Author: Loreeebee

Repair Skin Damage, Five Ways to do it

Repair Skin Damage
~ Loreeebee ~ Leave a comment

This article was originally posted on Higher Dose, and adapted for use as a guest post here on Loreeebee…

You might not wear your heart on your sleeve, but you definitely have an organ that is outward-facing. *Drum roll* Your skin.

As your body’s largest organ, your skin requires a lot of attention because it’s literally the body’s barrier, protecting you from external factors. Even though your skin is your body’s protector, external factors such as sun damage, stress, free radicals, poor nutrition, lack of sleep, pollutants, and the natural aging process all put wear and tear on our skin.

Even though our skin endures a lot every day, there are many ways to both repair and prevent further damage.

Here are our favorite ways to give your skin a healthy DOSE of TLC.

Self-Care to Repair Skin Damage

Multi-step self-care routines can seem daunting and unnecessary, but what if we told you they were actually essential for your skin’s health? With one-third of your body’s toxins being excreted through the skin, your skin is constantly working to help transport toxins out of your body to keep your system refreshed. Skin impurities like acne, rough texture, and poor complexion can be a result of buildup on your skin, so taking some extra time to detoxify your skin will help keep things popped, snatched, and glowing.

Step 1 | Detoxify

Detoxifying your skin starts with stimulating your lymphatic system and then pushing out toxins with a DOSE of infrared. A lymphatic facial helps to drain waste from the lymph system, promoting better circulation and less water retention. Following up a lymphatic drainage massage with an infrared sweat is the ultimate cleanse, clearing out buildup and increasing blood flow for a fresh face.

Step 2 | Fight Inflammation

When you apply heat to the skin, cold must follow. Therefore, post-sweat, opt for cold therapy to get the heat out of the skin and quell inflammation. Cryo facials are an excellent way to tone and tighten the skin while shrinking pores and strengthening your body’s immune response. If you don’t have access to a cryo facial, spend up to three minutes in a cold shower, or consider an ice roller that you keep in the freezer.

Step 3 | Nourish

Once the skin has detoxed, it’s time for restoration, rejuvenation, and recovery. Follow up any treatment with proper hydration and nourishment in the form of serums, creams, and oils that lock in moisture and keep inflammation down. Clean products that are high in antioxidants like vitamin C help support the skin’s recovery process, fight and prevent oxidative stress, and encourage collagen production.

Chill out with a Cryo Facial

Cryo facial is a type of cryotherapy that focuses on soothing, stimulating, and refreshing your complexion using cold temperatures to enliven the skin.

Rather than using exfoliating creams or chemical peels that can irritate the skin, a cryo wand is used to blow cold air on your face in concentrated, circulated motions. The freezing temps and vaporized liquid nitrogen instantly shrink enlarged, oily pores and increase circulation to your face, leaving you with a fresh-faced, cool glow. These facials also encourage collagen regrowth and cell repair — giving you long-term anti-aging protection.

Get a Face-full of LED

Immerse your skin in the benefits of blue, red, and near-infrared LED light energy.

The sun emits a full spectrum of light to help our bodies function throughout the day. While blue light signals cortisol production to help us be more productive, red and infrared light suppress cortisol and increase melatonin to promote better restoration and recovery.

However, because most of our jobs keep us indoors and exposed to artificial blue light from our screens AM to PM, our bodies stay in a prolonged state of stress. More stress means less melatonin, which means worse sleep and inflamed skin.

This mood-enhancing, skin-restoring treatment provides the skin with healing light sources, taking no longer than 30 minutes. Near-infrared LED light energy stimulates cells to regenerate and heal, leaving you with an even skin tone, a clearer complexion, and fewer wrinkles. Plus, it’s a great way to de-stress by stepping away from your screens to give those frown lines a break!

Repair Skin Damage with a Microcurrent Facial

Your body isn’t the only thing that needs a workout.

Microcurrent technology, which is touted as the ultimate non-invasive facelift, can be used from head to toe to tone and tighten skin from the inside out.

Using low-voltage current, microcurrent sends frequency deep to stimulate the muscle as well as promote cell growth in the skin. Similar to physical exercise, this facial / body workout activates the lymphatic system, encouraging proper drainage aka no facial puffiness or water retention. Microcurrent, which is virtually painless, also oxygenates the skin, invigorating the proteins that signal repair and ease inflammation.

Not only are results immediate but long-term treatment can undo fine lines and wrinkles and keep the skin smooth without paralyzing the muscle (like Botox and other injectables).

Read the labels

There are many, many beauty products out there that claim to prevent and reverse skin damage. How do you know which ones work?

Always look for clean ( with no endocrine-disrupting ingredients) beauty products like:

  • Niacinamide to minimize dark spots and hyperpigmentation.
  • Azelaic acid to lighten dark spots from acne and repair sun damage.
  • Topical retinoids like Vitamin A in these products reduces fine lines and improves skin texture.
  • Vitamin C to improve collagen production and boosts skin firmness.
  • Alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) to reduce hyperpigmentation

And, of course, drink lots of water, wear a long-lasting (natural) SPF, and eat lots of antioxidant-rich whole foods. Your skin will thank you.

Show us what you’re doing to take care of your skin by tagging us on Instagram @higherdose.

This article was originally posted on HigherDOSE.com

photo credit

Gluten Intolerance, 10 Signs

gluten intolerance
~ Loreeebee ~ Leave a comment

This article from MINDBODYGREEN.COM, was one of the first I read on the subject years ago when I first suspected I suffered from gluten intolerance.  I thought then that it had some good information, worth passing on.  It now bears repeating as much of it still applies. I have modified it slightly to fit in here on my blog:

More than 55 diseases have been linked to gluten, the protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. It’s estimated that 99% of the people who have either gluten intolerance or celiac disease are never diagnosed.

It is also estimated that as much as 15% of the US population is gluten intolerant. Could you be one of them?

If you have any of the following symptoms it could be a sign that you have gluten intolerance:

1.  Digestive issues such as gas, bloating, diarrhea, and even constipation, with constipation particularly in children after eating gluten.

2.  Keratosis Pilaris, (also known as ‘chicken skin’ on the back of your arms). This tends to be a result of a fatty acid deficiency and vitamin A deficiency secondary to fat malabsorption caused by gluten damaging the gut.

3.  Fatigue, brain fog, or feeling tired after eating a meal that contains gluten.

4.  Diagnosis of an autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, lupus, psoriasis, scleroderma, or multiple sclerosis.

5.  Neurologic symptoms such as dizziness or feeling of being off-balance.

6.  Hormone imbalances such as PMS, PCOS, or unexplained infertility.

7.  Migraine headaches.

8.  Diagnosis of chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia. These diagnoses simply indicate your conventional doctor cannot pinpoint the cause of your fatigue or pain.

9.  Inflammation, swelling, or pain in your joints such as fingers, knees, or hips.

10.  Mood issues such as anxiety, depression, mood swings, and ADD.

 

How to Test for Gluten Intolerance

The single best way to determine if you have an issue with gluten is to perform an elimination diet where you would take it out of your diet for at least 3 weeks and then reintroduce it. Please note that gluten is a very large protein and it can take months and even years to clear from your system so the longer you can eliminate it from your diet before reintroducing it, the better.

The best advice is that if you feel significantly better off of gluten or feel worse when you reintroduce it, then gluten is likely a problem for you.  In order to get accurate results from this testing method, you must eliminate 100% of the gluten from your diet.

How to Treat Gluten Intolerance

Eliminating gluten 100% from your diet means 100%. Even trace amounts of gluten from cross-contamination or medications or supplements can be enough to cause an immune reaction in your body.  The 80/20 rule or “we don’t eat it in our house, just when we eat out” is a complete misconception. Research has shown that for those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity eating gluten just once a month increased the relative risk of death by 600%.

My Intolerance of Wheat

Many of these facts remain relevant today, almost twenty years later.  I myself have been eating gluten-free for almost ten years.  I say gluten-free although I was diagnosed with an intolerance to wheat, not gluten.  Gluten-free is wheat-free, but not vice versa, so I say gluten-free when eating outside of my home. 

Occasionally I “cheat” and consume something with a bit of wheat in it, but usually regret it later with stomach cramps and diarrhea, depending on just how much wheat I consumed.  I know I probably should not do that, but it does keep me eating healthy.  This cheating is not recommended for someone with celiac disease or a sensitivity stronger than mine. 

photo credit to Polina Zimmerman on Pexels.com

Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre

Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre
~ Loreeebee ~ Leave a comment

Out for a walk in Kanata, hubby and I found an injured chickadee on a local sidewalk. Bird lovers that we are, we brought it home and found out that although it could not fly it was able to hop around. We were referred to the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre which supports the conservation of wild birds, whether they are threatened, at risk, injured, or endangered.

Dedicated to the care, treatment, and rehabilitation of injured, ill, or orphaned wild birds with the goal of releasing them back into their natural habitat…

Licensed under the Ontario Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, and federal Migratory Bird Regulations, our permits allow us to care for various bird species, including those that are protected. We believe that each life saved is a small victory for its species.

Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre

Funding

Bird lovers in the Ottawa Valley community have been the primary source of funding since the center was originally founded in 1981. Currently the largest wild bird rehabilitation centre in Eastern Ontario, this registered charity relies on the generosity of financial supporters and volunteers. The centre cares for over 4000 birds per year with a current estimated total of 125,000 birds from 175 species rehabilitated.

You can also support the centre by scheduling a hands-on presentation for your group or classroom. Cost is $100 per one-hour session with sessions geared to the age or interest of each group. Contact JAA@wildbirdcarecentre.org to schedule a presentation. Also available to teachers and leaders (for a small donation to the centre) are additional activity outlines.

Education days are also scheduled in various community spaces, to join one visit the centre’s Facebook Page.

To support the centre with your financial donation, visit the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Center site soon.

Houdini the Escape Artist

Our little chickadee couldn’t fly but he sure made himself at home, hopping from room to room in our home. He first escaped from the cardboard box we prepared for him in our garage. Then we moved him to a pet carrier our son had left at our place but he managed to escape it too, twice, even though I covered up the obviously large enough holes with a blanket the second time. After phoning a hotline for information on where we could take him, we put him in a small cardboard box (with holes for ventilation of course) and taped the top closed. The next thing we knew, he had pushed open the taped lid and escaped again to hop around our dining room and kitchen. After reinforcing the tape on the box, we put him in our windowless (dark) powder room so he would settle down (as instructed). That worked. He stayed there all night until we were able to take him to the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre the next day.

We nicknamed him Houdini. I have been told to email the center in a few days to find out how Houdini fared.