From the category archives:

Night Creams

Anti-wrinkle Skincare Products

Lets clear one thing up straight away, high price does not always mean the most effective.

Some anti-wrinkle creams out on the market today cost over 300 USD, well that is just ridiculous. For that kind of money you could get all of the following, a really effective day cream, a night cream, some body lotion, moisturizing mask, deep cleansing mask and eye gel.

So why is that some products cost so much?

Simple, it’s marketing and hype I’m afraid.

Celebrity endorsements (who have to be paid large amounts), TV and radio advertising which doesn’t come cheap by any means. So at the end of the day all of that pushes the price of a lot of the anti-wrinkle products to almost astronomical levels.

It has been proven recently that a more natural approach to skincare actually has better results than a lot of the hyped up “celeb” creams.

Did you know that some of these skin creams actually contain the heavy metal lead ?  I bet you didn’t. Now lead is actually toxic and can lead to brain damage in high enough doses. These people are encouraging you to rub it into your skin !

Parabens.

Now these you will see in a lot of skin creams and they are preservatives, OK so your skin will last longer (joke) but seriously should these substances be in skin creams ?  No is the answer.

To spot them you need to look for the following prefixes propyl, ethyl, butyl or isopropyl, depending on the alcohol that is used to create the chemical preservatives.

If the cream you are going to buy contains any of those then I’d recommend you avoid it.

So what can you do to ensure that you are using safe anti-aging products ?

You need to know first that a lot of the damage which causes wrinkles actually occurs when you are quite young, now don’t give up because it can be repaired with the correct regime.

Once you pass 30 it is imperative that you take the necessary to steps to protect your skin and prevent wrinkles.  It is recognised that once you get past this age, many of the naturally occurring proteins are already starting to reduce, causing your skin to lose it’s firmness and elasticity.

Your skins production of both collagen and elastin slows down past 30.

Many of the “upmarket” skin products claim to be anti-oxidising or anti-oxidents, when in fact they actually contain very little amounts and I mean miniscule amounts of the active ingredients needed to keep your skin looking its best.

One interesting development has been the massive increase in “collagen” products.  These actually prey on the fact that a lot of people now know that a lack of collagen causes saggy wrinkly skin, so it must good if a cream includes collagen right ?

Wrong.

The collagen type that most of these anti-wrinkle skincare products contain is marine collagen and unfortunately your skin can do nothing with this, Your pores cannot absorb it so it is completely useless to you.

So what should you be looking for ?

You really should be looking for the following ingredients in your anti-aging creams firstly antioxidants which work to repair the damage already done.

HE Q10

HEQ10 contains 2 very powerful anti-oxidants, natural vitamin E and Coenzyme Q10. You will find skincare products with one or the other, but in truth not in the concentration required to be truly effective.

Cynergy TK

The active component of this ingredient is a compound called “Functional Keratin”.  Now keratin is a protein responsible for the skin’s toughness.  The skin cells need it to reproduce.  Collagen and elastin fibers need it for strength.

But it is extremely difficult to create keratin in a form that can be readily absorbed by the skin.  One New Zealand company however has been able to isolate and extract the protein from sheep’s wool.  Their manufacturing processes are gentle enough to ensure that the protein remains active and is not rendered useless.

In clinical studies, the anti aging skin care system that contains this ingredient has been shown to increase the production of new skin cells, to also increase the strength of collagen fibers, reduce inflammation and redness, while having an antioxidant activity that is truly unique.

Phytessence Wakame

Wakame is a kind of kelp or seaweed.  Apart from being a very nutritious food in it’s own right, it is highly rich in numerous vitamins and minerals.  The calcium content is 15 times higher than an equivalent serving of milk. Historically in Japan it was used as an anti aging skin care mask.  More recently researchers have discovered exactly why it works to preserve a youthful appearance.

The reason that hyaluronic acid is lower in older skin has to do with an enzyme known as hyaluronidase.  The enzyme breaks down the amino acid protein and is responsible for the loss of elasticity that you see when you are younger.

Hyaluronan is a major part of the skin and plays a critical role in tissue repair. Extracts from Wakame kelp have been shown to block the enzymatic reaction that reduces the levels of hyaluronic acid in the skin.  This has been clinically proven in controlled studies.

So where can you find skincare products which contain all 3 ?

Why not take a look at this range of truly natural skincare products from Xtend-Life


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Xtend-life skin creams are they worth it ?

Have you heard about Xtend-Life skin care products?

The Xtend-life cream skincare range is very very different from anything else on the market. Quite simply they set out to find the most effective ingredients regardless of cost and then produced the range of products based on those ingredients.

The result is the most effective line products without being the most expensive.

The Big Boys in the skin care industry make the majority of the creams that are on the market today, now a lot of these products actually carry warning labels if you bother to read the very small print. Not to be used on inflamed or broken skin for example.

These giant cosmetic companies make the majority of the skin creams and skin lotions on the market. Some are very specifically targeted at wrinkle removal some at anti-aging and  some are described as moisturisers.  Many of these products actually bear warning labels, because they are not to be used on broken or inflamed skin. Now personally I find that a bit strange that we are asked to pay large amounts of money on something than purports to benefit our skin but requires a warning label ?

The Xtend-life skin care products are designed to actively aid healing, they can be used for a wide range of skin conditions. To help with stretch marks, scar damage can be faded and of course to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and age lines.

You will find that in most of the major manufacturers creams the bulk of the pot contains waxes and or petroleum jelly and oils, the actual amount of the “active” ingredient is really quite tiny. The waxes and particularly petroleum derived jelly and oil is not good for the skin.

The Xtend-life creams contain far more active ingredients than the major manufacturers when measured by volume.

The actual active ingredients are naturally occurring as well.

Wakame Kelp is used due it’s outstanding properties for inhibiting a particular enzyme which breaks down the proteins in your skin.  Reducing the amount of damage done to your skin every day, and leaving your skin looking and feeling healthier.

Keratin. Now keratin performs 3 vital functions in relation to the skin. It increases the overall firmness of skin, actively stimulates the production of new skin cells and also has great anti-oxidant properties.

All in all, Xtend-Life Skincare creams are certainly worth the money when you compare the active ingredients against the competition, especially when quite often the competition is dearer but for less active ingredient.

To find out more about the entire range of Xtend-life products just click here

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