Anti Aging Blog

Spent a luxurious Sunday pampering myself with Reviva Labs facial products. Here’s what I tried:

1. Collagen Fibre Eye-Pad Kit (US$38)

Instructions:

First I applied the Skin Energizing  Gel (which comes with the product) under my eyes then pasted the collagen eye pads on top of it. Using water, I dabbed at the eye pads till they were transparent and adhered to my eye area. The eye pads molded easily and felt comfortable. After 15 to 20 minutes, I peeled them off.

Results:

My fine lines look minimised and my undereye area looked tighter. Weekly usage will enhance the Botox-like effects and result in smoother, firmer undereye area, reduce wrinkles, puffiness as well as dark circles.

2. Light Skin Peel (US$20)

Instructions:

I applied this thick paste, which smelt like fruity clay, all over my face. There was a slight tingling sensation and I left it on for 5 minutes or until it dried completely, then gently rubbed it off. 

Results:

My favourite so far! My complexion was radiant and had a slight pinkish flush after the treatment. It would be great if the acid peel came with a brush or spatula to make application more hygenic.

3. Collagen Fibre Skin Brightener Pads (US$13)

Instructions:

An interesting product and treatment where you cut the collagen pads according to the area you want to treat, dab water to make it adhere and leave it on for 15 to 20 minutes. According to Reviva Labs, this product contains Alpha-Arbutin, and a study on Chinese women has shown that this ingredient has the most skin lightening effect after one month, compared to other products tested.

Results:

The area where I pasted the pads looked slightly clearer, however my pigmentation still looks the same. For progressive lightening, I have to use this two to three times a week.

For more information, check out: www.revivalabs.com

I received a lovely package from Reviva Labs this week.  Hailing from the US, Reviva touts itself as the “health food store” brand used in over 1200 professional skin care salons. Started by Stephen Strassler, one of America’s pioneer aesthetic doctors, its focus on using natural ingredients led to Reviva being sold in health food stores, hence its tagline.

Here’s what I got:

From left to right:

Collagen Fibre Skin Brightener Pads – This product uses the vitalising properties of freeze-dried native collagen, which is more effective than collagen that has been processed via heat and solvents in other kinds of creams. Native collagen fibre is a hydrating, healing treatment, in addition, Alpha-Arbutin, licorice, grapeseed extract and citric acid have been added to brighten and lighten age spots and create a more uniform skin tone. Results are purported to be seen after each 15 to 20 minute treatment.

Makeup Primer – To be used over moisturiser or directly on clean skin under make-up, this fragrance-free and non-comedogenic product smoothens lines, conceals pores and controls excess oil. When I told Reviva Labs that I don’t use make-up, they told me that I can use it as a moisturiser alone.

Collagen-Fibre Eye Pad Kit – Infused with Myoxinal, which is an extract from the hibiscus flower known to relax facial muscles for a Botox-effect, this eye treatment helps to diminish wrinkles, reduce puffiness and decrease dark eye circles.

Skin Energizing Gel – To be used together with the Collagen-Fibre Eye Pad Kit or on its own, this product contains “electrically charged” trace minerals ions from Hawaii’s ocean which serve as skin activators to stimulate skin cell energy.  It is used primarily to break down skin resistance which is common when skin ages and loses minerals. Apply this before using your regular skin creams and see how your skin absorbs the creams more effectively!

Light Skin Peel – This is not a strong chemical peel used by aestheticians, instead it is more of a gentle exfoliating product to remove dead skin cells.  It also stimulates the new skin cells to move upward at a faster rate so that skin surface can look tighter, clearer and healthier.

While I can’t wait to test out all these new goodies, my skin is currently having a bad reaction to something so I am taking a breather and staving off piling anymore new products on my face.

However, I couldn’t resist testing out the Skin Energizing Gel which controlled my sebum control when I applied it at night under my moisturiser, as well as the Makeup Primer which made my skin feel really matte and velvety.  Very promising indeed.

More reviews will be coming up soon, so stay tuned!

I have just come back from an interesting party.  It was a party to celebrate a Facebook Fanpage hitting 6000 fans, and no, it was not a company, but the Fanpage of a make-up artist – Sarah Chaudhry. This is a major feat considering some big make-up companies (I shall not name names) don’t even have those numbers despite advertising everywhere. Sarah’s Fanpage called FacesbySarah not only has the impressive numbers, her fans are also one of the most supportive and responsive ones that I’ve come across. All Sarah has to do is post a question and she is guaranteed at least 30 comments.

I first met Sarah a year back when she was still working full-time. Back then, she was already a popular YouTube “Guru” who creates make-up tutorials that are watched by thousands. I enjoy having her at blogger events that I organise because I know that I will get a well-thought out review by her which will be read by her ardent followers. I also suspect that Sarah has photographic memory because I never ever see her taking notes but when I read her reviews later, she has all the facts down pat.

I’m so happy that in the short span of one year, she has amassed enough clients with her hard work that she can leave her job and focus on her make-up passion full-time. I wish her all the best and can’t wait to see what this ingenious make-up artist has in store for us!

Some of her amazing artistry (photos taken from FacesBySarah Fanpage):

I’ll leave you with some fun photos from her Arabic-themed party which had fans clamouring for invites, a hilarious host as well as an entertaining belly dance:

Cute Clara!

Flanked by friends & supporters

Emcee with the killer moves

Chronic fatigue, stress and allergies, these are all the by-products of a hectic city life.  In recent years, medical experts have begun to understand the seemingly intangible relationship between physical, mental and emotional health. “Good health is more than a disease-free body. Good health is a stress-free frame of mind and vibrant energy,” says Dr Richard Anderson, creator of the Arise & Shine fasting programme and supplements at Atsumi Healing Center – a fasting and detoxing retreat in Phuket.

Dr Anderson’s program aims to elevate practitioners towards greater health, vitality and energy. It is much more than a colon cleanse. It is a complete intestinal cleanse and you will clean your entire alimentary canal from your tongue to your stomach and all the way down to your colon. In addition, however, as you begin to cleanse your digestive system (the hub of your body that every cell and organ depends upon) other parts of your body will respond as well. With this programme, you will not only rid yourself of toxic waste, you will also release disease-causing toxic emotions. In a very real sense, it’s as if the emotions are stored with the toxic waste and as one is purged so is the other. A total sense of well-being can be created from having a healthy body and a healthy mind.

Fasting is nature’s way of curing disease and one of the quickest ways of encouraging the body to rid itself of toxins,restore health and prolong life and vitality. Fasting allows the body to stop processing all the junk that’s put in it, to stop using energy to run the digestive and eliminatory systems, allowing an excess of natural energy that can then be devoted to cleansing, purifying and repairing all of the bodily systems. Through detoxification, the body’s amazing power to heal itself will be revealed, leaving you in tune with your own physical state, and reaching ever towards the pure perfection of health that we were all born with, and to which Mother Nature constantly guides us. Yoga, exercise and massage speed up this process by stimulating the circulation of blood and lymphatic fluid.

My sister and I are heading there in February next year to escape the Chinese New Year chaos and noise. Four days of no coffee…oh no.

For more information onAtsumi Healing Retreat, check out its video here:

Atsumi Healing Center – Phuket, Thailand

I’ve recently signed up for Pure Fitness @ Knightsbridge and converted into a gym bunny. If I’m not working, I’m probably at the gym, sweating it out at the machines or letting loose in group classes. The results: skyrocketing energy levels and glowing, radiant skin!

From reducing acne breakouts to fighting the signs of aging, health experts say regular exercise can play a big role in how young and how healthy your skin looks and feels. Our skin is the largest organ of our body, so the benefits of exercise can be enormous – increased circulation, delivery of nutrients to skin cells and whooshing away potentially damaging toxins. Exercising also gives skin the optimum conditions for making collagen, the support fibers that help keep wrinkles and lines at bay.

But perhaps the most dramatic effects of exercise are on acne-prone skin. Doctors say working out provides many benefits that can help clear the skin. How? Exercise mediates the production of testosterone-related hormones such as DHEA and DHT. “There’s a lot of indirect evidence that shows that when you exercise your level of stress diminishes. So your adrenal glands are producing less of these male-type hormones that are part of any acne flare-up,” says David Berman, MD, medical director and dermatologic/cosmetic surgeon at the Berman Skin Institute, Palo Alto, Calif., and former chief of dermatology at Santa Clara County Hospital. No wonder, the more stressed I am, the more I want to work out (5x for a particularly hellish week!).

If you want proof, think about any situation that increased your stress level – finishing a term paper or job project on deadline – and you’re likely to recall a breakout. Exercise can help control it. “By reducing stress, it tends to quiet the adrenals. There is less hormone output which in turn helps control acne,” says Berman.

Regular exercise also increases sweating, which in turn can unclogs pores and have a positive effect on breakouts. In the long run, people who exercise have a better complexion overall. If they have acne, it’s better controlled, and if they have occasional breakouts they are definitely less severe, and clear quicker and easier. Now, isn’t this enough reason for you to throw on your sweats and work it out? Can’t wait to hit the gym again tomorrow!

Vichy asked 10 of Singapore’s most influential bloggers to select 10 girls who want great skin to take part in the Normaderm Zero Imperfection 2-week Challenge.

In Phase 1, you select the 5 girls who should take part in the Challenge. Using Normaderm, the anti-blemish range that helps reduce acne, redness and shine, these 5 girls will document their progress with a Skin Diary with the hopes of achieving clearer and radiant skin.

For Phase 2, you vote for the girl who has shown the greatest skin progress. By participating, you will stand a chance to win a $300 Vichy hamper in each phase. So, what are you waiting for, VOTE now!

P.S. For those of you who have been diligently visiting my anti aging website: http://www.reviewantiaging.com, thank you for your support and sorry for the dearth of updates. I have been busy with my social media consultancy as well as working on two magazines, The Republic and Aesthetic Beauty Guide.

Your shiners, your raccoon eyes, your blue luggage… whatever you call your dark under-eye circles, here’s what they really are: oxidising hemoglobin.

Most people think that dark under-eye circles are caused by staying up late watching monster movies, or having that last drink the night before, or sitting up with your laptop trying to finish the quarterly report. Most people think that their behavior is somehow linked to dark under-eye circles.

Well, most people are dead wrong.

If nothing else, I want you to know that dark under-eye circles are not your fault. They don’t mysteriously appear when you misbehave or are stressed out, only to vanish when you get 8 straight hours of sleep. Dark under-eye circles are a by-product of the very same mechanism that produces bruises (and you don’t blame yourself for bruising, do you?). Changing your behavior will, in almost every case, NOT get rid of your dark under-eye circles.

Dark under-eye circles begin in the capillaries, the tiny blood vessels that web the delicate skin around the eyes. Now, your capillaries are so small that red blood cells sometimes have to line up, single file, to get through. Frequently, red blood cells get lost and wander into the surrounding skin. This isn’t a problem – it happens all the time – and your body has a mechanism to mop up these escapees. Enzymes in your body break down the red blood cells, including their hemoglobin (the molecule that gives them their distinctive red color).

No problem, right? Except for one thing: when hemoglobin is broken down, its remaining components have a dark blue-black color. Just like a bruise. So your dark under-eye circles are actually caused by leaky capillaries. 

It’s quite possible that capillaries all over your body are leaking small amounts of blood all the time (I don’t know if this is true or not). But the reason dark under-eye circles are so apparent is this: the skin around the eyes is some of the thinnest, most delicate skin of your entire body. The capillaries are much closer to the surface of the skin there. Many people’s skin is not only thinner around the eyes, but also more translucent. The combination of capillaries near the skin’s surface and translucent skin makes this discoloration much more apparent. And that’s why you have those dark under-eye circles staring back at you in the mirror.

Home remedies:

The most effective remedy for dark circles is also the most cliche. Thin slices of cucumber applied to your eyes not only helps to lighten the skin, but also soothes and cools the eyes. This can be especially comforting if you’ve been up late the night before or your eyes are red and tired from allergies or staring at a laptop screen.

The caffeine in tea bags acts as a remedy for dark circles by diminishing puffiness. Caffeine in tea helps to diminish water in the tissues around the eyes (you’ll notice that many early eye circle creams contain caffeine for this very reason). In addition, tea contains antioxidants that are beneficial to the skin. Take a used tea bag (green, black or white) that’s been squeezed out. Make sure it’s cool! Leave it over your eyes for about 10 minutes. You’ll see a noticeable improvement in puffiness and under-eye circles. Be careful not to get tea in your eyes.

Lazy to raid your fridge? Look for eye creams or lotions that contain cucumber extracts or caffeine. Alternatively, you can try this aesthetic treatment – Undereye fillers, to lessen your dark eye circles:

http://www.reviewantiaging.com/undereye-fillers.html

Don’t risk your looks by going for cheaper deals abroad or to the beautician when you are doing cosmetic or aesthetic treatments.  Here are some horror stories to drive the message across:

1. Xiaxue’s bad eye job in Johor Bahru

This famous blogger documented her fiasco with a shoddy China doctor in JB in lurid, graphic details. She wanted to cut her eyes to create anime eyes popular in Japan. Not only did she look the same after the surgery, her wounds healed badly and got septic. She’s lucky she did not go blind!

Full story here: http://xiaxue.blogspot.com/2010/09/flipping-new-eyes.html

2. Laser treatment leaves woman burnt

This lady wanted laser hair removal on her pubic area and suffered intense pain after the treatment.  The next day, the area erupted into blisters.  She went to her GP then to a dermatologist who told her she had second degree burns and prescribed her a special cream. Unfortunately, this episode has caused her to be scarred for life.

Full story here: http://www.ecr.co.za/kagiso/content/en/east-coast-radio/east-coast-radio-blogs-consumerwatch?oid=6939&sn=Detail&pid=244809&Laser-treatment-leaves-woman-burnt

3.  Cosmetic surgery addict injects herself with cooking oil

Cosmetic surgery addict, Hang Mioku, started injecting herself with cooking oil after doctors refused to carry out anymore work on her as she was suffering from a psychological disorder.  Her face became so grotesquely large that she was called “standing fan” by children in her neighbourhood – due to her large face and small body. As Hang’s notoriety spread she was featured on Korean TV. Viewers seeing the report took mercy on her and sent in enough donations to enable her to have surgery to reduce the size of her face. During the first procedure surgeons removed 60g of foreign substance from Hang’s face and 200g from her neck. After several other sessions her face was left greatly reduced but still scarred and disfigured.

Full story here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3439638/Cosmetic-surgery-addict-injected-cooking-oil-into-her-own-face.html

Moral of the stories – always seek reputable and qualified doctors to do aesthetic or cosmetic surgery treatments for you. After all, aren’t you worth the investement?

Need help? Check out http://www.reviewantiaging.com/ for qualified practitioners.

With the F1 season upon us and the endless parties this weekend, here are eight tips to ensure that you are the belle of the ball:

1. Eat to power up 

Have a healthy breakfast full of body-beneficial foods – eat a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries or strawberries with a sprinkling of cinnamon. Oatmeal is packed with protein, B vitamins, minerals and fiber. Berries are high in vitamin and fiber content, and is an excellent source of antioxidants that protect our bodies from the stress of daily living. 

2. Pop a pill or two 

Beat fatigue by taking B vitamins which are important for our energy levels and our ability to handle stress. Consider a fish oil, flaxseed or evening primrose oil supplement for omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids to boost our body system.  

3. Warm up, charge up 

Wake up your body with some slow and relaxing stretches. Do the cat stretch which is great for releasing tension and stretching the spine. First, get down on all fours, as you inhale, let your entire body relax, looking up, exhale and draw belly button towards your back, arching it and looking down. Focus on really rounding the spine as you draw your belly button towards your back. This helps to bring circulation and energy to the nervous system. Repeat five times.  

4. Refresh in the shower 

Rejuvenate your mood further with a fragrant bath using invigorating scents like camphor, citrus, cinnamon, lemon, peppermint and rosemary.  

5. Eating for energy

Decrease your intake of white flour and sugar, processed foods, red meat and fatty foods as they make you sluggish. Increase your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, soy products, cold-water fish like salmon and tuna or lean protein like skinless chicken and turkey. These power foods contain premiere sources of vitamins and valuable minerals like calcium, iron, selenium and zinc – essential for building bones, maintaining nerve function, as well as for fighting cancer, forming blood cells and keeping immune systems robust. Guzzle at least two litres of water throughout the day as it helps carry nutrients and oxygen to cells, and remove toxins and other wastes.

6. Meditate to recharge

Quiet time can be restorative. Find a secluded corner in the house and give yourself 15 minutes to refresh with simple meditation. Sit comfortably with your back straight, close your eyes and attempt to clear your mind by focusing on your breaths. Inhale and exhale deeply and if your mind wanders just bring your focus back to your breathing.  

7. Get moving 

If meditation is not your thing, head to the gym for some cardio and body boosting workouts. If you have not exercised in a while, start slow with yoga or Pilates classes which rejuvenate dormant muscles. Get lively with some tunes. Research has shown that music can increase energy, so put on your iPod filled with your favourite tunes and move! Add stretching to your daily routine as it increases well-being and fights fatigue.   

8. Look like brand-new 

It’s time to get ready for the F1 parties. Unfortunately, you’re looking more “criminal mugshot” than “dewy beauty”. Not to worry, help is at hand. All you need to look brand-new are a few key products. First, refresh skin with a face mist containing soothing ingredients like chamomile or lavender. For a quick touch up, use a pressed powder with oil-control and highlight eyes or cheeks with shimmery colours to add radiance to tired looking skin. Lastly, keep puckers lustrous and in top form with tinted lip balm. Stimulate your tired mind by burning a few drops of essential oils, while you touch up your make-up. Close your eyes and inhale the zesty fragrance for an energy boost!

For more wellness & beauty tips, check out: http://www.reviewantiaging.com/wellness.html