Healthy Skin Edmonton - Rao Dermatology

Skin Reactivity and the perfect solution

Skin reactivity is a common factor among skin conditions. Stemming from different resources, it can shape how your skin reacts to certain stimulus and how it is completed unaffected by others. Understanding skin reactivity can be very useful to finding the right tool to defend against its downfalls.

Three primary causes of skin reactivity

Vascular: In this instance, reactivity develop when factors such external temperature (the weather) and internal factors like eating something spicy or consuming alcohol weakens the walls of the blood vessels. These changes can induce reactivity in the form of redness or flushed skin or a heating discomfort.

Environmental: The temperatures outdoors, especially when inconsistent and sudden can lead to burning sensations in the skin. Atmospheric pollution can also have the same effect.

Contact: the application of products with intolerable ingredients, fabrics, or even certain kinds of water can create a tightness or discolouration that results in an overall discomfort.

Understanding the aforementioned categories of skin reactivity is crucial to the implementation of proactive and preventive measures to minimize outcomes.

Skin reactivity solution – Skinceuticals Phyto Corrective Masque

Skinceuticals recognizes how agonizing skin reactivity can be. The Phyto Corrective Masque is created to alleviate the discomfort that persists from reactive skin. The masque consists of highly concentrated botanical extracts, a calming dipeptide, and hyaluronic acid to intensively soothe and replenish temporary skin reactivity. The ingredients aim to calm what is otherwise irritable skin and restores the skin to its natural radiance and smoothness.

One of the major benefits of this skinceuticals product is its multidimensional nature. The masque can be used daily for post workout and a hot bath. During travel, it also restores your skin following swimming (chlorine and salt water) adventures.

The Phyto Corrective Masque is effective on all skin types and materializes in visible results.

If you want to learn more about Skinceuticals products and how they can enhance your skin in a healthy way, visit, www.skinceuticals.com

Loving Your Skin

Mirrors: so personal, yet so impersonal. They have no voice yet the speak in ways that continually shape and reshape, not so much who you are, but rather, how you perceive yourself. At Rao Dermatology we encourage our clients to embrace their skin. It is your unique birthright—the covering to the anatomical mechanisms that allow you to function. We want you to love your skin, which will in turn, allow you to treat it with care, comfort, and respect.

Our catalogue of services provides you with myriad ways to embrace your skin’s versatility. Whether you want to combat wrinkles or aging, enhance the appearance of your skin, boost your skin’s radiance, or simply, develop a routine of care dedicated towards a holistic approach to dermatology, we work with you to help you achieve skin you deserve, skin you love.

One of the ways our company works to promote skin-love is in the products we use and endorse. We use products that have been dermatology tested and approved in both content and effectiveness. Further, we aim to use natural products to maximize the beauty in your skin. We consider your health history to best advise you on treatments, products, and programs that derive healthy and radiant-looking skin.

Loving your skin is a lot more than showing up to your scheduled appointment or purchasing the right preventative and restorative products. It is about being intentional, daily, in a way that allows you to know and understand when to be delicate and when to be rough, when to sleep and when to give it air. It’s being cognitive about what things will impact your skin’s health. More than anything, loving your skin is accepting its beauty, be it perfection and imperfection. Don’t let a mirror define when, why, and how to love your skin, make that your decision in practice.

If you want to understand more about loving your skin, give us a call and we’ll schedule you in for an appointment.

To Pop or not to Pop?

It is extremely difficult not to yield to the temptation of popping your pimple, especially when you have to be photographed or make an appearance in a short time frame. You assume that the sooner you can deflate the attention grabber on your face, the sooner it will go away. The truth is, you should always aim to refrain from making any contact with it at all.

Pimples contain a lot of bacteria. Once you tamper with them and allow the puss to ooze out, it creates the potential for other pores to become contaminated. This will, in turn, create more pimples. Further, you can spread the germs from your fingers to other parts of your body, and unto someone else. One of the more troubling risks however, is the possibility of pushing bacteria further into your skin. As a result, the pimple may become further irritated, inflamed, or infected and it can lead to scarring.

If the reasons above are not persuasive enough for you to minimize your pimple popping, then at least ensure you proceed in the proper way. Specifically, dermatologists recommend using a sterilized needle to pierce the pimple in a parallel manner then rip the skin upward. This method is favoured because it minimizes further damage to the skin.

We recommend that you visit our office and have one of our dermatologists assess your skin. We offer myriad treatments that aim to combat acne. We recognize that each individual’s skin type varies, but we are confident our treatments will be satisfactory. If you are finding it difficult to restrain from popping your pimples, give us a call and we will pop the problem with a dermatological solution.

Sleep: The easiest skincare remedy

When your day typically consists of getting the kids ready for school, making a big presentation at work for the promotion you’ve been dreaming of since college, being on time for your child’s soccer kick-off, and cooking dinner, sleep looks like just another chore on your to-do list. The following tips on adequate sleep however, will persuade you to make sleep a priority.

WHEN YOU ARE SLEEP-DEPRIVED, YOU AGE MUCH FASTER

When you miss out on the 7-8 hours of sleep that you should receive on a nightly basis, you tamper with your body’s regenerative process. More specifically, when you achieve deep sleep, your growth hormones rise and this, in turn, triggers cell reparation. If you are not sleeping enough, you progressively deter this system; rather than repairing damaged cells, your body will experience small breakdowns that, overtime, will materialize as signs of aging.

A LACK OF SLEEP HAS A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON PRE-EXISTING SKIN CONDITIONS

When an individual has a pre-existing skin condition (hereditary or otherwise), a lack of sleep will likely worsen the symptoms. When you have missed out too much rest you may experience an increase in skin sensitivity or you may have severe acne breakouts—just to provide a few examples. It’s important to monitor any changes you observe as it relates to your pre-existing skin condition when you’ve haven’t had enough sleep in a significant time frame.

SLEEP MAINTAINS AND ENHANCES YOUR NATURAL BEAUTY

Finally, depriving yourself of proper rest is one of the most subconscious ways to sever your natural beauty. For example, during sleep your body undergoes a hydration process that promotes moisture for your skin. If you do not get enough sleep your body will retain a poor water balance that ultimately leads to wrinkles, bags, and eye puffiness.

Ultimately, you get from your body what you put in. if you want to maintain your beauty, be good to your skin.

Everyday Facial Practices You should toss from your Skin Care Routine

Practice becomes normal; consequently, it is unsurprising that you may have normalized some bad skin care habits that developed from imitation and imposition. Some of these practices may have become so innate that you are either unaware or desensitized to the harm they exude. Well, now its time to break bad habits and embrace a new normal.

Hot Showers

After a long day of work it is easy to be hypnotized by a hot shower. However, getting right in and allowing the hot water to beat down on your face is one habit that is sucking more life out of you. Hot water strips your skin of its moisture leaving you with overwhelming dryness. If you have oily skin, this dryness promotes further oil production. Dermatologists recommend using lukewarm water to allow your skin to retain its natural oils and maintain a healthy balance of your skin’s properties.

Removing Makeup

The process of makeup removal is daunting, but the reality is, you should be just as invested in removing your makeup as you are in applying it. It is bad enough that individuals fall asleep or choose not to remove makeup at all. Simply washing your face is not the most effective way either. These practices usually result in clogged pores, breakouts/acne and the spreading of bacteria. Our dermatologists at Rao Dermatology suggest using makeup removal products such as wipes, cleansing oils, and cleaning water. These products are specifically designed to ensure that you clean your face properly. It is worth investing in a routine that will ultimately promote your best face.

Body Lotion

Convenience is surely the enabler of a lot of your bad habits. Body lotion is no exception. Applying body lotion to your face does not promote healthy facial care. They are designed with the body in mind, which tends to have much thicker skin than your face. Further body lotions are curated with a greater composition of fragrances and resilient ingredients. Your face demands gentleness. Aim to invest in facial moisturizers, especially ones made with natural ingredients. Your skin is sensitive so treat it accordingly.

A little effort goes a long way. If you make a conscious effort to break your bad habits you might be surprised by the results.

Facial Sunscreens

As the weather warms up, the sunglasses come out, but so too should the sunscreen. It is not surprising that when most individuals apply sunscreen they lather their arms, legs, and neck but leave their faces exposed. Of course the explanation usually is that the sunscreen is too sticky, smells too strong, or expressly restricts application to the face. This does not imply however, that you should continue to deny your face protection from the sun.

Here are a few facial sunscreens you can incorporate into your sunny day ritual.
SKINCEUTICAL’S PHYSICAL MATTE UV DEFENSE SPF 50

Skinceutical’s Physical Matte UV Defense SPF 50 is a go-to product for many individuals because while it provides a broad spectrum of UV protection, it simultaneously maintains the matte finish in severe humidity. Further it is weightless and dries to a powder finish. As a result, you avoid the pasty sticky feeling that usually keeps you from moisturizing on a sun-filled day. What makes this facial sunscreen unique is its ability to minimize the appearance of pores. You can’t go wrong with a sunscreen that does the work of your everyday moisturizer and more.
SKINCEUTICAL’S PHYSICAL EYE UV DEFENSE SPF 50

Your eyes are extremely sensitive organs and can benefit from additional protection from the sun. Use Skinceutical’s Physical Eye UV Defense SPF 50 to get the best coverage. The mixture is curated to compliment the thinner and more sensitive skin around the eyes. Upon application, the mixture eases onto the skin smoothly and nourishes and enhances the whole appearance of your eye. This facial sunscreen is a staple in your skin care cabinet for a few reasons: it is a sufficient base for makeup application, it contains a tint that brightens your skin tone, and it has been proven effective on other facial features such as your cheekbones and eyelids.
SKINCEUTICAL’S PHYSICAL FUSION UV DEFENSE SPF 50 125ML

If you’ve got oily skin the sun and heat will not reduce the moisture in your face. Consider implementing Skinceutical’s Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50. The compound in this facial sunscreen adapts to every skin tone and is water resistant for up to 40 minutes. This product is among the most highly recommended sunscreens due to the plankton extract ingredient, which increases the skin’s resistance to UV and heat-induced stress. The benefits of Physical Fusion UV Defense span across all skin types.

This list is not exhaustive. There are myriad facial sunscreens available to protect your skin. If you are unsure about some of the products, contact our office and we can assist you.

In addition, please don’t forget about Vitamin c which also adds an additional layer of protection.

Why’s Your Face So Sweet, Honey!

At Rao Dermatology, we want you to put your best face forward both in and out of our office. Below are three useful tips on how to use honey to keep your face looking young and sweet between your appointments.

Honey as a Facial Cleanser

Honey is one of the easiest and most cost effective ways to remove oil and dirt from your skin without stripping away its naturally occurring properties. Using about half a teaspoon of unpasteurized honey, rub your fingertips together and add a little water (if necessary) until the honey has a little warmth. Gently smooth the rub on your face in a circular motion covering the surface of your face and allow it to marinate for about 8-10 minutes. Rinse with warm water and gently dab your face dry with a towel. To get the best results, moisturize with natural coconut oil.

Honey-filled Facial Masks

These facial masks are particularly beneficial for individuals with acne. Mix three (3) teaspoons of honey and ½ teaspoon of cinnamon together and gently apply the combination to your face. Leave the mask on for 15-20 minutes then rinse in warm water and pat your face dry with a towel. Follow this with your regular moisturizer, or coconut oil. Be sure to do a patch test on your arm first as cinnamon can be irritable for people with sensitive skin.

Honey for Dark circles under your eye

When you are tired, it shows predominantly in our eyes. To assist with the removal of the dark circles around your eyes, massage a thin layer of unpasteurized raw honey where the dark circles are before you go to bed. When you wake up, wash your face in warm water and towel dry. Repeat this process regularly.

These three tips, when followed on a consistent basis, will keep your face in check until your next appointment. Be sure to use unpasteurized raw honey to get accurate results. Natural honey is not the same product.

Forever young – Abandoning the myth

It is hard to encounter a discourse that does not glorify an individual’s ability to be forever young. Culturally, families participate in naturopathic practices to preserve youth. Economically, products are invented, manufactured, and restocked daily encouraging the preservation of childish skin. Social media too, is saturated with images and videos cultivating the “forever young” mantra. Clearly we are obsessed. But why shouldn’t we be?

Looking, feeling, and being young is a prominent value at Rao Dermatology and proper skin care is the primary vehicle to get you there. What is pivotal to understanding proper skin care however is that the best results derive from marathons, not sprints. Our skin care regimen is founded on our mandate of prevention, treatment, and maintenance. Our clients participate in ongoing treatments to optimize the preservation of their skin. We refer to this as skin fitness; you get out exactly what you put in. In other words, if you want to preserve your best youth, you must invest in your skin; be mindful of what products you are using and be proactive about making your appointments.

Rao Dermatology acts as the personal trainer for your skin fitness by offering a cost effective annual program (Stay Forever Young Program) that guides you to your youngest skin. These programs are customized to include procedures that cater to your skin type; we understand that while the goal is the same, every person is unique. The Stay forever Young Program tackles and treats specific challenges, including but not limited to aging skin, wrinkles, brown and red spots, and Jowls, and neck lines. We actively assess what your problem areas are and intervene with specialized treatments in this program to accommodate your schedule and ambition.

Staying forever young is not a myth, especially not at Rao Dermatology. Instead, it is a reality that is unlocked by your commitment to skin fitness. We want you to believe in your youth enough to do something worthwhile to hold on to it or, in some instances, rediscover it. Youth is not defined solely by skin care, but it is a significant part of the equation. If you do the math and invest in yourself by joining our Stay Forever Younger Program you will not come up short. You will, however, be forever young.