08/09/2012 In Key Active Ingredients by bien-être

We love this native Canadian flowering plant. Among the first to grow back after wildfire damage, this plant has extraordinary self-regenerating properties. These properties are to the skin’s benefit when willow herb is used topically. In fact, this herb has been used for years by native cultures for healing.

Willow herb has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties and is also known as a free radical scavenger, protecting skin from oxidant damage and aging. It can be used to clean and soothe sensitive skin, even minor abrasions and burns. Do not confuse willow herb with willow bark. Willow bark is an entirely different botanical ingredient that mimics salicylic acid in the skin. Willow herb is an anti-inflammatory and regenerating ingredient.

You can find Willow Herb in Osmosis Calm Serum.

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08/08/2012 In Key Active Ingredients by bien-être

What Are Cell Receptors?

Think of them like receptionists for the different cells in the skin. There are a finite number of receptors in the skin and each has a different function. When an active ingredient is introduced to the surface of the skin, the skin sends these receptors up to greet and guide the ingredient in the right direction. If the ingredient is harmful, inflammatory or not recognized it will not be escorted anywhere. Rather, the skin will try to get rid of it. If the ingredient is recognized as beneficial, it will be welcomed and directed accordingly. However, the skin only has so many receptors for any given function, so after they are all “busy” the remaining active ingredients are either stored for later use or forced to wait on the surface of the skin. This leads us to cell receptor fatigue.

When the cell receptors get overwhelmed by too many molecules of any one active ingredient, they get fatigued. This means that the remaining ingredient molecules are left on the surface of the skin. Depending on the active ingredient, this can cause topical irritation. Some ingredients are recognized by the skin’s storage receptors (receptors that take the extra molecules and store them appropriately for later use.) A good example of the use of storage receptors is found in topical Vitamin A.

The Importance of Storage Receptors and Vitamin A:

Vitamin A is one of the most efficacious ingredients used in skincare today. I’ve mentioned Vitamin A many times, and explained the importance of choosing the correct form of the vitamin in skincare. The biggest reason I prefer to use Retinaldehyde over Retinol or Retinoic Acid is due to storage receptors. The skin actually has storage receptor cells that recognize retinaldehyde. When the receptors are completely busy with their fair share of retinaldehyde, storage receptors come along and escort the remaining ingredient to local fat cells, where they patiently wait for the next crop of receptors to become available. The skin has NO storage receptors for retinol or retinoic acid. That means that these two ingredients will be left to fend for themselves on the surface of the skin when cell receptors are full. Leaving vitamin A on the surface of the skin creates inflammation and sun sensitivity. That’s why most retinol or retinoic acid products and prescriptions recommend strong sun protection and warn users to refrain from overexposure. That’s also why skin can become red, brittle and sensitive with retinol or retinoic aicd use. The key with active ingredients is in delivering them to the dermal layer where they can benefit the skin. Active ingredients sitting o the skin’s surface can backfire in the results department.

You can find retinaldehyde in Osmosis Active Serums: Calm, Clarify, Correct and more…

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08/01/2012 In At Home Spa, Key Active Ingredients by bien-être

We are passionate about passionfruit! This deliciously sweet fruit contains a huge amount of beta-carotene which supplies with the skin with much needed antioxidant protection. Passionfruit also provides the body and skin with an extra dose of Vitamin C and potassium.

The beautiful flower on the passionfruit vine carries an extractable oil that is known for healing and nourishing dry skin. High in polyphenols, it also provides antioxidant protection for the skin when used topically.

The fruit itself can be used in two ways. As an extract, the passionfruit provides high levels of vitamins and nutrients to the skin. Crushed, seeds and all, the fruit can be used as a topical scrub and mask, smoothing and brightening the skin.

Brightening Passionfruit Mask

1 Passionfruit
1 tsp Raw Organic Honey

Cut open passionfruit and scoop out insides, seeds and all
Add to a food processor or blender and blend until seeds are visible but chopped finely
Remove passionfruit “pulp” and add to a small bowl, along with the honey
Combine ingredients and use on clean, damp skin
Massage into skin for 1-2 minutes, then leave on skin for up to 15 mins
Rinse clean and apply serum or moisturizer of choice

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07/11/2012 In Key Active Ingredients by bien-être

We love aloe, especially this time of year. Aloe Vera has been a summer skin savior and sunburn soother for thousands of years. This special succulent, hailed from tropical and subtropical regions of the world, produces a gel that is 99% water. However, the gel also contains powerful phytochemicals that aid in skin healing and calming.

“Glycoproteins speed the healing process by minimizing pain and inflammation, while polysaccharides stimulate skin growth and repair.” – American Spa Magazine, July 2012

This gel also contains Vitamins C and E, and acts as an anti-microbial, killing harmful bacteria. These factors make it a wonderful ingredient for sensitive and acneic skin.

Aloe is best used right from the plant, as it starts to break down immediately after coming in contact with the air. It is possible to gentle process aloe gel so that it can have a decent shelf-life, and this is the aloe that’s used in skin and body care products, and sold at stores. When purchasing aloe vera, keep in mind that pure aloe is clear, not fluorescent green (that green goo is awful!)

We suggest growing an aloe plant in your yard this summer so that it is available if and when you need it!

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05/28/2012 In Key Active Ingredients, Spa Community by bien-être

Maui has been incredible! We snorkeled with colorful fish and sea turtles, hiked through thousands of bamboo, marveled at 200-foot waterfalls, treated ourselves to spa days, and played in the ocean.  The best beauty lesson I’ve learned from Maui has been one of relaxation, but there are some other great secrets I discovered and wanted to share with all of you.

Kukui Nut Oil – Hawaiians use this oil for everything skin-related. It’s touted to relieve sunburn, help heal eczema, minimize hyper-pigmentation and prevent stretch marks. The kukui nut is native to Pacific islands and is the brown nut frequently used in the traditional necklaces worn by males (see picture.) The oil extracted from this special nut contains the most complete set of essential fatty acids of all plant or nut oils. Kukui nuts also contain high amounts of Vitamins A, C and E which provide your skin with ample antioxidant protection. I slathered myself in kukui nut oil every day while in Maui and my skin loved it!

Pineapple and Papaya – and mango and guava…these tropical fruits are everywhere here in Maui. You cant drive or walk down a road for very long before seeing tiny fruit stands beckoning people like me. People obsessed with fresh fruit. There really is nothing better than a fresh pineapple from Maui. Dole is located on the island and Maui Gold pineapples are abundant. Eating fresh pineapple and papaya every morning aids in healthy digestion, while also providing tons of Vitamin C. Mash these two fruits together and you have an instant skin softening facial mask. And yes, I did both.

Ocean Water – People spend lots of money for algae and sea salt body treatments in fancy spas (we did, anyway) but another less expensive way to treat your skin is to swim in the ocean. Natural sea water contains salts and essential minerals that both detoxify and nourish the skin. The impossibly blue water of Maui draws people out like a magnet. While soaking (or swimming) we did some pretty amazing snorkeling at Black Rock and Honolua Bay. It’s like swimming in a tropical aquarium. Blue fish, red fish, yellow fish, green fish (ok, enough Dr. Seuss.) We even met some friendly sea turtles while out on the water.

A close second to the ocean are all the waterfalls we played in on the Road to Hana. Some are spring-fed, some depend on rainfall, and some spill out into the ocean. The water here is a bit colder than the ocean (about 50 degrees or so) but is completely refreshing after a long hike through the bamboo jungles. Natural spring and rain water also contains high amount of skin fortifying minerals, and the cool temperature after working up a sweat is like a cold plunge – wonderful for healthy circulation.

Coconut – Coconut oil, coconut water, coconut milk, and coconut ice cream. We sampled them all! Coconut oil, similar to kukui nut oil, contains essential fatty acids the skin loves. I use coconut oil a lot in facial and body treatments and love it as a base for raw sugar body scrubs at home. Coconut water contains electrolytes that replenish your body (especially after a workout.) And coconut milk and ice cream, again, give you those EFA’s. We stopped by Coconut Glen’s for some raw, organic coconut ice cream toward the end of our trip to Hana and back. This ice cream is, dare I say, actually good for you! We tasted banana pineapple, ginger lemongrass and good ol’ vanilla bean. A-MAZE-ING

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