H E A LT H
N E W S A N D N OT E S
SMOKE AND MIRRORS
CHEW ON THIS After three years in development, musician, interior designer, and style icon Lenny Kravitz’s Los Angeles–based, vegan, cruelty-free, and recycle-ready dental care line TWICE just launched, with clean formulas such as nano-hydroxyapatite Oral Wellness Toothpaste ($7, target.com) and alcohol-free, nano-silver and coconut oil– spiked Oral Wellness Immunity Rinse ($15, smiletwice.com). So how did Grammywinner Kravitz become a chief creative officer for teeth? Co-founders Cody and Julian Levine’s father, Jonathan Levine, DMD, is Kravitz’s dentist, and the two are committed to bringing health and dental care to those in need—10% of TWICE’s profits go to the GLO Good Foundation to provide free dental care and education to under-resourced areas such as Kravitz’s beloved Bahamas. Every year, GLO Good partners with Kravitz’s Let Love Rule Foundation to sponsor a free medical and dental clinic in Gregory Town. In 2019, 1,200 Gregory Town adults and children were treated by over 75 volunteers. Now that’s something to smile about.— NING CHAO
Summer is wildfire season in California, and this year’s flame forecast is alarming. Scentless and invisible, airborne smoke particles can travel thousands of miles and cause inflammation and speed up aging, especially in the skin, according to a UC San Francisco study published last summer in JAMA Dermatology. Pour Moi Smoke Alarm Drops ($45, pourmoiskincare.com) contain moss stem cells, organic hemp seed oil, and Swiss stone pine extract “to hydrate and create a shield-like sunscreen, catching every smoke particle so it doesn’t penetrate the epidermis,” explains Ulli Haslacher, who founded Pour Moi’s climate-targeted line in San Bernadino five years ago (fun fact: while Pasadena qualifies as desert, coastal cities like Santa Monica have humidity and are considered monsoon desert). An independent 2022 study shows that Smoke Alarm Drops have 100% efficacy on the epidermis and dermis and protect from all types of smoke (think fireplace, tobacco). The serum can be mixed with moisturizer, sunscreen, or makeup, or applied directly on skin. Consider it fire insurance for your face. —N .C .
BUG IN THE SYSTEM
→ The invasive Aedes mosquito is here
to stay, surging in population during summertime and more aggressive than previous species. If your bites have become immune to cortisone or calamine, Pasadena-based Banish skincare offers an itch-fighting alternative. Fighter Gel ($39, banish.com) not only works on acne but also bug bites, using aloe, arnica, peppermint, and antioxidants like green tea and gotu kola to soothe redness, swelling, and inflammation.
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→ The Organic Skin Co.’s Task Force Nine
($30, theorganicskinco.com) is another option, with turmeric and calendula to calm eczema rashes as well as insect bites.
For those who need to physically restrain themselves from scratching, the two Australian dads who introduced BuzzPatch mosquito repellent stickers now have MagicPatch, which uses kinesiology technology (like the therapeutic tape athletes swear by) to lymphatically drain itch-inducing mosquito saliva ($36 for three packs of 27 patches, naturalpatch. com). The patches are chemical free and waterproof, promising up to seven days of scratchless protection. —N .C .
