Colin's Beauty Pages

Everyone knows that astronomy grew out of astrology. Both can trace their origins back to the same place, even though they don’t have much to do with one another nowadays. It is often thought, even by some chemists, that chemistry has a similar relationship with alchemy. It sounds plausible, but in fact modern chemistry developed out of pharmacy in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. There is only the vaguest connection with with the alchemists. Alchemy was actually a branch of astrology. Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s problem comes from everyone’s favourite British beauty blogger, BritishBeautyBlogger, from whom I have learned a great deal so it is nice to pay a little back.

Hi Colin.. okay.. I have been using a liquid magnesium complex in my bath which says that you can absorb it through the skin. Can all vitamins be taken in this way or is it specific to magnesium? I just keep thinking it is the easiest way in the world to take vitamins so in theory could you have like a multi-vitamin bath every night that does the same as a tablet? Read the rest of this entry »

While I was researching my post on the risks of hair dyes I came across one of those no-win no fee lawyer’s websites. His speciality is personal injury in general and claims arising from hair dyes in particular.  He seems to be an earnest fellow because he devotes some of his website to campaigning against p-Phenylenediamine (PPD).  He wants it banned from hair dyes and replaced with safer alternatives. Read the rest of this entry »

Anyone can develop an allergy to anything anytime.  Allergic reactions vary in severity, but in rare cases some can kill you.  So when you make it to your bed tonight you can thank providence for sparing you for one more day.

But lets get things in perspective.  Although in theory anything can be an allergen in practice if you want a successful career as an  allergen you really need to be able to get into the bloodstream reasonably easily.  The immune system also has to interpret it as a problem.  So very common things, like sugar for example are not going to provoke allergies.  Nor are things that just don’t react very much. So you can use things like silicone in breast implants with few problems.

To provoke an allergic reaction the immune system needs to have contact with the allergen first, so it can recognise it and produce a reaction to it.  This means that the soonest you can develop an allergic reaction is the second time you come into contact with it.  More often you’ll need to have had a fair bit of exposure first.  Read the rest of this entry »

Having tackled skin lighteners I thought I had better write something about the other end of the scale.  Most people on the planet want to look paler, but here in the UK quite a lot of us have decided we want to look darker.  This isn’t quite the mirror image of skin lightening because the desired outcome is to look tanned.  You are saying that you are a member of the jet set just back from your latest  trip to sunnier climes (which compared to Britain is just about everywhere). Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t often say this, but I am indebted to inveterate scaremonger Stacey Malkin for drawing my attention to a dangerous ingredient in some cosmetic products.  Stacey Malkin is the author of a very misleading book warning people about imaginary risks she claims you run using everyday personal care products.  She also has a blog where she invariably gets things wrong.  But tucked away in the comments section of one post I found a reference to some tests done on products in the Phillipines indicating that high levels of mercury have been found in skin care products.

Most stories about the supposed dangers of cosmetics are just that, stories.  Journalists love to scare you – it shifts newspapers and books.  But there were some details in this particular one that sounded quite plausible.  But first a bit of background. Read the rest of this entry »

I have seen people commenting online that they want cosmetics safe enough to eat.  Well they have pretty much got their wish.  Not many cosmetics would suit the pallets of ladies or gentleman of a fine and delicate taste to be sure, but with the possible exception of underarm deodourants tucking into your personal care products is going to do you no actual harm in either the long term or the short term.

But the idea that what is safe to put on your skin can be inferred from what it is safe to eat isn’t a very good guide to action.  I can think of things I would not want on my skin that I am sure would be harmless to eat. There is one very good example that is quite memorable.  A lot of snake venoms will kill you if they get directly into your blood stream but can be swallowed without any harm at all.  I am pretty sure that I was taught at school that Queen Eleanor sucked the poison from the wound when a snake bit Edward I, saving his life.  Sadly, when I researched it for this post it turned out not to be true. Read the rest of this entry »

Nanoblur has just been launched in the UK with intensive PR activity.  It is being promoted on the new finds stand in Boots, who seem to have an exclusive on it at least on the High Street and at least for now.  It has been getting some mixed reviews on the blogs.

The concept is that it contains particles that diffuse the light falling on the skin thus reducing the appearance of wrinkles – a bit like snow falling on the pavement obscuring the cracks.   Read the rest of this entry »

Stretch marks. I am covered in them, some from growing, others from weight gain and loss. I have them on my thighs, my behind, my lower back, my chest, my stomach, my arms and shoulders….ugh. UGH. They are gross. I know where they come from and I know how they form but how on gods name do they go away???? Especially the white ones. I’ve heard a mixture of zinc, vitamin e and c is the best way and I’ve read then only way is to cut them out, which seems quite extreme to me. As the skin is constantly regenerating I do not understand why stretch marks cannot be eradicated. Rant over, I really would appreciate your input. Thank you.

I am afraid stretch marks are very deep seated problems and as you have already worked out they are difficult to treat.  When I say difficult, I mean almost impossible.  The reason is that they are located a long way below the surface of the skin and the skin is a pretty good barrier to most of what we apply to it.

A lot of interest was generated online a few years ago when some people reported getting good results against stretch marks using a product called BioOil.   I think this actually took the manufacturers themselves by surprise and seems to have been quite sincere.  But the data the firm actually has is not all that strong and in the UK the ASA (the body that monitors adverts and claims) made them tone down what they were saying quite a bit.

I have a feeling that any very oily product might have a small benefit simply by making the skin a bit more elastic and so reducing the physical strain on the stretch marks.  But I don’t think it will have a huge effect.

There is one other thing you can do, which is to avoid rapid changes in weight.  This is obvious enough but is also not a bad thing in its own right.

As to the skin constantly regenerating, this takes place much closer to the surface than where the stretch marks are.  But there is a similar process that goes on deeper down whereby the body is continually breaking down and rebuilding itself.  So over time stretch marks do disappear, although very slowly.

With this in mind I think the best thing to do about stretch marks is to try to get into the best frame of mind you can.  It might not be immediately obvious, but they are steadily diminishing.  Every day that passes, they will be a bit less obvious.  Sooner or later, they’ll cease to be a problem.

Spats between people you don’t know are rarely interesting, but here is one that interested me.   Read the rest of this entry »