Midlife Beauty
by Christine
Northrup
An unmistakable glow
emanates from midlife women who are happy and satisfied with their lives
a glow that no amount of skin-care products, cosmetics or plastic
surgery can create. It comes only from connecting with Source energy.
This current gives us the courage to live our lives joyfully and fully,
despite such things as sun damage and varicose veins.
Sagging skin and wrinkles
result from a breakdown of collagen (which starts in our 20s). By
midlife, we may have lost up to 20 percent of our collagen layer. Oil
glands also decrease their secretions, causing dryness. And the capacity
of our skin to repair itself slows, which may be related to free-radical
damage. This damage is brought on by emotional stress; exposure to
sunlight; repeated bouts of high blood sugar and insulin (glycemic
stress); and toxins of all kinds, including cigarette smoke and air
pollutants all of which means that we can stop or reverse much of the
damage through lifestyle choices.
Other midlife skin
conditions include acne, rosacea, the appearance of coarse or dark hair
on the chin or upper lip, thinning hair and varicose and spider veins.
Each of these can be helped with a multitude of natural treatments.
Body
Avoid too much sun.
Follow a low-glycemic
diet. Eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, limit
caffeine, get enough fiber and consume fatty fish (especially salmon,
sardines and swordfish) or take omega-3 supplements.
Take antioxidant
supplements. Particularly important ones include coenzyme Q10, vitamin
C, vitamin E and tocotrienols and proanthocyanidins.
Use topical
antioxidants. Good ingredients include high-potency vitamin E in the
form of a natural blend of tocopherols and tocotrienols, vitamin C,
coenzyme Q10, melatonin, proanthocyanidins (or procyanadins) and
catechins.
Drink more water.
Consume eight 8 oz. glasses of water per day.
Cleanse your skin
regularly. Clean your face and neck once a day for dry skin, twice a day
for oily skin, using a pH-balanced cleanser. Then close your pores with
a toner or cool water. Be sure to remove all makeup every night.
Exfoliate. This removes
old, dead layers; opens your pores; and speeds up new skin growth. Use a
washcloth or cleanse with products that contain fruit acids (such as
alpha hydroxy, beta hydroxy or glycolic acids).
Use SPF-15 sunscreen
daily. Apply it to your face, neck and hands, except during the brief
early-morning or late-afternoon sunbath that I advocate for optimal
vitamin D levels.
Moisturize. Use a light
moisturizer for day and a richer formula for the evening.
Use products that
contain one or more of the following:
Microcollagen
pentapeptides: These substances greatly boost collagen production.
Liposomes: This delivery
system increases the effectiveness of any active ingredient by ten
times.
Antioxidants: Examples
include tocotrienols, absorbable vitamin C, coenzyme Q10 and
proanthocyanidins.
Avoid products with
potentially harmful preservatives, such as parabens. This reduces your
lifetime exposure to chemicals.
Eat more soy. Aim for
100160 mg of soy isoflavones per day.
Use 2 percent natural
progesterone cream. This decreases midlife acne, moisturizes and helps
fade age spots.
Consider retinoic-acid
derivatives. Retin-A, Retin-A Micro and Renova are all prescription
medications derived from retinoic acid, a form of vitamin A that helps
prevent or reduce fine lines and wrinkles, reverse sun damage and heal
acne. Side effects include redness, dryness, itching and increased sun
sensitivity.
Consider topical
estrogen. This thickens collagen, decreases pore size and helps the skin
hold moisture. If youre already on bioidentical hormone replacement,
ask your doctor to prescribe your hormones via a formulary pharmacist
who can put them into skin lotion. If you arent on HRT, ask your
physician to prescribe a small amount of estradiol or estriol in an
ointment or cream.
Consider intense pulsed
light (IPL). This is very effective for reducing wrinkles, evening out
skin tone, thickening the collagen layer and removing spider veins. Acid
and laser peels are also available. If you have this surgery:
Pick a good doctor who
makes you comfortable.
Use guided-imagery tapes
before and during surgery.
Take at least 2,000 mg
of vitamin C for two weeks pre-op and four weeks post-op to help build
up collagen in your skin. You can also use skin cream containing vitamin
C ester to speed healing.
For Midlife Acne
A good diet, comprehensive
vitamin and mineral supplements, losing excess weight and cleansing your
skin regularly will help. Use tea-tree oil for pimples that havent come
to a head (or apply a paste of baking soda and lemon juice). Try
products containing benzoyl peroxide or sulfur to dry up breakouts. Get
a professional facial with blackhead removal about once a month until
your skin has cleared, then use blackhead-removal strips. Avoid
antibiotics to treat acne and take birth-control pills only as a last
resort.
For Rosacea
This neurological disorder
results in dilated blood vessels in the blush areas of the face and
upper chest. To alleviate the symptoms, follow an insulin-normalizing,
low-glycemic diet and avoid alpha hydroxy acids as well as
hydrocortisone, benzoyl peroxide and topical retinoids. Try betaine-hydrochloride
supplements (500 to 1,000 mg with meals). Intense pulsed light (IPL)
treatment is also effective, as is a skin-care regimen that includes
high-quality topical antioxidants.
For Dark, Coarse Chin or Lip
Hair
This is the result of the
naturally higher androgen-to-estrogen ratio prevailing at the start of
perimenopause. Plucking, waxing or shaving can eventually distort the
follicles, making permanent hair removal more difficult. First, try an
insulin-balancing diet. Electrolysis, laser hair removal and
prescription medications are other options.
For Hair Loss
Your hair may become finer
and thinner and may eventually recede, although in women the front
hairline is usually preserved. If this becomes a problem, ask your
doctor to test for any systemic causes and to check your hormone levels.
Before opting for prescription medications, look into a
hormone-balancing diet, lose excess fat, take a vitamin and mineral
supplement and try the Chinese herb Shou Wu Pian.
For Varicose Veins
Lose excess weight, which
puts too much pressure on the veins in this state, even chronic
coughing can contribute. Wear compression or support stockings as well.
If estrogen replacement makes this condition worse, lower your dose.
Avoid constipation by consuming adequate fiber, plenty of water and very
few refined carbohydrates. Do rhythmic exercise such as walking, biking,
running or swimming to keep your blood moving. Eat lots of flavonoid-rich
blueberries, blackberries and raspberries or take the herb bilberry (Vaccinium
myrtillus) (160 mg per day for prevention and up to 480 mg a day to
treat varicose veins). Also get enough vitamin E (100 to 400 IU per day)
and take bromelain (125 to 450 mg three times a day on an empty stomach;
the lower end is for prevention, the higher for treatment). Ask your
dermatologist about EndoVenous Laser Therapy (EVLT) and about
sclerotherapy for spider veins.
The above excerpt is taken
from The Wisdom of Menopause, by Christiane Northrup, MD. Published by
Hay House and available at bookstores or at:
www.hayhouse.com. |
