Esthetics Association Florida

This post was originally published at shantiaromatherapy.wordpress.com.

Recently I have had a couple of people who have known me for a long time ask me how in the world I ended up interested in Aromatherapy. They were surprised because I cannot stress enough how much I hated things and places that smell!  Cleaning products, perfumes, room deodorizers, plug-ins, candles- pretty much any strong scent makes me feel nauseous and light-headed.

Furthermore, before going back to school to become an Esthetician I thought that Aromatherapy was ridiculous, because everything that I knew about it came from candle commercials… How could something that smells change your life and make you feel better?

As I soon realised, this has nothing to do with true Aromatherapy. Aromatherapy involves the use of Essential Oils for therapeutic purposes. Essential Oils are pure plant essences derived by steam distilling plant material. By extracting the essence of the plant you get the core beneficial chemicals in a concentrated form. In general, essential oils smell wonderful, but Aromatherapy is not just about enhancing your life through smell. It is about harnessing the natural and very real ability of plants to affect our bodies and minds.

Here is the most wonderful thing that I have found. After living for 15 years in a world of unscented soap, toothpaste, laundry detergent, basically anything perfumed synthetically… I can finally enjoy the comforting herbaceous scent of Lavender wafting through my home. While I am sensitive to synthetic fragrances, the careful use of essential oils has allowed me to enjoy a home that smells like something other than dust. At the same time my family made it throught the whole school year last year without a single serious illness.

It is from this experience, combined with my longstanding appreciation of the power of plants to improve our wellbeing that I have ventured to share my love of Aromatherapy with others.

I would love to hear your feedback, and your first experience with Essential Oils!

For more information about Aromatherapy and Essential Oils visit shantiaromatherapy.com

There are very few ingredients that have gotten as much attention in recent years as the health benefits of tea, especially green tea. When consumerd regularly it is believed that green tea can improve cardiovascular health, strengthen the immune system, and increase the metabolism. Of course, it is also believed to have numerous benefits for skin care. For this reason many companies are adding green tea as an active ingredient, and many spas now have green tea treatments on their menu, but what are the benefits to our clients?

Green Tea is a product of the Camellia sinesis plant. It is the same plant that is used to produce the familiar “black tea,” however green tea is not fermented. When the tea leaves are fermented as they are with black tea, they lose most of the vital antioxidants, or “catechins.” Green tea preserves these catechins in their natural form. As a result of it’s high antioxidant levels green tea is very active in many of the same functions as other antioxidants such as Vitamin C. It quenches free-radicals to prevent and repair damage to the skin, and it reduces inflammation. It is also believed that it can offer protection from skin cancer because it inhibits the DNA damage to the cells that causes mutations and leads to cancer.

Perhaps the most encouraging results that have been found is ability of green tea to regenerate old skin cells that are at the end of their lifespan. While this research is is still developing, it has been observed that green tea can “restart” cells in the epidermis that are at the end of their life cycle. These keratinizing cells become plump, revitalized, and youthful by repairing the cell’s DNA, and allowing the cell to begin dividing again. This can greatly improve the appearance of the skin.

While research on the use of green tea is continuing, the potential skin care uses for many conditions such as acne, rosacea, and aging make green tea an important addition to professional treatments.

Are you currently using products with green tea in your treatments? Do you and your clients see results? We would love to hear what your favorites are!

Chinese Diagnostics

According to the Chinese diagnostics, being in a state of homeostasis (balance) is the way to perfect health. The cycle of chronic debilitating stress begins with daily stress, leads to anxiety, then to disease, and finally to death. We do have a choice to either walk this circle or speed up the process and run through it.
Much of our stress is in our thoughts and 40% of our time we worry about things that wouldn’t even occur, 30% about things we have no control over, 12% of our mental stress is over things that in hind-site are mis-communications. Only 10% of the time we worry about our health.

According to the Chinese medicine the Qi or life energy needs to flow freely throughout the meridians for optimal health.
Blockage in the free flow of Qi could cause damage to the connected organs, but the good news is that the balance can be restored by creating balance between the yin and the yang by using specific points either by acupressure or electro acupuncture.

Yin and Yang
Yin and Yang are two polar opposites and also the two which complement each other. One cannot exist without the other. Picture in your mind the side of a mountain where the sun comes up. That side reflects activity, warmth, light, dry and daytime, on the other side, the dark side, is passive, cold, wet and dark. But the sun slowly turns to the opposite side of the mountain and then Yin will turn into Yang and Yang turn into Yin.

To create balance again in the body and face (lines and wrinkles) we first have to determine which opposites of energy is in need of either more or less Yin or more or less Yang.

There a 4 different method to establish if a person is more dominant yin or yang by looking (bo-shin) listening (bun-shin) asking (mon-shin) and touching (setsu-shin) Or you can let your client mark the yin yang questionnaire, see below.

Skin Analysis
Your face never lies; there are characteristics in the face that will tell if you are a yin or a yang dominant person. You can divide the face in 3 parts:

The upper part, forehead, has to do with intelligence, midsection with emotions and lower section with will power.
For instance; people who are more dominant in the forehead unto the eyebrows will have characteristics that are more Yin dominant. They are good leaders, spiritual, analytical planners, and think ahead.

However there is a lot more to read in the face. Certain points on the face are strongly connected to certain organs. If someone has skin problems in the face, it could mean that the body doesn’t have a good flow of Qi. Also, according to Chinese medicine, emotions are connected with certain organs, for instance fear is connected to the bladder ( yang organ) and kidney ( yin organ) too much fear can result in relieving yourself in your pants.

Your heart is connected to joy. The emotion of anger is connected to the liver, which is in turn connected to the eye. The eye will turn somewhat yellowish when a person becomes angry

Conclusion: if we can learn to look beyond the symptoms and investigate the real origin of the problems (for instance the lines and wrinkles) we will stand a much better chance to help with slowing down aging and prevent skin problems.

Cold temperatures promote a loss of moisture in the skin, making lines and aging more apparent. It also slows blood circulation, which is responsible for the supply of oxygen and nutrients. This throws the skin out of balance, affecting both the protective layer and the subcutaneous layer.
Protecting our clients skin against the loss of moisture and dehydration becomes more important than simply moisturizing. Estheticians can offer specialty treatments based on lipo-active ingredients that provide the skin with the necessary resistance and protection. To ensure that this specialty ingredient will be absorbed, the skin must first be treated with glycolic acid. This exfoliates the skin and improves collagen production, which in turn reduces unnecessary moisture loss.
During the winter months clients should use a slightly richer day and night cream for daily home care. This will help to restore the moisture content as well. If they require further treatment they can add moisturizing masks in the evening.

Lately I have had a number of clients, especially teachers and mental health professionals, who  spend a lot of their time and energy caring for others. They have reminded me why I chose to be an Esthetician in the first place. I have a degree in Psychology, but for me being an Esthetician is a better way to help people deal with their daily struggles. There is an immediate physical and emotional effect that comes from relaxation, and the effect of concrete changes to one’s physical appearance is an instantaneous benefit to self-image. As Estheticians we see these results on a daily basis.

Both teaching and social work are professions that are very high in stress and take so much out of the people that practice them. They require a commitment to care for others that is thankless, monetarily and literally. These overworked and stressed-out clients come to us with a real need to take time for themselves and just relax, and they are so happy for the time and the space that we can give them. Often they are the ones that try to help us out during their facial by moving their head to make our job easier, because they are so accustomed to helping others they can’t let go of that- even for a few minutes. Many will only come in because they have been given a gift certificate, and it is so awkward and uncomfortable to have someone take care of them. We are in a position to help them learn to take time for themselves and to be more in touch with their own needs, as many just don’t know how to do this. We can truly enjoy taking the time to tune into their energy and what they require at the time, and bring them to a place of quiet.

Of course, it is so important for us, as estheticians to be able help those clients who come to us to solve a specific problem they are having with their skin, and this is much of what we do on a daily basis. As I talked about in my blog entry “What I Learned in School,” this requires a constant awareness of new product technologies, new equipment, and new procedures in this profession that is always changing. It is integral to provide a service for these clients who are seeking skincare results and generally want to see results as soon as possible. They are so thankful when they get up off our table and can see results after only one treatment, and they are going to go to the practitioner that provides results and is thorough in their treatment. This is why continually educating ourselves is so important. It is absolutely necessary that we not be on autopilot if we want to build our skills and gain respect for ourselves and our profession in the community. This is not to mention the benefit that we can get from meeting with other skincare professionals, and sharing ideas and treatments that work. Classes, tradeshows, and seminars are a wonderful opportunity for us, even if we don’t plan to use that knowledge at the time. It all goes into the tollbox that we use to give our client’s educated answers about comparitive services so they can better understand what will benefit them.

Any Esthetician that you speak to will tell you that there is truly a a sense of reward and accomplishment for us as skin care professionals that comes not just from the ability to make people feel more “beautiful,” but to feel better about themselves and find a sense of contentedness and relaxation. I am happy for the opportunity I have had lately to remember why I do this.

Anne Nguyen

Approximately 80-95% of all women have cellulite somewhere on their body, or the appearance of an orange peel. If you also suffer from a few wells, on you buttocks or legs, for example- don’t worry, you are not alone. Here are five things that we should all know about cellulite:

1. From a medical point of view there is no cellulite, or orange peel, it is nothing more and nothing less than fat. The word cellulite is from the French medical literature of 150 years ago.

2. Cellulite, or orange peel, is more prominent in women than in men. This is because the fat cells in women are honeycomb shaped, and in men they are diagonal. The honeycomb structure ensures that dots can easily arise between the fat cells.

3. That’s the bad news- There is no simple way to combat cellulite and orange peel skin, no matter what the makers of special creams, scrubs, and other devices would have you believe, because it is just fat.

4. You can very easily develop the appearance of cellulite, and you can easily reduce it through regular exercise. Research has shown that cardio exercise performed for 20-60 minutes, 3-5 times per week allows you to bring down your overall fat percentage.

5. Relatively weak muscles also ensure that cellulite is more visible. So, if you want to have less visible cellulite it is highly reccomended that you also do strength training.  Do this at least three times per week to get the best results.

Unfortunately there is no easy solution to fight cellulite and orange peel, but increasing your physical activity is definitely a start.

Questions or comments? Let me know!

It looks like one of the effects of using botox over a prolonged period of time may be fattening.  According to researchers from the University of Calgary, Botox can cause muscle wastage in parts of the body that ARE NOT injected.  A study was conducted on a group of 18 rabbits over a period of 6 months.  They found that the injection site had a muscle wastage of up to 50%, and muscle wastage in other areas of the body being replaced with fat.

The most common form of adult acne in females is comedonal postadolescent acne (CPAA).  According to The Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, this form of acne is strongly correlated with smoking cigarettes.  Researchers examined 226 adult women with acne, 85% having CPAA.  Smoking was identified in 72.9% of those with CPAA.

As an esthetician, we know that there is a direct correlation to the health of our skin and the health of our bodies as a whole.  It is our job to correct skin problems, to beautify the skin and to teach our clients about better skin care options and how to implement a healthier lifestyle.  Do these include nutritional supplementation for you?  This is a great retail option to add into your business.  Here are some common myths when it comes to vitamins:

Myth #1:  Vitamins are not necessary, I get all I need from my food.

The USDA surveyed 21,500 people and discovered that only 3% actually ate healthful, balanced diets daily.  And not a single person received the RDA recommendation of the 10 most important vitamins and minerals regularly.

Myth #2:  Vitamin supplements just turn into expensive urine.

No one really knows the optimal amount of supplementation that is beneficial for everyone because individual nutritional needs and hydration status determine your body’s level of nutritional supplementation. 

Myth #3:  All vitamins are the same.

Many products are not only unbalanced but have incorrect or misleading labels.

Two things that I look for when I search for a company are that they are pharmaceutical grade and have a GMP label (good manufacturing practices).

Check out the link to the following article on nutrients for healthy skin:  http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/features/skin-nutrition

Like all organs of the body, the skin needs the best cellular nutrition to maintain healthy skin… it is vital.  Any deficiency of vitamins or essential nutrients in the body negatively affects the skin. 

Because of this I have personally thought about getting education in nutrition and counseling.  What are your thoughts on nutrition and vitamin supplementation?  Do you educate your clients on the importance of them?

Scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered a key enzyme that can stop our cells from aging.  This enzyme, Sirt3, causes a dramatic effect in cell molecules.  The focus was specifically on calorie restriction, as calorie restriction is known to slow down the aging process.  Scientists looked at the mitochondria of cells, the source of free radical production and discovered that when calorie intake is restricted, the Sirt3 enzyme levels rose and resulted in fewer free radicals produced by the mitochondria.  Sirt3 is one of seven enzymes in the sirtuin family that appear to have a wide-range impact on cell fate and physiology.  Understanding how these enzymes work will ultimately lead to the development of drugs that can activate the pathways of Sirt3 to help slow down the aging process.