Skin Care : Moisturizers

Water is the secret ingredient for dewy-fresh skin. Well-moisturized skin is soft and supple, reflects a healthy glow and ages less quickly. They prevent the skin from drying and chapping, thus slowing the aging process.

Water moves through the body to the surface in a process called "transepidermal water loss" leaving skin pleasingly plump and firm. If your system is deficient in water, the skin's upper layers become dry and brittle.

Drinking at least six glasses of water daily and eating fluid-rich fruits and vegetables help normalize dry or oily conditions, and is essential for preventing your body from robbing its necessary moisture at the expense of your skin.

In addition to internal liquid refreshment, skin requires external water replenishing. Moisturizers or humectants attract moisture to the skin's surface and hold it there.
Younger skin only needs light conditioning whereas older skin needs specific nourishing treatments.

A wide variety of moisturizers are available that range from very inexpensive to very expensive. Examples are: vegetable glycerin, rose water, jojoba oil, vitamin E oils, sorbitol (derived from plants), honey, aloe vera, and iris.

Aloe vera is very good for skin care. Since ancient times, it has been used effectively to treat everything from dry skin, burns, and insect bites to skin irritations, acne, cuts, and abrasions.

Mineral oil, used in many skin care products, can dry the skin, block pores, and prevent it from breathing and eliminating waste.

Most moisturizers soothe and sit on the surface of the skin, but essential oils, with their fine molecular structure, work their way through from the surface to the inner dermis. Mixed with the correct amount of base oil, these pure essentials do not clog up pores on lubrication. They are light enough to be absorbed spontaneously by skin.

Use 30 ml (2 tbsp) of base oil and add 6 drops of essential oil (maximum of 3 different oils) to suit individual needs. (See individual skin type description for recommendations on type of essential oil to use.)