How to Shop for Skin Care

Dr Dennis Gross Dr Gross skincare

Science-washing is inaccurately using science to prove trends for marketing purposes, with the intent to encourage purchasing.

 

Science washing in skin care is rampant. Companies make all sorts of false and misleading claims like, if you use this product for two weeks you will suddenly look 12. OK, I’m being a little facetious. Having said that, some of their claims are not far from that! Because I’ve been in this industry for so long both in front of the camera and behind it, I’m very sensitive to this sort of hogwash. But how can you, the consumer, educate yourself in a way that makes you more aware of these types of misalignment’s of the truth, and be able to shop like a savvy consumer? With that in mind, I spoke to the wonderful Ben Fuchs from Truth Treatments Skin Care on this topic. Ben is a registered pharmacist, nutritionist and skin care chemist and for the past 35 years, and, full disclosure, I carry his brand on my website because I love it.

 

Know How the Body Works

 

Skin is an organ and it is in fact the largest organ in your body! We are taught by the medical establishment to separate each part of our body into components. In other words, if you’re having problems with your liver, you take a liver medicine. There’s a pill for nearly everything, and it does not necessarily take into account your entire body. I am much more a fan of eastern medicine, that is both ancient and looks at the entire person including our mental and emotional state.

 

When looking at your skin, you are looking at the state of health for your entire body. In the video, Ben goes into a discussion about the workings of nutrients, vitamins, diet, and exercise and how it influences the largest organ in your body. In order to have great skin, you must first of all take great care of your body! For example, avoiding things like sugar, preservatives and additives, smoking, and anything else that doesn’t benefit your health will transform your skin. My personally favorite nutrients for the skin are omega 3.6.9, vitamin C, vitamin D, and iodine. (See below for links to my interviews with Ben on supplements). If you have questions on what supplements you need, I recommend going to a naturopath who can have the proper tests done in order to evaluate your general health.

 

Know How Skin Works

 

Knowing how your skin operates is crucial to avoid science washing. In order to have your skin look it’s best, a form of exfoliation is needed. Alpha hydroxy acids, retinol, and vitamin C, are the three top ingredients that help with giving your skin the nutrients that it needs to encourage cell turnover. Things like retinol and alpha hydroxy acids help to remove the top dead skin layer that we all have and the more you use them, the more you encourage cell turnover, and your skin brightens, wrinkles are diminished, and you look better. Fat soluble topical vitamin C is one of the number one in nutrients you can use to strengthen your skin and give it the food it needs. Other treatments like micro dermabrasion and peels can greatly assist in this as well. Therefore, the most recent amazing discovery in ingredients that so many lines tout will not benefit you very much unless it contains some aspect of those three ingredients.

 

Know How to Read an Ingredient Deck

 

Knowing how to read ingredients both in the grocery store and on skin care bottles is a very valuable skill set. In other words, understanding how an ingredient deck is set up and what ingredients to look for will completely transform your purchasing power. The higher on an ingredient deck and ingredient appears the more of it is in the bottle. Therefore, if the top three to five ingredients make it smell nice, look nice, and feel nice, (I call them fluff ingredients) then you should start getting worried. For example, if you’re buying a vitamin C serum, and the type of vitamin C shows up at number 15, and there are 20 ingredients in the deck, you’re not getting very much of the main active ingredient. Please visit this blog I wrote about vitamin C in order to have a deeper understanding of the different types of vitamin C and what they do.

 

Retinol, or vitamin A, is a fabulous ingredient to encourage cell turnover and exfoliate the top layer of your skin. However, you want a smaller amount of retinol because too much of it will cause irritation. So, if retinol appears lower down on the ingredient deck, then it will cause less irritation in your skin. Please visit this blog I wrote about retinol for more information.

 

The most important aspects of avoiding science washing in skin care is to understand how the body works, how your skin works, and how to read an ingredient deck. I recommend you break out a Google search and look at each ingredient in any product before you buy in order to familiarize yourself with ingredients. I’m also a fan of the website EWG.org (Environmental Working Group), that gives you a thorough explanation of not only ingredients, but the level of toxicity of each one. If you have sensitivities this is a must have!

 

More From Ben and The Beauty Shaman

 

For more information on health and the skin, visit my YouTube channel and the many incredible interviews I have done with Ben Fuchs including crepey skin, vitamin C, supplements for great skin, melasma, dry skin, and the truth about the skin care industry.