Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Magazine #86

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Anti-Ageing

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Lifestyle Relaxation & Health Therapies

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A Professional take on SPA Business, Health Therapies, Products & Simple Relaxation 2022*ISSUE*86

C O N T E N T S *86

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Phoebe Dynevor, Brand Ambassador for Charlette Tilbur y Actress (Daphné Bridger ton) Netflix, Bridger ton.

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GWI Research Ranks 150 Countries by Wellness Market Size 2 4 Youth-Preserving Behaviours to Embrace Now 4 Essential Adaptogens for Stress and Anxiety Relief 6 The Biology of Love - your cells hold the keys… 8 Top Anti-aging Skincare Trends To Watch In 2022 10 5 Major Skincare Benefits of Roses 12 7 Ways to Increase Skincare Penetration 12 Controlling Aging Skin 16 Boost Your Anti-inflammatory Powers 18 Is Customisable Skincare The Future Of The Beauty Industry? 20 Mirobiome care vs Skin care…… 22 DNA Testing To Customise Your Skincare Products 22 Awakening Aging Skin 26 Environ Introduces The New Focus On Filler Facial Treatment 28 Demystifying the Science of Corneotherapy 30 Skin Icing: How This Chilly Facial Beautifies Skin 32 5 KOREAN beauty secrets …including face-slapping 34 Check your Beauty Vibe based on your Zodiac Sign 36 The ENDYBLEPH: The Ultimate, Non-Surgical Eye Lift 38 The Myofascial Facial Release Treatment 40 How Does Menopause Affect Your Skin? 42 The Challenges In Bringing An Anti-Aging Pill To Market 44 The Best Products to Use in Your 20s, 30s, 40s & 50s 46 The Link between Beauty and Empowerment and Confidence 48 Why Vitamin C Achieves Anti-Aging Icon Status 50 10 Anti-Aging Foods to Support Your 40s-and-Beyond Body 52 Anti-Aging Skincare with doTERRA 54 Pregnancy Massage: 56 Want to Become an Influencer? 60 Mental Health Conversation change from Awareness to Action 62 Designing a Great Workplace for Spa & Wellness Employees 64 How to Make the Best Decisions 66 6 Reasons Why Leaders Should Prioritize Self-Care 68

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W e l c o m e

Can you reverse aging? Many things cause our skin to age. Some things we cannot do anything about; others we can influence.

One thing that we cannot change is the natural ageing process. It plays a key role. It is natural for our face to lose some of its youthful fullness.

We notice our skin becoming thinner and drier. Our genes largely control when these changes occur. The medical term for this type of ageing is “intrinsic ageing.”

We can influence another type of ageing that affects our skin. Our environment and lifestyle choices can cause our skin to age prematurely.

The medical term for this type of ageing is “extrinsic aging.” By taking some preventive actions, such as adopting a healthy lifestyle, which includes habits like eating a healthy diet, wearing sunscreen every day, and exercising we can slow the effects that this type of ageing has on our skin.

Dates to Diarise: Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Conference and Spa Awards 2022 are taking place on the 24 & 25th July 2022, at The Houghton Hotel. An event not to be missed! Register today on www.lesnouvelleblog.co.za Enjoy the read !

Dr. Nadine de Freitas

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques International Publisher I 7, avenue Stephane Mallarme 75017 PARIS Tel: 01 43 80 06 47 Fax: 01 43 80 83 63 www.nouvelles-esthetiques.com I Fondateur : H. Pierantoni I Directeur de la Publications: Jeannine Cannac-Pierantoni I Redactrice en chef: Michéle de Lattre-Pierantoni I International Editions • Argentina • Baltic • Benelux • Brazil • Bulgaria • Canada • China • France • Greece • Hong Kong • Hungary • Israel • Italy • Japan • Mexico • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Singapore • South Africa • Spain • Taiwan • Turkey • Ukraine • USA • Yugoslavia Les Nouvelles Esthétiques South African Edition I Max Cafe P. O. Box 81204, Parkhurst Johannesburg, South Africa 2120 I Tel: +27 83 267 2773 e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za www.lesnouvelles.co.za I Publisher/Creative Director : Anthony de Freitas e-mail: tony@maxcafe.co.za I Managing Editor : Dr. Nadine de Freitas e-mail: nadine@maxcafe .co.za I Editor ial Assistant: Sarene Kloren editor ial @lesnouvelles.co.za I Adver tising Enquir ies: Dr Nadine de Freitas e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za I Subscription Enquiries: Tel: +27 83 267 2773 e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za or visit: www.lesnouvelles.co.za

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Global Wellness Institute Research Ranks 150 Countries by

By Global Wellness Institute Wellness Market Size

The nonprofit Global Wellness Institute (GWI) has released “The Global Wellness Economy: Country Rankings,” the first research to measure the wellness economies of 150 nations. It’s packed with information on national wellness markets from average wellness spend per capita to the wellness market’s contribution to each nation’s overall economy. The research was presented today at the first Global Wellness News™ broadcast in New York City.

The report is a companion to GWI’s recently-released “The Global Wellness Economy: Looking Beyond COVID,” a complete global update on all 11 sectors of the wellness market, finding that the world wellness economy is worth $4.4 trillion and forecast to reach $7 trillion by 2025.

“This last year, the GWI generated country-level data for all 11 wellness sectors.

So now, for the first time, we can answer the question everyone asks: How big is the total wellness market for each country and who ranks highest?” said Ophelia Yeung, GWI senior research fellow. “Which nations are growing, which are shrinking? How do national wellness markets differ and why? This report is the first to answer these questions.

Consumers in the very wealthiest economies spend the most each year on wellness. The report provides data on how much the wellness market contributes to national GDP (what percentage of the economy it represents). Globally, the wellness economy represents 5.1% of total GDP, roughly 1 in every 20 “dollars” spent by consumers worldwide is on wellness.

For Small, Tourism-Dependent Countries, Wellness Is an Outsized Percentage of Their Economy It may seem surprising to see Aruba rank in the top 10 for consumer spend on wellness, as it’s not as wealthy as the other ranked countries. This is the tourism effect, where high-spending inbound wellness tourists represent a disproportionate part of the wellness market. The report ranks countries by the ratio of the size of their wellness economy to the size of their total GDP/economy, and the small, tourism-dependent countries really stand out. For those top five nations, the wellness market represents an eye-opening percentage of total GDP: Seychelles (16.5%), Maldives (14.5%), Aruba (11.9%), Costa Rica (11.4%), and St. Lucia (10%). This is a window into the powerful contribution that wellness tourism brings to their economies, but also shows how in these small countries wellness is more of an “export industry” and for the most part out of reach of locals.

The Sectors That Define National Wellness Markets Vary Dramatically The report reveals how different wellness sectors dominate in different nations.

Both worldwide and in most countries, the wellness market is concentrated in three sectors: 1) healthy eating, nutrition, and weight loss; 2) personal care and beauty; and 3) physical activity. These three segments account for more than 60% of the total wellness market.

There is however a wide national and regional variance. In Japan, personal care/beauty represents a much bigger share of wellness spending than in most countries; for China, India, Indonesia, Russia, and Turkey, it’s traditional/complementary medicine; in Germany, it’s wellness tourism, spas and thermal/mineral springs; while in Sub-Saharan Africa, public health and prevention spending dominates.

It’s no surprise the world’s most populous countries (e.g., China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Russia), or the wealthiest (e.g., Switzerland, Australia, Netherlands), or countries that combine size with wealth (e.g., the US, Japan, Germany, the UK, etc.), spend the most on wellness.

The US is by far the largest market, at $1.2 trillion–nearly double the size of the second-largest market, China, at $683 billion. In fact, the US accounts for 28% of the entire global wellness market, while the top ten markets represent 71% of the world total.

The report provides granular data on national wellness markets, from growth rates in the pre-pandemic years of 2017-2019 to how the pandemic has impacted each market.

Where Do Consumers Spend the Most on Wellness?

“These new rankings reveal the countries that spend the most on wellness–important information for governments and businesses. But the size of a wellness market does not necessarily capture which countries are most ‘well’: which nations have the best health outcomes or fair access to wellness,” said Katherine Johnston, GWI senior research fellow. “There’s much research to do. Who is benefitting from the growth of the wellness economy in each country, and who is not? What’s the relationship between the wellness market and the health and well-being of a nation’s population? What can governments and policymakers do to bring more wellness to more people? This will be the focus of our November 2022 report on wellness and policy to be released at the Global Wellness Summit in Tel Aviv.”

For the full report, contact: Global Wellness Institute.

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Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

spa therapies

Global Wellness Institute Research Ranks 150 Countries by

By Global Wellness Institute Wellness Market Size

The nonprofit Global Wellness Institute (GWI) has released “The Global Wellness Economy: Country Rankings,” the first research to measure the wellness economies of 150 nations. It’s packed with information on national wellness markets from average wellness spend per capita to the wellness market’s contribution to each nation’s overall economy. The research was presented today at the first Global Wellness News™ broadcast in New York City.

The report is a companion to GWI’s recently-released “The Global Wellness Economy: Looking Beyond COVID,” a complete global update on all 11 sectors of the wellness market, finding that the world wellness economy is worth $4.4 trillion and forecast to reach $7 trillion by 2025.

“This last year, the GWI generated country-level data for all 11 wellness sectors.

So now, for the first time, we can answer the question everyone asks: How big is the total wellness market for each country and who ranks highest?” said Ophelia Yeung, GWI senior research fellow. “Which nations are growing, which are shrinking? How do national wellness markets differ and why? This report is the first to answer these questions.

Consumers in the very wealthiest economies spend the most each year on wellness. The report provides data on how much the wellness market contributes to national GDP (what percentage of the economy it represents). Globally, the wellness economy represents 5.1% of total GDP, roughly 1 in every 20 “dollars” spent by consumers worldwide is on wellness.

For Small, Tourism-Dependent Countries, Wellness Is an Outsized Percentage of Their Economy It may seem surprising to see Aruba rank in the top 10 for consumer spend on wellness, as it’s not as wealthy as the other ranked countries. This is the tourism effect, where high-spending inbound wellness tourists represent a disproportionate part of the wellness market. The report ranks countries by the ratio of the size of their wellness economy to the size of their total GDP/economy, and the small, tourism-dependent countries really stand out. For those top five nations, the wellness market represents an eye-opening percentage of total GDP: Seychelles (16.5%), Maldives (14.5%), Aruba (11.9%), Costa Rica (11.4%), and St. Lucia (10%). This is a window into the powerful contribution that wellness tourism brings to their economies, but also shows how in these small countries wellness is more of an “export industry” and for the most part out of reach of locals.

The Sectors That Define National Wellness Markets Vary Dramatically The report reveals how different wellness sectors dominate in different nations.

Both worldwide and in most countries, the wellness market is concentrated in three sectors: 1) healthy eating, nutrition, and weight loss; 2) personal care and beauty; and 3) physical activity. These three segments account for more than 60% of the total wellness market.

There is however a wide national and regional variance. In Japan, personal care/beauty represents a much bigger share of wellness spending than in most countries; for China, India, Indonesia, Russia, and Turkey, it’s traditional/complementary medicine; in Germany, it’s wellness tourism, spas and thermal/mineral springs; while in Sub-Saharan Africa, public health and prevention spending dominates.

It’s no surprise the world’s most populous countries (e.g., China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Russia), or the wealthiest (e.g., Switzerland, Australia, Netherlands), or countries that combine size with wealth (e.g., the US, Japan, Germany, the UK, etc.), spend the most on wellness.

The US is by far the largest market, at $1.2 trillion–nearly double the size of the second-largest market, China, at $683 billion. In fact, the US accounts for 28% of the entire global wellness market, while the top ten markets represent 71% of the world total.

The report provides granular data on national wellness markets, from growth rates in the pre-pandemic years of 2017-2019 to how the pandemic has impacted each market.

Where Do Consumers Spend the Most on Wellness?

“These new rankings reveal the countries that spend the most on wellness–important information for governments and businesses. But the size of a wellness market does not necessarily capture which countries are most ‘well’: which nations have the best health outcomes or fair access to wellness,” said Katherine Johnston, GWI senior research fellow. “There’s much research to do. Who is benefitting from the growth of the wellness economy in each country, and who is not? What’s the relationship between the wellness market and the health and well-being of a nation’s population? What can governments and policymakers do to bring more wellness to more people? This will be the focus of our November 2022 report on wellness and policy to be released at the Global Wellness Summit in Tel Aviv.”

For the full report, contact: Global Wellness Institute.

2

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

spa therapies

4 Youth-Preserving Behaviours to Embrace Now Ageing is inevitable, but doing it badly is most definitely not – and ageing well is far more under your control that you may realize. Sure, your greatgrandma may have made it into her 90s with a highball in one hand and a Marlboro in the other, but chances are you won’t, so now’s the time to work on embracing several of my favourite, super-supportive health behaviours. They’ll help you extend both lifespan and “healthspan,” allowing you to sidestep many of the health problems that can make aging so difficult. So which ones are the youth-savers you need to get into now? Start here: 1. Tune into your body’s built-in anti-ageing treatment – sleep!

You need sleep — good, restful, deep, restorative sleep. And if you think sleep is a waste of time, think again. While you’re snoozing, your body is performing essential tasks, clearing out cellular debris and making repairs, system-wide. During deep sleep and REM sleep —when dreaming happens — your brain’s cleansing system (known as the glymphatic system) kicks into gear. When you don’t sleep well or sleep only briefly, you miss out and damaged proteins and other toxins build up in the brain, leaving you feeling foggy in the short-term and, in the longterm, likely more vulnerable to rapid brain ageing and the development of neurological diseases like dementia.

But sleep keeps all your cells, muscles, organs and yes, your skin, more youthful by promoting autophagy – your overnight cellular recycling program. All of us are made up of trillions of cells and eventually their components start to wear out. But instead of simply throwing the diseased or just sub-par cells in the garbage, the body strips out the still-salvageable parts and recycles them to use for energy and to create new cells. When the autophagy system is bright and awake and working well – while you sleep – you give your body the downtime it needs to recover faster and better at any age.

2. Keep ageing at bay with small ‘stresses’ that make you stronger.

Though I always encourage my patients to relieve stress with meditative practices, just a little bit of stress – as in the healthy, physical kind – can give you an

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edge in the anti-ageing game. Taken in small doses, stress can actually turn on your longevity genes and enable you to age better. Scientists call this, “hormesis,” the body’s response to small healthy stresses, like biking up a steep hill or practicing intermittent fasting. These quick bouts of adversity toughen up the cells, and the body’s defenses against ageing. A little pain and, cumulatively, a lot of gain!

Playing with temperature, in measured doses, is a fun, proactive way to promote wellness via hormesis.

Take a dip in a cool pool, then a dunk in the hot tub or sauna; have a cold shower, then a sauna and back to the cold shower again. The temperature swings between cold and hot will lightly stress your cells and encourage autophagy. If there’s no sauna or pool nearby, take an advantage of a cold morning to walk the dog and skip the coat, or finish your morning shower with a cold rinse. There’s growing evidence that immunity and resistance to environmental stressors may be greater for people who live in colder climates.

3. Stop the clock every day — with meditation (or a meditative activity).

The internet, social media and the 24-hour news cycle are an information fire hose which, if we’re not careful, can overwhelm us, mentally and physically.

Add that to our busy work schedules and home obligations, and a stress overdose is the ageaccelerating by-product. A vacation is the usual antidote, but our minds and bodies deserve a break a few times a week, not just once or twice a year.

And the best way to get-away-from-it-all without leaving home is meditation, or, if you prefer, a meditative activity.

Embracing meditation, be it the more traditional “sitting” practice or simply a meditative activity that’s calming and you enjoy enough to do every other day or so, has a lot of proven benefits, short- and long-term. These mind/body time-outs help slow the ageing of the brain, lower blood pressure, and lengthen telomeres (the protective end caps on your DNA strands). They give you energy, improve your concentration, and help you sleep better. And they lift your mood — you just feel happier. Adding 20 minutes of some sort of mind-quieting practice will help you find relief from the day’s endless demands

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

By Dr. Frank Lipman

and to-do-lists, all of which can contribute to symptoms like shallow breathing, tightness in the body, headaches, a clenched jaw, and so on.

What do to if you’re not a “sitter,” per se? Try a peaceful practice that suits you: something simple that you enjoy, unplugged, without phone interruptions. Knit in a quiet place; play an instrument; listen to music you love, eyes closed. Or dig in the garden, colour in a colouring book, wander in the woods, whatever works for you. The point is to let your mind drop into a quiet place, regularly, for 20 minutes or so. You’ll experience a shift, sometimes subtle and sometimes obvious.

4) Put ageing out to pasture – not yourself.

Just as the physical steps you take will impact how well you age, so will your thoughts, emotions and overall outlook on getting older. If you find yourself saying, “I’m too old for this crap,” kvetching about how much better things used to be, or writing every minor lapse off as a “senior moment,” I have one word of advice: STOP. Unless your goal is to push others away – and shorten your lifespan – train yourself to lighten up and embrace a more positive outlook on ageing. A case in point: a Yale study found that those with more positive perceptions of ageing lived seven and a half years longer than those with less positive self-perceptions.

While you’re at it, be generous with yourself, and focus on what it is that feels good, motivates you and does no harm. Indulge in simple, healthy pleasures— a hot bath, a walk at sunset, a weekly treatment like a massage. As long as it’s health-affirming, you’re in.

Ultimately, each day is a gift and, as they say, ageing is better than the alternative. How to start the attitude readjustment? Go with the flow, practice gratitude, be thankful, and put some time into finding and spreading joy. Try letting go of guilt and regret, and start laughing more – at yourself and even at the sometimes humbling ageing process. Laughter helps boost the immune system, increasing T-cell activity, those “killer cells” that help our bodies fight viruses and tumors. It also helps lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, decreases pain and can also help stabilize blood sugar – all good things no matter where you are on the ageing journey.

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Essential Adaptogens for Stress and Anxiety Relief With chaos and upheaval seemingly the order of the day these days, remaining energetic, emotionally buoyant and physically balanced can be a tall order.

Exhaustion, burnout and anxiety are all-too common afflictions, leaving sufferers dragging through the daylight hours and resting poorly at night. For those of us trying to manage stress, fatigue and/or exhaustion, the unhealthy quick-fixes typically include some combination of sugar, caffeine, alcohol, recreational drugs and prescribed meds. Sound familiar? But there is a better way, enlisting the help of a group of herbal ingredients called ‘adaptogens.’

Adaptogens are known for their ability to improve adrenal function and boost the body’s ability to cope with anxiety and fatigue. They’re a healthy way to pump the brakes when life’s got you stuck in the waytoo-fast lane. Where to start with these well-tolerated, drug-free miracles of nature? How to choose the ones that are right for you?

Adaptogens are a healthy alternative to meds.

Sure, pharmaceuticals may be warranted for acute or severe conditions, but in non-emergency situations, adaptogens can deliver significant relief, with few (if any) downsides. Think of them as plant-based support for modern life, or the herbal world’s answer to superfoods. Another thing that puts adaptogens in the plus column? They have a solid safety track record, having been used for thousands of years in Indian and Chinese traditional medicine. I’ve used adaptogenic herbs in my practice for decades, with excellent results.

In simplest terms, adaptogens are best buddies with the adrenal system that’s in charge of managing your hormonal responses to stress. They have a unique ability to “adapt” their function to your body’s specific needs, enhancing its ability to adjust to life stressors, cope with anxiety and fight fatigue, working slowly over time. Whether the stressors you face are emotional or physical, adaptogens will help you rise to the challenge, and fight back with more stamina, endurance and a strengthened immunity.

Adaptogens are like a thermostat for calmness and energy.

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Like a thermostat that senses when the room temperature is too high or too low and adjusts accordingly, adaptogens, working through the adrenal system, keep your body in balance, the dynamic equilibrium we call homeostasis. Adaptogens counteract the adverse effects of stress; they enable the body’s cells to access more energy; help cells eliminate toxic metabolic byproducts and help the body use oxygen more efficiently.

Meet the Adaptogen ‘Feel Good 4’ The adaptogenic herbs I consider most important are what I call the Feel Good 4, namely, Asian ginseng, Ashwagandha, Eleuthero or Siberian ginseng, and Rhodiola rosea, any of which can be taken on their own or as part of a blend or formula. If you were to choose only one adaptogen though, I’d recommend Rhodiola. However, I have found that adaptogen work best in combination, so look for a product that has at least 3 of the 4 adaptogens in one formula and make sure it has some Rhodiola.

1. Asian Ginseng - (Panax Ginseng) One of the most valued medicinal plants in the world, Asian ginseng has been studied extensively for its ability to help the body withstand stress. Western herbalists say that it restores and strengthens the body’s immune response, promotes longevity, and enhances the growth of normal cells. It is also known to promote a sense of well-being, and may protect against some kinds of cancer.

2. Ashwagandha (Withania Somnifera) Ashwagandha has been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda, the traditional medicine system of India.

Nicknamed “Indian ginseng” because, like Asian ginseng, China’s king of herbs, it’s used for helping to increase vitality, endurance and stamina, and to promote longevity and strengthen the immune system.

(It’s actually not related to ginseng, botanically).

Today, herbalists often recommend it for people with high blood pressure, insomnia, chronic fatigue

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

By Dr. Frank Lipman

syndrome, and impotence associated with anxiety or exhaustion. It enhances the endocrine system, especially the function of the thyroid and adrenal glands. Ayurvedic healers have long prescribed the herb to treat exhaustion caused by both physical and mental strain. Most of my patients who are physically spent and who take ashwagandha usually respond after a week or two by feeling warmer and having more energy. After a couple of weeks, they’ll come back feeling stronger—and some report an enhanced libido as an added bonus.

3. Eleuthero (Eleutherococcus Senticosus) Used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat muscle spasms, joint pain, insomnia, and fatigue, eleuthero, or Siberian ginseng, is also popular in Germany for treating chronic fatigue syndrome, impaired concentration, and for convalescing after illness.

Western herbalists note that eleuthero improves memory, increases feelings of well-being and can lift mild depression. (It’s also known to be helpful for those who work too hard and sleep too little – but it’s not a replacement for either!)

4. Rhodiola Rosea Rhodiola rosea acts like a hormone thermostat, especially with regard to our main stress hormone, cortisol. I believe the rhythm of our body’s production of cortisol is usually, if not always, impaired when we’re stressed or wrung out. (Our exposure to light and dark, or our circadian rhythm, cues our cortisol.)

So, our cortisol level is too high at night when it should be low or not high enough during the day when we need all the energy we can get. Rhodiola literally helps balance the cortisol levels in your body, crucial when you’re under too much stress. What’s more, rhodiola has demonstrated a remarkable ability to support energy production at the cell level, and it has a positive impact on brain function, depression, and heart health. In my experience, patients taking rhodiola usually start feeling better fairly quickly, usually within a few weeks to a month.

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The Biology of Love - your cells hold the keys…

By Renchia Droganis, CEO and Founder, Africology “When you fall in love, you tend to suddenly notice the intricate details of plants; and hear hidden notes in old, forgotten pieces of music.

You become more patient, less likely to be derailed by little niggles, and for the first time in years, you learn to treat yourself kindly - introducing a new level of grace in all of your inner dialogues.”

- Renchia Droganis, CEO and Founder, Africology As we go through life, we experience the range of human emotions to a greater or lesser extent at various times, but when it comes to love, it seems like the one constant that stays at our sides like a loyal companion. From being head over heels with infatuation, to feeling a deep-seated and allencompassing affection for another, we essentially perceive the world around us through our experiences in love.

In fact - it's such a strong and important emotion that it goes beyond our feelings and sensory perceptions, and molecular biologists have been discovering exciting links between stem cells and profound feelings of love.

In The Honeymoon Effect, Dr. Bruce Lipton's vivid and inspiring book on maintaining the bliss, passion, energy, and health of great love, he argues that by harnessing all the cells in our bodies for good, we can create 'honeymoon relationships' for couples, and a super-organism - humanity - to heal our planet.

All of your cells work in tandem to accomplish various vital tasks such as breathing and making your heart pump, and being in love reverberates on a cellular level too. There are receptor proteins on the surface of cells, which transform all kinds of signals they receive from the world outside into vibrations and energies to send to the brain. The bigger the emotion, the bigger the reaction, of

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course, and when it comes to love, it not only alters our perceptions of the world profoundly - but it's literally visible in every cell of our body.

The intricate dance of the heart, body and mind We all know that love makes you happier, but it also improves your health - and as Dr. Lipton points out, researchers like the ones at HeartMath have shown that its impact on the body is real, and measurable. When the experts zoomed in on the effects of being truly connected to your heart activating feelings such as love and gratitude - they found that something shifts, and a more coherent heartbeat kicks in.

This in turn makes our brains sharper, and reduces stress hormones (the so-called flight-orflight/sympathetic nervous system), while boosting the parasympathetic nervous system and producing the anti-ageing hormone DHEA. Factors like stress, nutrition and toxins can affect the regulation of gene expression to a large extent (epigenetics). However, Dr. Lipton says new research shows that environmental factors are more likely to cause illness than genes - and that our perception of our environment affects our health 90% of the time. In the same vein, he attests that the protein structures in our cells respond more to non-physical cues than chemical ones, which means our perceptions have far more of an impact on our health and wellbeing than modern medicine!

It's all about belief - if you keep telling yourself you are or will get ill, this message will be sent to your brain, and your mind will eventually work with your cells to make it come true. The first step is to shift your beliefs, and choose a mindset that invites real love, health and longevity.

Being aware of the inner workings of love on a cellular level can be incredibly empowering, says

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Dr. Lipton, and by changing our outlook on life and rewiring love into our cellular memory, we can elevate the quality of our lives and our collective awareness as we create a better future for ourselves, and for everyone else in the world.

Stronger together Taking this mindset one step further, Dr. Lipton is a big proponent of the profound power of collective consciousness. One mind is not nearly as aware as a group that's united, and just like 50 trillion cells in the body can work together for it to function optimally as a whole, so can 7 billion humans to ensure the future success of our planet. When a cell's evolution is successful, it can join other cells and they can collectively expand their capability and consciousness.

“Science suggests that the next stage of human evolution will be marked by an awareness that we are all interdependent cells within the super-organism called humanity.” - Dr. Bruce Lipton Animals and plants have known innately how to do this for billions of years and when we reconnect with our true ability to love, and unleash its effects in our bodies, it can tap into the power of Biomimicry - using the wisdom of nature to solve the problems that are facing mankind.

Here's to the month of love, here's to you, and here's to a growing collective consciousness of love that is bound to heal us individually - and the world as a whole.

To loosely quote the beautiful intentions of Dr. Lipton: may the proteins in your cells dance, swoon and sway with love! When Africology touches your skin, it touches your soul.

spa therapies

Top Anti-aging Skincare Trends To Watch In 2022

After two years of introspection and priority shifting, emerging trends are being noticeably impacted by a more informed consumer who wants to see real results. The skincare industry is no different. Trends in 2022 indicate that skincare is about more than immediate results no matter the cost. People are now looking to fringe products that aren’t caught up in the cycle of profit over performance, with brand vision a major consideration. Here’s a look at the top five trends dominating the skincare industry right now.

1. Proven Ingredients Big promises and synthetic chemicals won’t make the cut in 2022 as consumers become more label-savvy and question what they’re putting on their skin. Brands that are proving themselves with sound research, drawing on biotechnology and scientific formulations are more likely to win over customers this year. Ingredients to look out for include live probiotics that seed the skin and contribute to a healthy microbiome; prebiotic nutrients that feed the skin and restore balance; natural alternatives with proven efficacy and reduced side effect profiles, such as Bakuchiol, as well as oils that mimic those naturally produced by the skin.

2. Sustainability The global climate crisis is officially everyone’s problem and consumers are now shopping

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responsibly in order to play their part. Where ticking a few boxes might have sufficed in the past, it’s vital that brands are adopting a zero-tolerance approach to unsustainable practices in the creation of skincare products. Ethical practices and certifications to look out for include organic, vegan, plastic-neutral, carbon-neutral, sustainably sourced and no harm to animals or humans.

3. Skinimalism The reality of industrial beauty is that profits have dictated the market, resulting in an over-use of synthetic chemical-laden products. The more these products are used, the more the skin is damaged which means more product is needed.

This is harmful for the skin and environment as many of the products go unused and end up as harmful waste. Skinimalism aims to halt this trajectory by cutting down on the amount of products bought and only using proven products where needed. Influential brands are cutting out foaming cleansers, reducing the steps in skincare routines and providing products that actually work.

4. Long-term results Where fast-acting, much more aggressive skincare practices were once the norm, the result has simply been oversensitive skin and a rise in skin conditions such as eczema and acne. Rather than taking aggressive action with dubious long-term effects skincare brands are now creating

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By Esse Skincare

products with organic ingredients that minimise disruption to the skin’s microbiome – our natural community of good bacteria. This means the return to a healthier skin might take a bit of time, but once this is achieved, it will remain.

5. Rewilding This might be a term often associated with returning natural ecosystems like forests to a healthy state, but this is also an overriding trend in skincare – restoring the diverse, flourishing ecology of skin’s microbiome. Where synthetic chemicals stripped the skin of its natural oils and attempted to replace them with synthetic materials, rewilding encourages a return to a balanced microbiome.

“This looks to be a really exciting year in terms of skincare and what consumers are wanting from brands,” explained Trevor Steyn, founder of bioclinical skincare brand Esse. “For years, we’ve been tackling the notion that dirt is inherently harmful and soap is a necessary part of skincare, and we’re finally seeing some traction in the conversations overturning this notion. It’s really about creating an environment that allows the skin’s natural microbial diversity to return and thrive.”

To find out more about the Esse range, please click through to www.esseskincare.com

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5 Major Skincare Benefits of Roses

By Maggie Connelly Wake up and smell the roses! Literally. We're saying to opt for roses on your face instead of roses in your vase because they can bring numerous benefits to the skin. More specifically, rose water, a combination of filtered water and rose oil found in the petals, rose hip oil and rose essential oil can provide soothing and anti-inflammatory benefits to the skin. Whether in the form of a cleanser, toner, moisturizer or serum, this ingredient can be equally beneficial to all skin types.

Benefit 1: Antioxidant Powerhouse This is one of the major benefits that roses and rose water can bring to the skin. We all know that antioxidants are good for the skin, and the ones found in roses are no exception. These particular antioxidants help to strengthen skin cells, which in turn, can help regenerate skin tissues. On top of this, the antioxidants in roses work to neutralize free radicals, which can provide anti-aging benefits.

Benefit 2: Healing Hydrator While roses are great for all skin types, it is especially great for dry skin due to its extremely moisturizing properties that can help to soothe itchiness. Roses used in the form of an essential oil can also be a great way to moisturize the skin, while protecting it from moisture loss and keeping the moisture barrier strong. Even for those who do not suffer from dry skin, the hydration that roses provide can be extremely beneficial, as it helps to balance the hydration in the skin.

Benefit 3: Wrinkle Eraser Besides being filled with antioxidants, rose water and rose oils are also packed with vitamin A and C, which can help with aging skins.

Apart from smoothing the appearance of wrinkles, these vitamins help to reduce the look of age spots on the skin and aid with collagen production. While rose essential oil and rose water are both derived from rose petals, rose hip seed oil is actually from the small fruits that appear on the rose plants, which are a natural source of retinol.

Benefit 4: Redness Soother As previously mentioned, this romantic ingredient has tons of antiinflammatory benefits, which can help reduce the appearance of redness on the skin. Part of its moisturizing properties also aid in soothing redness and irritation in the skin, as well. Back to rose hip oil, apart from being great for anti-aging, the combination of antioxidants and fatty acids in rose hip oil make it beneficial for soothing skin inflammation, including eczema.

Benefit 5: Oil Reducer When it comes to moisturizing the skin, rose water helps to balance out moisture, meaning it can help to control excess oil production. With this ingredient being so deeply hydrating, it increases water content in the skin as opposed to the level of oils; there are also astringent properties in roses that help to lift oil from the skin to help it maintain its natural pH balance.

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Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

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7 Ways to Increase Skincare Penetration

By Clinical Aesthetic Distributors Have you ever wondered how much of your serums and moisturizers are actually getting into your skin to effect visible change? You probably already suspect that 100% of the product doesn’t get absorbed, but it’s important that your skin is soaking up and processing as much of the key ingredients as it can.

So how do you increase skin absorption?

Spending money on skincare products that don’t properly penetrate into your skin seems counterintuitive.

After all, you want to see a benefit from your use of these products. Not to mention, you don’t want your money to go to waste. However, you can increase skin absorption of all the serums, moisturizers, and other products that you use. It’s a matter of prepping you skin properly to make sure it’s able to receive the most from all those products.

By increasing skincare penetration, you will get more out of every product, and whatever skin issues you are dealing with will get treated more efficiently. You might even discover that the entire reason your skincare products weren’t working the way you expected was because of penetration issues.

Here are the top methods to ensure you are getting the most of your skin care.

1. Exfoliate Consistently Sloughing off the dead skin cells that accumulate on your skin’s uppermost layer is essential for peak skincare absorption. Think of dead skin as a physical barrier to your fresh, healthy skin. Dead skin cells can also clog pores. Even if your pores aren’t clogged and acne isn’t an issue, dead skin cells can still prevent proper skincare penetration. When you remove the dead skin cell blockade, you allow your serums and moisturizers to reach the healthy skin underneath and penetrate much deeper.

2. Apply Serums When Your Skin Is Still Damp Ever notice how smooth and soft your body feels when you moisturize right after you step out of the shower, and how much rougher it feels if you apply lotion when you’re completely dry? Your face is the same. The skin is a lot more absorbent when it’s damp

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(which is why Korean women slather on their skincare products within seconds after cleansing and rinsing).

You can also opt to spritz your skin with a facial mist, if you don’t quite feel like wetting it with water before every skincare product application. Make sure skin is simply damp and not wet, however. If it’s too wet, gently pat dry with a clean towel. Do not rub.

3. Layer Properly Active ingredients like retinol or vitamin E are permeable and boast small molecular weights, so they are accepted by skin cells and eventually go into circulation. Ingredients with larger molecular weights, more often present in creams, won’t pass through as easily and will hang out around skin cells.

If you apply larger molecules before the smaller molecules, the former will essentially block the latter from entering. This is why it’s so important to apply your skincare products in the correct order. If you can’t remember the exact order and are pressed for time, just remember to start with the thinnest products and move on to the thickest ones. For example, start with a serum or essence first before applying a moisturizer, eye cream, or night cream.

4. Steam your Face Your skin will drink up more of your skincare products if it’s in high humidity and increased temperature. This is why aestheticians often veil your face with steam or a hot towel before a facial! If you’re at home, you can purchase an at-home steamer. Steaming a couple of times each week will make a difference. You can also make this a satisfying skincare ritual and do it daily. After removing your makeup, steam your face for only a couple of minutes, then gently exfoliate and move on to layering on your skincare products from thinnest to thickest.

5. Look for Skin Care With a Delivery System Your skin needs all the help it can get to make use of the key ingredients you put on it. Up to 100 layers of active ingredients such as stem cells and peptides are encapsulated in spheres. These spheres time-release layer after layer, which means our products offer exceptional results.

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6. Consider a Dermaroller A dermaroller is a long handheld tool with a cylindrical attachment containing tiny needles all around its surface. Also called microneedling, dermarolling involves sweeping the spiky roller over your skin to create microchannels—essentially, small injuries—on the skin’s surface, prompting the skin to produce more collagen. Studies have shown dermarollers can also improve absorption of skincare products. Many people receive this treatment either professionally (which is a lot more intense) or by using an at-home device.

7. Increase the Volume If you save your skincare products for only the areas on your face where you see visible issues, you might want to rethink that. It may sound obvious, but applying an anti-aging serum all over your face instead of, say, your forehead will increase absorption by the skin, which means it will uptake more active ingredients for its benefit. Consider no longer relying on spot treatments, and instead really focusing on your skin as a whole.

Conclusion If these seven steps feel overwhelming, remember that you do not have to do all of them. You can decide which one is most feasible for you. Exfoliating is definitely a key step so consider adding it to your routine. Steaming can also feel good both physically and mentally. Layering is a smart tactic that should be used by all skincare enthusiasts. The bottom line is that you should look at skincare as a habit and ritual. Make it an important part of your day that you look forward to. With that in mind, you’ll be more likely to actually do every step of your routine instead of simply wiping off your makeup and slapping on some moisturizer. Your skin is your largest organ. Your face is what you show to the world. It’s worth it to take care of it.

To find out more about Clinical Aesthetic Distributors visit: www.clinicalaestheticdist.co.za

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Controlling Aging Skin

By Dr. Diana Howard - International Dermal Institute Scientists have performed extensive research to track the changes that occur during skin aging and understand what we can realistically do for this preexisting condition. In the past, scientists have focused on treating just the manifestations of skin aging (wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, loss of elasticity, etc.).

But we now know that biochemical reactions, including the generation of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs) and Advanced Glycation End-products (AGEs) are responsible for the aging skin condition. With this newfound knowledge, we can now focus our efforts on how to impact these biochemical reactions that manifest age-related changes to stop them before they start.

Antioxidants to Fight Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) Damage Normally, the body can handle free radicals with the use of antioxidants. Antioxidants include vitamins (such as Ascorbic Acid [Vitamin C] and Tocopherol [Vitamin E]), enzymes (such as Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase and Peroxidase) and even proteins that can be found naturally in the body or ingested as part of our diet. If, however, antioxidants are in short supply, or if the free radical damage is excessive, damage to the cells and tissue will occur.

While ingesting antioxidants can effectively scavenge Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), skin is often the last to get its ration of antioxidants. That is when topically-applied cosmetic products come into play.

Scientists have been studying an entire arsenal of plant antioxidants that, when applied topically, can help us fight free radicals and protect our skin.

Studies have shown that topical application of antioxidants diminishes the severity of UVA-induced

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dermatoses and raises the amount of UVA radiation required to evoke immediate pigment darkening to the skin. Recent studies from the University of Illinois have demonstrated how Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) and Tocopherol (Vitamin E) are critical for use with sunscreens to protect skin from ROS. Because oxidative stress plays a key role in the biological events leading to skin aging, the use of topicallyapplied antioxidants helps prevent future damage by trapping ROS and quenching them before they damage our cells.

Inhibiting MMPs Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a key factor in stimulating MMP activity. While natural MMP inhibitors exist in the skin, they decline with age.

Topical agents such as retinoids may inhibit MMPs, deeming retinoids, including Retinol (Vitamin A) and its derivatives, excellent choices for reversing the signs of photoaging and preventing the formation of MMPs. Bioflavonoids, including t he proanthocyanidins from Grape Seed Extract, the polyphenols from Green and White Teas and Soy phytoestrogens, are also excellent for controlling MMP activity. When MMP activity is turned on, collagen synthesis shuts down. So for best results, one should use a product that controls MMPs while stimulating collagen, elastin, and Hyaluronic Acid biosynthesis; this includes specific synthetic peptides, Retinol (Vitamin A) and its derivatives, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) and its derivatives, Soy and Yeast extracts.

Create “Sugar Traps” to Control the Formation of AGEs The formation of AGEs in the body occurs spontaneously when sugar molecules come in contact

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with proteins. This glycation reaction occurs without any intervention of enzymes. By the same token, our body does not possess enzymes that can reverse the reaction.

Controlling the formation of AGEs is a relatively new field of research; apparently the best means of controlling AGEs is to interfere with their formation.

There are some ingredients that have been shown to inhibit glycation from occurring, but exactly how all of these agents work is not understood just yet.

These ingredients include Glucosamine, Soy proteins, the Soy active known as Genestein and specific peptide molecules. Studies have shown that a peptide molecule known as Arginine/Lysine polypeptide can bind to sugar, preventing it from reacting with proteins and triggering the cross-linking of collagen.

This peptide molecule acts as a sugar trap, binding to the sugar in the body, making it unable to react with proteins.

Controlling Biochemical Reactions Controlling biochemical reactions before they occur is the most effective way to inhibit the negative results from these reactions that are associated with signs of aging. Unfortunately, that’s not always so easy.

Since the skin is in a constant state of aging, it is likely that many of these biochemical reactions have already occurred. Understanding the way certain ingredients interact with biochemical reactions is, however, the first step in controlling future reactions and creating a treatment that is most beneficial for the client.

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Boost Your Anti-inflammatory Powers

By Dr. Frank Lipman Inflammation – it’s the starting point for so many lifealtering conditions and diseases. It’s also avoidable, yet every day millions of people prime themselves for health disasters – like cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and many autoimmune diseases – by making choices that unwittingly promote chronic inflammation.

gluten (includes wheat, spelt, kamut, oats, rye, barley, and malt), dairy, soy, corn, eggs and nightshade vegetables (white potatoes. tomatoes. eggplant. and peppers). Afterwards, reintroduce foods slowly so you learn which ones may be triggers for you, and at the same time, incorporate as many of the following 13 tips as you can to keep inflammation from returning.

Chronic inflammation is the result of an immune system imbalance. If we can redress that, we can cut the risk for the aforementioned long-term health problems and help ease many of the low-grade ills – like skin disorders, joint pains, digestive problems, migraines, anxiety and mood swings – that many people experience as a result of inflammation.

Fill Up On Fresh, Real Food: Eating fresh, local or organic produce is one of the easiest, healthiest things you can do to curb chronic inflammation. The more variety the better, to better feed the good bacteria that keep the gut lining strong, preventing leaks and inflammation. Although nightshade vegetables and pasture raised eggs may not be pro-inflammatory for everyone, avoid them for an initial 2-3 weeks as part of an elimination diet.

One of the most common ways is via what we in the wellness community call ‘leaky gut syndrome,” triggered by alcohol, food sensitivities, certain medications, low grade gut infections and even chronic stress. These cause damage to the lining of the gut or the tight links between the cell wall, letting proteins and bits of bacteria into the bloodstream, setting off an inflammatory response.

As grim as inflammation may be, there is some good news – which is that you have the power to stop it, and in so doing, protect yourself from a litany of health problems. Here’s my preventive prescription – 17 simple fixes to help you tame inflammation: Eliminate Sugar: Sugar is public health enemy number one, the worst toxin we expose ourselves to daily on the standard western diet. Ingesting it consistently sets you up for inflammation and lays the groundwork for every flavour of modern distress from cancer, diabetes and heart disease, dementia and depression, to infertility and acne and more.

Ditch Processed Foods: If it comes in a box or a bag, or has more than 2 or 3 ingredients in the label, it’s a processed, made-in-the-lab ‘Franken-food’ which will deliver little if any nutritional benefit and will most likely be loaded with gluten, sugar, trans fats and other irritants that can trigger an immune response – and chronic inflammation.

Try An Elimination Diet: A great way to quickly put the breaks on inflammation is by eliminating as many foods and liquids that could be toxins, irritants or allergens. For a period of 14 days or more, eliminate not only sugar and processed foods, but also alcohol,

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Cool Down The Inflammation: In addition to fresh produce, eat other foods that help cool inflammation instead of processed foods, which have the opposite effect. Among my favorites: wild salmon, sardines, herring, anchovies and extra virgin olive oil.

Go Heavy On Spices: Not only do spices add more flavour to your food, they also deliver an antiinflammatory boost as well, so apply liberally and enjoy. Topping the spicy list of inflammation coolers: turmeric, ginger, rosemary and basil.

Nourish Your Gut With Bone Broth: Bone broth is full of gelatin and collagen, which soothes the intestinal tract and helps heal leaky gut. The gelatin and collagen also support your joints and bones, and reduce inflammation throughout your body.

Minimize Chemical Exposure: Buy organic produce when possible, filter your water, switch from plastic to glass for food storage and reheating, use gentler organic or homemade natural cleaning products, and reduce the use of personal care products or use ones with clean ingredients.

Break Up With Advil, Motrin and Alcohol: If you’re one of those people popping a few ibuprofen every day to manage aches and pains, or knocking back a few glasses of wine a night, you’re also throwing off the delicate bacterial balance in your gut, undermining the integrity of your gut wall, and setting yourself up for chronic inflammation.

Say No To Unnecessary Antibiotics: Antibiotics kill bacteria, both good and bad, and like OCT

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meds, wind up disrupting your bacterial balance – and from there it’s a hop-skip to leaky gut and chronic inflammation.

Clean Up Your Mouth: We all know that regular brushing and flossing is great for the health of your mouth, but actually, the benefits go far beyond the obvious. Good dental hygiene keeps the mouth’s bad bacteria from sneaking into the bloodstream and triggering inflammation.

Drop Excess Pounds: Fat cells fuel inflammation.

Turns out, they secrete a type of hormone which contributes to inflammation, so keeping weight in check is simple way to keep it at bay.

Exercise More, But Don’t Overdo It: Regular exercise is great but pushing yourself to the limit with long, hard gym sessions is not. In fact, overtraining actually promotes chronic inflammation. To find the right balance, particularly as you get older, work with a qualified personal trainer, and trade those long marathons for shorter interval training sessions.

Soothe The Mind And Body: Even a few minutes of meditation first thing in the morning or before bed can help quiet your gut, which means less inflammation.

Relentless stress weakens your immune system and promotes inflammation – so fight back by giving mind and body regular meditation breaks.

Sleep Off The Inflammation: When you cut corners to the point where you’re sleeping less than six hours a night, you’re putting your body in the inflammation danger zone. Give your body 7 – 8 hours a night to give it the time it needs to restore, refresh and repair.

Coming up short night after night promotes oxidative stress which leads to chronic inflammation.

Clean Out The Gut: An altered microbiome causes a leaky gut. Apart from dietary recommendations listed here, I usually use antimicrobial herbs, like berberine, olive leaf extract, grapefruit seed extract and oregano oil, which kill the “bad” guys and probiotics, to correct the imbalance.

Boost Your Anti-inflammatory Powers With Supplements: Another way to support your body’s anti-inflammatory powers is with the addition of supplements. My favorite inflammation fighters include vitamin D3, Omega 3 fish oils, and the powerful antioxidant and antiinflammatory, curcumin.

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Is Customisable Skincare The Future Of The Beauty Industry?

How often have you recommended a skincare product to a friend with the same skin type as yours, but not had her come back to you with the glowing reviews you expected? In fact, it is pretty likely that two people with similar skin types will have different experiences with the same product. This is because understanding your skin type is only the first step to finding the skincare routine and products that are ideal for you.

There is a whole gamut of primary and secondary skin concerns to consider, coupled with your diet, fitness routine and even your sleep routine. While most beauty brands create products keeping generic skin types and concerns in mind, there’s a growing segment of those who can customise your skincare routine for you. Enter: bespoke beauty. In a world where everything from bags and shoes to bath towels can be personalised, why should your beauty routine be left behind?

When Customised, Less Really Is More If you have problematic skin but aren’t a fan of an elaborate skincare routine, the healthy skin dream can seem like, well, a dream. This is where personalised skincare comes in. As an example, Clinique launched their service Clinique ID last year, which allows you to customise your own serum and moisturiser duo.

The service has 15 different combinations that help to treat your skin’s primary concern—whether it’s dullness, unevenness, irritation or fine lines—while also providing it with moisture in your preferred texture.

Neutrogena’s MaskID brings 3D printing to beauty by providing customised care to every part of your face, all in a single sheet mask. The printing technology allows every inch of the mask to be infused with a different blend, so it’s truly tailored to all your skin concerns — macro and micro.

When investing in personalised skincare, the odds are in your favour Nothing says disappointment like a brand new skincare purchase that does nothing—or does all the wrong

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things—to your skin. While experimentation is fun, especially for beauty aficionados, it comes with a price. This makes even more room for products that are tailored to your needs and lifestyle—they come with a higher guarantee of delivering on their promises.

Made-to-order Skincare Is Also Kinder To The Environment It’s no secret that the beauty industry is one of the frontrunners when it comes to the negative impact on the environment. Among the many ways that the industry is a part of this, mass production of goods is the most prominent. Big beauty companies, especially those catering to everyday consumables, are rapidly creating products, and therefore plastic waste, every day. To put this into perspective, a study

by UK-based Zero Waste Week showed that 120 billion units of packaging are produced every year by the global cosmetics industry, and most of it is not recyclable.

To counter this, Singapore-based Alcheme Skincare is taking the bespoke nature of the brand one step further by following a minimum-waste policy and relying on recyclable packaging. Since each product is made to order, it reduces wastage considerably, which is a major selling point for the brand.

The Boom Of Artificial Intelligence And The Bespoke Beauty World Artificial intelligence (AI) is on its way to become a part of your everyday life—it is the technology behind your predictive texts on email, mobile banking and music recommendations across all your favourite apps.

US-based brand Proven Skincare makes use of an AI algorithm in the beauty space to determine the best possible skincare formulas for you, keeping factors like your lifestyle, diet, skin type and even the air pollution around you in mind. In fact, according to them, all you need to get the best skin of your life is

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a cleanser, a day moisturiser with SPF and a night cream. And they make use of more than 20 million dermatological data points and 4,000 scientific studies to give you the most effective skincare trio possible.

The Bespoke Beauty Names You Should Know For serious beauty enthusiasts, currently, there is a small range of bespoke beauty labels creating everything from a single product to a whole routine that is customised for you. Dr Barbara Sturm’s cult favourite MC1 cream, which is loved by the likes of Kate Moss, infuses your own blood into the cream to promote skin regeneration. Brands like Skin Inc, Cultivate Apothecary, SkinCeuticals and Kiehl’s allow you to create your daily serum blends, and some even mix them right in front of you. Blend & Boost, another bespoke skincare label, combine its traditional apothecary roots with a unique skin coding system to create natural, customised formulas. Hop & Cotton, an Australian personalised skincare label, ditches the algorithms and has a two-way communication process.

After you fill out your skin analysis and pick the products you’d like (cleanser, moisturiser, etc), they personally choose the ingredients that they believe would be ideal and run them by you before formulation. California-based Curology is out to make acne a thing of the past with a completely customised monthly routine.

Customers have always had to deal with products for which only addresses one or two of their concerns.

This has lead to a culture of multi-step beauty routines with products that target each area one at a time, which can be inefficient, expensive and wasteful.

While cult-favourite, single ingredient products will always have a place in our routines, a new tailormade all-in-one product might just be the way forward.

The NEW Dermatological Patent & Anti-Aging Hydration Benchmark

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Mirobiome care vs Skin care…………

By DrK Dermal Health Science

DrK Dermal Health Care is a boutique style Microbiome care, Skin care brand, which applies a minimalistic product prescription approach toward optimum skin health by following a formulary of less molecules, less microbiome interference, less inflammation. The DrK cellREVERSE range is a range that pioneers the science behind optimum skin health by utilising the Skin-BrainGut Axis to improve external physical perception of the skin.

What sets this DrK Dermal Health Care brand apart is that after many years of research we perfected the science behind offering the skin organ the correct building blocks it needs to take up natural skin functions within the skin that were deactivate by an urbanised lifestyle. When these building blocks are utilised optimally the organ will start to naturally repair, protect, and heal itself, as it was initially created to do.

All the products in the DR K Dermal Health Care cellREVERSE range are intended to reinforce the skin's microbial and physical barrier function, helping achieve a reinforced skin, especially for people living in urban environments and harsh climates.

Master Opinion Leader, Founder and Formulator Dr. Juanita Kilian, qualified as a pharmacist at the University of North West, South Africa, in which thereafter she earned her Master's degree in Dermaceutical product development and her Doctorate in Transdermal Delivery Technology at the University of London, School of Pharmacy. Dr.Juanita Kilian has engaged in the study of transdermal delivery systems and has made unique formulation discoveries, which has a profound influence on the development of the Dr K Dermal Health Care product range. She is also a researcher and author of some of the most acknowledged and influential educational material used and applied in more than 25 countries. Throughout her career, Dr. Juanita Kilian has worked extensively in South Africa, Africa, United Kingdom, Scandinavia, UAE, Russia, and various parts of Europe in which during this time she has been actively researching and re-educating herself with the latest skin technology and dermaceutical chemistry information available, leaving her with a passionate interest in the development of effective therapeutic skincare applications. Today, based in Pretoria, South Africa, she is the director of CosmoPharm Product Design (Pty)Ltd a leading dermaceutical consulting company and the founder and developer of the Dr K Dermal Health Care brand with the extensive focus on skin health and healing.

Science….be mindful of its being applied.

The Dr K Dermal Health Care is a dermatological pre and pro biotic skin renewal system that was scientifically designed to down regulate inflammatory disorders in the skin and improve skin health on all aspects from the basal layers to the skin microbiota.

Science and the Anatomy of the skin as a vital organ is our passion and therefore this brand successfully treats skin disorders like ageing, hyperpigmentation, acne, eczema, and chronic redness. With research,

the focus always remains on the development of innovative pre and probiotic skin renewal systems. This range of dermaceutical applications focusses on activation of natural physiological skin functionals, rather than supplementation of high concentrations of heavy loaded active molecules. DrK cellREVERSE is unique as all formulations contains a patented Nucleotide Complex for optimum cellular health…

Putting you completely in the picture about the science behind nucleotides Nucleotides are often referred to as “the building blocks of life” because they are the most basic structural components of our DNA. Our body gets nucleotides from: • Recycled nucleotides from worn out or dying cells - salvage pathway.

• Newly produced nucleotides within the cell synthesised from amino acids or glucose.

• The food we eat - our diet.

• A nutritional supplement.

All these sources have limitations: • The recycling of nucleotides from dying cells is only 60% effective and time and energy consuming.

• Additionally, some of the most important systems cannot produce their own nucleotides such as some brain cells, cells coming from the bone marrow like immune cells and red blood cells and some cells of the skin and gut flora. Other cells, like cells of the intestinal wall (villi), can produce nucleotides but not enough to cover their entire need.

• The availability of nucleotides from food is low.

Additionally, nucleotides are found in higher concentrations only in meat and mostly in organ meat (such as liver, kidney, etc.) that we no longer consume.

Fruits and vegetables are very low in nucleotides. This results in the need to supplement nucleotides.

• Our intake of naturally occurring nucleotides is generally low. The typical modern, fast paced lives we live, constant high levels of stress and restricted dietary intake have resulted in nucleotide supplementation becoming a lifestyle induced essentiality.

Nucleotide Restrictions in our Modern Day Dietary simplification is a term used to describe the reduction in nucleotide content of the modern diet. It is also important to remember that a varied diet will ensure that the full spectrum of all 5 nucleotides is ingested. So even though we think our diet is varied we may not have the full spectrum of nucleotides available to supply our bodies' needs We are overfed but under nourished! Why are nucleotides so important?

Nucleotides are not only the “building blocks of life”, but they are also involved in almost all the activities of each cell. Nucleotides are essential for cell regeneration, transfer of energy, production of protein and the mediation of hormone signals.

Most cells in the body can utilise nucleotides from the

synthesis and salvage pathway but other cells need a continuous supply of nucleotides from the diet. There are cells that rely on the dietary sources of nucleotides, and they are: •Cells forming the lining of the digestive tract (intestinal mucosa cells). The good bacteria in the intestinal tract - Bifidobacteria.

• White blood cells of the immune system and red blood cells (specifically erythrocytes).

•Dermal/Epidermal cells These 5 cell types have a rapid turnover in the body as they are the most important cells that ensure our health and the optimal biological processes of our digestive and immune systems. Our bodies can cope with changes and challenges (like disease and stress) and react optimally only when nucleotides are easily available and in sufficient quantities. Only a continuous balanced supply of nucleotides can ensure that these tissues and cells can function optimally. This can be guaranteed by an adequate supplementation of the correct portion of nucleotides.

Nucleotides and its relevance in DrK ceLLREVERSE: Cell Regeneration Our bodies are in a continued state of flux in which tissues have a varied cell turnover rate. As cells age, they become damaged through everyday wear and tear and therefore need to be renewed. The cells that are used more frequently have a higher replacement rate i.e. the cells that form the intestinal villi are replaced every 3-5 days, cells that line the stomach last only 5 days, skin cells regenerates approximately every 27 days and red blood cells last only 120 days.

Cell regeneration requires an exact copy of the genetic information stored in the DNA needs to be made. It is essential to our well-being that this replication is done without errors as these may result in a loss of immunity, disease, or even genetic mutations. To ensure accurate replication each cell must have access to a pool of freely available, relevant nucleotide bases to build the copy from and supply of RNA and various enzymes to stimulate and provide the energy (ATP/GTP) for these reactions.

The double helix unzips at critical points to allow uncoiling and exposing of the DNA sequence that needs to be duplicated. The two complimentary halves are exposed so that the freely available nucleotides can be matched up in their relevant pairs. Because these nucleotides can only line up in complimentary fashion it ensures that the two emerging strands of DNA are identical to the original template. Only now can the process of cell division begin to take place. It should be clear that without a balanced pool of nucleotides available and ready-for-use, cellular replication could be delayed or put on hold indefinitely until the required nucleotide is produced or made available for use in a specific position.

DrK cellREVERSE applications all contains a unique Nucleotide Complex that makes a pool of Nucleotides in the correct ratio available for dermal and epidermal cells to speed up the cell replication process but also ensuring that good quality new cells are formed.

spa therapies

The relationship between science and beauty is an ever-evolving one. When it comes to skincare, the one-size-fits-all adage—suggesting that products can simply be skin tone - or skin type-specific —doesn’t hold much weight anymore, and newer innovations are only too happy to bridge the gap between what’s available in the market and what your skin specifically needs. With an increased focus on what works for individual skin types, hyper-personalised beauty is gaining favour all over the world. The quest for identifying what works best for you goes beyond just skin deep—right down to the genetic level—helping you analyse and predict how to reverse certain skin conditions.

What Is DNA-based Skincare, And Why Is It Better?

As the world makes a collective shift towards bespoke beauty, customising products for one’s specific DNA serves as the next logical step, believes celebrity skin expert Dr Harshna Bijlani. She says, “We all know that DNA makes up our appearance— the colour of our hair, eyes and skin tone are all determined by our DNA. But many aren’t aware that the ageing process is also controlled by our DNA. Human DNA comes in 23 pairs of packages called chromosomes. These chromosomes are large bundles of tightly-packed DNA. The genes that you have in your body right now make up your genotype, which determines your physical appearance. Your genes greatly impact your skin health with regards to how soon you start ageing, your propensity towards discolouration or pigmentation, the tendency to have freckles, hair colour, sagging skin and so on. So, for example, if your skin cells are not so great at deflecting UV rays, a DNA test can suggest you add a higher SPF to your routine.

How Can DNA-based Skincare Help You Personalise Your Skincare Routine?

DNA Testing To Customise Your Skincare Products By Hasina Khatib - VOGUE 24

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

The primary takeaway from this new branch of skincare is that studying DNA can help determine the concerns that your skin could be prone to, including pigmentation and inflammation. By identifying these underlying concerns, you would theoretically be able to take preventive action accordingly. The skincare products found over the counter are great at controlling skincare concerns once you notice them, like lack of moisture, signs of ageing, sun protection, pigmentation and acne.

“However, if certain skin issues aren’t getting better despite efforts, then DNA testing could help understand what the underlying issues could be,” Bijlani explains.

What Is The Process of DNA Testing and Mapping For Beauty Products?

Those with a phobia of needles needn’t worry, since the process of DNA testing is largely non-invasive

in nature. A simple swab test is usually conducted at the clinic or through an at-home DNA testing kit.

The swab is then sent to a laboratory, where the genetic components are broken down and studied to understand your dominant genes, your skin’s current collagen and antioxidant levels, and sun and inflammation protection factors. Once these factors are determined, experts can help you pick the right skincare products for your skin’s needs, and also recommend preventative products.

If you would like to try DNA mapping for a highly personalised skincare routine, Bijlani recommends that London-based skincare label, Geneu, would a good place to start. Those who don’t have the patience to wait for test results to come back will rejoice in the same-day DNA testing available as part of the personalised serum range at Selfridges as well. In addition, the skin expert also recommends Sweden-based skincare brand, ALLÉL, which offers DNA-tailored skincare and supplements at a string of certified clinics spread across Europe and South Africa.

For further convenience, Skintelli helps you perfect your skincare routine by analysing genetic factors through an at-home DNA testing kit. The process of DNA collection is carried out through painless collection adhesives, after which the skin samples are to be mailed back for testing. Once they determine the current quality of your skin, you will receive personalised matching with existing skincare products across three pricing tiers, ranging from luxury names to retail stores.

In India, FutureMed, a DNA testing company, includes skin health as a part of their overall testing.

In an interview, Chandni Luthra, director at FutureMed India, confirmed that skin ageing can be predicted and further investigated through testing.

“Everything from wrinkles, cellulite to inflammation and skin sagging is related to your genetic makeup.

This is because the skin is made up of so many proteins. For example, collagen, which forms the basic structure in the skin, is a protein, so is melanin, the pigment, which gives skin its colour. This explains why some people start seeing wrinkles, fine lines, acne and skin discolouration in their early 20s, while others only see skin trouble later on in their lives,” she explains.

So, should you hop onboard this science-driven skincare innovation? The numbers suggest that you will anyway, sooner rather than later. The market size of DNA-based skincare products across the globe is expected to touch $1.7 billion by 2025.

Bespoke creams for skincare concerns, such as sun protection, scars and wrinkles, find the highest number of takers at 52.8 per cent of the market share. Facials serums for different age groups serve as the second most sought after products, with an estimated growth rate of eight per cent annually.

What Precautions Should You Keep In Mind When Opting For DNA-based Skincare?

The good news first. A customised skincare regimen that keeps all your needs and factors in mind can help counter external skin aggressors, while also dealing with internal deficiencies like boosting collagen production and reducing damage caused by free radicals. However, it pays to bear in mind that the concept of DNA-based skincare is still in its nascent stages. Some doctors are concerned that consumers might take DNA tests as bible, which can be harmful when issues like rosacea, acne and eczema may need to be diagnosed and treated by a dermatologist first. “There isn’t enough research done to prove the efficacy of DNA skincare testing.

Plus, the current customisation available for different product formulations is quite limited. Most companies can help do a DNA test and recommend products from their catalogue. However, unique formulations based on DNA testing are still not quite available.

It is also worthy to note that it’s quite an expensive process right now, and may not be accessible for everyone,” Bijlani cautions.

spa therapies

The relationship between science and beauty is an ever-evolving one. When it comes to skincare, the one-size-fits-all adage—suggesting that products can simply be skin tone - or skin type-specific —doesn’t hold much weight anymore, and newer innovations are only too happy to bridge the gap between what’s available in the market and what your skin specifically needs. With an increased focus on what works for individual skin types, hyper-personalised beauty is gaining favour all over the world. The quest for identifying what works best for you goes beyond just skin deep—right down to the genetic level—helping you analyse and predict how to reverse certain skin conditions.

What Is DNA-based Skincare, And Why Is It Better?

As the world makes a collective shift towards bespoke beauty, customising products for one’s specific DNA serves as the next logical step, believes celebrity skin expert Dr Harshna Bijlani. She says, “We all know that DNA makes up our appearance— the colour of our hair, eyes and skin tone are all determined by our DNA. But many aren’t aware that the ageing process is also controlled by our DNA. Human DNA comes in 23 pairs of packages called chromosomes. These chromosomes are large bundles of tightly-packed DNA. The genes that you have in your body right now make up your genotype, which determines your physical appearance. Your genes greatly impact your skin health with regards to how soon you start ageing, your propensity towards discolouration or pigmentation, the tendency to have freckles, hair colour, sagging skin and so on. So, for example, if your skin cells are not so great at deflecting UV rays, a DNA test can suggest you add a higher SPF to your routine.

How Can DNA-based Skincare Help You Personalise Your Skincare Routine?

DNA Testing To Customise Your Skincare Products By Hasina Khatib - VOGUE 24

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

The primary takeaway from this new branch of skincare is that studying DNA can help determine the concerns that your skin could be prone to, including pigmentation and inflammation. By identifying these underlying concerns, you would theoretically be able to take preventive action accordingly. The skincare products found over the counter are great at controlling skincare concerns once you notice them, like lack of moisture, signs of ageing, sun protection, pigmentation and acne.

“However, if certain skin issues aren’t getting better despite efforts, then DNA testing could help understand what the underlying issues could be,” Bijlani explains.

What Is The Process of DNA Testing and Mapping For Beauty Products?

Those with a phobia of needles needn’t worry, since the process of DNA testing is largely non-invasive

in nature. A simple swab test is usually conducted at the clinic or through an at-home DNA testing kit.

The swab is then sent to a laboratory, where the genetic components are broken down and studied to understand your dominant genes, your skin’s current collagen and antioxidant levels, and sun and inflammation protection factors. Once these factors are determined, experts can help you pick the right skincare products for your skin’s needs, and also recommend preventative products.

If you would like to try DNA mapping for a highly personalised skincare routine, Bijlani recommends that London-based skincare label, Geneu, would a good place to start. Those who don’t have the patience to wait for test results to come back will rejoice in the same-day DNA testing available as part of the personalised serum range at Selfridges as well. In addition, the skin expert also recommends Sweden-based skincare brand, ALLÉL, which offers DNA-tailored skincare and supplements at a string of certified clinics spread across Europe and South Africa.

For further convenience, Skintelli helps you perfect your skincare routine by analysing genetic factors through an at-home DNA testing kit. The process of DNA collection is carried out through painless collection adhesives, after which the skin samples are to be mailed back for testing. Once they determine the current quality of your skin, you will receive personalised matching with existing skincare products across three pricing tiers, ranging from luxury names to retail stores.

In India, FutureMed, a DNA testing company, includes skin health as a part of their overall testing.

In an interview, Chandni Luthra, director at FutureMed India, confirmed that skin ageing can be predicted and further investigated through testing.

“Everything from wrinkles, cellulite to inflammation and skin sagging is related to your genetic makeup.

This is because the skin is made up of so many proteins. For example, collagen, which forms the basic structure in the skin, is a protein, so is melanin, the pigment, which gives skin its colour. This explains why some people start seeing wrinkles, fine lines, acne and skin discolouration in their early 20s, while others only see skin trouble later on in their lives,” she explains.

So, should you hop onboard this science-driven skincare innovation? The numbers suggest that you will anyway, sooner rather than later. The market size of DNA-based skincare products across the globe is expected to touch $1.7 billion by 2025.

Bespoke creams for skincare concerns, such as sun protection, scars and wrinkles, find the highest number of takers at 52.8 per cent of the market share. Facials serums for different age groups serve as the second most sought after products, with an estimated growth rate of eight per cent annually.

What Precautions Should You Keep In Mind When Opting For DNA-based Skincare?

The good news first. A customised skincare regimen that keeps all your needs and factors in mind can help counter external skin aggressors, while also dealing with internal deficiencies like boosting collagen production and reducing damage caused by free radicals. However, it pays to bear in mind that the concept of DNA-based skincare is still in its nascent stages. Some doctors are concerned that consumers might take DNA tests as bible, which can be harmful when issues like rosacea, acne and eczema may need to be diagnosed and treated by a dermatologist first. “There isn’t enough research done to prove the efficacy of DNA skincare testing.

Plus, the current customisation available for different product formulations is quite limited. Most companies can help do a DNA test and recommend products from their catalogue. However, unique formulations based on DNA testing are still not quite available.

It is also worthy to note that it’s quite an expensive process right now, and may not be accessible for everyone,” Bijlani cautions.

spa therapies

Awakening Aging Skin

By Dr. Annet King - International Dermal Institute At The International Dermal Institute, we know that aging skin is largely a matter of skin health, not just aesthetics. While overall proper skin care is one of the most effective ways to maintain the issue of aging, sometimes skin could use an extra boost, which is why we recommend the use of electrical modalities.

Current technologies offer various electrical modalities to aid in the treatment of aging skin. Such modalities include Indirect High Frequency, Warm Peltier and Iontophoresis by means of Galvanic Current.

Indirect High Frequency Indirect High Frequency is the use of High Frequency current to aid in product penetration and gentle skin stimulation. In contrast to Direct High Frequency, which is applied directly to the skin, Indirect High Frequency flows through the surface of the body, when the hands of the skin therapist make contact with the client’s skin as the client holds the electrode.

Indirect High Frequency is ideal for a skin that needs stimulation, such as a dry, lackluster, delicate, fragile, sensitive and flaccid skin. Light techniques are used versus European-style massage, which could stretch the skin or over-stimulate sensitive skin. Indirect High Frequency stimulates blood, lymph and sebaceous activity without pulling or stretching the skin. It has an overall regenerating action but also promotes relaxation and sedation.

During an Indirect High Frequency treatment, the client holds the saturator electrode to channel the current. The client may experience a mild tingling sensation. The therapist may also feel this in her fingertips. The lighter the therapist’s pressure, the more stimulation occurs. Prior to the massage, an essential oil blend, treatment serum and/or active complex can be applied to the skin, followed by the massage medium of choice. A water-soluble massage

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cream or oil free massage base can be used.

Determine what products and methods to use according to the skin condition and required amount of “slip and glide” necessary or preferred. The skin can be massaged very gently for 8-20 minutes.

And it benefits the skin by: • Aiding in the penetration of treatment creams / serums/complexes by increasing the blood flow in certain areas • Regenerating the skin • Re-energizing tired and stressed skin

Warm Peltier Another modality to use on aging skin is the Peltier, which is an electrically-controlled metal device. When used on the warm setting, the Peltier is most beneficial around the neck and shoulder area to aid in both the relaxation of muscle groups and the reduction of aches and pains pre- or post-massage. Additionally, this may be used in place of manual massage techniques in an express treatment.

A Warm Peltier may also be used over a masque on an aging, dry and lackluster skin. This will increase blood flow, thus increasing product penetration and oxygen to the skin, leaving the skin with a refreshed, healthy glow.

on the skin under the active electrode. An indifferent counter electrode is positioned elsewhere on the body. The active electrode effectively repels the active substance and forces it into the skin. This simple electrorepulsion is the main mechanism responsible for penetration enhancement by Iontophoresis, and it is ideal for aging skin in helping to carry active age fighting ingredients deeper into the skin.

Galvanic on the positive polarity has a calming and vasoconstrictive effect on the skin, so it is not only ideal to help product penetrate, but it also helps reduce sensitivity and redness on the skin. Various products can be used with Iontophoresis if they are acid pH balanced and water-soluble.

The main benefits and effects of Galvanic Iontophoresis include: • Tightening and firming of tissues • Constriction of follicles • Decrease in blood flow • Decrease in sensitivity • Reduction of edema and lymph stagnation • Oxygenation of cells • Calms and soothes the skin • Restores critical moisture • Regenerates the skin • Stimulates cell renewal and improves skin vitality

Galvanic Current: Iontophoresis

The Inevitability of Skin Aging

Galvanic Current is a continuous current that flows in one direction and uses low voltage and medium amperage. It has dual polarity of a positive or negative charge. Using Galvanic Current on the positive polarity is referred to as Iontophoresis. During an Iontophoresis treatment, a small electric current is applied to the skin, which provides the driving force to enable the penetration of charged molecules deep into the skin. A positively charged product is placed

Aging skin is a condition that we will all face at some point in our lives. Technically speaking, our skin ages everyday, and it is up to us to take the necessary preventative measures to ensure our skin ages at a slower rate. Electrical modalities offer a concentrated way to address the issues that go with aging to ensure that we help clients maintain not only a youthful appearance, but also good health.

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

The rise in popularity and accessibility of aesthetic treatments such as Dermal Fillers are driven by people feeling pressurised to maintain a youthful appearance for longer. The global market for cosmetic procedures shows Dermal Fillers and Botulinum injections as overwhelming drivers and there is also an emerging consumer trend towards non-invasive alternatives that offer easy, painless, milder and more natural enhancements.

Hence the Introduction of Environ's NEW 3DSynergé™ Filler Crème, with a course of Environ's Technologically Advanced Focus On Filler Professional Facial Treatments. This revolutionary facial protocol combines the power of DF Technology to help smooth the look of lines and restore a rejuvenated plumped youthfulness to the appearance of skin. The Dual Electro-Sonic DF Technology combined with the powerhouse skincare formulations delivers up to 40 times more essential nutrients to where your skin needs them most.

Environs's skincare visionary Dr Des Fernandes, Environ Founder and Scientific Director has pushed the boundaries of cosmetic science to unlock the solution to the skin's full rejuvenating potential.

This new 30 minute intense facial treatment is recommended as a alternative or complementary treatment to dermal fillers, with real visible results. The Focus on Filler Facial Treatment is safe for everyone, and can be targeted to a particular area without any risk or discomfort, so added to your regular facial or as a targeted treatment.

From a personal perspective: For over 30 years, Environ has remained at the forefront of innovation with revolutionary product formulations and pioneering technologies that have been proven to make a real, lasting difference to skin and the new Filler Facial Treatment complemented by the new 3DSynergé™ Filler Crème, as home care is certainly another innovation to be noted. My treatment took place with Rowan Retzlaff, at Duxberry Skin Care Clinic, an exceptionally experienced therapists who showed true care about her clients and their skin care concerns as we ran through the consultation. I chose to focus on my forehead, as my “fine lines” are becoming “not so fine lines” anymore, now I am in my 50's, but you can chose any area of the face which concerns you. The combination of the serum and the Dual Electro-Sonic DF Technology is a very comfortable and effective treatment, for me it tingled and I found the light buzzing sound psychologically comforting, as you knew something was happening, although Rowan did ask if I wanted the sound turned off. Immediately after the treatment I could see a plumping of my “fine lines”, but more importantly after 3 days of the home care, both the Environ Focus Care Youth+ Frown Serum on the forehead and the Environ Focus Care Youth+ 3DSynergé™ Filler Crème on the full face, I could see a definite improvement, which has continued, as I have continued to use the products. I would certainly recommend, this completely painless treatment, and also recommend you visit an experienced therapist, such as Rowan Retzlaff, as she gave me so much additional advice on what my skin needs and product recommendations, than the immediate treatment booked.

spa therapies

Demystifying the Science of Corneotherapy As an educator in aesthetics and a practicing corneotherapist, one of the questions I get asked the most is: What is corneotherapy?

crucial skin barrier defenses that have become defective or impaired by reasons such as disease and intrinsic (hereditary) or extrinsic (lifestyle) factors.

It suffices to say that corneotherapy is not your mainstream skincare approach, and even our industry does not understand this science all too well because it seems almost too simple to be true.

Corneotherapy is the individualized skincare and clinal treatment approach of the future and is always adapted to the specific needs of the individual’s skin.

It is the primary preventative measure against skin aging conditions, skin barrier disorders, and cornification disorders, including, but not limited to: •Essential fatty acid deficiency •Xerosis (abnormally dry skin) •Ichthyosis (thick, dry skin) •Eczema

Where did corneotherapy come from?

The “father of corneotherapy,” Professor Albert Montgomery Kligman, is an American dermatologist, perhaps better known as the co-inventor of Retin-A. Late in the 1960s, Kligman and his associates demonstrated that one could achieve substantial clinic effects by treating the disrupted barrier of the skin through repeated application of substances that had humectant and emollient properties. When these substances were blended into creams, they became known as ‘moisturizers’ and were perhaps one of the most important cosmetic discoveries of the 20th century. Repeated application of these moisturizers improved common cornification and skin barrier disorders, such as atopic dermatitis.

Corneotherapy has become known as an innovative and progressive skin treatment approach that has proven that healthy skin with an optimally functioning innate immune system can be achieved by preventing or reducing structural inflammation of the skin. It is accomplished by using preventative interventions targeted at the correction and the restoration of the stratum corneum and barrier defense systems. What this approach does is lead the skin to homeostasis and the improved function of the entire protective layer, thus protecting against harmful microorganisms and substances, all while keeping the epidermis intact at all times.

How do I know if I need corneotherapy?

Corneotherapy uses skincare and treatment approaches that are directed to correcting and building

At the time of Kligman’s research in the 1960s, corneotherapy did not garner much attention in the pharmaceutical or cosmetic industry. It was not until his article “Evidence-Based Corneotherapy” by Jann Lübbe was published in Dermatology in 2000 that more attention was sparked in this field of cosmetic science. Kligman spoke of an “outside-in therapy,” in contrast to treating skin with pharmaceutically active agents such as steroids or typical inflammation inhibitors that have an “inside-out therapy” and first must penetrate the stratum corneu to become effective.

Corneotherapy may offer effects like a medical drug.

More recently, skin-caring active substances have increasingly become the focus of attention, including natural substances like ceramides, proteins, and their synthetically produced analogous substances like peptides. This makes up part of this physiological concept of corneotherapy.

Corneotherapy broken down: Skincare professionals who follow this methodology have an integrated understanding of the keratinocyte life cycle. The keratinocyte is the king of skin cells and undergoes a keratinization process to transform into a corneocyte and ultimately shed in a never-ending renewal process. It is when this process compromised or impaired that the immune system can be

By René Serbon

compromised. The keratinocyte communicates with other cells in the skin, such as: •The fibroblast – responsible for collagen and elastin production •The melanocyte – responsible for producing pigmentation However, the other cells of the epidermis only communicate back to the keratinocyte and not among each other. For this reason, much emphasis is placed on the keratinocyte, and its integrity is protected at all times.

What to expect when receiving this treatment: A practicing corneotherapist follows the principle of maintaining or repairing the skin’s integrity. The treatment journey starts by nurturing the skin and ensuring the skin is balanced with the necessary components, allowing the skin to function optimally.

It is only after this step that corrective measures are taken and treatment modalities chosen that are nonablative (not destructive to the skin barrier).

It’s not the first option skincare professionals choose, but if more invasive measures are necessary, they are always supported by adequate pre- and post-care protocols that aim at restoring the skin.

Where to go from here: Corneotherapy has seen an increase in popularity particularly over the last decade. Sadly, this popularity came after the passing of Kligman. He died of a heart attack in 2010 at the age of 93. Today, those who follow this approach to skin see a move toward giving the skin what it requires for lunch, using ingredients with a natural affinity to the skin barrier lamellae and replacing nutrients diminished by lifestyle and modern living factors.

The opportunity in this is that we are by no means sacrificing any scientific advances in ingredients or technology that help obtain the goals of healthy skin.

Rather, the corneotherapy approach is where beauty meets science for sustainable skin health.

spa therapies

Skin Icing: How This Chilly Facial

By Dr. Geeta Yadav, MD Beautifies Skin Skin icing is a cryotherapy treatment in which the skin is exposed to extremely cold temperatures for several minutes. It is said to have a variety of skincare benefits, including soothing redness, exfoliation, and blemish control.

What is Skin Icing?

The most basic form of skin icing is when you use an ice cube to reduce under-eye or facial puffiness. It has long been a staple of skincare wisdom (we’ve all used a refrigerated spoon or cucumber slices on our eyes in the past, right?). Far from being an old wives' tale, there’s science behind this age-old advice.

When actual ice is applied to the skin, it causes blood to rise to the surface (think of that rosy glow you get after a brisk winter walk), which soothes and tightens the skin. Also known as an ice facial, skin icing is a cryotherapy treatment where vaporized nitrogen is used to cool the skin of the face, scalp, and neck area.

Ice has long been a secret to clear skin and a healthylooking glow. Russian Empress Catherine the Great was said to have applied ice cubes to her face, neck, and décolletage every morning to give her skin a radiant appearance. Whilst expensive facials and complicated skincare tools have their place, sometimes the simplest tricks are classics for a reason.

Benefits of Skin Icing •Reduce inflammation: "Think about when you have an injury or swelling in the body and your doctor instructs you to ice it—it’s the same concept, but now we're using it for aesthetic purposes," explains Marino. "Many people who suffer from inflammatory

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skin conditions like acne and rosacea can benefit from cold therapy because of its ability to reduce the inflammation the skin, which is a key trigger to both conditions."

•Reduces pore size: Skin icing minimizes the appearance of enlarged pores and may help to unclog pores that appear larger due to debris and excess sebum. Icing tones the face, making your skin (and foundation) look smoother.

• Exfoliates the skin: A cryofacial can help remove the outer layer of dead skin cells and stimulate new ones underneath to grow in a more even, smooth distribution.

• Soothes blemishes: Ice can help reduce swelling and the redness of pimples, and can also soothe irritated skin. And because swollen skin makes it difficult for topical creams to reach the bacteria inside the pores, icing may actually help antibacterial agents and topical antibiotics get into the pores since it exfoliates.

How to Prepare for Skin Icing To prep the skin for an ice facial, we recommend gently cleansing the skin and applying a moisturizer to help protect the skin barrier. It's also best to avoid sun exposure before treating your skin to avoid sunburns and irritation throughout the treatment.

What to Expect During Skin Icing Liquid nitrogen (around -200 degrees Celsius) vaporizes (is no longer as cold) and is pumped out of a hose and onto your skin. The hose is moved quickly over the face and held far enough away that it won't freeze-burn the skin. And, contrary to what you might think, a professional ice facial doesn't feel

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

unbearably cold. It feels more like a cool stream of air, but it will feel colder as the treatment progresses.

The treatment is usually around 10 minutes long.

Potential Side Effects Cryotherapy can cause more harm than good if not done properly. It's important to have it done by a well-trained professional to avoid possible risks like burns, frostbite, and nerve damage. "It's also safer for paler skin, as it can create discoloration in those with darker skin or a tan." Though it's safe for most skin types, although be cautious if you have sensitive skin or skin that reacts to changes in temperature (for example, some rosacea-prone skin and cold urticaria).

Aftercare As your skin heals, it's important to treat it with a little TLC. Steer clear of chemical or physical exfoliation and other active ingredients that could potentially be irritating (think: retinoids or benzoyl peroxide), and instead, stick to gentle cleansers and warm water. Finally, as always, lather on an SPF of at least 30 or more, if you'll be outside.

The Final Takeaway Cold therapy tools are noted for reducing inflammation, redness, and puffiness, stimulating circulation and helping to sculpt the face. The cold temperature can constrict blood vessels, which can decrease puffiness, but such tools should be used with caution so as not to burn the skin.

Discover the latest, revolutionary treatments from Guinot

twincare.co.za Are you MAXIMIZING your profitability on FACIALS ?

spa therapies

5 KOREAN beauty secrets to think about… including face-slapping

By Clinical Aesthetic Distributors Korean skincare has been getting so popular lately and we are not surprised. More and more people in our country are switching their skincare routines to a Korean one and are talking so highly of the effects.

If you wish to keep it simple yet effective, you're in for a treat. Start adopting these Korean skincare habits and be sure to achieve gorgeous skin.

1. Follow the 10-second rule What we mean by this is that you're supposed to apply your products as quickly as possible. After you take a shower, you need to apply your toner within 10 seconds. The longer you wait, the more dehydrated your skin becomes. So, you need to lock in that moisture as quickly as possible. If you're at the gym and don't have a toner with you, apply your moisturiser within 10 seconds of taking a quick shower there.

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2. Carry your sheet mask to the gym

4. Don't wash your face just once

There are a variety of options available right from hydrating to exfoliating to brightening the skin. To get the most out of your sheet mask, you need to bring them to the steam room at the gym or spa.

Once your pores are open, your sheet mask will help you seal the moisture in.

Double cleansing is important. For Koreans, it's considered so necessary that no one ever washes their face just once. You must remove your make-up first and then wash your face again with a second product to get your skin deeply cleansed.

3. Indulge in face massage For Koreans, face massage is a daily staple. There are a few massage techniques that you can use but here's the gist: Use your knuckles or fingertips to massage the muscles and tissues under your skin.

This increases the blood circulation and gets the oxygen flowing through your face. You may think about using a Rose Quartz Roller to relax the face and assist with lymph drainage.

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

5. Slap your face Yeah, this already sounds crazy! But it's a very popular technique in Korea. Women in Korea slap their faces at least 50 times after finishing their daily skincare routine to get the blood circulation going. It also firms up the face muscles. It might sound crazy, but when it comes to slapping, the more, the merrier and the harder, the better. I reserve judgment on this!

To find out more about Clinical Aesthetic Distributors visit: www.clinicalaestheticdist.co.za

spa therapies Things are looking a lot more mystical around these parts.

Horoscopes have taken off as we look to a higher power to help take the heat off of us when it comes to decisionmaking. Our birth date can help highlight our strengths, weaknesses and personality traits, it can also uncover our tastes and preferences. With too much choice, we're glad for something that helps streamline. So, to help us determine our signature makeup look, we're turning to our zodiac sign to guide us...

Aries - All The Glow (21st March-19th April) Adventurous, confident, determined and energetic, this fire sign burns bright with passion. You need a makeup look that blazes a trail, just like you and this warm, golden highlight and molten eyeshadow definitely brings the heat.

again perfectly. This ultra precise liner is beautiful and orderly, so virgos can breathe a sigh of relief.

Fellow Virgos: Beyonce, Zendaya, Blake Lively, Cameron Diaz, Taraji P. Henson, Lili Reinhart

Libra - Deep And Romantic (23rd September-22nd October) Charming, social, diplomatic and tactful, libras are naturally alluring and suit something romantic like a powerful deepred lip and delicate, fluttery lashes.

Fellow Libras: Serena Williams, Bella Hadid, Kim Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow, Brie Larson, Hilary Duff, Gwen Stefani

Scorpio - Slick And Smokey Liner (23rd October-21 November)

Fellow Aries: Lady Gaga, Reese Witherspoon, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Kristen Stewart, Emma Watson

Taurus - Timeless And Classic (20th April-20th May) Reliable, practical, loving and unshakable, rather than something too offbeat, Taurueans favour styles that are chic and timeless. This minimalistic eye and classic red lip combo is cool, pretty and will never got out of fashion.

Fellow Taurus: Adele, Gigi Hadid, Jessica Alba, Gal Gadot, Janet Jackson, Cher, Tina Fey

Gemini - Gem Eyes (21st May-20th June) Bubbly, affectionate, curious, smart and fun, geminis are more likely to experiment with creative makeup looks.

They're the type that will smudge on an OTT colour and make it look instantly wearable. That's why they won't just stick to what's in their makeup bag and will look elsewhere for inspiration. This thrown-on scattered gem-in-eye look is a perfect fit.

Fellow Geminis: Angelina Jolie, Natalie Portman, Awkwafina, Helena Bonham Carter, Venus Williams,

Cancer - Warm And Natural (21st June-22nd July) Understanding, empathetic, loyal and intuitive, cancerian's are thoughtful girl-next door types. This laidback, peachytoned look is pretty, approachable and perfect for their personalities. Sweep an apricot blush over cheeks (you can use the same shade on your eyes) and opt for a warm, silky peach-melba shade on lips.

Fellow Cancerians: Margot Robbie, Ariana Grande, Mer yl Streep, Lana Del Ray, Selena Gomez

Leo- Fierce Glam (23rd July-22nd August)

Check your Beauty Vibe based on your Zodiac Sign

By Elle Turner 36

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Charismatic, entertaining, confident and proud, inside every leo is a fierce lioness, which means a sultry, glam, look is the only way to go. Sculpt lashes by coaxing them outward at the edge for a more feline shape, groom brows, contour like you mean it and use a gloss to highlight lips.

Outwardly composed, inwardly emotional, determined and powerful, scorpios are both strong and soft. This eye makeup look is perfect – the liner is slick and fierce, but it's softened with the hazy cloud of blue shadow. Sexy but sweet.

Fellow Scorpios: Ciara, Kendall Jenner, Kiernan Shipka, Emma Stone, Anne Hathaway, Rachel McAdams, Hailey Bieber

Sagittarius - Cut-out Neon Liner (22nd November-21st December) Adventurous, free-spirited, ambitious and intelligent, sagittarius' are confident to follow their own tastes rather than the trends which means no look is off limits. You'll regularly see them switch up a classic look with a fresh new spin, incorporating new shades and shapes. Case in point: this cut-out neon liner.

Fellow Sagittarius: Miley Cyrus, Zoe Kravitz, Britney Spears, Janelle Monae, Taylor Swift, Tina Turner

Capricorn - Pretty And Practical (22nd December-19th January) Driven, loyal, practical and independent, capricorns like to consider all the options before they make a decision – and it's unlikely to be anything too edgy. A slightly smoky eye with nude lips is a safe bet that's still effortlessly chic.

Fellow Capricorns: Michelle Obama, Dolly Parton, Kate Moss, Mar y J Blige, Duchess of Cambridge

Aquarius - Undone And Natural (20th January-18th February) Unconventional, creative, perceptive and smart aquarius' are progressive non-conformists. The same goes for their makeup. Though they're on top of the trends, they won't let that dictate their choices. Instead of submitting their makeup to rules and regulations, they're drawn to colours, textures and shapes that suit their mood.

Fellow Aquarius: Alicia Keys, Kerry Washington, Shakira, Chloe Grace Moretz, Yara Shahidi

Pisces - Soft And Fresh (19th February-20th March)

Fellow Leos: JLo, Rose Byrne, Sandra Bullock, Megan Markle, Halle Berry, Jennifer Lawrence

Virgo - Immaculate Liner (23rd August-22nd September) Organised, clever, hard-working, considerate and meticulous, virgos suit a makeup look that's as pulledtogether and slick as their personality. If something smudges or is out of place, it'll come straight off so they can do it

Compassionate, intuitive, caring and faithful, pisces' personalities suit a softer makeup look – nothing too graphic or stark. A gentle colour palette of warm blushes and golds is a perfect fit with a subtle slick of eye liner and freshly-balmed lips.

Fellow Pisces: Rihanna, Drew Barrymore, Emily Blunt, Dakota Fanning, Lupita Nyong’o, Rebel Wilson

spa therapies Things are looking a lot more mystical around these parts.

Horoscopes have taken off as we look to a higher power to help take the heat off of us when it comes to decisionmaking. Our birth date can help highlight our strengths, weaknesses and personality traits, it can also uncover our tastes and preferences. With too much choice, we're glad for something that helps streamline. So, to help us determine our signature makeup look, we're turning to our zodiac sign to guide us...

Aries - All The Glow (21st March-19th April) Adventurous, confident, determined and energetic, this fire sign burns bright with passion. You need a makeup look that blazes a trail, just like you and this warm, golden highlight and molten eyeshadow definitely brings the heat.

again perfectly. This ultra precise liner is beautiful and orderly, so virgos can breathe a sigh of relief.

Fellow Virgos: Beyonce, Zendaya, Blake Lively, Cameron Diaz, Taraji P. Henson, Lili Reinhart

Libra - Deep And Romantic (23rd September-22nd October) Charming, social, diplomatic and tactful, libras are naturally alluring and suit something romantic like a powerful deepred lip and delicate, fluttery lashes.

Fellow Libras: Serena Williams, Bella Hadid, Kim Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow, Brie Larson, Hilary Duff, Gwen Stefani

Scorpio - Slick And Smokey Liner (23rd October-21 November)

Fellow Aries: Lady Gaga, Reese Witherspoon, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Kristen Stewart, Emma Watson

Taurus - Timeless And Classic (20th April-20th May) Reliable, practical, loving and unshakable, rather than something too offbeat, Taurueans favour styles that are chic and timeless. This minimalistic eye and classic red lip combo is cool, pretty and will never got out of fashion.

Fellow Taurus: Adele, Gigi Hadid, Jessica Alba, Gal Gadot, Janet Jackson, Cher, Tina Fey

Gemini - Gem Eyes (21st May-20th June) Bubbly, affectionate, curious, smart and fun, geminis are more likely to experiment with creative makeup looks.

They're the type that will smudge on an OTT colour and make it look instantly wearable. That's why they won't just stick to what's in their makeup bag and will look elsewhere for inspiration. This thrown-on scattered gem-in-eye look is a perfect fit.

Fellow Geminis: Angelina Jolie, Natalie Portman, Awkwafina, Helena Bonham Carter, Venus Williams,

Cancer - Warm And Natural (21st June-22nd July) Understanding, empathetic, loyal and intuitive, cancerian's are thoughtful girl-next door types. This laidback, peachytoned look is pretty, approachable and perfect for their personalities. Sweep an apricot blush over cheeks (you can use the same shade on your eyes) and opt for a warm, silky peach-melba shade on lips.

Fellow Cancerians: Margot Robbie, Ariana Grande, Mer yl Streep, Lana Del Ray, Selena Gomez

Leo- Fierce Glam (23rd July-22nd August)

Check your Beauty Vibe based on your Zodiac Sign

By Elle Turner 36

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Charismatic, entertaining, confident and proud, inside every leo is a fierce lioness, which means a sultry, glam, look is the only way to go. Sculpt lashes by coaxing them outward at the edge for a more feline shape, groom brows, contour like you mean it and use a gloss to highlight lips.

Outwardly composed, inwardly emotional, determined and powerful, scorpios are both strong and soft. This eye makeup look is perfect – the liner is slick and fierce, but it's softened with the hazy cloud of blue shadow. Sexy but sweet.

Fellow Scorpios: Ciara, Kendall Jenner, Kiernan Shipka, Emma Stone, Anne Hathaway, Rachel McAdams, Hailey Bieber

Sagittarius - Cut-out Neon Liner (22nd November-21st December) Adventurous, free-spirited, ambitious and intelligent, sagittarius' are confident to follow their own tastes rather than the trends which means no look is off limits. You'll regularly see them switch up a classic look with a fresh new spin, incorporating new shades and shapes. Case in point: this cut-out neon liner.

Fellow Sagittarius: Miley Cyrus, Zoe Kravitz, Britney Spears, Janelle Monae, Taylor Swift, Tina Turner

Capricorn - Pretty And Practical (22nd December-19th January) Driven, loyal, practical and independent, capricorns like to consider all the options before they make a decision – and it's unlikely to be anything too edgy. A slightly smoky eye with nude lips is a safe bet that's still effortlessly chic.

Fellow Capricorns: Michelle Obama, Dolly Parton, Kate Moss, Mar y J Blige, Duchess of Cambridge

Aquarius - Undone And Natural (20th January-18th February) Unconventional, creative, perceptive and smart aquarius' are progressive non-conformists. The same goes for their makeup. Though they're on top of the trends, they won't let that dictate their choices. Instead of submitting their makeup to rules and regulations, they're drawn to colours, textures and shapes that suit their mood.

Fellow Aquarius: Alicia Keys, Kerry Washington, Shakira, Chloe Grace Moretz, Yara Shahidi

Pisces - Soft And Fresh (19th February-20th March)

Fellow Leos: JLo, Rose Byrne, Sandra Bullock, Megan Markle, Halle Berry, Jennifer Lawrence

Virgo - Immaculate Liner (23rd August-22nd September) Organised, clever, hard-working, considerate and meticulous, virgos suit a makeup look that's as pulledtogether and slick as their personality. If something smudges or is out of place, it'll come straight off so they can do it

Compassionate, intuitive, caring and faithful, pisces' personalities suit a softer makeup look – nothing too graphic or stark. A gentle colour palette of warm blushes and golds is a perfect fit with a subtle slick of eye liner and freshly-balmed lips.

Fellow Pisces: Rihanna, Drew Barrymore, Emily Blunt, Dakota Fanning, Lupita Nyong’o, Rebel Wilson

SPA

Sponsored Advertorial Aesthetic treatments are trending more towards noninvasive solutions as a safer and more convenient alternative, and patients dealing with sagging skin and wrinkles are looking for effective, consistent, and fast treatments with no downtime. ENDYMED's facial tightening treatments provide effective collagen remodelling, rebuilding the collagen building blocks in the skin, and are suitable for all facial areas cheeks, forehead, EYES, mouth, and jawline.

Additionally, ENDYMED can treat the whole body.

The ENDYBLEPH is the perfect non-surgical eyelift solution.The periorbital area is one of the first areas to show the signs of ageing; laxity, fine lines, and wrinkles. Treatment options are limited, due to the delicate nature of the skin in this area and safety concerns related to proximity to the eyeball.

Blepharoplasty, whilst still being the one of the most common cosmetic surgical procedures, is not an option for many patients due to cost, risks associated with the general anaesthesia, risks of scarring, and the post-operative recovery period.

Non-surgical options such as botulinum toxin and dermal fillers can be effective in the right hands.

Now an alternative, with promising results and high safety profile is availalbe, this procedure has been termed the 'EndyBleph'. A one-of-a-kind RF, the EndyMed 3DEEP can easily carr y out a non-surgical eyelift.

RF has been found to be effective in the safe delivery of energy into the skin, independent of skin colour.

Completely safe on all Fitzpatrick skin types as it's not chromophore dependant like light-based devices.

Endymed Skin Tightening is a revolutionary new radio frequency treatment designed to penetrate deep into the skin to naturally stimulate collagen and elastin production for a significantly smoother and tighter appearance.

The Endybleph is a combination of both

The ENDYBLEPH: The ultimate, non-surgical eye lift delivers outstanding , eye opening results using a combination of two clinically - proven Endymed treatments : Skin Tightening & Lifting with Skin Resurfacing & Tightening.

Radiofrequency and Fractional Radiofrequency.

Radiofrequency safely and effectively delivers energy to the skin which causes a gentle build-up of heat.

This induces an immediate contraction of collagen (an 'instant lift') and stimulates natural wound healing, resulting in formation of new collagen.

Radiofrequency leads to improvements in the skin structure and tightening of lax and sagging skin.

Fractional Radiofrequency can be implemented for skin resurfacing. The treatment allows safe and effective treatment of the delicate eye area, reducing eye bags and tightening and lifting the upper eyelid.

There is minimal downtime and discomfort involved with this treatment.

It penetrates 3 times deeper into our skin, it's a lot more controlled & focused heat than any other mono polar or bipolar RF. RF has positive and negative poles, that always follow the path of least resistance; all that it wants to do is close the current. When positive & negative currents flow up & down, they create friction producing heat.This controlled heat is what we are looking to produce in the skin.

If we have a temperature of 40degrees on the epidermis, we have a temperature of about 50degrees in the dermis and that's our active part of the skin, where all the collagen and elastin degenerated.

When we reach the right temperature over a specific amount of time, we cause fibroblast activity.

Instant - shrinking of collagen fibres and long-term stimulating of new collagen fibres.

More about the treatment: - Combines skin tightening & FSR procedures in a single treatment. BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. - I fine applicator is for tightening & contouring & FSR applicator is for resurfacing & deep volume metric heating.

- A course of 4 treatments, 4 weeks apart depend on the client's concern & condition of skin.

- Short steps : 1.contouring & lifting with the I Fine 2. Numbing for 30min 3. Resurfacing with FSR.

- Ideal for patients with less severe/early photoageing damage or those who want to avoid or are not suitable for surgery.

Significant improvements can be made to both the delicate under eye area and the upper eyelid, giving a lifting and tightening effect that previously, could only be achieved with surgery.

The Endybleph is becoming the number one, favourite non-surgical solution for improving lines and wrinkles, tightening the under-eye area and elevating the brow, by stimulating new collagen and helping to reverse the signs of ageing. A course of 4 treatments are recommended, one treatment a month, over a 4 month period.

Patient Comfort Completely safe and comfortable treatments with clinically proven consistent results that are suitable for all skin types with very little down time Personalized Treatments Real time skin impedance monitoring provides optimal energy delivery to the treatment target area by making continuous adjustments based on tissue impedance for a truly personalized treatment.

Contra-indications to the treatment: •Subjects with implanted pacemakers and defibrillators, arrhythmias, or any heart disorders • Subjects with any implantable metal device in the treatment area • Subjects on any medication that would affect the characteristics of the skin (medical or hormonal), such as Accutane within the past month •Subjects who have any form of suspicious lesion on the treatment area.

• Subjects with any cutaneous inflammation or skin disease in the treatment area Radiant Healthcare is proud to be the sole distributor of Endymed in South Africa and are ready to answer any questions: Tel: 011 794 8253 or visit: www.radianthealth.co.za

SPA

Sponsored Advertorial Looking Good LCN Beauty Pad Pro The LCN line has expanded to include natural nail, hand, foot, make-up, body and spa products. Every LCN beauty product remains the result of careful research, educated industry professionals, and a flawless eye for the future of beauty and fashion. LCN continues to break new ground in the beauty industry, while still standing the test of time.

The latest technology in Permanent Make-up and Skin Tightening from LCN. The multifunctional beauty device combines 4 state-of-the-art cosmetic procedures in one! The Beauty Pad Pro Treatment 1: LCN SCALP PIGMENTATION is an effective pigmentation method for the optical densification hair.

Treatment 2: LCN PLASMA: The Plasma method is the most innovative and effective alternative to skin tightening surgery.

Treatment 3: LCN NEEDLING: To optimally support the treatment with the Plasma Pen, a needling treatment may be useful for optimal skin stimulation.

Treatment 4: PERMANENT MAKE-UP which conforms to the highest international quality requirements The advantages at a glance: Made in Germany with the highest safety and hygiene standards. The Beauty Pad is easy to use featuring a touchscreen and two hand pieces.

Offering services to a new customer groups, with visible treatment success.

An alternative to invasive measures (plasma method), innovative and lucrative services.

For more information: visit www.lcn.co.za Tel: +010 593 3293 / 079 526 1238 email: info@lcn.co.za / karen@lcn.co.za

A True Holistic Healing Treatment - The Myofascial Facial Release Treatment, by Mimmie Lancaster Isn't it amazing that every time you have a treatment, you think to yourself - I must do this more often…. This time round I think I will be doing just that!

Kristy Wisdom, a qualified and experienced Myofascial release practitioner offered to do a Myofascial facial release treatment on me. It brought back fond memories of the late Avril Zander-Thal who used to offer this incredible treatment.

Cosmetic Myofascial release is a sustainable skin care practice that offers, among other benefits, an alternative to Botox as it provides a natural face lift via specific massage techniques and the soft touch movements performed.

Fascia is a structure of connective tissue that surrounds muscles, groups of muscles, blood vessels and nerves, binding some structures together while allowing others to smoothly slide or glide over each other. Fascial dysfunction can occur due to any of the following reasons or combinations thereof - a lack of movement variations, poor nutrition, habitual poor posture and trauma. All of this impacts on the fascia's ability to glide and slide, which aids in the distribution and transmission of tension across the body. The body compensates through different patterns of movement and this places stress on the fascial system. Fascia can shorten, solidify and thicken in response to poor posture, physical or emotional injury to the body, inflammation or trauma and stress.

When fascia gets 'stuck', it leaves one with reduced performance, pain and stiffness and ultimately the formation of wrinkles.

Upon entering Kristy's treatment room I instantly felt the tranquil ambience lift my soul. We can get so caught up in the stressors of life that we often forget to take a moment for ourselves, this was my moment. With the familiar and comforting fragrance of lavender, candles gently flickering and the sound of calming music in the background, I was able to fully decompress and quickly slipped into a more relaxed state of mind.

Kristy picked up quite a bit of tension in my jawline and proceeded to do acupressure on the back of my head and neck which created a huge release of physical tension. During the session Kristy used the guasha tool (pronounced gwa-sha) as well as a Jade roller. Both tools not only aid in increasing the lymphatic and blood flow in the face but also provides a feeling of being balanced, as it drains the tension 'held' in areas of my face. Kristy continued to work effortlessly with her skilled fingers to further release blockages in the fascia; an intensely relaxing experience. Once the tension was released, my skin appeared plumper, brighter and lines the lines around my mouth softened.

Myofascial release is a holistic healing practice that not only treats outward appearance but while working on the nervous system it allows space for deeper healing to take place.

Kristy assures me it aids in the removal of brain fog and clears the mind, allowing one to have a better ability to solve problems. Regular treatments will brighten the eyes and skin and increase collagen production.

After the session I walked out feeling very rejuvenated, my face felt revived, lifted and lighter. I was left with the feeling of euphoria for days after the session and my concentration level improved. I will be back.

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Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Kristy Wisdom is based in Cape Town and can be contacted on 072 570 0991 or holistichealingwithwisdom@gmail.com

spa therapies Menopause is an incredibly complicated process that all women endure as they reach middle age.

For some, symptoms appear to be a mere end to the monthly cycle. For others, it is a difficult process that can last for years with a variety of changes.

Menopause not only affects the internal body, it affects the skin as well. But before we look at menopause and the affect it has on skin, let’s discuss the changes to a woman’s hormones during menopause.

What Happens to Hormones.

Hormonal changes and declines, as well as the slowdown in ovarian activity (which includes the decrease in B-Estradiol levels), cause many of the changes we see associated with menopause.

Hormones can cause hot flashes, which are intense feelings of warmth in the skin, accompanied by profuse sweating. In addition, the adrenal glands and ovaries of post-menopausal women secrete increased androgens. These hormones, in the absence of estrogens, cause some menopausal symptoms such as voice deepening and appearance of facial hair.

of collagen and elastin in the dermis of the skin.

This lack of repair is particularly pronounced if the skin is exposed to ultraviolet (UV) rays. UV rays are very destructive to collagen, and if we lose our repair mechanism, then we lose our skin’s resiliency. This results in elastosis.

Thinning Epidermis: The growth and maintenance of blood capillaries in the dermis are partially under the control of the estrogens. Thus, blood flow through the dermal capillaries is reduced, and less nutrients and oxygen are available to the Stratum Germinativum or Basal Cell layers of the epidermis. This contributes to the thinning of the epidermis and a slower cell turnover rate, which is accompanied by a reduction in the barrier function of the epidermis, leading to increased trans-epidermal water loss and dry skin.

An interesting note, the cells that make up the surface of the skin are similar in structure to those of the urinary tract and vagina. Often times when a woman begins to notice changes in her skin (wrinkling, dryness, loss of resiliency, etc.), there are similar changes occurring in the lining of the urethra, bladder and vagina. Thus, the skin may be revealing other tell-tale signs of menopause.

Menopause and the Skin We know that the decline of B-Estradiol is one of the culprits in the accelerated aging of the skin.

We also know that menopause is mostly caused by age-related changes in the ovaries and the remaining follicles become less sensitive to stimulation by pituitary hormones, even though their levels are elevated, resulting in fewer mature follicles and a reduction in the production of corpora lutea. This results in lowered estrogen and progesterone production, which in turn leads to changes in the skin.

When approaching menopause, changes begin to occur in the skin: Oily Skin: During the reproductive years, BEstradiol stimulates a more fluid sebaceous gland secretion (“anti-acne” effect). During menopause, as estrogen levels decrease, testosterone (produced by the adrenal glands) is no longer masked in the woman’s body. Testosterone reveals itself by stimulating sebaceous glands to secrete thicker sebum, giving the appearance of oily skin and the tendency toward adult acne.

How Does Menopause Affect Your Skin?

By Dr. Diana Howard - International Dermal Institute 42

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Facial Hair: Also due to the unmasking of testosterone, some women may develop facial hair, particularly in the chin area.

Sagging Skin and Wrinkles: Estrogens stimulate fat deposits over the female body; as estrogen levels drop during menopause, fat deposits tend to become redistributed and often concentrated over the abdomen and/or on the thighs and buttocks. The result is a loss of supportive fat below the skin of the face, neck, hands and arms; this allows sagging wrinkles to appear, and the skin over these areas is less easily compressed, as it loses its mobility. Also, fat deposits are reduced in the breasts, resulting in loss of turgor, which causes the breasts to begin to sag and flatten.

Elastosis: Protein synthesis, particularly that of collagen and elastin, are partially controlled by estrogens. Thus, during menopause, the lowered estrogen levels result in less production and repair

More Prone to Sun Damage: The maintenance of Melanocytes (cells that manufacture the pigment Melanin) is under the control of estrogens. As menopause progresses, the number of melanocytes is reduced. With less melanocytes, we produce less of the protective melanin and skin appears lighter. Menopausal skin is, therefore, more prone to sun damage, making it even more important to protect the skin with a sunblock.

Hyperpigmentation / Age Spots: Estrogens also temper melanin production. That is, estrogen exerts a regulatory effect on the production of melanin; it keeps it under control. In areas of the skin that have been exposed to UV rays, melanin synthesis increases. This can result in brown “age spots” appearing on the face, hands, neck, arms and chest of many women.

Hot Flashes: Hot flashes are typically defined by a strong sense of warmth in the skin, (mainly the face), followed by excessive sweating. It had long been thought that hot flashes were caused directly by the abrupt lowering of B-Estradiol levels, but we now know that a woman’s sympathetic nervous system is more active after menopause because of low estrogen, causing the dilation of skin arterioles and sweating, as well as the rise in body temperature and an increase in heart rate. Hour-to-hour changes in the secretion of the Luteinizing Hormone (LH) from the pituitary gland of post-menopausal women have also been associated with hot flashes.

Other Symptoms of Menopause Menopause affects much more than the skin.

Some possible internal symptoms can include dizziness, numbness, heart palpitations, insomnia, backaches and dry mouth, among others.

About 85% of women have menopausal symptoms both before and after they reach it; the occurrence and intensity of symptoms vary from woman to woman. For most, these symptoms stop within a year, but for some, symptoms can last as much as three years or more.

spa therapies

The Challenges In Bringing An Anti-Aging Pill To Market Perhaps it is being driven by baby-boomers who are now facing their own mortality, but there has been a surge in activity in biotech companies looking for a ”fountain of youth” pill – a drug that would extend a person’s lifespan. There are a number of hypotheses emerging around novel biological mechanisms that possibly could do just that. For example, Elevian is exploring a protein known as growth differentiating factor 11 (GDF11) which, according to Elevian’s website, when infused into old mice can improve exercise capacity, improve brain function and accelerate muscle repair. Another prominent player in the anti-aging field is Elysium Health, which believes that boosting one’s NAD+ levels leads to an increase in longevity genes.

These companies are not run by charlatans. Rather, they are led by prominent researchers at academic institutions like Harvard and MIT. However, despite encouraging early stage studies in mice, skeptics question the viability of such work. In an article entitled “A ‘Fountain of Youth’ Pill? Sure, if you’re a Mouse”, Marisa Taylor of Kaiser Health News challenges this work. For one thing, she is concerned that the animal studies reported to date have not been easy to replicate. Furthermore, she worries that the hype is far too premature. Perhaps such a pill is on the horizon, but we’re still facing a long, laborious process to get there.

Nowhere is this challenge greater than running a clinical trial to prove a drug’s anti-aging properties.

You would need to run a randomized clinical trial in an older population with half on drug and the other half on placebo. But how do you choose the

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patients? If they were on the younger side, say in their fifties, you’d have to study them for a long time to demonstrate a longevity effect as their life expectancy is still high. So you would likely need an older population to study. Since you are looking at extending life, the study endpoint is death. Such a study would require thousands of patients in order to get results that are statistically significant. Thus, to mimic the mouse studies in humans, you may need to run a 5 – 8 year study in thousands of patients and measure clinical outcomes. These types of studies have been done with cholesterol lowering medications and diabetes drugs to prove to regulators and payers that lowering LDL-cholesterol or HbA1c is actually extending life. Thus, these types of longevity experiments have precedence.

To make things even more difficult, the FDA would require that your longevity drug exhibit a high degree of safety as these drugs would presumably be given for the rest of one’s life. This would send warning signals to medical aids as suddenly millions of people seventy and above would be clamoring for access for such a drug. Thus, they would set up very high hurdles to justify reimbursement for the cost of the longevity pill, as they have done with the PCSK9 cholesterol lowering drugs.

These challenges haven’t dissuaded at least one researcher from diving headlong into this arena. Dr. Nir Barzilai, director of the Institute for Aging Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, has designed an anti-aging study called “Targeting Aging with Metformin” (TAME). Metformin is an antidiabetic drug that was approved by the FDA

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

By John LaMattina

more than 70 years ago. It is still widely prescribed and its safety is well established. And, while its mechanism-of action is not known, it has been shown to extend the lives of nematodes by 57% and mice by 6%. Barzilai and colleagues have met with the FDA and designed TAME based on their input.

TAME will consist of 3,000 patients between 65 – 79 years old and have a composite primary endpoint of myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, cancer, dementia and death. TAME is powered to detect a 22.5% reduction in the time to first incidence of any endpoint.

It is interesting to note that the big pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer, Merck and Novartis are shying away from anti-aging research. It could be that they are leery about entering an area that requires a long-term and expensive commitment in a field where the pay-off is years away. Nevertheless, anti-aging research is going to continue. The science is important and holds promise. But an anti-aging pill available for the masses is not around the corner. It might not even appear in our lifetime.

About John LaMattina: Former president of Pfizer Global Research and Development in 2007, managing more than 13,000 scientists and professionals in the United States, Europe, and Asia.

Recipient of numerous awards including an Honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire. The author of "Drug Truths: Dispelling The Myths Of R&D" and the recently published Devalued And Distrusted: Can The Pharmaceutical Industry Restore Its Broken Image?"

“Regain and Retain your Natural Beauty” At Regensys, we live and breathe the phrase “Regain and Retain your Natural Beauty”. Regensys is the sole importer and distributor of Dermica Laboratoires and KSurgery Laboratories in South Africa. Regensys strives to supply the highest quality European aesthetic products and devices as well as training and support to aesthetic doctors, skin therapists, skin clinics and spas.

We are driven by a passion for the underlying chemistry and physics underpinning aesthetics processes and products. The Regensys team are constantly striving to find innovative, safe, and medically sound beauty enhancement products to support doctors and skincare therapists.

“We understand that each person is unique, an idea that medical practitioners will agree with, which is why we have chosen two globally recognised companies to partner and grow the business with. The aesthetics products and devices that we offer allow each and every treatment plan to be individualised to meet each patient or client’s personal aesthetic goals.”

KSurgery Laboratories from Italy supplies classic peels, specialist peels, aesthetic cosmetics, both for professional use and retail to public. KSurgery also carry an extensive range of Professional and Retail skin products for the Body, which are particularly suitable for Spas.

Dermica Laboratoires from Spain supplies a range of mesotherapy serums, aesthetic serums and specialised creams, Medical devices (GoldPen – microneedling, a handheld injecting device – DermaJet and a DermaPlax machine). They also carry their own in-house developed dermal fillers and threads. Dermica is targeted towards doctors and carries more specialised aesthetic products, but some, like the mesotherapy solutions can also be used during in-salon micro-needling.

We also sell the Regensys branded Collagen powder (3 flavours and Natural) as well as glutathione capsules, available for retail in spas.

spa therapies

The Best Anti-Ageing Products to Use in Your 20s, 30s, 40s & 50s

By Dr Alek Nikolic - SkinMiles As you age, lifestyle factors like exposure to the sun, smoking, and your favourite drinks (we’re sorry) can take their toll on your skin. Not to mention your body produces less and less collagen. Daunting, yes, but not hopeless. Incorporate these simple preventative and corrective steps into your skincare regimen (and call off the search for that fountain of youth).

In your 20s…

Wear Sunscreen You might be spending all the money in the world on anti-ageing treatments, but unless you’re using an SPF, it won’t make any difference. The sun’s rays can wreak havoc on your skin. We all know this.

The message? Look after your skin and really step up your defense against ultraviolet rays when you’re in your 20s.

You should be wearing a mineral sunscreen daily (if you aren’t already). Look at the ingredients list for titanium dioxide or zinc oxide. Not only do these naturally occurring minerals physically block the sunrays radiation, but they also tend to be gentle on the skin. Make sure to apply it liberally every morning (after moisturising, but before foundation).

Start with a Vitamin C Serum Your 20s are full of habits that can disrupt the skin like pulling all-nighters and partying. As fun as this time is, vitamin C helps you counteract damage. It’s known for being one of the strongest antioxidants.

A vitamin C serum will lighten lines, firm skin, and brighten your complexion, as well as protect your skin against environmental skin damage through free radicals. Apply a few drops to your face in the morning to see a transformation.

In your 30s…

What’s the hype? A derivative of vitamin A, it smoothes skin texture, promotes skin renewal, brightens skin tone, reduces acne, and prevents ageing. What’s the catch? Retinol can lead to flaking, redness, and burning if used too frequently or if you’re using a percentage that’s too strong for you.

While there is an adjustment period, it’s not recommended for people with overly sensitive skin.

A good recommendation for sensitive skin is to use a retinol esther such as granactive retinol which minimises the potential for a skin reaction.

Here’s how to use it safely (and not have your skin freak out): • Use only at night; • Start with something over the counter products a few times a week; • Don’t use with other exfoliants; • Graduate to more potent prescription retinol every night; and • Don’t forget SPF the morning after.

Try Peptides Simply put, peptides are what proteins are made of.

In the world of skin care, when people refer to proteins they almost always mean collagen (or the protein that gives your skin its structure). By applying peptides to your skin, you’re sending an SOS signal to your cells to produce more collagen. Peptides in cosmetic skin products help calm and firm your skin.

This trending ingredient is safe to apply at morning and night. Our dermatologists recommend opting for a peptide-packed serum or moisturiser (which will penetrate your skin deeper than a face wash).

Upgrade Your Serum Serums mean serious business. With active ingredients, serums are pricey but their potency makes it oh so worth it. Ageing? Wrinkles? Dark spots? Concentrated serums target skin problems more effectively than other products. Just promise us this: If you invest in one thing, make it a serum.

In your 40s…

Apply At-home Chemical Peels Nothing leaves your complexion looking and feeling as glowing and polished as a chemical peel does.

Chemical peels stimulate your skin and break down the so-called glue that holds your dead skin cells together. The result is skin that’s smoother and firmer.

Sure, you can get a chemical peel at a dermatologist’s office, but staying at home an option now. When it comes to choosing an at-home peel, look for options with a 10% glycolic acid formula.

Here’s how to safely do a chemical peel at home: • Start just once a week; • Apply after washing your skin; • Follow directions; • Use a timer; and • Follow with a moisturiser.

Start Using Retinol Your early 30s is the best time to start using retinol.

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In your 50s…

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SkinMiles Tip Consulting a dermatologist, or an aesthetic medical practitioner with a special interest in skincare, or a skincare therapist, will help you to learn what skincare products will be the most beneficial for every age and how to use them safely.

SkinMiles: Your Personal Skincare Destination SkinMiles opened its doors in November 2015 after Dr Alek Nikolic realised that doctor-only recommended products with active ingredients were difficult to access. Dr Alek also realised that many people are not sure which products or ingredients to use for their skin types and skin concerns. “SkinMiles was created to allow for more convenient access to doctor recommended active ingredients, and to provide honest, reliable and effective advice for a personalised skin regime, to ever yone.”

Visit: https://skinmiles.com

spa therapies Image supplied by MALU WILZ, Distributed by Brisan Distributors Most women believe they don’t need to wear makeup to feel confident—instead, it’s all about embracing their natural beauty. A recent survey of 2,000 American women examined their relationship with beauty and found that 82 percent would describe themselves as a confident person.

Three in four respondents said that their confident attitude transpires into positive interactions with others when they look good. The same percentage of women agree they could take on anything when they feel confident.

Conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Grande Cosmetics for their #BigLashEnergy campaign, the survey found 75 percent of women said they feel more empowered to step outside of their comfort zone and accomplish new things when they feel secure about their physical appearance. In fact, nearly two in five (38 percent) women polled said getting their makeup done gives them the confidence boost they’re looking for. For those with a beauty routine (58 percent), an overwhelming nine in 10 said their regimens are key to boosting their confidence.

According to the survey, the eyes are a vital part of enhancing the face, with respondents saying they’re most likely to highlight their eyes (33 percent), eyelashes (28 percent), or eyebrows (27 percent) when doing their makeup. Seven in 10 said their eyelashes are important to their overall look (71 percent). Two in three said having naturally longer-looking eyelashes would make them feel more confident not to wear makeup every day.

Despite their confidence levels, three-quarters of women surveyed are yearning for more, agreeing they want to feel more secure in their own skin but saying they don’t know where to start.

While women love their eyes (37 percent), skin (31 percent), and lips (30 percent), many admitted there are some features they hope they could naturally enhance, citing they’d like to improve their eyelashes (29 percent) and eyebrows (28 percent). “Your eyes are the focal point of your face, and your lashes help to amplify the beauty of your eyes,” says Grande Cosmetics CEO and founder Alicia Grande. “As shown from these survey results, people feel their eyes are a key feature that they tend to highlight with makeup.

I started Grande Cosmetics so that everyone can have the ability to easily enhance their own natural beauty, such as their eyelashes.”

The Link between Makeup, Beauty, and Their Impact on Empowerment and Confidence

By Julie Keller Callaghan - Well Defined 48

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Mascara (30 percent) is the top makeup item women said they wouldn’t leave home without wearing, followed by foundation and lipstick (27 percent each). Although 65 percent of respondents claim they lose confidence when they wipe off their makeup, four in five are more interested in enhancing their natural beauty over temporary fixes. Still, more than half of the women polled feel pressure to look a certain way from outside influences (57 percent) like social media (56 percent), movies or TV shows (55 percent), or celebrities/models (51 percent).

On a more positive note, two-thirds of women love how they look, regardless of what other people think (67 percent). “The survey results show that women are feeling more confident than ever by showcasing their natural beauty and being their most authentic self,” says Grande. “The goal of our #BigLashEnergy campaign is to empower people in their journey of self-love and share how that makes them feel with others. True confidence is about how you feel when you wake up in the morning—ready to take on the day without makeup and embracing your natural beauty.”

About Julie Keller Callaghan: Julie is the co-founder of Well Defined and a longtime influencer and advocate in the wellness world.

Along with her work at Well Defined, she is an executive recruiter and marketing specialist for Hutchinson Consulting. She is also a consultant and content strategist for numerous wellness brands. She is the former editor-in-chief and publisher of American Spa and was named a 2019 Folio Top Woman in Media in the Industry Trailblazers category and a 2018 winner of ISPA’s Innovate Award.

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Why Vitamin C Achieves Anti-Aging Icon Status

By Image Skincare When it comes to getting brighter and healthierlooking skin, Vitamin C is a key ingredient that everyone should take advantage of. It’s often called the powerhouse of skincare and with its rich concentration of potent antioxidants, it’s no wonder Vitamin C treatments are all the rage.

One of the main features of Vitamin C is its ability to noticeably improve the appearance of collagendeprived skin, all while reducing the look of pigmentation throughout. In simple terms, it helps give your skin the appearance of a more youthful and even-toned complexion.

Additionally, some studies have shown that Vitamin C may even help when you’re over-exposed to UV light. If you spend a lot of time in the sun but are unable to keep your skin covered in a proper SPF moisturizer, applying vitamin C to your skin can help mitigate some of the visible effects these ultraviolet rays could have caused, such as the appearance of dark spots and fine lines.

A big problem, however, is that very little Vitamin C ever reaches the skin through regular daily means such as from eating or drinking citrus. While it may be in your body, it doesn’t always end up aiding your skin as well as it should. That's why it’s so important for you to apply any one of a variety of Vitamin C skincare products regularly to ensure your skin gets the full benefit of this amazing skincare ingredient.

Ingredients That Pair Perfectly With Vitamin C When searching for the best Vitamin C treatment, there are a number of additional ingredients you should look for. These ingredients are top skin boosters

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that work alongside Vitamin C to give you the best all-around replenishing effects from your skincare serum.

One of the most common ingredients to pair up with Vitamin C is hyaluronic acid. In fact, as you browse through our Vital C collection you’ll notice several of our favorite products pair up Vitamin C and hyaluronic acid together as an extremely effective power team of hydration.

Additionally, Vitamin E is a great stabilizer included alongside Vitamin C. These two vitamins work together to maximize the protective benefits your skin receives.

Other ingredients you may find alongside Vitamin C include: • Sugarcane Extract An all natural extract that adds an extra burst of hydration to your skin • Zinc Oxide A naturally occurring mineral that helps protect your skin from the perceptible effects of UVA and UVB rays • Natural Oils Including Grape Seed, Macadamia, Jojoba, Argan, Sea Buckthorn and more!

Celebrating Vital C: When it comes to an iconic and globally loved product, you’ll love the key benefits of our Vital C collection. We want your skin to be nourished from the inside out so you can be radiant and glowing throughout the day. If you struggle with dry skin that is prone to redness, and still want the replenishing benefits of Vitamin C, be sure to consider our Vital C hydrating intense moisturizer for superior nourishment for every inch of your skin.

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Vitamin C by itself is a great product to add to your skincare regimen as it can help protect your skin from overexposure to UV light. It is best used together with your favorite SPF moisturizer, but can be applied directly to your skin after spending too much time in the sun. By replenishing your skin’s reservoir of vitamin C, you’ll take the first step in ensuring your skin remains youthful and replenished.

The Full Vitamin C Experience Vitamin C is ultra-hydrating, which makes it great for dry, redness-prone or environmentally damaged skin.

As a potent antioxidant, our high-potency vitamin C complex offers noticeable brightness and a luminous glow to even the most dull skin.

Whether you are no stranger to using a variety of products on your skin each day, or want to take a more minimalist approach to your skincare regimen, Vitamin C should always be one of the ingredients you consider, especially if you struggle with dry or damaged-looking skin. Embrace the extreme hydration and nourishing effects our Vital C collection!

While you might enjoy a morning glass of orange juice or snack on citrus slices throughout the day, the best way to ensure you’re getting a proper amount of Vitamin C in your daily skincare routine is by applying it directly to your skin. This topical approach gives your skin a chance to soak up the replenishing and photoprotective properties of this wonderful little antioxidant.

To find out more about the Image Skincare range or Clinical Aesthetic Distributors visit : www.clinicalaestheticdist.co.za

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10 Anti-Aging Foods to Support Your 40s-and-Beyond Body When we pack our diet with vibrant foods loaded with antioxidants, healthy fats, water, and essential nutrients, our body will show its appreciation through its largest organ: our skin. After all, the skin is often the first part of our body to show internal trouble.

Researchers have even concluded that eating fruits and veggies is the safest and healthiest way to combat dull complexions and fine lines. Ready to glow? Here are 10 of the best anti-ageing foods to nourish your body for a glow that comes from within.

4. Blueberries Blueberries are rich in vitamins A and C, as well as an age-defying antioxidant called anthocyanin. This is what gives blueberries their deep, beautiful blue color. These powerful antioxidants may help protect skin from damage due to the sun, stress, and pollution by moderating the inflammatory response and preventing collagen loss.

5. Broccoli

1. Watercress The health benefits of watercress don’t disappoint!

This nutrient-dense hydrating leafy green is a great source of: Calcium, Potassium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Vitamins A, C, K, B-1, and B-2.

Watercress acts as an internal skin antiseptic and increases the circulation and delivery of minerals, to all cells of the body, resulting in enhanced oxygenation of the skin. Packed with vitamins A and C, the antioxidants in watercress may neutralize harmful free radicals, helping to keep fine lines and wrinkles away.

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Broccoli is an anti-inflammatory, anti-aging powerhouse packed with: Vitamins C and K, a variety of antioxidants, fiber, folate,lutein and calcium. Your body needs vitamin C for the production of collagen, the main protein in skin that gives it strength and elasticity.

Other youthful benefits: The nutrient lutein, has been linked to the preservation of the brain’s memory function, as well as vitamin K and calcium (which are essential for bone health and the prevention of osteoporosis).

2. Red Bell Pepper

6. Spinach

Red bell peppers are loaded with antioxidants which reign supreme when it comes to anti-aging. In addition to their high content of vitamin C — which is good for collagen production — red bell peppers contain powerful antioxidants called carotenoids.

Carotenoids are plant pigments responsible for the bright red, yellow, and orange colors you see in many fruits and vegetables. They have a variety of anti-inflammatory properties and may help protect skin from sun damage, pollution, and environmental toxins.

3. Papaya

Spinach is super hydrating and packed with antioxidants that help to oxygenate and replenish the entire body. It’s also rich in: Vitamins A, C, E, and K, Magnesium, plant-based heme iron and lutein.This versatile leafy green’s high vitamin C content enhances collagen production to keep skin firm and smooth. But that’s not all. The vitamin A it provides may promote strong, shiny hair, while vitamin K has been shown to help reduce inflammation in cells.

This delicious superfood is rich in a variety of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that may help to improve skin elasticity and minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. These include: Vitamins A, C, K, and E, Calcium, Potassium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and B vitamins. The wide range of antioxidants in papaya helps to fight free radical damage and may delay signs of aging.

Papaya also contains an enzyme called papain, which provides additional anti-aging benefits by working as one of nature’s best anti-inflammatory agents. It’s also found in many exfoliating products.

So yes, eating papaya (or using products containing papain) may help your body shed dead skin cells, leaving you with glowing, vibrant skin!

Many nuts (especially almonds) are a great source of vitamin E, which may help repair skin tissue, retain skin moisture, and protect skin from damaging UV rays. Walnuts even containTrusted Source antiinflammatory omega-3 fatty acids that may help: Strengthen skin cell membranes, protect against sun damage and give skin a beautiful glow by preserving its natural oil barrier. Eating nuts is linked to: Reduced risk for heart disease (walnuts) and type 2 diabetes (pistachios), and potential prevention of cognitive decline in older adults (almonds).

7. Nuts

8. Avocado Avocados are high in inflammation-fighting fatty

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acids that promote smooth, supple skin. They also contain a variety of essential nutrients that may prevent the negative effects of aging, including: Vitamins K, C, E, and A, B vitamins and Potassium The high content of vitamin A in avocados can help us shed dead skin cells, leaving us with gorgeous, glowing skin. Their carotenoid content may also assist in blocking toxins and damage from the sun’s rays and also help to protect against skin cancers.

9. Sweet Potatoes The orange color of the sweet potato comes from an antioxidant called beta-carotene which is converted to vitamin A. Vitamin A may help restore skin elasticity, promote skin cell turnover, and ultimately contribute to soft, youthful-looking skin.

This delicious root vegetable is also a great source of vitamins C and E — both of which may protect our skin from harmful free radicals and keep our complexion radiant.

10. Pomegranate Seeds Pomegranates have been used for centuries as a healing medicinal fruit. High in vitamin C and a variety of potent antioxidantsTrusted Source, pomegranates may protect our body from free radical damage and reduce levels of inflammation in our system. These healthy fruits also contain a compound called punicalagins, which may help to preserve collagen in the skin, slowing signs of aging.

Flood your body with powerful nutrients By nourishing ourselves with these anti-aging foods, we can gain fuel to look and feel our best.

If you’re looking for more delicious plants to try, choose fruits and vegetables deep in color. The rich shades are usually a sign of stronger radical fighting abilities to keep your skin healthy and vibrant. The more colors you can fit on your plate, the better.

It’s time to slow down signs of aging and truly glow from within!

Nathalie Rhone, MS, RDN, CDN is a registered dietitian and functional medicine nutritionist with a BA in Psychology from Cornell University and a MS in Clinical Nutrition from New York University. She’s the founder of Nutrition by Nathalie LLC, a private nutrition practice in New York City focusing on health and wellness using an integrative approach, and All Good Eats, a social media health and wellness brand.

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Anti-Aging Skincare with doTERRA doTERRA Essential Skin Care is a family of skin care products designed to keep your skin feeling and looking young, healthy, and gorgeous by maximizing the natural power of essential oils. It includes cuttingedge technologies and essential oils to target the visible appearance of aging and prevent future signs.

The line gives you everything you need to keep your skin looking fresh and smooth, from a face wash to a nightly moisturizer. Particularly helpful is the AntiAging Eye Cream. It improves the skin around the eye, reducing the appearance of dark circles and puffiness. Use the Essential Skin Care Tightening Serum and Anti-Aging Moisturizer to reduce the appearance of wrinkles on your face, neck, and décolletage.

Essential oils for wrinkles and fine lines The powerhouse blend for anti-aging is Immortelle.

Immortelle blends powerfully renewing essential oils used throughout history for their beautifying benefits: Frankincense, Hawaiian Sandalwood, Lavender, Myrrh, Helichrysum, and Rose. This blend nourishes skin and helps to reduce factors that contribute to the appearance of aging skin. Apply the blend daily to fine lines around your desired areas.

Frankincense and Helichrysum are high in monoterpenes, which give many of their beautifying and renewing properties when applied topically.

Scientific research shows that Helichrysum helps to keep the skin looking young and healthy. It reduces the appearance of wrinkles and promotes a glowing complexion. Lavender is soothing to the skin, especially skin irritations, and is beneficial in improving skin imperfections. Hawaiian Sandalwood is well-

known for its skin benefiting properties and can help promote smooth skin. Try adding these oils to your nightly moisturizer or night cream to support a glowing complexion.

skin back to life. Used daily will promote a smooth, resilient, glowing complexion.

Other oils are also beneficial in promoting a smooth complexion. Add a drop of Geranium to your moisturizer to beautify your skin, or use doTERRA Neroli Touch to soothe and reduce the appearance of blemishes. Include Cypress into your skincare routine to help with oily skin.

Experts estimate nearly 80% of all essential oils on the market are adulterated in some way. If you've ever used an essential oil and thought, “Essential oils just don't work for me,” it's probably because you were using a diluted essential oil-maybe even an adulterated one. When this happens, the essential oil loses its potency, which results in it not having a noticeable effect.

An alternative is exquisite Veráge® Skin Care Collection

Why does quality matter?

The Veráge Skin Care Collection contains only the best natural ingredients of doTERRA essential oils, emollients, and plant extracts that will leave skin feeling nourished and hydrated while encouraging confidence through reduced signs of visible aging.

Veráge is an exclusive system of natural skin care products that nourish and hydrate skin. The advanced plant technology used in Veráge promotes the appearance of an optimal lipid balance-the same balance found in healthy, youthful-looking skin. Each product is composed of true gifts from the Earth: nourishing plant extracts, pure and potent CPTG® essential oils, and select natural ingredients. The doTERRA Veráge Skin Care Collection delivers results you can see and feel, naturally.

Harnessing powerful plant extracts, emollients, and CPTG® essential oils. Using the same stringent standards found in our CPTG® essential oils, the ingredients used in Veráge are of the highest quality and purity. Veráge has been scientifically formulated to provide a natural and efficacious system that brings

About Lezanne Shone I finished my studies at Isa Carstens Academy of Health & Skincare as a Certified Somatologist and Advanced Aesthetician with a Diploma in Advanced Aromatherapy by Eve Taylor from the UK. The wonder of Essential Oils always had me extremely interested in natural medicine and I never knew it will become such a huge and life changing part of my life after 22 years of a proven reputation. I was searching for a Certified Essential Oil company in South Africa for years with no results. Finally, doTERRA was introduced to me and after 6 months of intense research, and my wonderful and unexpected journey with doTERRA started at the end of April 2020 I am extremely passionate about Advanced Aesthetics in Health & Skincare, actively seeking to develop knowledge and skills to advance in this specialized field and this is exactly why doTERRA became part of my life. My biggest dream and passion is to change the lives of people around me and to have a positive influence in their lives with essential oils as a natural medicine.

Contact Details: Tel: 072 333 2464 Email: shonelezanne@gmail.com or visit: www.mydoterra.com/lezanne

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Essential Oils What to Look for When Buying Essential Oils.

In a market where every company claims to have “pure” essential oils, how do you really know if the oils you're using are pure?

How do you know if the essential oils you're buying are worthy of being used by you and your family?

Pure essential oils have an incredible potential to soothe, support, and revive you and your loved ones in a completely natural way.

If you want the best essential oils, find out if the company you plan to buy from takes the following precautions to ensure the quality of their oils: Sustainable and responsible sourcing Extensive and thorough testing Clear and accessible safety and usage information Transparency

What Makes doTERRA Different?

sources essential oils from all over the world.

We work with committed partners to ensure the best growing conditions and produce the purest, highest quality essential oils.

When you use a bottle of doTERRA essential oil, you're using an oil that is pure.There are no contaminants, fillers, or adulterations.

The essential oil industry did not have standards to ensure purity, so doTERRA created one.

Every batch of doTERRA essential oils goes through a rigorous testing process-well beyond what would be considered “good enough.” After that, each oil is sent to an independent third party for further testing and validation.

This exciting new opportunity of doTERRA Essential Oils in South Africa, especially in the Spa Industry as it allows strong leaders who have taken the step to run their own business, they are enterprising and understand all about commitment, and following their dreams. doTERRA Essential Oils is a great way for them to add more value to their existing service, strengthen their business and increase their income!

For more information:

Tel: 072 3332 464 Instagram: shonelezanne Email: shonelezanne@gmail.com Website: www.mydoterra.com/lezanne Facebook: www.facebook.com/LezanneShone

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Pregnancy Massage: As explained by Extracts Collection™

By Melanie Frost, Black Frost / Extracts Collection

At Extracts Collection™ we aim to have a positive impact on people’s lives by creating perfect little “me time” moments where people can connect with themselves. We believe that we you find you; you also find the balance.

Pregnancy massage has been valued as an effective therapy in nearly all cultures around the world for thousands of years. Dating back to India as part of their Ayurvedic culture just over 3000 years ago as well as documentation found in the early Greek and Minoan Civilizations dating back 5000 years ago, all state the benefits for mom and baby of regular pregnancy massage.

Pregnancy massage is a fast-growing must-have! A recent survey conducted revealed that 8 out of 10 pregnant women would love to receive regular pregnancy massages. More and more health care providers are recognizing the benefits their patients receive during pre-natal massages. Some hospitals now offer massage in their pre-natal units worldwide.

The nine months of pregnancy can be a rollercoaster of emotions for mom-to-be, from exhilaration to anxiety, stress, and happiness, you name it, you will experience it. Not only are your emotions highly charged, but physically your body will undergo massive changes to sustain and help develop your little bundle of Joy! The biggest cause hereof, are your massive hormonal changes. Although these hormones are essential for a healthy pregnancy, they can leave you feeling emotionally and physically exhausted. The escalation in progesterone and estrogen can cause you to experience extreme mood changes. The hormones can also cause pregnancy depression or anxiety, this should always be monitored by your physician.

Numerous anatomical and physiological changes occur during pregnancy that strain the muscles and skeleton, particularly the pelvis, which in turn may lead to discomfort and pain in the lower back, leg cramps and hip pain. The pelvis goes through a tilting process, whereby room is made for your growing baby and your uterus. As the pelvis tilts the spine also arches inward. This causes a change in the centre of gravity and in the later pregnancy stages causes the pregnancy waddle, your body is trying to accommodate skeletal changes. This change in centre of gravity now also places a lot of strain on the muscles – particularly the lower back region. Some expectant moms experience Sciatic pain which is a sharp shooting pain from either lower back or buttocks down to your lower legs, this is aggravated by muscle strain that irritate the Sciatic nerve.

Progesterone is one of the hormones that loosens all the smooth muscles & ligaments in the body allowing for the big 9 months stretch. This is an important effect needed for the growth of the baby, but the negative side is that, this is one of the major causes for your muscular discomfort.

Let us take an in-depth look at the numerous benefits regular pregnancy massage can offer you whether at home or at your nearest spa.

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Massage is known to stimulate the production of endorphins, the body’s built-in pain relief and mood enhancing neurotransmitters, you undoubtedly are familiar with the sensation the release of these hormones bring; they are behind the rush you get after a good exercise session, a laughing fit or particularly after a satisfying sex session to name a few.

In terms of mood enhancing and aiding anxiety and depression, Dr Tiffany Field pioneered the way for pregnancy massage studies. She is a director of the Touch Medical Institute in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Miami, School of Medicine. She is a renowned expert in the field of pregnancy massage based on data collected from many pregnant women.

She carefully divided the women into two test groups.

One group had regular pregnancy massage therapy sessions prior to birth and the other not. She had carefully questioned the woman during the stages of their pregnancy to analyze their mental state.

She concluded that woman who went for regular pregnancy massage had decreased depression, anxiety, leg & backpain. She also concluded that their Cortisol levels were decreased. Cortisol is what we refer to as the stress hormone that is released in your body and aggravates things like depression and anxiety. Not only does Pregnancy Massage elevate Endorphins but it also increases the release of Serotonin, which aids in better sleep as well as increased release of Dopamine which is another “feel good” hormone As your beautiful bump grows, the lower spine will curve inward to support your baby’s weight and the top of your spine will curve slightly outward to support the growth of your breasts. This change in posture causes the muscles along your spine and particularly on the lower back to take strain. This strain induces lactic acid release which causes the muscles in your back to become rigid and stiff and is accompanied by pain. Massaging this area with specialized and pregnancy safe massage techniques will help to stretch and smooth the rigid muscles as well as improve lymphatics and circulation in order to help release the toxic build up, allowing for fresh oxygenated blood to fill the area and heal. Not to mention how amazing and pain free you feel after a good massage!

The pregnancy hormone Relaxin is living up to its name. And we know now that many pregnant women experience hip pains in their second or third trimester.

Hip pain is usually caused by the loosening of the ligaments holding together the sacroiliac joints, which connect your spine to your pelvis. While this jointand-ligament relaxation helps with the birthing process, it can cause pain in your hips, lower back, and legs as the weight of your uterus bears down on your newly mobile bones and joints. It can result in inflammation, misalignment or bones grinding against bones. By using specialized pregnancy massage techniques, we can drastically reduce a pregnant mom’s discomfort in the hip area.

A pregnant woman’s circulatory system takes a big toll. Your body produces 50% more blood volume, so your circulatory system is working twice as hard to circulate blood through it. Massage activates the

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nervous system, which in turn causes the blood to circulate more freely, enhanced circulation improves oxygen in the blood, heart and arteries and allows her blood to flow more freely, preventing and minimizing the risk of Oedema. For your baby, massage during pregnancy increases systemic blood circulation, so oxygen and nutrients can reach the fetal cells, providing greater nourishment and a better health index for the growing baby. By stimulating and draining lymph, you will also experience an improvement in the feeling of fatigue and tiredness.

Swelling is a normal part of pregnancy that is caused by the additional blood volume. Normal swelling, which is also called Oedema, is experienced in the hands, face, legs, ankles, and feet. This extra retention of fluid is needed to soften the body, which enables it to expand as the baby develops. Swelling may be experienced at any point during pregnancy, but it tends to be noticed around the fifth month and can increase drastically in the third trimester. Factors that can increase Oedema are summertime heat, standing for long periods of time, long days of activity, diet low in potassium, high level of caffeine consumption and high level of sodium intake. To relieve Oedema, you must get fluid moving through and out the body, gentle pregnancy massage drainage techniques is ideal for this. A study published in the International Journal of Nursing Practice found that pregnant women, who were given 20min foot massages daily had significantly less Oedema than those who did not.

Headaches may occur at any time of your pregnancy, but they tend to be most common during the 1st and 3rd trimesters. During the 1st trimester, your pregnant body experiences a surge of hormones and an immediate increase in blood volume, these two changes can cause more frequent headaches.

Headaches may be further aggravated by stress, poor posture, or changes in your vision. Headaches during the 3rd trimester tend to be more related to poor posture and tension from carrying the extra weight. Regular pregnancy massage can help alleviate tension and stress in your back muscles which could offer instant relief after a pregnancy massage session.

We now know that stress plays a major factor in the risk of preterm labor, we have also established that regular pregnancy massage can reduce our stress hormones and elevate our happy ones. As per the study done by Dr Tiffany Field, the findings in her study groups was that the women who had regular pregnancy massages reduced the risk of preterm labor drastically as well as experiencing significantly less labor pain and the study revealed that their labors were 3hrs shorter on average.

With all these benefits, we believe that a pregnant woman should have massage at the top of her ninemonths-bucket list! You can either request your trained therapist to book for @ Home Massages or why not get your partner to skill up and get their hands massaging….

For more information on our training, products and services go check us out at www.extractscollection.com or email@mel@blackfrostsa.co.za

spa business You have probably heard the term "Influencer" applied to social media stars with significant followings. An influencer gets people to buy things by promoting them on their platforms to their followers.

As a marketer, using an influencer might be a way to promote your product or services. Understanding the science behind how influence works psychologically might help you be successful at it.

Want to Become an Influencer?

Here is the Science Behind How to Do This…

By Colin Shaw - Why Customers Buy

Social media and online platforms have widened which sources we can use to find influencers, too, and often on a narrow topic. Back in 2002, I founded my global Customer Experience consultancy, Beyond Philosophy, I fancied myself an influencer on Customer Experience, and I was. The problem was nobody knew what a Customer Experience was back then.

Now, twenty years later, I have hundreds of thousands of followers, and I provide content to them related to my area of expertise.

Another example of an influencer is a fashion or sports expert who has a Vlog that people watch to find out the latest trends or developments. For example, my podcast partner Ryan follows woodworkers on Instagram and YouTube. Within the woodworking community, these carpenters are very influential. Ryan says people care about what these experts have to say about different types of tools or other styles of furniture making. One thing all these influences have in common is that we choose them. That means it was a conscious decision to be influenced by the source.

However, there are subconscious influencers, too.

We have subconscious influences because we have these two systems of thinking: the Intuitive System (fast, automatic) and the Rational System (slow, deliberate). The Intuitive System is always on and always processing information. It is the part of your brain taking in that information all the time. You don't read all the billboards when you drive down the highway. Instead, you are looking at the road in front of you, not focused on them (I hope). But your Intuitive System sees them subconsciously, influencing you in subtle ways.

Another example is the pens in brick-and-mortar bank locations that often have chains attached to a bar. You might have noticed the pens on the chains consciously. However, subconsciously, you might have thought, "They don't trust me to leave the pen."

Your conscious mind sees pens on chains; your subconscious mind sees a warning for your penspecific kleptomaniacal tendencies.

The Famous Milgram Experiment Another excellent example of subconscious influence is the Milgram Experiment regarding obedience.

Basically, in the Milgram experiment, nice, normal people administered fatal shocks to the other participants. Why? The nice, normal people administered fatal shocks to the other person because the person wearing the white lab coat told them to do it—and even when they could hear the other participant's screams of pain. The good news is that no one administered shocks, and the screams were pre-recorded. The bad news is that these nice, normal people didn't know that at the time. However, they did know the person in the white coat told them they had to keep going with the shocks, so they did.

60

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Milgram ran the same type of study repeatedly and changed various things. One of the things that he changed was whether the experimenter wore the

white lab coat. Their findings were that people were more compliant when the person in charge of the experiment was wearing a white lab coat. The presence of that white lab coat is critical. We see it and know it, but its influence on us is subconscious.

So, nobody in the Milgram experiment thought consciously, "Oh, well, this person is wearing a white lab coat. Therefore, they must be a doctor. Therefore, I must listen to what they say." However, that is what happened at a subconscious level.

Your Experience Has Subconscious Influences on People, Too There are many ways that your experience sends subconscious cues to people. For example, the dress code of the employees can send a signal. If it's casual, like t-shirts and jeans vs. suits and ties, you have a different impression of where you are. Neither one is better than the other, per se. It depends on what you want people to feel. So, if you want customers to feel comfortable asking employees for help, casual might be appropriate. On the other hand, a professional dress code might be appropriate if you're projecting an image of authority or competence in an area.

Many organizations don't think about these subconscious influences. But, of course, they are still there, but the difference is that the subconscious effects were not designed or deliberate. We have a service called Customer Mirrors, where we act as a customer. When we do this, we find all the subconscious cues. For example, hotels are great at this. Sometimes, a hotel bakes in the afternoons, so you walk into the smell. Then, in the morning, you smell coffee, which for most is an essential comfort.

Logos can have a deliberate design, too. For example, the FedEx logo has an arrow between the E and the X. Another example is how Amazon has an arrow from the "a" to the "z," but it also looks like a smile.These logos are not this way by accident. They are by design and meant to influence you.

Another pitfall to avoid product placement that has an annoying effect. If it stands out enough that your audience recognizes product placement is happening, it could have the opposite effect you intended. Instead of drawing the audience to your product, poorly executed placement pushes them away.

Some of the success depends on your brand. Some audiences might recognize your brand and want your version of the watch, which might work. However, if you are new to the space, this subtle, more subconscious influence might not be as successful.

The key takeaway here is that it is essential to understand the audience you are trying to get and what you want them to do. If you do not understand the audience's state of readiness, then you might miss the mark.

So, What Should You Do With This Information?

Another essential point to remember is that we have subconscious influences because we have these two systems in our mind, the Intuitive System (fast, automatic) and The Rational System (slow, deliberate).

The Intuitive System is always on and processing information. It is the part of your brain taking in that information all the time. For example, you don't read all the billboards when you drive down the highway.

But your Intuitive System still sees the billboards subconsciously, influencing you in subtle ways.

One of the most important things you need to remember about influences at a psychological level is that they are already there, whether you planned them or not. There are conscious and subconscious influences built into our world everywhere. The critical thing to remember about influence is being deliberate about what you are doing.

You have to go down into the granular of the detail and say, "Is this part of my experience deliberate?"

As a firm, you should think about the employee dress code, as I talked about before. At the retail level, you might consider how you present your store.

There are different ways social media influencers go about their job. Some take the upfront and deliberate tack where they tell you about their sponsor and do a commercial for them. Others might not say they are sponsored by "The Wonderful Widget Company" and instead will wear a Wonderful Widget Company T-shirt in their video while their post is about something else. These would be more subconscious influencers than the first group that acts as a spokesperson.

Soundscapes and fragrance are another example of deliberate design of subconscious influences. So, to summarize, the sounds that people hear in your experience can help influence their behavior, too. So, are you thinking about these things? What message is your employee dress code sending? What message is your store design and decor sending? You are already sending a message. The question is, are you doing it intelligently and deliberately?

As a marketer, if you are going to use influencers this way, you should consider a few key questions: • Is the influencer's audience who you want to reach?

• What is the influencer's level of knowledge?

• How motivated is the influencer to produce content?

• How specific does that influencer's message need to be to reach your target audience?

Also, it is essential to remember that there are limits to what you can do subconsciously. If you want to use non-conscious influence, it will be most helpful if you are already the dominant brand in that space.

If you remember the watch example from earlier, it's easier to get people to buy luxury watches with a subconscious influence than to buy a specific luxury watch brand. It is infinitely more challenging to get people to buy a luxury watch brand that isn't well established. That's too much to ask of the nonconscious influences in your marketing strategy.

For example, a general audience might see an influencer wearing a distinctive watch, but will that subconscious message be enough to drive sales of your watch? It may or may not. Their subconscious influence might motivate people to wear watches of that general style if they think it is fashionable.

However, that influencer's style or interaction with their following might not be enough to motivate sales of your specific brand.

So, there you have it—a basic science-based explanation for how influence works. People have conscious and subconscious effects on them all the time. So, hopefully, you can find the right formula for your product or service to influence your customers to take advantage of what you have to offer, positively impacting your bottom line.

spa business You have probably heard the term "Influencer" applied to social media stars with significant followings. An influencer gets people to buy things by promoting them on their platforms to their followers.

As a marketer, using an influencer might be a way to promote your product or services. Understanding the science behind how influence works psychologically might help you be successful at it.

Want to Become an Influencer?

Here is the Science Behind How to Do This…

By Colin Shaw - Why Customers Buy

Social media and online platforms have widened which sources we can use to find influencers, too, and often on a narrow topic. Back in 2002, I founded my global Customer Experience consultancy, Beyond Philosophy, I fancied myself an influencer on Customer Experience, and I was. The problem was nobody knew what a Customer Experience was back then.

Now, twenty years later, I have hundreds of thousands of followers, and I provide content to them related to my area of expertise.

Another example of an influencer is a fashion or sports expert who has a Vlog that people watch to find out the latest trends or developments. For example, my podcast partner Ryan follows woodworkers on Instagram and YouTube. Within the woodworking community, these carpenters are very influential. Ryan says people care about what these experts have to say about different types of tools or other styles of furniture making. One thing all these influences have in common is that we choose them. That means it was a conscious decision to be influenced by the source.

However, there are subconscious influencers, too.

We have subconscious influences because we have these two systems of thinking: the Intuitive System (fast, automatic) and the Rational System (slow, deliberate). The Intuitive System is always on and always processing information. It is the part of your brain taking in that information all the time. You don't read all the billboards when you drive down the highway. Instead, you are looking at the road in front of you, not focused on them (I hope). But your Intuitive System sees them subconsciously, influencing you in subtle ways.

Another example is the pens in brick-and-mortar bank locations that often have chains attached to a bar. You might have noticed the pens on the chains consciously. However, subconsciously, you might have thought, "They don't trust me to leave the pen."

Your conscious mind sees pens on chains; your subconscious mind sees a warning for your penspecific kleptomaniacal tendencies.

The Famous Milgram Experiment Another excellent example of subconscious influence is the Milgram Experiment regarding obedience.

Basically, in the Milgram experiment, nice, normal people administered fatal shocks to the other participants. Why? The nice, normal people administered fatal shocks to the other person because the person wearing the white lab coat told them to do it—and even when they could hear the other participant's screams of pain. The good news is that no one administered shocks, and the screams were pre-recorded. The bad news is that these nice, normal people didn't know that at the time. However, they did know the person in the white coat told them they had to keep going with the shocks, so they did.

60

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

Milgram ran the same type of study repeatedly and changed various things. One of the things that he changed was whether the experimenter wore the

white lab coat. Their findings were that people were more compliant when the person in charge of the experiment was wearing a white lab coat. The presence of that white lab coat is critical. We see it and know it, but its influence on us is subconscious.

So, nobody in the Milgram experiment thought consciously, "Oh, well, this person is wearing a white lab coat. Therefore, they must be a doctor. Therefore, I must listen to what they say." However, that is what happened at a subconscious level.

Your Experience Has Subconscious Influences on People, Too There are many ways that your experience sends subconscious cues to people. For example, the dress code of the employees can send a signal. If it's casual, like t-shirts and jeans vs. suits and ties, you have a different impression of where you are. Neither one is better than the other, per se. It depends on what you want people to feel. So, if you want customers to feel comfortable asking employees for help, casual might be appropriate. On the other hand, a professional dress code might be appropriate if you're projecting an image of authority or competence in an area.

Many organizations don't think about these subconscious influences. But, of course, they are still there, but the difference is that the subconscious effects were not designed or deliberate. We have a service called Customer Mirrors, where we act as a customer. When we do this, we find all the subconscious cues. For example, hotels are great at this. Sometimes, a hotel bakes in the afternoons, so you walk into the smell. Then, in the morning, you smell coffee, which for most is an essential comfort.

Logos can have a deliberate design, too. For example, the FedEx logo has an arrow between the E and the X. Another example is how Amazon has an arrow from the "a" to the "z," but it also looks like a smile.These logos are not this way by accident. They are by design and meant to influence you.

Another pitfall to avoid product placement that has an annoying effect. If it stands out enough that your audience recognizes product placement is happening, it could have the opposite effect you intended. Instead of drawing the audience to your product, poorly executed placement pushes them away.

Some of the success depends on your brand. Some audiences might recognize your brand and want your version of the watch, which might work. However, if you are new to the space, this subtle, more subconscious influence might not be as successful.

The key takeaway here is that it is essential to understand the audience you are trying to get and what you want them to do. If you do not understand the audience's state of readiness, then you might miss the mark.

So, What Should You Do With This Information?

Another essential point to remember is that we have subconscious influences because we have these two systems in our mind, the Intuitive System (fast, automatic) and The Rational System (slow, deliberate).

The Intuitive System is always on and processing information. It is the part of your brain taking in that information all the time. For example, you don't read all the billboards when you drive down the highway.

But your Intuitive System still sees the billboards subconsciously, influencing you in subtle ways.

One of the most important things you need to remember about influences at a psychological level is that they are already there, whether you planned them or not. There are conscious and subconscious influences built into our world everywhere. The critical thing to remember about influence is being deliberate about what you are doing.

You have to go down into the granular of the detail and say, "Is this part of my experience deliberate?"

As a firm, you should think about the employee dress code, as I talked about before. At the retail level, you might consider how you present your store.

There are different ways social media influencers go about their job. Some take the upfront and deliberate tack where they tell you about their sponsor and do a commercial for them. Others might not say they are sponsored by "The Wonderful Widget Company" and instead will wear a Wonderful Widget Company T-shirt in their video while their post is about something else. These would be more subconscious influencers than the first group that acts as a spokesperson.

Soundscapes and fragrance are another example of deliberate design of subconscious influences. So, to summarize, the sounds that people hear in your experience can help influence their behavior, too. So, are you thinking about these things? What message is your employee dress code sending? What message is your store design and decor sending? You are already sending a message. The question is, are you doing it intelligently and deliberately?

As a marketer, if you are going to use influencers this way, you should consider a few key questions: • Is the influencer's audience who you want to reach?

• What is the influencer's level of knowledge?

• How motivated is the influencer to produce content?

• How specific does that influencer's message need to be to reach your target audience?

Also, it is essential to remember that there are limits to what you can do subconsciously. If you want to use non-conscious influence, it will be most helpful if you are already the dominant brand in that space.

If you remember the watch example from earlier, it's easier to get people to buy luxury watches with a subconscious influence than to buy a specific luxury watch brand. It is infinitely more challenging to get people to buy a luxury watch brand that isn't well established. That's too much to ask of the nonconscious influences in your marketing strategy.

For example, a general audience might see an influencer wearing a distinctive watch, but will that subconscious message be enough to drive sales of your watch? It may or may not. Their subconscious influence might motivate people to wear watches of that general style if they think it is fashionable.

However, that influencer's style or interaction with their following might not be enough to motivate sales of your specific brand.

So, there you have it—a basic science-based explanation for how influence works. People have conscious and subconscious effects on them all the time. So, hopefully, you can find the right formula for your product or service to influence your customers to take advantage of what you have to offer, positively impacting your bottom line.

spa business

By Arianna Huffington, Founder & CEO of Thrive

It’s Time to Turn the Mental Health Conversation From Awareness to Action All around the world, organizations and individuals are raising awareness about the scope of our mental health crisis.

And it is a crisis. More than 300 million people struggle with depression, making it the world’s leading cause of disability. Every 40 seconds, someone loses their life to suicide. As The Guardian put it in a headline last year: “World in mental health crisis of ‘monumental suffering,’ say experts.”

When a problem is so huge and so daunting, it’s easy to feel paralyzed and helpless. That’s why the best use of this moment is to shift from general, bigpicture awareness to actionable steps that support mental well-being. And people want and need help taking action: 91% of Americans say ignoring or not knowing their warning signs of overstress has had a negative impact on their mental well-being, according to a Thrive Global survey. Nearly three-quarters of respondents said they wish they knew more small everyday steps to improve their mental well-being, and half say that when it comes to managing stress, they don’t know where to start.

The goal is to help people spot the warning signs of mental health challenges so that they can seek the help they need, make the changes they need to make, and live the lives they want — not just the lives they settle for.

The good news is that the table is set for this shift.

Years of campaigns have moved mental health awareness from the margins to the mainstream.

Schools are talking about it. Police departments are talking about it. More and more prominent people, from pop stars and politicians to pro athletes and members of the British royal family, are chipping away at the stigma by sharing their own stories and struggles.

So what does it mean to make a shift from awareness to action? In the face of a global crisis, what can any one of us, as individuals, realistically do?

The answer lies in the science. Researchers at Stanford

62

Medicine are revolutionizing the way we understand our own stress, empowering us to take meaningful action to manage the impact of stress in our everyday lives.

Dr. Leanne Williams, Director of Stanford’s Precision Mental Health and Wellness Center, has used highdefinition brain imaging technology to characterize eight different kinds of “short circuits” that occur in the brain when we experience persistent negative stress we feel we can’t control, called biotypes.

Understanding the thoughts, emotions, and patterns associated with each biotype, can lead to an understanding of the moments and scenarios when we struggle most — and what actions can help with depression or anxiety.

Think of it as spotting the signals in ourselves. We’re good at doing this for our physical health. When we notice symptoms like sniffling or a sore throat, we know we might have a cold coming on. And we know there are things we can do to get out in front of a cold in preventative ways.

But until now, we haven’t had the right cultural conversations to encourage taking upstream action when it comes to mental health. That’s what makes this moment so promising.

Everyone has their own way of responding to negative stress. I know that I, for example, have always had a tendency to ruminate. It’s a kind of obsessive thinking and rethinking around negative experiences, mistakes, interactions. I’ve been speaking in public for decades, but I still remember all the times I’ve ever made a mistake in a speech — I go back, selfedit, beat myself up for being imperfect, even when I’m pretty sure no one noticed it but me. It’s like being stuck in a loop, with consequences on my productivity, focus, and ability to find joy in the present. These are all qualities associated with the biotype Rumination. The other biotypes Dr. Williams has identified are Negative Bias, Anxious Avoidance, Threat Response, Emotional Numbness, Inattention, Cognitive Fog, and Context Insensitivity.

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

At Thrive Global, we’ve partnered with Stanford Medicine faculty to combine this research with Thrive’s behavior change expertise, helping individuals and companies take actionable Microsteps to build healthy habits that fuel greater well-being and performance. In order to have the biggest possible impact, we’ve created Thriving Mind, a digital mental well-being program that speaks directly to people navigating the stresses and demands of the 21st century workplace.

And, launching on World Mental Health Day, will be a Thriving Mind special section of our site, helping people raise awareness of the brain science and biotypes, and sharing Microsteps that help us build self-awareness — and then turn that self-awareness into healthy new habits. Thrive Global will also be sharing the personal stories of role models, including Taraji P. Henson, and running op-eds from thought leaders offering action-oriented takes on the mental health issues many of us face, such as anxiety in the workplace, financial stress, loneliness, the specific stress racial minorities face, and much more.

The mental health crisis is also directly tied to the stress epidemic. While stress in itself isn’t bad, it’s when stress becomes cumulative that it takes a toll on mental health. The trouble is, the hyper-connected, always-on way of working and living is practically designed to heap negative stress. We’ve been conditioned to power through, never taking a moment to recharge ourselves. We’ve built our entire definition of success around it. It’s a definition of success that works for a while — until it doesn’t.

That’s why learning to build self-awareness is so important. When we know ourselves — the sources of our stress, how we respond, and what actions help us recharge — we’re far better able to minimize the damage. We can’t eliminate stress, but we can learn to manage it. And we can do the same with mental health challenges.

spa business Employee experience and wellness are hot topics in design circles as employers of all industries face the "Great Resignation" – the phrase that refers to the roughly million of people worldwide who have quit their jobs since Spring 2021.

The hospitality, spa and wellness industry has been particularly hard hit by this trend. According to analytics firm Visier, a record-breaking 1 million workers in wellness and hospitality left the field in November alone, citing reasons including the desire for greater flexibility, opportunities to work from home and feeling undervalued and overworked.

While companies have long prioritized the guest experience, our team is also focused on how to prioritize the staff and therapist experience because we know great design can be a game-changer for talent recruitment and retention.

Here are four ways to elevate the workplace experience for hotel, spa and wellness employees:

1. Bring in the Green From the reception that feature an abundance of plant fauna to the use of natural materials like wood and bamboo to mimic the outdoors, biophilia is increasingly on display in wellness environments.

Spaces are being redefined by an influx of natureoriented design.

Even before the pandemic, designers were on the hunt for ways to bring the most compelling aspects of the outdoors to receptions and treatment rooms.

Biophilic elements have the effect of boosting the overall wellbeing of users by enhancing feelings of calmness and relaxation. These benefits can extend beyond the immediate wellness experience, by also benefiting from these "green" features to support their own needs at work. In an often hectic, fastpaced environment, a touch of green goes a long way in keeping morale high.

Drawing heavily from the natural landscape, the project has no true delineation between indoor and outdoor spaces. Instead, a harmonious blend between the interior design and exterior design creates a "jewel in the woods" effect that is carried throughout the wellness institute.

Designing a Great Workplace for Spa & Wellness Employees

Access to natural light, greenery and earthy materials makes a world of a difference. Owners and operators who recognize the value in biophilia for both guests, therapists and all staff can better capture the upper echelon of hospitality talent.

By Alex Lopatynsky - Managing Director, Cooper Carry

Going hand-in-hand with biophilia is an abundance of fresh air, where outdoor amenities like rooftops lounges and trail networks are ruling the day in wellness environments. The outdoors has become an important part of the experience, as experts are encouraged to step outside and explore the area on foot or soak in views of the water, mountains or city skyline.

2. Investing in the Great Outdoors

Consider the benefit of an employee-owned outdoor gathering space, such as a private nook with

64

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

comfortable lounge seating or shaded areas to enjoy lunch with coworkers. Employee dining rooms are a great place to add these outdoor experiences.

And they should look and feel great, too, reflecting the same level of care applied to guest areas. Gone are the days of break areas paved in concrete and lacking inspiration. When employees head outside, the atmosphere should be in line with what they need to feel refreshed and ready to tackle their next task.

3. Rest & Relaxation Wellness employees are no strangers to stress, but their work environments shouldn't add fuel to the fire. Building in opportunities to exercise mindfulness in work routines helps employees manage the everyday stressors inherent to the business. After all, a well-rested therapist is better able to help clients enjoy a stress-free wellness experience.

First seen prior to the pandemic, the adoption of wellness aids like meditation rooms is accelerating and seeking out ways to minimize daily anxieties.

Offering a quiet space for employees to reset during the workday fosters a comfortable atmosphere where employees feel heard and valued.

From a design perspective, these spaces should echo the biophilic, luxury nature of the rest of the facility. Think a variety of live plants, windows that look out onto views, and comfortable seating that invites employees to get centered.

Mental fatigue is another common issue that can impact an therapist’s mindset. One design strategy to counter this is by making sure there is enough variation between spaces that stimulate inspiration.

Bold splashes of color, eclectic art pieces and textural and tonal changes activate an upbeat environment that keeps employees engaged and interested in their work.

4. Amped Up Health Feeling well isn't only a matter of mindset, it's also a physical pursuit. As spa manager / owner should consider ways to modernize their buildings, investing in state-of-the-art fitness programming and a palette of health-focused dining options should be at the top of the list when trying to attract the next generation of wellness employees.

Highly-amenitized environments are magnets for guests who appreciate the ability to continue their at-home routines on the road, and for employees who are drawn to workplaces with a vested interest in their health. Think two-level fitness centers lined with bikes and the latest elliptical equipment. Or group programming like Pilates or Barre on an outdoor terrace with views of the glimmering skyline.

And this commitment to wellness also applies to the food, in that wellnes employees want more than just a simple cafe / take away options. Beyond perks like free coffee or snacks, the dining experience for employees should focus on healthful sit-down and grab-and-go concepts that deliver premium feelgood vibes.

5. Elevating Back of House Space To make sure all employees feel valued and respected, it's crucial that back of house employee spaces are equal across the board. Whether the property is a budget hotel in a rural setting or a luxury resort in the tropics, the employee experience should be thoughtfully designed and attentive to their needs.

Facilities that will be most successful in recruiting and retaining top talent are those that see merit in creating comfortable back of house spaces for employees of all levels. For instance, consider a management office with operable windows that allow for fresh air and natural light. Another consideration is employee-only dining rooms or outdoor patios with access to healthy food options.

These small details have a big impact on productivity and retention.

While the Great Resignation has presented great challenges for the hospitality, wellness and spa sector, there is an opportunity to shift gears and bring about a better workplace experience for employees. Like clients, employees are now requiring a more tailored approach to design in order to get them in the door and keep them there. We look forward to seeing the new kinds of welness spaces, particularly those that are designed with employees in mind.

About Alex Lopatynsky, AIA, WELL AP (prov) is Principal and Managing Director of design firm Cooper Carry's New York Office. Ms. Lopatynsky leads Cooper Carry's growth in the Northeast, manages the firm's New York presence, and oversees the design of creative and complex projects that span multiple building types and design disciplines.

She received her Bachelor of Architecture from Pratt Institute School of Architecture, Brooklyn, NY, and Rome, Italy. Ms. Lopatynsky is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), NEWH - the Hospitality Industry Network, and CREW New York. She is a licensed architect in several states including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Extended Biography & Contact Information Article published by coutesty of HotelExecutive.

spa business Employee experience and wellness are hot topics in design circles as employers of all industries face the "Great Resignation" – the phrase that refers to the roughly million of people worldwide who have quit their jobs since Spring 2021.

The hospitality, spa and wellness industry has been particularly hard hit by this trend. According to analytics firm Visier, a record-breaking 1 million workers in wellness and hospitality left the field in November alone, citing reasons including the desire for greater flexibility, opportunities to work from home and feeling undervalued and overworked.

While companies have long prioritized the guest experience, our team is also focused on how to prioritize the staff and therapist experience because we know great design can be a game-changer for talent recruitment and retention.

Here are four ways to elevate the workplace experience for hotel, spa and wellness employees:

1. Bring in the Green From the reception that feature an abundance of plant fauna to the use of natural materials like wood and bamboo to mimic the outdoors, biophilia is increasingly on display in wellness environments.

Spaces are being redefined by an influx of natureoriented design.

Even before the pandemic, designers were on the hunt for ways to bring the most compelling aspects of the outdoors to receptions and treatment rooms.

Biophilic elements have the effect of boosting the overall wellbeing of users by enhancing feelings of calmness and relaxation. These benefits can extend beyond the immediate wellness experience, by also benefiting from these "green" features to support their own needs at work. In an often hectic, fastpaced environment, a touch of green goes a long way in keeping morale high.

Drawing heavily from the natural landscape, the project has no true delineation between indoor and outdoor spaces. Instead, a harmonious blend between the interior design and exterior design creates a "jewel in the woods" effect that is carried throughout the wellness institute.

Designing a Great Workplace for Spa & Wellness Employees

Access to natural light, greenery and earthy materials makes a world of a difference. Owners and operators who recognize the value in biophilia for both guests, therapists and all staff can better capture the upper echelon of hospitality talent.

By Alex Lopatynsky - Managing Director, Cooper Carry

Going hand-in-hand with biophilia is an abundance of fresh air, where outdoor amenities like rooftops lounges and trail networks are ruling the day in wellness environments. The outdoors has become an important part of the experience, as experts are encouraged to step outside and explore the area on foot or soak in views of the water, mountains or city skyline.

2. Investing in the Great Outdoors

Consider the benefit of an employee-owned outdoor gathering space, such as a private nook with

64

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

comfortable lounge seating or shaded areas to enjoy lunch with coworkers. Employee dining rooms are a great place to add these outdoor experiences.

And they should look and feel great, too, reflecting the same level of care applied to guest areas. Gone are the days of break areas paved in concrete and lacking inspiration. When employees head outside, the atmosphere should be in line with what they need to feel refreshed and ready to tackle their next task.

3. Rest & Relaxation Wellness employees are no strangers to stress, but their work environments shouldn't add fuel to the fire. Building in opportunities to exercise mindfulness in work routines helps employees manage the everyday stressors inherent to the business. After all, a well-rested therapist is better able to help clients enjoy a stress-free wellness experience.

First seen prior to the pandemic, the adoption of wellness aids like meditation rooms is accelerating and seeking out ways to minimize daily anxieties.

Offering a quiet space for employees to reset during the workday fosters a comfortable atmosphere where employees feel heard and valued.

From a design perspective, these spaces should echo the biophilic, luxury nature of the rest of the facility. Think a variety of live plants, windows that look out onto views, and comfortable seating that invites employees to get centered.

Mental fatigue is another common issue that can impact an therapist’s mindset. One design strategy to counter this is by making sure there is enough variation between spaces that stimulate inspiration.

Bold splashes of color, eclectic art pieces and textural and tonal changes activate an upbeat environment that keeps employees engaged and interested in their work.

4. Amped Up Health Feeling well isn't only a matter of mindset, it's also a physical pursuit. As spa manager / owner should consider ways to modernize their buildings, investing in state-of-the-art fitness programming and a palette of health-focused dining options should be at the top of the list when trying to attract the next generation of wellness employees.

Highly-amenitized environments are magnets for guests who appreciate the ability to continue their at-home routines on the road, and for employees who are drawn to workplaces with a vested interest in their health. Think two-level fitness centers lined with bikes and the latest elliptical equipment. Or group programming like Pilates or Barre on an outdoor terrace with views of the glimmering skyline.

And this commitment to wellness also applies to the food, in that wellnes employees want more than just a simple cafe / take away options. Beyond perks like free coffee or snacks, the dining experience for employees should focus on healthful sit-down and grab-and-go concepts that deliver premium feelgood vibes.

5. Elevating Back of House Space To make sure all employees feel valued and respected, it's crucial that back of house employee spaces are equal across the board. Whether the property is a budget hotel in a rural setting or a luxury resort in the tropics, the employee experience should be thoughtfully designed and attentive to their needs.

Facilities that will be most successful in recruiting and retaining top talent are those that see merit in creating comfortable back of house spaces for employees of all levels. For instance, consider a management office with operable windows that allow for fresh air and natural light. Another consideration is employee-only dining rooms or outdoor patios with access to healthy food options.

These small details have a big impact on productivity and retention.

While the Great Resignation has presented great challenges for the hospitality, wellness and spa sector, there is an opportunity to shift gears and bring about a better workplace experience for employees. Like clients, employees are now requiring a more tailored approach to design in order to get them in the door and keep them there. We look forward to seeing the new kinds of welness spaces, particularly those that are designed with employees in mind.

About Alex Lopatynsky, AIA, WELL AP (prov) is Principal and Managing Director of design firm Cooper Carry's New York Office. Ms. Lopatynsky leads Cooper Carry's growth in the Northeast, manages the firm's New York presence, and oversees the design of creative and complex projects that span multiple building types and design disciplines.

She received her Bachelor of Architecture from Pratt Institute School of Architecture, Brooklyn, NY, and Rome, Italy. Ms. Lopatynsky is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), NEWH - the Hospitality Industry Network, and CREW New York. She is a licensed architect in several states including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Extended Biography & Contact Information Article published by coutesty of HotelExecutive.

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By Deepak Chopra, MD

How to Make the Best Decisions In difficult times life seems to be full of risks and attempting to avoid threats is the only strategy anyone seems to follow. We fear worst-case scenarios, and almost automatically worst-case scenarios become a habitual way of looking at the world. No matter how much you try to avoid risks, however, and minimize threats, happiness is degraded by anxiety.

If you grow old and look back on your life saying, “I was extremely careful,” that’s not the same as looking back and saying, “I created a happy life for myself.”

What’s needed is a path of happiness that avoids risks without fixating on them. It is possible to be free of anxiety on a path to fulfillment. The key lies in the decisions you make from day to day, both large and small. If your decision-making promotes happiness, you have found the right strategy, not only from day to day but for a lifetime.

At the place where decision-making is seriously studied - mostly at business schools and departments of government, risk and reward are the dominant factors. To reach a rational decision, both sides are calculated mathematically, and the result gives you the ratio of risk to reward (in simple terms, this is like calculating the odds of winning). This approach ignores the fact that all decisions are human. There's no machine that can be programmed to make only right decisions for us. History tells us that the greatest decisions always involved a combination of human genius, passion, determination, unforeseen consequences, and human foibles.

But what does this mean for you and the decisions you must make? It means that if you want to make good decisions, you should make them with full awareness of the human situation. If instead you try to reduce every big decision to a dry, rational computation, you will shut out the very things that go into a good decision.

So, what makes a decision good? There are four human elements that go beyond simple rational thinking (rational thinking still counts, of course).

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Emotions - Your choice must fit in with your most positive emotions and avoid negative ones.

Self - Your decision must match who you are as a person.

Vision - Your decision must accord with your longterm goals.

Surroundings - Your decision must be compatible with the situation you find yourself in.

These are the ingredients present in great leaders, and it's ironic that the human factor is almost completely ignored when case studies focus so much on risk versus reward, flow charts, statistical trends, market movement, etc. The obvious lesson is to welcome the human element. It can't be eliminated anyway, not in the real world. If you embrace your human side with total awareness, your decisions will turn out to be win-win. Either you will make the right decision, or if something goes wrong, you will learn from your mistakes and march forward to make better decisions in the future. This is the attitude that highly successful people generally adopt.

The four human elements require you to be selfaware, alert, and flexible.

Emotions: Good decisions feel optimistic. They aren't based on fear, rivalry, anger, or greed. They express positive emotions, while bad decisions express negative emotions. People tend to deny this simple truth, but denial is a negative emotion also. When a situation is rife with tension, decision-making become clouded. Even so, it's the person who can feel his (or her) way forward without panic, who can stay centered emotionally, who will inevitably find the best solution. There is a level where solutions exist inside us, and it is blocked by negative emotions.

This level is open when a person is quietly centered without emotional drama.

Self: Success in life depends much more on who you are than what you do. If you keep building a sense of self based on expanded awareness, moving steadily toward maturity, self-confidence, self-reliance, and knowing your own truth, you will make better

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’86

and better decisions as your path unfolds. Self isn't ego. It is the calm, secure core of who you are. Ego is the drive to satisfy the demands of "I, me, and mine." We all have egos, but highly successful people have learned to act from their true selves.

Vision: Vision is the captain of the ship of life.

Everyone experiences a host of shifting emotions, thoughts, and desires. These form the daily jumble that occupies our minds, and quite a lot of the time a single strong impulse influences the next decision we make. Vision turns the jumble into a coherent perspective, turning chaos into order. "I know who I am" goes with "I know where I'm going." You know what you're passionate about. You follow your highest aspirations. When successful people have survived immense crisis and challenge, what got them through was their vision.

Surroundings: All decisions are made in a context. You can't reduce decisions to a formula that fits every circumstance. They are always fighters or always compromisers. They always embrace risk or always avoid it. If you follow a fixed formula in your decision-making, you aren’t fated always to meet with failure, but you won't be flexible, dynamic, and adaptable either. Good decisions require you to assess the situation you find yourself in. This is one area where rationality actually gives you an advantage as you gather information, study the variables that must be considered, and perform indepth analysis. Yet even here, the best decisions are made by someone who can feel their way along, not by someone who relies entirely on data.

All of these elements teach the same thing: If you commit yourself as completely as possible to making your decisions human, in the best sense of the word, you will be using the secret ingredient that too many others have ignored but which has created greatness in some. Without aspiring to greatness, you should aspire to the goal of a fulfilled and happy life that you yourself created.

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6 Reasons Why Leaders Should Prioritize Self-Care “Self-care” is one of those phrases that’s on everyone’s lips these days, but the concept isn’t well understood.

It’s not selfish or self-centered to prioritize your wellbeing. Self-care is also not a luxury. When you take care of yourself, you feel positive, you can do your job, and you help others on the team feel better too.

like to exercise or read, while others do a bit of meditation. Meanwhile, an end-of-day routine focusing on relaxing activities can help you sleep better. These rituals will vary from person to person, but the important thing is to create a routine that works for you and stick with it.

Think of self-care as a way of showing others that you respect them enough to show up to work with your best face forward. When you take the extra effort to function at your best, it encourages others to do the same. Self-care is a win-win for you, your team, and your company.

2. Self-care makes you feel happier, and happiness is contagious.

However, while many leaders acknowledge the importance of self-care, it can be challenging to know where to begin. Sometimes that’s because leaders have put others first for so long that they don’t even consider their own well-being a priority anymore.

Other times, leaders get around to caring for themselves only after they start to feel the effects of burnout. But self-care works better when you’re proactive about it, and the great news is that it doesn’t have to be time-consuming.

Especially this year, when managers are feeling more burned out than ever before and they’ve experienced steeper declines in engagement than their employees, it’s vitally important that well-being regains its status as a top priority. And there are numerous benefits you can look forward to when you do this — so let’s take a look.

Self-care is a proven way to regulate your emotions and keep negative feelings in check. This is important because emotions are catching — meaning, those around you can pick up on how you’re feeling, even across a computer screen. If you consistently ignore your own well-being and are exhausted, stressed, or frustrated, your team members will surely pick up on this. Whereas if you’re refreshed and energized, they’ll absorb your positive attitude and apply it in their own lives.

3. Self-care helps you relate to your team’s struggles.

When you prioritize self-care, you’re admitting that there are areas of your well-being you’d like to improve.

This helps you become a more empathetic leader — someone who truly understands your team members’ struggles. In fact, acknowledging your own vulnerability will help your team members not just look up to you, but relate to you better. Remember, workers trust authentic leaders who can admit their weaknesses as well as their strengths.

1. Self-care rituals set you up for a more productive day.

4. Self-care can help you make better decisions.

How you start and end your day can have a huge impact on your productivity. Creating a morning routine allows you to begin each day with a positive attitude and feeling in control. Some leaders I’ve spoken with

Self-care helps mitigate stress, which is critical — especially for leaders. Because while a little bit of short-term stress can add adrenalin and help pump you up for an important meeting, chronic stress can

By Dan Schawbel - Workplace Intelligence impact your cognition and make it harder to make clear-headed decisions. But when you manage your stress through exercise or other anxiety-reducers like meditation, you’ll be able to think clearly again.

Even micro-breaks throughout the day can act as stress reducers.

5. Self-care puts you in touch with what’s really important.

Focusing on your well-being helps put you back in touch with your core values. No one should be focused on work all the time — this isn’t just unhealthy for you, it also means that you’re probably ignoring family, friends, hobbies, and other priorities that make up who you really are. Taking time for self-care can give you a new perspective by reminding you to check in with yourself. It’s about making sure you have the time and energy for what matters to you outside of work.

6. Modeling self-care makes it easier for others to invest in their well-being.

When leaders talk about and prioritize their wellbeing — especially their mental health — it makes it okay for everyone on the team to put energy toward this. And that’s where real progress can begin, which is critical since 52% of employees feel burned out right now. So don’t be afraid to tell your teams how you’re incorporating self-care in your life and why this is benefiting you. They’ll get a clear message that this should be a priority for them as well.

About Dan Schawbel: New York Times Bestselling Author & Managing Partner of Workplace Intelligence