dry skin

Do you find that your daily showers produce dry, tight, itchy skin? You can do less and get great results. Use soap only on select areas of the body to avoid dryness. Unless you have really oily skin, because you are a teenager or have a job that exposes you to oils and gases, you do not need soap to get yourself clean. Pure water does the job. However, you do need to use soap on your face, under your arms, and in the groin area. As you get older, the use of soap on the rest of your body can unnecessarily dry your skin. The Sugar Mama Honey Bar is a favorite in our household. You can be a Sugar Daddy and love it too! Its high moisture formula does not leave skin dry and itchy. Unlike most soap on the market, its pH balance is complimentary to skin leaving it in a perfectly healthy condition. Yes, it works nicely as a face soap too! Follow with the Lovely Body Lotion (apply when skin is still damp) for an extra treat!

Think of it as a “spa night” for your hands. Noodle & Boo’s Glowology line has two products that when used together offer RELIEF for those painfully dry hands. You will need the Sugar Mama Honey Scrub and The Balm.

Before you go to bed, run warm water over your clean hands for a minute. Take a big scoop of the Sugar Mama Honey Scrub and let it melt in your palms. Gently rub your hands together for two or three minutes making sure to get between your fingers and around your cuticles. When the sugar is gone and your hands feel oily, rinse them with water and pat dry.

When hands are still moist apply The Balm generously to your hands. Go to bed. Wake up with wonderfully soft and supple hands. During the winter months, this is a wonderful bedtime ritual.

Leave a comment on any post this week and receive free samples of both the Sugar Mama Honey Scrub and The Balm. Be sure to e-mail chatterbox@noodleanboo.com your mailing address!

Sweet dreams until tomorrow . . . .

My interest in research and development of skincare products stemmed from having a child with eczema. I am always looking for the latest information in better understanding eczema, its causes and potential cures. Could there be a link between hard-water and eczema? Professor Hywel Williams and his research team are going to find out.

The independent trial run by clinicians at The University of Nottingham has received funding of nearly £1million from the Department of Health’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment (HTA) program. The study will focus on hard water areas in Nottingham and Leicester, Cambridge, London and the Isle of Wight.

The aim of the Soft Water Eczema Trial (SWET) is to discover whether eczema can be improved by deliberately softening all water used in the home - except at one tap in the kitchen which will supply mains water for drinking.

Families of eczema sufferers and some doctors have said that living in a hard water area may make eczema worse.

Recently a team of researchers at The University of Nottingham found that eczema is more common in primary school children living in hard water areas in the UK compared with children living in soft water areas. No one really knows why, but it could be because hard water contains high levels of calcium and magnesium, leading to increased use of soaps which can act as skin irritants.

Professor Hywel Williams and his research team at the Centre of Evidence Based Dermatology are running the trial. Professor Williams said: “I have wanted to do this study for many years as patients keep telling me that water softeners help their skin, but other people aren’t so sure. Carrying out a proper randomized controlled trial will help us find the answer. If ion-exchange water softeners are found to improve the symptoms of eczema, this will be an extremely important finding for both patients and doctors. Many patients worry about the possible side effects of the usual treatments for eczema, so this would be a welcome addition to their treatment options.”

The study is in the process of recruiting 310 children between the ages of 6 months and 16 years who have moderate to severe eczema.

Up to one fifth of all children of school age have eczema, along with about one in twelve of the adult population. The severity of the disease can vary. In mild forms the skin is dry, red and itchy, whist in more severe forms the skin can become broken, raw and bleeding. Eczema is not contagious and with treatment the inflammation of eczema can be reduced, though the skin will always be sensitive to flare-ups and need extra care and protection against dryness.

The water softener industry (through their representative body, the UK Water Treatment Association) - is closely involved in the development of the trial and a generic water softener has been specially produced for the study. The industry is meeting the costs of producing and installing water softener units. The study findings will be quite independent from any industry influence.

The trial will run until the end of next year and the results won’t be known until the end of 2009 when all the information has been analyzed.

Noodle & Boo’s ultimate ointment was developed especially for sufferers of eczema. It is an excellent alternative to steroid-based medications.

Just the words “dry, cracked skin” are enough to make us girls reach for the lotions and potions. And as the weather turns colder, dry skin becomes a common problem for most of us. When choosing lotions, creams and ointments, personal preference is important along with choosing effective products that leave skin hydrated and healthy.

Most lotions and creams contain one or both of the following agents, an oily agent and a watery agent. Most of the time, creams and lotions vary based on the amount of these two agents, or “phases” as they are commonly referred to by formulators.

Some creams or lotions can contain most of one phase and almost none of the other. Or, these agents can exist in equal amounts. In many cases, the ‘feel’ of a lotion or cream may run from very oily to not oily at all. It all depends on the relationship of the two phases. For instance the Ultimate Baby Ointment and the Elasticity Oil are two Noodle & Boo products that are oil-based (no water). The Balm has both oil and water but has a higher percentage of oil than the Super Soft Lotion or Lovely Body Lotion which are light daily moisturizers for the whole body.

Unless some unusual medical condition exists (such as Psoriasis) most skin damage occurs because of dryness. In the winter, the air lacks the same humidity as in the summer. The atmosphere contributes to dehydrating the skin at a faster rate during this time.

It is during this period that creams or lotions with an oily feel come to the rescue and provide a covering that slows the escape of moisture from the exposed surface allowing re-hydrating from below. Oil-based lotions and creams have an ‘occlusive’ function in that they cover the skin and allow healing like a band-aid. These creams and lotions may also contain additives which have proven to provide softening and soothing properties to the skin.

If you suffer from dry skin from head-to-toe, the ultimate luxury we offer is the Elasticity Oil applied just after your shower and before you dry off.

For seriously dry cracked skin on hands and feet the ultimate ointment is excellent. Since it is an oil-based product it will leave skin oily and is recommended for overnight skin therapy.

For dry skin that needs a little tender loving care to keep it in tip-top shape during the winter months, The Balm is “the bomb.” Wonderfully rich it dries quickly and leaves skin supple. For best results it should be used after you shower as well as after every hand-washing.

Happiness is well-hydrated skin . . .