October 12, 2007

3 Companies with Organic Skin Care Lotions

Organic skin care lotions and creams have great moisturizing properties. Organic lotions are natural and mild, making them suitable for all ages and skin types, including those with sensitive skin like babies and young children. So if you're looking to buy organic lotions, here are some recommended companies that offer good lotion products.

Juice Beauty

Juice Beauty is run by a passionate team of organic-and-healthy lifestyle evangelists, who have many years of experience in the industry. Most of their quality products are USDA certified to contain organic ingredients. They have a good selection of organic skin care lotions and shipping within USA is free for orders above $75.

Lavera

Lavera has been in the organic products business for two decades. Their affordable products are also used by celebrities like Debra Messing and Jerry Hall. What I like about their organic skin care lotions is their product range for users with sensitive skin, and also for users with skin problems like acne, rosacea or eczema. In fact, the German founder started his company because he was a longtime sufferer of dermatitis. Shipping to USA and Canada is free for orders above $75.

Vashon Organics

Vashon Organics is a small company offering organic skin care lotions and other organic products at a very reasonable price. They also have free shipping within USA for orders above $49.95.

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October 10, 2007

Benefits Of Using Organic Skin Care Products

Organic products are showing widespread usage in many industries. People are now more environment and health conscious, resulting in a big demand for organic products. This is especially true in the organic skin care business, where natural ingredients are much preferred over their synthetic counterparts.

Organic skin care products are no longer seen as unnecessary extravagances. Such products promote safer and healthier skin care by using only natural and organic ingredients. People are misled that chemically-formulated products are beneficial to the skin. Chemically-tainted products tend to have side effects which may manifest only years later.

Organic Skin Care Products: Better for your Skin and the Environment

Many skin care products consist of varying mixtures of synthetically produced chemicals. Individual ingredients differ in their ability to penetrate the skin: some are absorbed in small amounts while others can reach the blood vessels and be transported around the body. While a product may contain trace amounts of some of these ingredients, it is the overall effect of applying different products regularly that causes concern. Skin care products made with organic ingredients are spared the application of toxic insecticides, fungicides, herbicides and fertilizers. In the long run, organic farming processes provide a safer, more sustainable environment for everyone.

Certain skin care ingredients were brought to the media's attention due to their links with health scares. As a result, many people choose organic products as a safer alternative. Furthermore people with sensitive skin or skin conditions like rosacea or eczema report that organic skin care products work better for them. This comes as no surprise since such products contain tiny amounts of processed chemicals, or none at all. The great results of organic beauty products are not confined to problem-skin sufferers. Even users with normal skin report that organic skin care products simply work better.

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October 8, 2007

Olive Oil

Olive Oil … known to most as a healthy kitchen ingredient, or to some as Popeye's wife. But organic olive oil is also great for the skin. This isn't something new. The ancient Greeks knew about its skin benefits and bathed in it.

However, not any type of olive oil can be used for your skin. Extra virgin olive oil is the best, as it is chemically untainted. Pure and light olive oil has been chemically processed, so avoid that.

The key component in olive oil is its high oleic acid content, which is an excellent regenerator of skin. You can make a face mask with olive oil and a good quality clay mud or avocado. Leave the mask on for five to ten minutes, then rinse. For another home recipe mask, you can use a simple pumpkin recipe. You can also soak fingernails in warm olive oil to soften cuticles and help brittle nails become more resilient.

Organic olive oil moisturizes well without hindering normal bodily functions like sweating, skin shedding and the release of sebum. Furthermore, olive oil contains polyphenol compounds that act as antioxidants to help prevent and repair damage to the skin from sun exposure. Polyphenolic components of olive oil have been compared to traditional antioxidants, such as tocopherols, used by the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry to prevent skin damage. Results show polyphenols as having the highest activity as scavengers of age-accelerating free radicals.

Olive Oil in Skin Care Products

Due to the superior skin qualities of olive oil, it is an important ingredient in many skin care products. The numerous products include shampoos, hair shine products, facial cleansers, body shower gels, lotions, facial night creams, body oils, bar soaps, exfoliating scrubs, wrinkle creams and much more.

Because olive oil is an excellent oil carrier, many skin care products contain olive oil with other essential oils like tea tree or lavendar. Organic olive oil with either of these extra ingredients is great for dry, acne-prone skin.

There are many other uses of organic olive oil too numerous to mention. As demonstrated, organic olive oil is a versatile skin care component. It doesn't just belong in the kitchen, but on your face as well!

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October 6, 2007

Shea Butter, Ginseng and Sage

There are a few organic ingredients typically used in skincare products. These are the major organic ingredients whose properties you should be aware of.

Shea Butter

Shea Butter is one of Nature's best kept secrets and skin healers. It is a natural fat high in Vitamins A, and E. It is cream-colored, and is extracted from the wild harvested nut of the Karité or Shea Tree found in Western and Central Africa.

Shea butter is added to many cosmetic products, though many people purchase 100% shea butter individually. Such pure shea butter is an all-natural hair conditioner, makeup remover and skin moisturizer. It is also a treatment for burns, cuts, scrapes, dark spots, skin discolorations, sunburns, chapped lips, stretchmarks and diaper rash. Additionally, shea butter may treat skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis. There are other uses for this amazing organic ingredient that are too numerous to mention. See how useful shea butter is!

Ginseng

Another popular organic ingredient for skincare is ginseng. It is a slow-growing herb, with fleshy roots, a single stalk and long oval green leaves. It grows in the Northern Hemisphere in eastern Asia (mostly northern China, Korea, and eastern Siberia), typically in cooler climates. It has a variety of effects on the human body. Cooling or relaxing effects, and warming or stimulating effects are achieved depending on the ginseng species.

Ginseng stimulates mental and physical activity, prevents fatigue, stimulates endocrine glands, strengthens the heart and nervous system, and improves your capacity to think, concentrate, focus and memorize. Now those are what I would consider an eclectic mix of benefits!

Sage

Sage is a widely used organic ingredient, commonly cultivated as a kitchen and medicinal herb. It is a small evergreen subshrub, with woody stems, grayish leaves, and blue to purplish flowers native to southern Europe and the Mediterranean region. Sage helps to nourish and moisturize the skin, simultaneously tightening and toning it. It is often used in combination with other organic ingredients like rose hip, mint, almond, honey, Echinacea, Jojoba, Lavender, and Ylang Ylang.

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October 4, 2007

Simple Pumpkin Mask

Want a great mask to relieve dry skin, refine your open pores, and moisturize your face? Here's an effective organic skin care pumpkin recipe that you can do at home! No need to go to the stores to buy expensive organic mask products. You just need the following ingredients.

  1. Some pumpkin pieces
  2. Half an apple
  3. One tablespoon of honey
  4. Two tablespoons of goat's milk
  5. Two drops of lemon essential oil

Put all ingredients in a blender. Blend until pureed. The consistency should be thick. Add more pumpkin pieces if necessary. Cleanse your face and neck, and generously apply the mixture. After fifteen minutes, rinse away the mask with warm water and then apply your favorite moisturizer. That's all there is to it. Your face now feels great, doesn't it?

You can perform this simple regimen twice a week to have fantastic skin. Your pores will be reduced, leaving your face fresh and smooth. Pimples and other skin problems can also be remedied by this simple organic skin care pumpkin recipe.

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Organic Skincare Preservatives

Many conventional skincare products contain synthetic preservatives and other highly processed and contaminated ingredients that are not skin-friendly. The skin has difficulty dealing with these foreign substances in the long run, and becomes overburdened and weak. Consequently the skin is more prone to damage by free radicals, dryness and sensitivities - as well as a host of other problems - all of which may well affect our health and accelerate the aging process.

But organic skincare products need to be made to survive without growing harmful moulds and bacteria. So it is important for an organic skincare product to contain a preservative system to guarantee its safety. Natural skincare preservatives include the following.

Packaging
Packaging should be airtight to prevent bacteria from entering the product.

Vitamin E and Plant Oils
Additional preservatives are not necessary for balms and oils as they are self-preserving.

Herbs and Essential Oils
Some herbs and essential oils possess anti-bacterial properties which can preserve the product.

Plant Alcohol
Plant alcohol can be used to preserve the product. But note that many traditional skincare products use petroleum-derived alcohol instead.

Partially synthetic preservative systems

Some organic skincare products use non-toxic, paraben-and-formaldehyde free, partially synthetic preservative systems that are safe for use. Examples are phenoxyethanol and benzyl alcohol that are approved by the Soil Association and Ecocert respectively.

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2 Recipes for Bug Bites

Organic remedy products for bug bites are commercially available. And expensive. So why pay money when you can do it yourself? You only need three ingredients.

  1. Organic almond essential oil
  2. Baking soda
  3. Distilled water

Just mix one drop of the almond essential oil with two tablespoons of baking soda, and four tablespoons of distilled water. A resultant paste will be created, which is an ideal organic skin care fix for bug bites. Apply the paste to the insect bites and leave for twenty minutes. Rinse off with warm water and pat dry. The itch or burning sensation from the bug bites will be relieved and healing is expedited. Cool huh?

Another Powerful Organic Skin Care Recipe for Bug Bites

Here's an even simpler organic skin care recipe for bug bites, requiring only two ingredients.

  1. Epsom salt
  2. Distilled water

Dissolve two tablespoons of Epsom salt in eight ounces of distilled water. Soak a clean towel in the mixture and apply to the affected bite area for a few minutes. This will relieve any pain or itching caused by the insect bites. As a bonus tip, the same mixture can also be used to reduce pain associated with sunburn. But it would be easier to mix two cups of Epsom salt in a warm water bath, and soak in it for about ten minutes.

Organic products are being marketed in everything from bug bites to dog food to clothes. But sometimes, a few of these products can be produced at home. Quite easily in fact! As demonstrated, home-made organic skin care remedies for bug bites are an easy and cheap alternative to commercial solutions.

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Organic Skin Care for Holistic Living

Organic skin care is not a passing fad. It is receiving widespread attention due to the current trend of Zen or Holistic Living. From organic pet food to organic clothes, many products are going the organic way. But organic skin care has been around for ages, and is here to stay.

Organic Skin Care … What is it?

Organic skin care basically means that the products that you will apply to your skin are made without any chemical additives and was processed using little or no chemicals at all. The beauty of organic skin care is that there is less possibility of a negative reaction or allergy compared to those products made with chemicals. The term natural and organic are highly similar and are often interchanged when it comes to describing the products.

Organic skin care works in harmony with our body and the environment. We benefit from it because it uses less of the hazardous chemicals and ingredients that can damage our skin. A high proportion of what you apply on your skin is absorbed by it, so it's important to be judicious about skin products. Organic farming methods avoid the use of unnecessary chemicals and pesticides that pollute the environment, including our water system.

These organic skin care products can also be concocted by you personally. Many stores specialize in supplying customers with fully organic ingredients to make their own beauty products. Although, these can be a little expensive, many ladies and even men, flock to these stores to make their very own personalized mixtures. It's also fun to do! This way they can cook up organic products to suit their individual needs.

Organic skin care products that are sold in department stores and other places should be scrutinized since not all ingredients in these may be organic. Not all organic skin care products are created equal. It would also help if you are familiar with the ingredients that can do harm to you and the environment. Do not just join in the frenzy when a new organic product comes out. It pays to wait and see instead of jumping in head-first.

Organic skin care companies are relatively new compared to traditional businesses. Much research is required before new organic skin care products hit the market. Consequently it is best to stick to the more reputable and trusted brands. There are many fly-by-night companies hawking their "organic or natural" products, that may be harmful to the skin or under-researched at best.

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