8 Tips To Find The Best Natural Skin Care Anti-Aging Creams By Natural Skin Care Expert Linda Miles

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So you really want healthy natural skin. However, when you head to the store, all of the natural skin care brands seem wonderful. How do you choose? Remember that your skin is an organ and it absorbs everything you put on it: the good stuff and the bad stuff. Nourish your skin with products containing antioxidants, botanical extracts, and skin vitamins, and avoid potentially harmful ingredients. Follow these 9 easy tips and you´ll enjoy healthy, beautiful skin!

Read the label, especially the fine print and the ingredient panel. Educate yourself by doing homework on the ingredients – there are many ingredients used in natural skin care that optimize the skin´s health.

Usually (but not always) a shorter list of ingredients is better than a long list. What ingredients are being used and for what purpose are they used within the formulations?

Learn about the brand: ask your friends if they know about the company or call the company and ask questions. How long has the company been in existence? What are the company´s ethics? What is their philosophy when it comes to their formulations?

Ask about full-disclosure labeling. Are all the ingredients in the product also on the ingredients list? Companies are supposed to use the International Nomenclature for Cosmetic Ingredients (INCI) or botanical name of the ingredient – the international (EU compliant) labeling standard; however, many companies do not tell you all the ingredients. A product that does not have EU compliant labels is not considered to have full disclosure with ingredients.

What type of retail store are you in? Drug store? Grocery store? Department Store? Does the store have established criteria or standards for natural skin care products? If you are in a Natural Health Food Store with qualifications for what they consider to be natural skin care, chances are high that you are surrounded by truly natural skincare. If you are in a drug store or grocery store, seek out the natural skin care section.

Just because the name sounds like a chemical does not necessarily mean it is harmful. For example, Aloe barbadensis is actually Aloe Vera – it sounds like a chemical, but it is a very important skin nutrient. Phenoxyethenol may sound scary but it´s a gentle preservative frequently used in natural skin care products.

Avoid potentially harmful ingredients such as mineral oil and lanolin (these clog the pores) and parabens (these are used as preservatives, but recent research says they might be harmful). These ingredients are some of the most common ingredients used in mass-market skin care formulations; whereas, natural skins care formulas will never have these in the product.

Choose products rich in skin-specific vitamins, botanicals, and antioxidants (be careful though, lots of companies claim to use antioxidants but put such a tiny amount in the product that it cannot possibly benefit the skin).

Below is a brief introduction to some of the more common antioxidants that are used in natural skin care formulations for anti-aging purposes:

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is the best known of all the antioxidants and serves as a base level with which to compare the activity of all other antioxidants. Vitamin E is lipid-soluble and protects fatty acid structures in the skin. Pure Vitamin E is measured at 28,000 IUs per ounce.

Ester-C®

Vitamin C, or Ascorbic Acid, is extremely unstable in water, breaking down quickly in gels, lotions, and crèmes, and losing its potency as an antioxidant. Ester-C® is a patented stable form of Vitamin C that blends essential minerals such as calcium, zinc, and metabolites. These work synergistically with Vitamin C so it can penetrate the tough epidermis and work to facilitate collagen and elastin fiber regrowth for healthy, firm skin.

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Alpha Lipoic Acid has earned the title of "universal antioxidant" because it is the only antioxidant known to be both lipid and water-soluble. This means Alpha Lipoic Acid can protect all the structures in the skin. It is a more powerful antioxidant than Vitamins E, C, and Co-Q10.

Green Tea Extract

Green Tea Extract is a water-soluble antioxidant that is currently being tested to treat and prevent cancer. In addition to its antioxidant benefits, Green Tea is also anti-inflammatory and it protects against UVA and UVB radiation damage caused by the sun.

Pycnogenol®

Pycnogenol® is harvested from the bark of the French Maritime Pine. It is a complex of over 40 antioxidants, the most powerful being a class of flavinoids called the proanthocyanidins. This water-soluble complex is 50 times more powerful as an antioxidant than Vitamin E and 20 times more powerful than Vitamin C. Pycnogenol® protects against UVB rays, strengthens capillaries, and works synergistically with Vitamin C to encourage collagen growth, resulting in smoother, more supple skin.

Astaxanthin®

Astaxanthin® is a lipid-soluble antioxidant harvested from micro algae in Hawaii. This complex nutrient has been shown to be more than 500 times as powerful as Vitamin E as an antioxidant and also protects the skin from UVA and UVB rays. Additionally, Astaxanthin® has anti-inflammatory properties that enhance the activity of defensive cells, fighting acne and other infections of the skin.

For healthy, younger looking skin, be sure your natural moisturizing crème contains one or more of these antioxidants to help you put your best face forward each and every day!

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