his forehead ever since his band got popular ten years ago. When he first got the job as a host on Extra, I was excited because I figured he’d get Botox, and I could see how well it worked. He was the perfect “before” and “after” candidate to show how well Botox works. Well I’ve been waiting a few years now, and was shocked that Mark hadn’t gotten Botox yet. At three in the morning yesterday, I turned on Extra, and there was Mark – with a perfectly smooth forehead, and not a wrinkle in sight! Unless I was half-asleep and was dreaming, Mark’s finally gotten Botox. And it works really well indeed!

Related posts:

1. My Botox Experience
2. Botox Backlash In Hollywood
3. Frownies – The Poor Woman’s Botox