Healthy Skin Begins with a Good Moisturizer

Lotions help maintain skin suppleness and the glow of youth, coveted traits for many consumers. But navigating through the health and beauty aisles in search of the perfect moisturizer is a daunting task for many shoppers. With so many options to choose from, a confusing labeling situation, and a lack of knowledge on which ingredients deliver what effects, retailers have their work cut out for them when it comes to educating consumers about available options and what products will keep their skin healthy.

It is important to understand that dry, dehydrated skin is very common, regardless of the season,” said Linda Miles, LAcDOM, vice president, derma-e.

Moisturizing keeps the skin smooth and hydrated and, as consumers become more proactive in preventing the signs of aging, daily moisturizing for the face and body has become essential. Moisturizing daily is said to combat fine lines and wrinkles; but, ingredients added into a daily moisturizer or lotion may also address a culprit of other skin issues—added SPF protection to fight against ultraviolet (UV) and free radical damage, botanicals to address rosacea, acne and stretch marks, and balancing skin types.

“Most individuals don’t actually know what their skin type is, and trying to create products designed for a specific ‘skin type’ has often led to confusion,” said Peter Lamas, the founder of Lamas Beauty and legendary make-up/beauty artist for Jackie Onassis, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Faye Dunaway and Diana Ross, to name a few. “What is actually more important is for consumers to understand their skin sensitivity. With the advanced technology available today, every skin type can benefit from one well-formulated product.”

But how is one to know which product is best for their skin? There are lotions with SPF, lotions marketed as organic and natural, lotions that claim to address environmental stresses, extra duty moisturizers for rough skin areas, skin care products that operate within a three-step daily regimen, and supplemental treatments, such as eye creams, night creams, serums, exfoliators and masks. With so many offerings available, how does one begin the search for the right lotion?

Jill Price Marshall, spokesperson, Dr. Hauschka Skin Care, noted each area of the body has specific needs, some of these needs are universally applicable, and some are more specialized. “For example, the skin on the face is exposed to the elements far more than, say, the skin on our feet; therefore, it needs extra protection,” she said. “The skin on our feet is much thicker than the skin on our hands; therefore it needs exfoliation and a product that can moisturize at a deeper level.”

Diana Kaye, co-founder, TerrEssentials, noted consumers are willing to follow specific regimens, and that the traditional cleanse, tone/balance and moisturize regime, with an occasional purifying deep treatment mask, is the most superior method when caring for facial skin. “We live in stressful times and, unfortunately, due to contaminated drinking and bathing water and the consumption of processed foods that are less vital than fresh, organic food, our bodies suffer and, in particular, the skin is too frequently left without adequate sebum and water to keep the skin cell walls flexible and moisture-retentive,” she said. “A balanced, certified organic moisturizer provides a truly natural protective barrier to kelp keep the skin supple and healthy, thus better equipped to fight the ravages of our polluted environment.”

The bottom line, it appears, is with a little trial and error, and a dose of education, consumers may just find the magic formula for youthful, glowing skin.

The Wavering Consumer

Consumers have become savvy and increasingly concerned about the kinds of ingredients that are used in personal care products. Ingredients currently getting red flagged include parabens, sodium-lauryl sulfate, propylene glycol, petroleum, phthalates, artificial colors and fragrances. “Consumers are suspicious of synthetic ingredients—especially petroleum derivatives such as glycol, as well as coal-based products such as paraphenylenediamine in hair coloring, and formaldehyde in toothpaste and nail products,” Lamas said.

As the consumer moves toward a more organic lifestyle, other items such as synthetic hydrogenated fatty acids and “vegetable” emulsifying waxes and other oleochemical emollients have also been scrutinized, noted Kaye. TerrEssentials, a company with a strong environmentally-aware following, was created out of co-founders Jim Hahn and Kaye’s experience with life-threatening cancer; they’ve spent the last 20 years researching and formulating personal care products that are free from conventional cosmetic chemicals. “Our customers are also concerned about untested, emerging industrial technologies such as genetic- and bio-engineering, nanotechnology and head space technology, and they do not want to see the progeny of these synthetic industrial processes—liposomes, exfoliating acids, ceramides, nano titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, petrochemical natural fragrance—in their lotion products that they will rub into their bodies and wash down their drains into our waterways.”

Some personal care manufacturers have taken a proactive approach by disclosing full ingredient information, reformulating their products to address consumer concerns, and creating products that meet USDA’s organic standards.

A Batch of Botanicals

“The effects of aging, sun damage, exposure to free radicals and other stresses can manifest in skin sensitivity and dryness, as well as loss in firmness, lines or wrinkling and age spots,” Lamas said. “Not every antioxidant or botanical has the same effect in combating these processes, which means the grouping or formulation of ingredients is very important.”

Dr. Hauschka, for example, offers a Normalizing Day Oil that is said to provide skin with the right kinds of oil, which can cause the sebaceous glands to relax and break the cycle of over production. It utilizes essential fatty acid (EFA) oils, such as wheat germ, jojoba and apricot kernel oils, which are non-comedogenic in addition to healing extracts, such as neem, carrot and calendula. Dr. Hauschka, interestingly, strays from the suggestion of using moisturizers at night. “As an organ, one of the skin’s functions is to produce oil; we believe when you feed the skin a moisturizer morning and evening you induce a dependency, rather than allowing the skin to produce its own sebum. In the evening skin is rejuvenating and revitalizing itself and should be free of oil-based preparations at night to allow the natural regeneration process to take place,” Marshall said.

Popular formulas gaining momentum include natural and organic formulas for those with sensitive skin and allergies, as well as products that are multi-taskers, for example, a facial moisturizer with antioxidants, skin soothers and sunscreen, noted Angela Green, brand manager, JASON Natural Products. She added products infused with Aloe vera, jojoba oil, cucumber oil and vitamin E are appealing ingredient mainstays; and exotic new ingredients such as Rooibos, peptides and minerals such as zinc, copper and manganese gluconates are catching a buzz.

Noah Bremen, founder, Noah’s Naturals, noted shea butter is a top notch ingredient for complete body moisturizing, especially hands, feet and elbows. “Although efficacious levels of shea butter are expensive, the real deal heals, soothes, and protects dry, chapped skin,” he said, adding almond oil is another great ingredient for smoothing, softening and protecting skin.

Other ingredients garnering attention include forsythia fruit, white peony camellia sinsensis and matrimony vine (goji) fruit. According to Kaye, these herbs were used in traditional Chinese beauty preparations for their moisturizing and wrinkle-reducing properties, as well as for their calming, astringent and skin-brightening abilities that help stimulate the skin’s renewal process.

Retailers can help consumers make the right selection by discussing what they desire in their lotion product. As with facial moisturizers, consumers should find a lotion with the best natural ingredients that will cater to their specific needs. “Everyday we hear more and more science about environmental damage to skin, the effects of exposure to the sun and the need to product our bodies while being friendly to the earth,” Bremen said. “There are a lot of great products that moisturize the skin but few brands have done so while eliminating those ingredients that are not natural and/or earth friendly.”