Fun in the sun is one of the best ways to spend our days.
Whether it is a day trip to the beach, a weekend hiking and camping trip to the great outdoors, or simply a Sunday afternoon picnic in the park, these experiences are best enjoyed with excellent weather.
But when we venture outside into the unprotected rays of the sun, more than tanning happens to our skin if we don’t take the proper precautions. The UV rays emitted by the sun can cause us serious harm, resulting in aesthetically non-pleasing sunspots and freckles, or, far worse, the consequences of dangerous skin cancers.
Fortunately, a cheap and readily available barrier exists that protects our skin when we enjoy the sun – sunscreen. Most of us use it, but surprisingly, most of us misuse it and don’t get the maximum benefits from sunscreen.
Here, Dr. Maya Kato of Aesthetic Art Facial Rejuvenation covers the five most common sunscreen mistakes and how to avoid them so that you can get the best out of your outside playtime.
Infrequent Application
Sunscreen works by using active ingredients– titanium dioxide and zinc oxide– that sit on top of the skin and block the sun’s UV rays from coming into contact with our skin cells. This prevents damage to the cells, but only for as long as the ingredients are there.
Most sunscreens wear off after two hours and require reapplication to remain active. So, be sure to lather up at least every two hours that you are outside.
Not Using Enough
Most people don’t use enough sunscreen to provide maximum sun protection.
Every part of skin that is exposed to the sun should be covered. For an average adult wearing swim shorts or a bikini, the necessary amount of sunscreen to adequately cover their whole body is around 30ml, equivalent to a shot glass worth of sunscreen.
Not adequately covering your skin is akin to not having sunscreen on, so err on the side of caution and use more sunscreen than you think you need.
Using Old, Expired Products
Once sunscreen is past its used by date, the SPF (sun protection factor) drops rapidly. Because of this, it might not provide any protection.
Be sure to check your sunscreen; if it’s out of date, get a new bottle. It is possible that using out of date sunscreen can lead to early aging by over-exposure to the sun. If you are concerned that you may have existing sun damage, perhaps consider our skin products or a liquid facelift to restore your skin.
Not Making it a Habit
Always be prepared to enjoy the sun with maximum safety. Even your daily fifteen-minute walk from your office to your favorite café can be enough for the sun to damage your skin.
We recommend habitually applying sunscreen to your face, the backs of your hands, and other exposed skin. If you make sun protection part of your skincare routine, you will drastically reduce the aging process.
Its Cloudy – No Need for Sunscreen
This is a prevalent, and bad, mistake.
Many think that clouds work as an effective sun-blocker, but this is not the case. Cloudy days can amplify UV rays by the “broken cloud” effect, which is caused by the refraction of sunbeams.
Learn More
Dr. Maya Kato offers industry-leading advice on sun care, along with some of the best procedures to reverse the sun’s adverse effects on the skin. Reach out to our award-winning surgeon at 760 610 5558 or arrange a virtual consultation from the safety of your own home today.
The winter months often lead to dry, irritated and itchy skin, which appears cracked, unhealthy, and feels horrible. But this doesn’t have to be the case.
Winter skincare isn’t complicated – it only requires some commitment on your part. By following these tips from Dr. Maya Kato of Maya Kato Aesthetic Art Facial Rejuvenation, you can expect to enjoy glowing skin all winter long.
Why Does Winter Dry the Skin?
One of the leading causes of irritated skin during the winter months is excessive dryness. The ambient air is partially to blame, but our behavior has a lot to do with it, too.
Colder temperatures mean the air holds less moisture – thus resulting in low humidity during the winter.
Low air humidity makes it easier for our skin to lose moisture due to the gradient between our skin and the environment. Because the air has little moisture, particularly inside where the air is warmer due to internal heating, it wants to absorb as much moisture as possible. As such, it sucks your skin dry.
Compounding this problem is the fact that during winter, many people are chronically dehydrated. Because we don’t sweat much in the winter, we feel less thirsty. Nonetheless, our bodies still require a minimum of one, ideally two, liters of water every day to function optimally.
When the air is draining skin of its moisture, and we are not adequately replenishing our water levels, the result is getting dry skin.
Yet another winter behavior that factors into excessively dry skin is hot showers and baths. While a hot soak can be just the thing we need after coming in from the cold, the high liquid temperatures open our skin pores – and yes, you guessed it – open skin pores release far more moisture than closed pores do.
One way of addressing dry winter skin is by considering a chemical peel. Chemical peels remove skin damaged during the summer sun and give you a new canvas to work with during winter.
The following tips also aim at helping you retain as much skin moisture as possible during the winter months.
Prepare Your Water Before Bed
Drinking enough water throughout the day is the first step toward making sure your body has the necessary amount of liquid to keep your skin moisturized, delicate, and smooth. For most people, two liters a day is optimal.
One handy trick is to place a full glass on your bedside table before going to sleep. The first thing you do when you wake up in the morning is to down the whole glass – this gets your day off to a perfect start and fulfills one-quarter of your daily water intake. Simple!
Finish Your Showers With a Cold Blast
We know – this isn’t the most appealing of suggestions, particularly considering the outside temperatures. But hear us out.
Finishing your shower with cold water has multiple long-term health benefits, including boosting immune function and improving blood circulation. It also closes your skin pores.
After a cooling-off period, your skin will better retain its moisture once you get out of the shower and get on with your day.
Moisturize
This tip might seem obvious, but moisturizing can make the difference between healthy, smooth skin or scaly crocodile hands.
Your shower is an ideal time to use a moisturizing body scrub. Once you seal your pores with the cold blast, you’ll trap the moisture in your skin.
Applying moisturizer after the shower and periodically throughout the day, mainly to body parts like the lips, cheeks, and backs of your hands, further encourage your body to hold moisture and keep your skin silky smooth.
Eat Right
This last tip shouldn’t come as a surprise either. One other complication that winter brings is shorter days and less time spent outside – for many of us, this means a deficiency in vitamin D.
Vitamin D helps keep our skin healthy, our moods up, and our bodies functioning correctly. By eating foods rich in vitamin D, such as egg yolks, cheese, liver, and most fish, we can supplement our vitamin D. (Of course, vitamin D supplements also work well for vegans or people with dietary requirements).
Next Steps
We’ve all experienced dry winter skin. The good news is that we don’t need to put up with it. With these four simple tips, and perhaps a chemical peel, you can enjoy smooth, glowing skin throughout the winter without having to make any significant changes to your daily routine. To discuss winter skincare, don’t hesitate to call Dr. Kato at 760-610-5558 or fill out her online form.
Are you worried that unwanted wrinkles and frown lines may one day plague your face? If you are in your 30s, then you may be contemplating Botox. More specifically, you may be wondering whether or not preventative Botox in your 30s is worth it.
It is time to find out!
If you are considering Botox, then chances are high that you are already somewhat familiar with the procedure. After all, throughout the past several years, Botox has become an extremely popular treatment, for both men and women.
Just so there is no confusion, Botox is used to temporarily paralyze muscles, resulting in a younger, smoother, wrinkle-free appearance. Made from botulinum toxin, which is produced by Clostridium botulinum, Botox can (safely) be injected into individuals in small concentrations. This toxin prevents the abnormal contraction of muscle cells, in turn, allowing the muscles to become less stiff.
While there are a variety of medical reasons as to why a patient may choose or require the injection of Botox, many individuals opt to have treatment for cosmetic purposes.
Though Botox has been proven to be both safe and effective, as with any type of treatment or procedure, rare yet negative side effects can occur, such as: mild pain, numbness, headaches, nausea, bleeding, blurred vision, and swelling. Of course, these negative side effects do not generally last long, and are less likely to take place when the Botox procedure is performed by a skilled and trained professional, such as Dr. Kato of Aesthetic Art.
Now that you are more familiar with the Botox process, as well as its benefits and possible side effects, you are probably still wondering whether or not preventative treatment in your 30s is effective.
Interestingly enough, some people believe the following mantra: “The age you start getting Botox injections, will be the age you stay.”
There is a common pattern today, in which more and more patients are choosing to pursue Botox treatments at a younger age – even as young as late 20s and early 30s – not to get rid of current wrinkles, but to prevent future ones.
As mentioned above, Botox can temporarily paralyze the muscles, but the injection can also help to improve facial posture, which can eventually cause wrinkles. Simply put, when you freeze these muscles, the muscles can no longer move, meaning less wrinkles appearing on your face.
Think of it this way: You have most likely been told time and time again to not scrunch your face, as the action will cause wrinkles. When you get Botox injected into your forehead, you physically will not be able to scrunch your forehead, even if you try. As a result, wrinkles will not be able to form in your forehead, or at least have a much harder time trying to form.
That is how Botox can be seen as a “preventative action” for those in their 30s, before too many wrinkles have become prominent. Basically, you are stopping wrinkles from forming in your forehead (or anywhere on your face) before they truly exist, or get particularly bad.
Does this mean if you run out now and get an injection that you will never have a wrinkle on your face as long as you are alive? Of course not! However, the point can be argued that if you start Botox treatments sooner rather than later, then you may end up with less wrinkles on your face. After all, many believe that the best time to start treating wrinkles is either before they appear, or as soon as they start appearing.
So, is preventative Botox is your 30s worth it? Or, more so, is it worth it for you?
While Botox is a safe, effective, and FDA-approved treatment, only you can decide the most appropriate time to start getting injections.
Further, before you do decide to schedule a Botox consultation, make sure that you have realistic goals and expectations following the procedure, as well as that you are emotionally, physically, and mentally stable. It is true: Botox treatments can help boost your self-esteem, making you look and feel younger, like the very best version of yourself. Yet, make sure you are pursuing treatment for the right reason . . . because you want it, and not someone else.
To learn more about Botox, or to schedule a consultation with Dr. Kato at Aesthetic Art, contact the professional staff at our Palm Desert, CA office today by calling 760-610-5558.