As we enter the New Year and start to make New Year resolutions, I want to remind you all that confidence, self-love and self-acceptance are some of the most powerful beauty aids. Yes, we are in the business of selling cosmetics, but cosmetics should add to our feeling of confidence. Never forget that YOU are the beauty.
Anti anti-aging!
Many of you who know me, know how I feel about the term “anti-ageing” (or anti-aging, as we spell it here in the USA). You have no doubt heard me complain that if anti-aging products actually existed we would have the skin of a 2-year-old. You can imagine my delight when the industry finally started to shift and cosmetic sellers began to use the term maturing, rather than anti-aging. I especially applauded ALLURE magazine for banning the term in brilliant style on the cover of their September 2017 edition.
Stating that something is “anti-aging” is like stating that we are against aging like somehow living past a certain age is a bad thing. I remember watching my newborn nephew struggle for his life in 2001. Thank goodness he was able to fight and win the fight, but I kept thinking “oh my poor Theo, I hope you live.” I was very aware that some people don’t get the option to age, so why would we want to throw the term “AGAINST AGING” around? Anyway, I’ll now step down from my soapbox and talk about where we are heading in embracing and appreciating natural aging beauty.
Aging skin tells a tale
Maturing skin care products are usually touted as being able to combat the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. But they should also be formulated to combat the appearance of enlarged pores in mature skin. When I worked as an esthetician, I had a client in her 60’s come in for a first-time treatment. She was somewhat upset. She “all of a sudden” had a very large pore that looked like a small hole in her forehead. She said she never had it before. Fortunately for her, she was lucky enough to have slower aging skin than many, as size expansion of pores tend to develop after the age of 30. This is related to biological aging and the accumulation of damage from UV rays. Both these factors weaken the skin’s natural collagen, leading to sagging skin and larger-looking facial pores. My first question to her after examining the “hole” in her forehead was “did you have chicken pox as a kid”? She had. Over time that elastin and collagen that had kept her skin taught, was breaking down. My skin would have shown my chicken pox scarring in my 30s. This is not to say every enlarged pore is caused by chicken pox, however, it does demonstrate that what our skin experienced when we were younger may not appear until we start to age. Her skin didn’t show it until her 60’s. Another common complaint is age spots appearing on more exposed areas of the body, such as the face, hands and décolleté. These are caused by long-term exposure to sunshine which increases melanocyte activity in the skin causing an irregular amount of melanin to be produced. Dull skin tends to be a part of this aging process too.
Cosmetics vs Drugs
In the US cosmetic market, unless a product line has gone through extensive testing to prove that using the product as instructed can result in certain physical changes to the skin, we are not allowed to make claims. The FDA says that cosmetics are solely products intended to cleanse or beautify. Some examples are skin moisturizers, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail polishes, makeup, shampoos, perms, hair colors, toothpaste, and deodorants. They do not include sunscreens, Anti Acne, Anti Dandruff, Anti Perspirants, diaper ointments UNLESS these products have gone through strict laboratory testing to prove otherwise. If they have undergone testing, they also need to be manufactured by a facility that is registered and able to legally manufacture OTC (drugs). So even if you can prove your product is a viable sunscreen with a viable SPF rating, you cannot claim it to be so if the manufacturer who is producing it for you, isn’t an OTC manufacturer.
Here at Essential Wholesale, we are strictly cosmetic manufacturing, meaning we do not manufacture OTC drugs as defined by the FDA. However, we have a plethora of well studied and effective ingredients and skincare products that can help make your skin look and feel as beautiful as possible so you can age with confidence because aging is a beautiful thing! We are not anti-aging!
Happy New Year and may 2018 be the year of embracing our natural beauty!
