Questions to ask yourself if considering facial aesthetics

Why do you want a procedure done, is it to please your self or some one else? Make sure your decision is for you, not because you feel you have to keep up with friends or impress work colleagues or look good for a partner. If you are not 100% sure you want to have it done you might regret it after.

What are you hoping to achieve from the procedure? More confidence, to look good for a event?

Do you want something subtle or a more dramatic change?

Ask around, research online then speak to a professional.

For more inforamtion contact us on 01707 261367 or visit anti wrinkle hertfordshire

What to do immediately after having Botox

Anti wrinkle treatments such as Botox are very popular in our clinic in Hatfield, Herts. Part of the success of the treatment is what you do immediately after the treatment.

Here are 7 essential instructions you need to adhere to after having a course of Botox.

Refrain from touching the treated area for 3-4 hours

Remain upright for 3-4 hours

No exercise on day of treatment

No sun beds for 7 days

No facials/chemical skin peels or laser resurfacing treatment for 7 days

The use of crash helmets should be avoided on the day treatment has taken place

Drink plenty of water to avoid headaches and avoid alcohol

For more information visit botox hatfield or call us on 01707 261367 to roll back the years with an amazing price of £225 for 3 areas (forehead, frown and eyes).

Why is my skin drier in the winter????

It’s not so much the cold weather that is to blame for your skin feeling dry and tight in the winter. It is more to do with the increased use of central heating and car radiators turned up to the max. These suck out moisture from your skin. Just leave out a bowl of water and see how quickly it evaporates. We also tend to drink less water and eat less fruit and salads in the winter, we replace with hot caffeinated drinks and heavier meals. These will reduce the natural hydration your body needs to function and your skin will be the last in line for this precious H20.  To help keep your skin hydrated don’t forget your skin care expert, they will advise you or extra products you can add to your routine to give your skin that extra help and protection. Don’t forget to keep exfoliating as well, when your skin is dry it will look dull, a exfoliation will improve this and also allow your other products to penetrate deeper, but be careful not to overdo it, dry skin can also be more sensitive.

Inflammation is the cause of all skin complaints:

From acne to sensitivity, if your skin is inflamed it won’t function properly. An inflamed skin is an unbalanced skin. Inflammation can be caused by lots of trigger factors:

• Stress
• Lack of sleep
• Poor diet
• Dehydration
• Incorrect products
• Over stimulation
• Sun damage
• Pollution
• Hormones

Keep your skin clean, protected and hydrated and your are on the right path. But make sure you always check the ingredients before buying a product. So many cheap cosmetics bulk up their products with irritating ingredients that can cause all sorts of skin problems that can take a while to correct.

Avoid: mineral oil, talc, dyes, glycolic acid, benzoyl peroxide, petroleum, (are a few of the common triggers).

Speak to a skin care consultant if you feel you are suffering with redness, breakouts, sensitivity, heat, dry or cracked skin.

For more information call us on 01707 261367 or visit  https://www.aesthetics-dentistry.com/facial-rejuvenation.html

Exposed Myths about your skin

1. Cucumbers on the eyes. Although they may feel refreshing unfortunately they do not contain any special ingredients to penetrate the skin and reduce puffiness. The high water content may decrease slight swelling but there are other more effective ingredients on the market that will also repair and strengthen the delicate tissue.
2. Foaming cleansers work better. Sodium lauryl sulphate is the foaming agent found in the majority of foaming cleansers and although this gives the impression of working more effectively it can actually cause harm. This ingredient is also found in a lot of detergents and floor cleaners. This is probably more common in your cheaper high street brands but always check the ingredient list on the bottle.
3. Sun cream in summer. The suns UV rays are present all year round with an amazing 30% still penetrating through the clouds on a really over cast day. UV rays are responsible for skin aging, pigmentation and cancer. With most creams and makeup now containing a SPF (sun protection factor) there really is no excuse for not protecting your skin.
4. Strip oily skin of its oil. All skin needs moisture, and natural oils are the most important. If you strip the skin of its oil it will react by working harder to produce more. Controlling the production is the key. Find its trigger, stress, diet, pollution, hormones and other irritants will increase this production. Then find a good health skin care programme to control the oil rather than prevent it.

For more information contact us on 01707 261367 or visit https://www.aesthetics-dentistry.com/facial-rejuvenation.html

aesthetics in the press

This link will take you to an article about us (page42) http://issuu.com/topdrawmedia.com/docs/cosnews-sept2010b?viewMode=magazine&mode=embed

It is about IHSA and the regulation of injectabiles (Anti Wrinkle and Dermal Fillers)

skin fitness

Drink more water, it’s something that has been repeated over and over again, but to really achieve hydrated skin it has to come from within. No amount of topical products will benefit the skin as much as water. Ideally 8 glasses a day, more if you drink caffeinated or alcoholic drinks, as these dehydrate your system.

Keep clean; it’s like a starter before the main course. A good cleanser prepares the skin for the next stage (exfoliation, hydration) making it more effective. A good cleanse doesn’t strip the skin of natural oils but removes any barrier so the next product can really get to work.

Don’t dry out, your skin absorbs things easier when wet so apply your hydration while the skin is still damp to get the most from the ingredients.

Skin-amins, Vitamins will do wonders for your skin, your skin is an organ and needs these to function properly. A balanced diet is the best source with lots of fruits and vegetables; if you struggle with this a good multivitamin will nourish the skin from within.

Sun smart, protect your skin all year round, with UV exposure increasing you run the risk of age spots, dry dehydrated skin, loss of firmness and premature aging. Prevention is a more effective anti-aging products then any cream on the market.

Don’t skimp, although some skin care ranges appear pricey, maintenance is defiantly cheaper than trying to reverse damage. A good skin care range will invest lots of time and money into researching the best ingredient combination for your skin. Finding the right one for you is always the hardest, speak to someone that deals with skin on a regular basis and don’t be afraid to ask for a sample. Facials are always a good way to get to trial lots of products and speak to someone who knows what they are talking about.

For more information on how to look after your skin visit skin hertfordshire

aesthetics latest newsletter

Please feel free to read our latest newsletter here.

Botox being injected by ‘practitioners’ with less than half a day’s training

This article appeared in the Daily Mail earlier today. aesthetics are the first clinic in Hertfordshire to be registered with this scheme and were recognised in early June 2010. Visit botox herts for more information on our quality standards.

It is estimated one in 20 suffer from resulting complications from facial fillers

Botox administrators with less than half a day’s training are injecting patients’ faces with the muscle-paralysing poison.

Dozens of medicals firms are allowing employees to carry out this cosmetic treatment after learning to how to perform the procedure using an orange, the Independent Healthcare Advisory Service (IHAS) found.

And many trainers have no medical employment history or qualifications.

This lack of regulation is putting trusting clients at risk as many hairdressers and beauty therapists are storing Botulinum toxin at the wrong temperature and in unhygienic conditions, the IHAS said.

Approximately one million Britons have Botox or facial fillers injected each year.

It is estimated one in 20 suffer from resulting complications such as droopy eyelids from the former and lumps developing under the skin from the latter.

Actress Leslie Ash, famously suffered from a disfiguring ‘trout pout’ after liquid silicone was injected into her lips by a plastic surgeon at a friend’s house.

The silicone had set around the muscles in Leslie’s lips and it is now impossible for surgeons to remove it.

The IHAS have launched a new website that only lists medically qualified practitioners who are also injectable cosmetic providers, to help weed out cowboys in the industry.

So far, 156 clinical sites are registered on treatmentyoucantrust.co.uk and a further 113 are in the process of registering.

It is an industry-regulated website but is backed by the Government.

Surgeon Dr Andrew Vallance-Owen, Chairman of the IHAS Working Group, which developed the website, said: ‘Whilst there continue to be calls for full regulation from some within the industry, Treatments You Can Trust will give the public access to the best possible standard of care.

‘We are appalled by the sheer volume of bad practice within the industry but there is also a lot of good clinical practice and we are convinced that the great majority of providers are 100 per cent behind improving patient safety.’

He added: ‘One of the biggest issues within the industry is remote prescribing i.e. prescribing drugs like Botox without actually seeing the patient; it is unacceptable for a patient to not have a face-to-face consultation with the prescriber.

‘The Treatments You Can Trust scheme is all about assuring best practice in these injectable cosmetic treatments.’

However, The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons has warned that the new website makes no distinction between practitioners who have trained for six or more years and those who simply took a weekend course.

Consultant plastic surgeon and BAAPS President Nigel Mercer, said: ‘It is evident from the information circulated by the IHAS to the profession that the scheme is being used as a marketing tool, its regulation appears rudimentary and their ‘Quality Mark’ is not recognised by the British Standards Institute or any other regulatory body.

‘It seems to be sold to the profession on the basis of marketing rather than patient safety. The unenforceable IHAS register seems to amount to State-sponsored marketing of cosmetic procedures, and that is not appropriate
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1311493/Botox-injected-practitioners-half-days-training.html#ixzz0zQQ0frLH

botox and migraines

An article appeared in the Sun last week regarding the use of botox and how it can reduce migraines.

read the full article here – http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/woman/health/health/3091476/How-Botox-can-help-cure-migraines.html

Myths About Moisturisers

Does “moisturising” come as second-nature to you?

Is this habit a good or bad one?

The media and advertising geniuses have certainly done a good job at convincing us that moisturizing is a good habit. Catchy marketing slogans like “botanical hydration,” “firming and wrinkle defying” and “rich and creamy,” have appealed to the vast majority of us as we run to buy the latest over-the counter miracle cream. Unfortunately, the majority of these creams cannot live up to their claims. The truth is package and marketing is most of what your money goes towards rather than the correct ingredients.

Why do we religiously apply moisture cream?

If you suffer from dry and sensitive skin, the answer is tri-fold. First the continual use of moisturizers has left your skin dependent and addicted to emollients. Next the ingredients contained in your moisturizers are more often than not causing mild irritation and disrupting the lip barrier of the skin. All of this combined with an improper diet and environmental factors, has a detrimental impact on your skin. It can no longer produce enough sebum oil and is devoid of the necessary components for repair. Applying a moisturizer can elevate the feeling of dry and sensitive skin but you are not treating the root cause of dry and sensitive skin – the moisturiser itself!

Here comes the science bit…

The rate at which normal skin produces new cells ranges anywhere from a 30-40 day cell turnover cycle. When the lipid barrier is functioning normally your skin is resilient and well hydrated. However, when skin is continually covered by an occlusive or emollient this cycle can take twice as long, leaving the skin compromised and unable to carry out normal functions like exfoliation and lipid production.

This has three main effects on the skin;

1. Natural Barrier Function shuts down.
2. Increase dryness and sensitivity.
3. Premature Aging Skin.

We cannot remember what our skin felt like before the use of moisturizers. We forget that dry skin and sensitive skin is DAMAGED SKIN. If you continue to use moisturizers you are treating damaged skin with the exact product that is causing dryness and sensitivity in the first place.

Manufacturers have furthered to wreck havoc on our delicate skin by way of the ingredients used in their “miracle” creams. Nearly every moisturizer on the market contains some form of irritating or comedogenic ingredient.

Check your moisturizer against the list of known irritants and comedogenics.

Propylene glycol, Glycolic acid, Mineral oil, Petrolatum Talc, Lanolin, Parabens and Sulfites are just to name a few.

Each of the above  ingredients will either clog the skin’s pore or brings about  inflammation.

Other factors to consider?

Harsh weather conditions and the sun, can certainly have their way with our skin if we are not careful. The sun is amongst one of our most harsh and unforgiving skin harming culprits. Next in line is our daily lifestyle. Smoking, alcohol, stress and improper diet lacking in whole fruits and vegetables, promotes free-radical damage and eventual pre-mature aging. Not even the mightiest of moisture creams could reverse that.

How can I protect and prevent inflammation and damage to my skin?

The first step is to discontinue the use of our precious moisturizers. Allow your skin to return to equilibrium. This means the function of your natural skin barrier will return and your skin can exfoliate and shed properly again. This is achieved by using active and simulating ingredients, like L-retinol, that will communicate at the molecular level of the skin for repair and rejuvenation.

Most importantly do not forget to protect the skin from sun.

for more information either visit skin herts or ring 01707 261367