A Complete Digestive Overhaul

This is taken from Eat Wheat by John Dillard. I never want to permanently cut anything out of the diet, we need to strengthen our digestion so we can eat normally like our ancestors. The first step to healing the skin is healing the gut.

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Some of us know that the lymph around the intestines is connected to lymph that is trying to drain the brain, the skin, the joints, the nervous system, the respiratory tract, the reproductive system, and yes, every cell of the body. All of this makes weak digestion and broken-down intestinal skin a true crisis, but let’s address the root cause of it rather than just focusing on the symptoms. This is a much bigger issue than the symptoms we may experience when eating wheat and dairy and possibly other foods.

The intestinal skin is both a barrier to protect and inform the body of the changes and dangers of the outside world while delivering the needed nutrients to thrive. If the intestinal skin breaks down, there is a risk of too many mutations, toxins, glutens or casein proteins passing through the intestinal wall into the lymph, liver and bloodstream, predisposing the body to related chemical, allergenic, and hypersensitivity reactions.

As you begin to repair and support the health of the intestinal skin and upper digestive system, it is best to avoid any foods that you are currently intolerant to, so your system can focus on healing and repairing. Once you have rebooted and strengthened your digestive function, you can slowly introduce non-toxic, non-processed versions of these foods.

Dry Intestinal Skin or Symptoms of Constipation 

The first step in helping you digest wheat and dairy well is to help you repair the intestinal skin, and this will be reflected in a healthy, regular stool. Stress can alter the microbiology of the intestinal skin and result in intestinal dryness or a form of constipation. There are a handful of remedies for constipation. The key to resolving this problem is NOT to take laxatives, but to tone and lubricate the skin of intestines. The classic herb in Ayurveda to accomplish this is called triphala, which is a combination of 3 fruits: 

Amalaki: Helps repair the intestinal skin 

Bibhitaki: Pulls excess mucus off the intestinal wall 

Haritaki: Tones the muscles responsible for an actual bowel movement 

You can order this herb here:

https://www.omfoods.com/products/botanical-herbs-organic-triphala-powder?_pos=1&_sid=9d77003f8&_ss=r

These 3 fruits together support bowel tone, muscular function, and contractibility of the intestinal wall, strengthening peristalsis and thereby supporting smooth digestion, assimilation, and elimination. Triphala also helps maintain an appropriate balance of mucus lining, the skin of intestinal wall, preventing and clearing excess mucus buildup—which can hinder assimilation—and making sure a healthy layer of mucus remains, which soothes the digestive tract, supports healthy bacteria, and buffers against strong digestive acids.

If the intestines are particularly dry or chronically constipated, I like to add demulcent or slimy herbs like slippery elm bark, marshmallow root, and licorice root to the triphala. This addition makes it much easier to wean off the triphala, which is always my goal—to become self-sufficient and not dependent on supplements

A Complete Digestive Overhaul

When there is mucus in the stool, the digestion is extremely delicate or sensitive, or the situation is chronic with bloating, gas, and abdominal pain, I tend to start from scratch in terms of rebooting the digestive system. This is a sign that the intestinal skin or mucus membranes of the entire digestive tract are irritated and producing reactive mucus. For this, I like to employ some first aid for the entire digestive tract. My favorite therapy for this is a concentrated tea or decoction made out of chopped (not ground) licorice root, and marshmallow root. 

To antidote both the dryness and the overly damp mucous membranes, I have not found a better solution than this decoction, taken throughout the day for a month, to reset healthy intestinal and microbial function. Each of these herbs are naturally slimy and demulcent, which means that they will soften and soothe the dry and irritated mucous membranes all the way from the throat to the stomach to the small and large intestines. It is like coating the entire digestive tract with a protective mucilaginous, prebiotic, microbe-boosting Band-Aid for a month. During this time, new intestinal skin can grow, a healthy intestinal environment can be restored, and healthy microbes can repopulate.

When these 2 herbs are cooked down into a tea or concentrated decoction, the soluble fiber from their roots are released. The soluble fiber is naturally slippery, and therefore offers soothing support to the dried-out intestinal mucosa. The soluble fiber from these herbs also feeds the intestinal microbes and acts as a natural prebiotic for the microbiome. This is a critical part of the tea’s restorative effect—to create an environment that will allow the healthy microbes to proliferate while restoring the function and environment for the intestinal villi and gut mucosa to digest, detox, and assimilate nutrients optimally.

Make a Decoction or Tea At Home 

The key to the success of this intestinal and microbial reset is to take these 2 herbs as a tea or concentrated decoction for a month or 2. If your intestinal tract is not in a severely inflamed condition, then you can use the tea. The tea tastes great and can be used as a maintenance beverage as well. You must source these herbs in a chopped—not ground—form. If you use ground herbs, you will make “mud” and it won’t work. If you are concerned that your intestinal tract is in a reactive state and needs extra support, do your best to follow the decoction instructions. You can source these herbs from the Canadian company https://www.omfoods.com

Decoction Recipe  

Ingredients: 

1 tablespoon chopped licorice 

2 tablespoon chopped marshmallow root 

2 quarts water 

Directions: 

1. Soak each of the chopped herbs—or 3 tablespoons of a pre-mixed, chopped mixture of 2 herbs—in a pot filled with 2 quarts of water overnight.

2. Soaking overnight is not mandatory, but it gives you a stronger decoction.

3. Boil the mixture down to 1/ 2 quart in the morning.

4. Strain the mixture through a metal strainer, using a large spoon to push it through.

5. Save the liquid and discard the herbs.

6. This should make 2 cups to sip on throughout the day.

7. Take 1 tablespoon of the liquid every 2 hours on an empty stomach for 1 month, and sometimes for 2 months if needed.

Tea Recipe  

Ingredients: 

1/ 3 tablespoon chopped licorice 

2/3 tablespoon chopped marshmallow root 

1 cup water 

Directions: 

1. To make tea, combine the 2 herbs, totaling about 1 tablespoon altogether.

2. Steep this mixture in hot water until it becomes tea strength.

3. Drink 3–6 cups a day for 1–2 months, or as needed for maintenance.

Don’t miss out on the most simple and potentially most profound therapy to boost digestive strength—sit, relax, dine. Take time to enjoy each and every meal. Looking Ahead Now that we have discussed how to heal the gut, join me as we proceed to healing the lymph—the primary source of food allergy symptoms.

Poor digestion digestion equals poor detoxification, and when the lymph system becomes overwhelmed with toxins, the body becomes much more vulnerable to more serious health concerns.

Movement, exercise, and deep sleep—all of which our modern culture has trouble with—are the major lymph-movers of the body, and almost all of the gluten-related symptoms can be traced back to weak digestion, resulting in lymph congestion. Lymphatic fluid is not pumped from the heart like blood in the arteries and veins. Because the lymph drains back to the heart from the fingers and toes, flowing opposite the downward force of gravity, exercises that incorporate jumping are excellent excellent for the lymph. 

Lymph Tip: Jumping on a trampoline or mini-trampoline for just 10 minutes a day can have a profound effect on the lymph. Inverted yoga postures or anti-gravity hanging devices are also very effective for lymph flow.

Lymph Review 

Here are some condensed ways that we can support healthy lymphatic flow for optimal health and digestion. 

Rehydration Therapy:

~ Sip 2–3 sips of hot water every day for 2 weeks, every 10–15 minutes. This is amazing at rehydrating the body.

~Drink half of your ideal body weight in ounces of room temperature water for 2 weeks. 

~Drink 8–12 ounces of water 15–30 minutes before each meal. 

Sips and water before a meal count towards half of your ideal body weight in ounces.

Eat More Seasonal and Alkaline Foods 

Look at the seasonal grocery lists and circle the foods for each season that you love. Give yourself permission to eat more of those foods.

1. During winter, cold, dry vata types must eat more strictly off the Winter Grocery List of warming, insulating foods to stay nourished and balanced.

2. During spring, easygoing kapha types must strictly follow the decongesting Spring Grocery List to antidote the tendency to gain weight, hold onto water, and become congested.

3. During summer, hot, fiery pitta types must be extra strict to eat off the Summer Grocery List to stay cool and calm

Emphasize berries, beets, and colorful roots like turmeric, leafy greens, and seeds like fennel, chia and flax. Citrus fruits, including their pith, make great lymph-moving foods. 

Eating as close as possible to the seasonal harvest offers natural protection from the ebb and flow of nature’s seasonal shifts, plus delivers seasonal microbes that help connect us to nature. The spring and fall are great times to help the body detoxify the lymph and liver with a home cleanse. Because of the sedentary nature of our modern culture, it is more important than ever to help support this seasonal cleansing process whenever possible. See our blog post about our 4 day Cleanse.

Lymph-Moving Herbs 

Consider supplementing with herbs like manjistha, nettles, dandelion, turmeric, ocotillo, queen’s root, astragalus root, red root, brahmi (also known as Centella asiatica or gotu kola), and fennel and nettles as teas. 

Lymph-Moving Exercise 

All exercise is good for the lymph. Rebounding and safely-performed inverted yoga postures are particularly beneficial for the lymph.

Avoid Wheat and Dairy Until Lymph is Moving. Cleansing the lymph is Step 1 towards being able to digest wheat and dairy again. Step 2 is to reboot the upper digestion…… further information read the book to help learn how to heal the gut and skin among other issues.

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Caring For Your Epidermis

There’s a reason skin care commercials don’t zoom in that close. A real close-up of the skin can be unsettling even if someone’s skin looks perfect, it is a rough and broken terrain crisscrossed with oily gullies and studded with hairs. And in this strange land, there can be dragons. Scientists believe that these Demodex mites are on the face of every adult human! It also hosts various bacterias, fungi and viruses. However, not all of them are harmful, as some play a key role in keeping our skin healthy. For the longest time we thought the skin was sterile just like our gut, but this beautiful micobiome on the skin is a diverse land that has a key roll in keeping our skin healthy. All skincare companies make big promises with their products, but it’s becoming harder and harder to navigate what our skin truly needs.

You might be surprised to learn it all start with keeping the microbiome intact. A healthy skin pH is more on the acidic side, and with more acidity, your skin can combat harmful microbes and damaging free radicals that might increase the aging process. You have probably heard the terms “acid mantle” “pH balanced” or “stripping the skin” but you may not be aware of exactly what it means or just how important an aspect of skincare this is.

As a skin therapist, one of the very first things I do when working with a new client is to get the acid mantle intact. For me, removing preservatives from skincare is the first step. If we think about it logically, a preservative is used to kill bacteria in a product so that no microorganisms can grow. Aside from the fact that many preservatives have nasty side effects that impact more than the acid mantle, our acid mantle is made up of bacteria and microorganisms so the first thing a preservative is going to do is render the skins environment barren of the bacteria it needs to protect us.

Which is why caring for your epidermis staves off ageing compared to skin that has not been cared for as diligently. In this case, wrinkle prevention is better and more effective than wrinkle cure.

Along with removing preservatives, over exfoliating is also a big problem. When you over exfoliate regularly, your skin will seem 'thicker' and not as soft, and it can become dependent on that action so that you feel you need to exfoliate more often. This is because you are constantly forcing cellular turn over at a rate that isn't natural or desirable for your skin. You also leave your skin more vulnerable to the sun and elements. 

I often get questions about why we don't have a more abrasive exfoliator in our line. The biggest answer is we don't need one. I personally only use a clay mask or herbal mask once a week. The more healthy the skin the less exfoliation is needed. By nourishing your skin with dense rich botanicals, and getting regular facials which include lymph stimulation and circulatory stimulation, you are decreasing the need to exfoliate so often and so abrasively.

Lastly we want to use a ph balanced cleanser. If the skin is more alkaline, it is often associated with – and may even be a cause of – eczema, irritant contact dermatitis, diaper rash, acne, and fungal, yeast, and bacterial infections. Unfortunately, most soaps have a pH as high as 12 (very alkaline). That’s why you should choose pH-balanced skincare products that fall between 4 and 6. (Our skin is acidic at 5.5) That tight, squeaky-clean feeling you might experience after washing your face is the truest sign of cleansers with a high pH and damaged skin barrier. They, as well as other alkaline skin-care products, tend to strip away sebum and natural oils. As a result, undesirable effects such as redness, inflammation, scaling, and dryness can occur.

So, what to use instead… Use products that are naturally slightly acidic. All plant oils are acidic, Olive oil, the base of my cleanser has a pH of about 4.5-5 – ideal for restoring and maintaining the correct pH.  Argan oil, Rosehip oil, Jojoba and Borage oil, all used in my products are the same. Hydrosols (distilled plants) have differing pH’s depending on the plant but they are almost all in the range of 3.5-6 – again exactly what is in harmony with the skin.

When skin is at an optimal pH level, it has improved barrier function, better moisture retention, and less scaling. A slightly acidic skin pH also helps normal (healthy) bacterial flora stay attached to the epidermis. 

My main goal is always getting the skin (micobiome) as healthy as possible. That’s why whatever we are facing, acne, dryness, eczema, dermatitis etc. can be better managed. The skin will have less inflammation and a better ability to heal, and if there is such a thing as anti-aging, we will see it with true skin health, and without broken promises from the cosmetic industry. Thus, we see the great divide in skin care approaches today. We either work with the skin to assist or in doing what it does best, or we end up injuring the skin, or replacing it’s normal function, for short-term benefits. 

Diet of course also plays an important role in regulating our internal and external pH levels. An interesting paradox exists in that food that is considered acidic before digestion becomes alkaline-forming in the body. Animal products, which are alkaline before digestion, are considered acid-forming in the body.

In general, we need our diets to be less acidic and more alkaline. This means an ideal diet consisting of high alkalizing foods, such as leafy greens, citrus fruits, tomatoes, carrots, green tea and avocado is best at keeping ourselves healthy. The body’s pH is extremely important in maintaining health and it is essential to maintain balance within your body.

I tell clients all the time it’s a multi approach to skin. Topicals alone can not always fix what is showing up, our skin is a mirror. We usually need a team to help find the root cause of whatever issues are showing up. But it’s my job to help with ultimate health of the skin with better lymph movement. If you have a healthy skin microbiome and good superficial Lymph circulation, there’s really no need to exfoliate or do much else. Except for the winter when the air is dry and things become a bit more stagnant. But even then, a good consistent Gua Sha routine, warm compresses to help melt tension, and some clay or raw honey masks, and you should be good to go.

Diana

A Diet to Reduce Toxins and Rekindle Digestive Fire (Agni)

Spring is here and with it a perfect time to cleanse the body! I love to incorporate herbs to help with our elimination pathways. Along with that, I like to help reset the body with diet. Ayurveda, also known as Ayurvedic medicine, is one of the world’s oldest schools of traditional healing. Its name means “the science of life”.

Tracing back to India over 3,000 years ago, Ayurvedic medicine is said to promote “whole-body” healing — in contrast to Western medicine, which tends to separate physical, mental, and spiritual health.

From the book Absolute Beauty by Pratima Raichur, I wanted to share an easy diet to incorporate while we concentrate on detoxification and use Ayurveda as our guide. This is a short excerpt from Pratima’s book, anyone dealing with skin issues or looking to further reach radiant skin and inner harmony would love to read it.

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REKINDLING THE DIGESTIVE FIRE

Agni is the biological fire (also called tejas) that regulates metabolism and fuels digestion. Agni's transformative principle, along with the moving force of prana and the stabilizing force of ojas, makes up the triumvirate of life forces. When these forces are imbalanced, so are the biological functions-the doshas- which they govern. Thus, a healthy metabolism depends first on the balance of doshas. A sluggish metabolism (improper digestion indicated by symptoms such as weight gain, indigestion, constipation, gas, distention, stomachaches, diarrhea, acidity, and heartburn) is a sign of low fire and air, or low Pitta and Vata–which is the equivalent of high earth and water, or high Kapha. In either case, you can restore balance to your constitution by going on a Kapha-pacifying diet, which includes predominantly pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes. The light, dispersing and hot, stimulating qualities of these tastes increase the forces of prana (movement and elimination) and agni (metabolism), which are needed to clear out ama from the body and get the digestive fires burning again. Consequently, a Kapha-pacifying diet also enhances the body's natural process of detoxification.

A DIET TO REDUCE TOXINS AND REKINDLE AGNI 

This purification routine for body and mind includes a few days of light eating on a Kapha-pacifying diet, plus mental rest. The main staple of the diet is khichadi, a nourishing mixture of rice and lentils (see recipe below). The duration of the routine depends upon your skin type: 

Dry (Vata) 1-3 days per month

Sensitive (Pitta) 1-4 days per month 

Oily (Kapha) 1-5 days per month

NO

Sweet fruits, juices, or vegetables; breads, cookies, pastries, sweets, dairy, cheese, fried food, canned food, nuts, alcohol, oils, salt, sugar, legumes. or grains (except khichadi). 

YES

Herbal teas: Ginger, cardamom, fennel, cinnamon, aloe. 

Water: At least 6-8 glasses per day. 

Fruits or fruit juices: Lemon, lime, grapefruit, pomegranate. 

Steamed vegetables (optional): Beets, carrots, fennel, kale, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower. Limit: 2 cup per day total. Vegetable juices: Celery, parsley. 

Herbs: Triphala (½ teaspoon with warm water at night). 

Khichadi: Have up to one bowlful whenever you feel hungry throughout the day. To make, wash 1 cup each yellow mung dal beans and rice and put aside. Put 3 Tbsp ghee in a steel saucepan. Heat on low flame. Add 1 inch fresh peeled grated ginger + 4 inch cinnamon bark + 5 whole cardamom seeds + 5 whole cloves + 10 black pepper or coriander or cumin seeds + ¼ tsp turmeric powder, and sauté lightly. Add rice and dal to pan, and sauté lightly with the spices. Add 6 cups water and cook until the rice and dal are soft. 

MENTAL FAST: • Rest as much as possible. Avoid work, TV, arguments, discussions, meetings. • Do light reading, simple breathing exercises, and take leisurely walks. • Take a warm bath daily with ginger or eucalyptus oil; scrub the body thoroughly. • Spend time in meditation or prayer.

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After following this for a week you can follow your dosha’s balancing diet. John from Life Spa has some great seasonal diets to follow.

If you are not sure what your Dosha is (your Ayurvedic constitution), I highly recommend going through THIS or THIS questioner to find out.

If you want to do a more advanced Short Cleanse, it’s best to do this twice a year in the Spring and Fall for four days. You can incorporate the following to the above kitchari:

1) Morning Ghee:

Each morning melt the prescribed teaspoons of ghee and drink on an empty stomach. 

Day 1—take 2 teaspoons of ghee 

Day 2—take 4 teaspoons of ghee 

Day 3—take 6 teaspoons of ghee 

Day 4—take 9 teaspoons of ghee 

If it’s difficult for you to drink the ghee straight, mix the melted ghee into 1/ 2 cup of warm almond, or coconut milk, or organic, vat-pasteurized and non-homogenized cow’s milk. Drink the warmed mixture all at once. If needed, add a pinch of nutmeg, cinnamon, and/ or cardamom for taste. Vegan alternatives for ghee are organic, cold-pressed, extra virgin olive or flax oil. Wait half an hour before drinking or eating anything after taking the Morning Ghee.

Reminder: If your gallbladder has been removed, or you are experiencing trouble with your gallbladder, or have difficulty digesting fat, you may need to be on a modified protocol. If you do not have a gallbladder, you may substitute and use coconut oil instead of ghee, as coconut oil is easier to digest. If you have gallbladder issues or trouble digesting fats (nausea and indigestion after eating a fatty or fried meal), please stick with just 2 teaspoons of ghee or coconut oil each morning during the Cleanse and do not increase the dosage.

2) Eat 3 Meals a Day… and No Snacking

During the Cleanse, our goal is to teach our bodies how to enter into and maintain fat metabolism. One of the best ways to kick-start this process is to eat only 3 meals a day (along with the Morning Ghee), without snacking in between.

3) Monodiet Meal:

The Monodiet Meal is comprised of kitchari only, from above recipe. To maximize your cleanse and reap the most benefits, eat only nonfat kitchari for your 3 meals each day. This will be incredibly healing to your digestive tract and extremely detoxifying. When you eat a Monodiet (comprised of 1 food), your body can focus the energy that normally goes towards digestion to cleansing and healing other systems. This meal plan is truly a transformative option for both your body’s detox process and your psychological relationship to food.

4) Final Flush: 

On the evening of day 4, eat an early and light dinner. Wait 2 hours and then take a hot Epsom salt bath. If you cannot take a bath, take a hot shower and then rest with a hot water bottle on your abdomen for 10–15 minutes to warm the belly. Then, take your laxative. Choose the laxative that is best for you: 

For those with sensitive digestion (like regular heartburn and indigestion, loose stools, bowel irritation, gallbladder or liver issues) 

◊ Drink 1 cup of senna tea (Traditional Medicinals Smooth Move tea works well). 

◊ Or drink 1 1/ 2 cups of room temperature or warm prune juice. 

For those with healthy digestion

◊ Dissolve 1 tablespoon Epsom salts in 1 cup of water. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice. Drink the mixture. 

For those with sluggish, hard or constipated bowels and strong digestion 

◊ Dissolve 1 1/ 2 tablespoons of Epsom salt in 1 cup of water. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. Drink the mixture. 

You will likely experience a laxative effect within 1–15 hours after drinking the laxative (the average time is about 4–6 hours). If there was no laxative effect and you’re still feeling strong, you can repeat the same laxative therapy on the fifth morning. 

Reminder: Check with your Medical Doctor before doing any laxative therapy. Do not eat anything until the laxative effect has worn off. Sipping room temperature or warm water is fine. The cleanse is now over, but on day 5, break the cleanse gently with a soup or soupy hot cereal of well-cooked veggies and grains. 

Happy Cleaning,

Diana

Hydrosol Workshop

I had an amazing opportunity to finally meet Racheal and visit Robertsons Farm last week! She held a Hydrosol Workshop with Tarah from Digit Naturals. We got to learn how our Hydrosols are made and I got to see where some of our herbs are coming from!

We picked Rose Geranium for our Hydrosol Workshop! This plant is incredible and truly one of my favorites. This process was an eye opener on how much plant material you would really need to make Essential Oils. Usually Hydrosols are a byproduct of the Essential Oil industry. We were distilling for the sole purpose or marking Hydrosols. Which really is much more sustainable for our future of plants.

as Tarah explained:

Hydro - Water

Sol - solution

These aromatic waters are created by steam distilling leaves, flowers, roots and bark. They contain the naturally occurring essential oil from the botanicals. The oil and water remain in nature’s perfect balance capturing the healing benefits of each plant.

Putting on the Rye flower to seal the still

You can see some of the Essential oil collecting on the top. We will get 8L of Hydrosol in 4-6hr.

While we wait, we made smudges! We had picked our favorite herbs from the farm.

Rose Geranium Hydrosol from first batch to last. You can see how the first few are more cloudy with essential oil. The smell is stronger too. You could mix them all together or keep them separate depending on smell preference.

We also have our smudge sticks displayed, it doesn’t have to just be white sage to smudge! We all have a great mix of medicinal herbs!

Met the Genies. They were not happy to be on the same path as us!!

Walking to meet the Highland Cows! I finally got to meet them🙏

One final picture of some of the medicinal garden!

Perfect Shield

To understand skin care you have to understand the skin. Even though this is a long read, it will hopefully make it easier to understand why choosing nature helps the overall health of our skin for longtime health.

Perfect Shield

Skin has three layers. The outermost layer, the part you see, is called the epidermis. The middle layer is called the dermis and below the dermis lies the skins foundation, called the subcutaneous layer. These three layers work in concert to form a healthy and beautiful skin.

Epidermis

The epidermis is itself composed of layers, the top of which is your shield. As beautiful and as supple as the skin can be, it is also a form of armor. Let's face it; it's a tough world out there and you need armor to protect you from drying winds, rain and snow, dust and stone, sleet and hail, among many other hazards. The skin can take all that and a lot more. In fact, in some of the places on our bodies, such as our hands feet, the skin develops hard, tough calluses to protect itself against intense wear.

The hard surface of the skin, known as the horny layer or stratum corneum, is made of dead cells that are flat and flexible. They originate at the bottom of the dermis, a region known as the basal layer. Once they are born, these cells migrate upward to the surface. On their way they are transformed into protein-producing cells known as keratinocytes. Whenever the skin is cut or abraded, the job of keratinocytes is to signal the dermis to produce more cells so that the cut can be knitted together and the wound closed as quickly as possible. When they reach the surface and encounter the air, the keratinocytes die, forming your defense shield. After a week or two, they slough off, making way for another round of cells that forms a new horny layer. The journey from the basal layer to the surface of the skin takes about 28 days this rate slows to 35 and 42 days and longer as we head into our senior years.

Before they die, keratinocytes act with surrounding cells to produce chemicals that regulate your immune system. If you get scratched or cut, or develop a boil, for example, these cells trigger an immune response that attacks bacteria and viruses that swoop into the open wound. Your immune system also helps cleanse the tissue of dirt and chemicals that infiltrate the opening. One of the by-products of an immune reaction is inflammation-the red swelling and heat that surrounds a wound.

Your immune system distinguishes your cells and those of invaders, assessing the aliens for possible danger to your health. The more poisons enter your system, the more vigorously your immune system responds and the more your tissues are inflamed, resulting in rapid aging.

Among the poisons we must avoid are synthetic substances placed on the skin. Every synthetic chemical used in skin care and beauty products has side effects for some percentage of the population.  The more synthetics you use, the more rapidly your skin ages.  Common subsidence of concern include PEGs (polyethylene glycols), which cause rashes, skin irritations, and inflammation in sensitive people: phthalates, derivatives of the petrochemical naphthalene (the substance used in mothballs), which has been linked to birth defects and serious hormonal imbalances; and benzophenon, commonly used in sunblock, which causes irritation, inflammation, and skin rashes. Parabens, the most widely used preservatives in skincare and cosmetics products, have a hormonelike effect on the skin and trigger inflammation, causing shrinking collagen fibers, the strands of protein that make your skin elastic, resulting in wrinkling and more rapid aging.

In general, synthetic substances have three potential effects on the epidermal and dermal layers. First, they can stimulate an allergic reaction, causing swelling of the sensitive tissues, including the eyes and sinuses. Second, they can cause irritation, which can result in an inflammatory reaction. Third, they can the increase the permeability of the skin, in essence, poke holes in the epidermis-thus allowing more disease-causing agents to penetrate. The bottom line is that synthetic ingredients can wreak havoc on your skin and overtax your immune system. This is why you want to use skin care products that contain only natural ingredients.

Think of your epidermis as a living shield. It protects you from assaults from without while it guards the treasures within, among the most important of which is water. Well-hydrated skin maintains its plump, unlined youthfulness. Your epidermis makes sure your skin retains the moisture trapped within it, especially in the dermis. When the dermis is full of moisture, your skin is soft, dense, and pillowy. If not for the epidermis, the moisture in your skin would come to the surface and evaporate, leaving your skin dry, wrinkled, and aged. By keeping the skin hydrated the epidermis maintains your natural moisturizing factor (NFM). People who have good NFM have a healthy epidermis. In fact, the better your epidermis, the greater your NFM

Skin varies in sensitivity. It can be as tough as a fireman and as soft as a rose petal. One of the substances that give skin this beautiful and seemingly contradictory quality is sebum, an oil-like compound that coats the epidermis. Sebum is made of fatty acids, fatty alcohols, waxes, lactic acid, and salts. These constituents combine to give sebum a pH of between 4.3 and 6-meaning that it is slightly acidic, hence the term acid mantle for the coating of the skin. This acid base on your skin is highly effective at neutralizing bacteria and other disease-causing agents. Sebum also helps seal moisture into the skin. It's hard on germs but soft to the touch.

The epidermis also contains the cells that provide pigment, or melanocytes. Only about 2 or 3 percent of the cells in the epidermis are melanocytes, which means this tiny minority of cells provides all the colour in our skin. When the epidermis is treated with harsh chemicals and peels, the melanocytes can become deformed, resulting in irregularities in skin colour.

Any program that supports the epidermis, therefore, supports the health, youthfulness, and beauty of the skin. On the other hand, substances that injure the epidermis, or strip it from the skin, are actually helping to destroy the skin, even though it may appear to give a short-term benefit. Alpha hydroxy acids, for example, strip the upper layers of the epidermis and expose the soft tissue below. That may appear to enhance the skins appearance for a short while, but in fact it accelerates the aging of the skin in the long run. Thus, we see the great divide in skin care approaches today. We either work with the skin to assist or in doing what it does best, or we end up injuring the skin, or replacing it’s normal function, for short-term benefits.

Dermis

The watery world contains blood and lymph vessels, small muscles,and nerves that convey our sense of touch. Also sweat glands, hair follicles and sebaceous glands which produce sebum. The body is constantly resupplying the dermis with water to keep it moist, healthy and beautiful.

Traversing the dermis are fibrous strands, about 80 percent of which are made of a protein called collagen. Collagen forms a dense matrix that protects the skin from splitting when it is pulled or twisted. The remainder of the strands are elastin, another protein-based fiber. Elastin acts like rubber bands; whenever the skin is pulled or stretched, elastin snaps it back into its original shape. As we age, however, the elastin weakens.

In youth, collagen and elastin are moist and plump, which makes the skin appear full, soft, and unlined. They give the skin its fullness and shape. As we age, the fibers are attacked by oxygen-free radicals, which causes them to dry, shrink, and cross-link with other collagen strands, forming structures that look like fishnetting. As the collagen base shrinks, the skin at the surface folds over on itself, forming wrinkles. Sometimes the collagen becomes so cross-linked that the skin looks like fish netting. As discussed in chapter 2, the antidote to the problem of free radicals is the antioxidants found in plants. By eating antioxidant-rich plants and applying plant-based substances directly on your skin, you infuse the skin with antioxidants.These substances neutralize free radicals and slow the skin's aging process. Medicinal plants can heal the skin and restore much of its beauty and radiance.

The dermis is infused with blood vessels that bring oxygen and nutrition to nerves, glands, hair follicles, and cells, including those at the surface. When the body is cold, blood starts to move rapidly to bring in more warmth. When the body is hot, sweat glands start pumping moisture to the surface, where it evaporates and takes away some of the excess heat.

Also within the watery dermis lie wast products that are constantly being expelled from your cells and tissues. Those toxins are eliminated from your body by your lymph system. This s a complex network of vessels and nodes that absorbs intracellular waste particles from the gel-like fluid and takes it away to be neutralized by the liver and expelled by the kidneys. Within the lymph vessels and nodes are antibodies and immune cells, called lymphocytes which destroy disease-causing agents.

Like any waste removal system, the lymph works best when it is moving. When it is congested or blocked, waste builds up in the tissues and can cause blemishes rashes, and irritations on the skin. Unlike the circulatory system, the lymph has no heart to help keep it moving. That job is left to you. You help keep your lymph circulating by moving your body, especially with exercise-walking, dancing stretching , and yoga, for example. Needless to say, the better your lymph system is at removing toxic substances the clearer and more beautiful your skin is.

One way to reduce the burden on both your lymph your skin is reduce the toxic substances you ingest, especially through your diet. Try to avoid excess consumption of artificial substances, alcohol, animal fats, and cholesterol. Another way to keep your skin clear and the lymph unburdened is to stop smoking.

Deep within the dermis and down into the subcutaneous layer are hair follicles. The hairs that grow out of these follicles act like reeds in a pond. In the same neighborhood as the follicles are the sebaceous glands, which produce sebum. Along with the skin's water content, sebum moisturizes the skin. Once secreted, the sebum attaches itself to hairs and climbs upward to the surface along them to create the skin's soft yet protective acid mantle.

When the sebaceous glands are overactive, sebum can collect in the openings, or pores, of the skin, and in the places where the hairs appear at the surface. When this happens, pores and follicles can become blocked, infected, and inflamed, causing blemishes, boils, swelling, and scarring.

Also buried within the dermis are the sweat glands, which release moisture to cool the body. Sweat glands also eliminate waste, thus functioning as an adjunct to the kidneys and urinary tract.

The Subcutaneous Layer

Below the dermis is the subcutaneous layer, which contains fat, muscle, and some blood circulation. The fat and muscle act as a shock absorber for the skin much as collagen does. At this layer, we find those annoying bands of cellulite, which is essentially fat, held in place by connective ned with fat. Metabolic activities also take place here.

Ideally, diet and exercise habits promote both general health and the health and beauty of your skin. This thinking is the basis for a new approach to health care known as salutogenesis or the act of promoting continual good as opposed to preventing or treating disease. A salutogenetic approach to skin care means using a health promoting diet, lifestyle, and healing plants to help the skin preform its most basic and essential tasks.

Modern life has fostered a fragmented way of thinking that encourages us to see the parts of the body as separate from the organism as a whole. For example, there's no end to the number of beauty experts who will tell you how to have a beautiful face and clear skin but never mention the importance of overall health of your body. Your commitment to being beautiful is really a commitment to your overall good health and vitality. Clear, radiant skin reflects good health. What most beauty experts won't tell you is that a beautiful face and radiant skin depend especially on the of your kidneys and large and small intestines.

Exert from Awakening Beauty the Dr. Hauschka Way

10th Birthday

Time Flies! It has been 10 years since Bradshaw Pure Esthetics opened its doors, and 3 years ago since we relocated. Our new space didn't look like this when we first moved up. Luckily our new space had great bones! We were fortunate to start from scratch with this new space and really create my vision for Bradshaw Pure Esthetics. I remember how exciting and stressful it was to move and to create my new studio. At the time of the renos I was helping a friend with her wedding, closing on our first house, and one of my very good friends passed away suddenly. All I will say, there was some serious emotions involved at the time. I was thankful to have great family and friends around to help.  Looking back I see how fortunate I've been over the last 10 years. I have been very blessed to work with some amazingly talented women, and be able to come to work every day to a job I love. Of course I wouldn't have been able to do any of this without my amazing clients. Having a focus on Organic Skincare we have been able to achieve a healthy beautiful environment, and thankfully our clients care about these things as well.

Its been 10 short years of  bring our clients Certified Biodynamic skincare products, and creating customized facials with healing plant ingredients. Integrity, beauty and results all mixed up to make the perfect treatments!

XOXO, all of us, past and present,
Diana

Birthday Party

Bradshaw Pure Esthetics is celebrating our 10 Year Birthday Friday October 13th at our studio from 5-8. We will celebrate with:

• Gift Bag Give Away
• Free Brow Wax during our Birthday week! 10th-14th
• 30% off during our end of the week Birthday Party on Oct. 13th 5-8

We would love to say thanks to all our great customers with wine, cheese and sales!

Favourite Dr.Hauschka product: Rose Day Cream

Rose Day Cream

In the winter months the skin is exposed to exceptional stresses: dry, warm air indoors – damp, cold air outside. This is why the right day care for the skin is especially important during the cold season. Rose Day Cream, the most popular classic from the Dr.Hauschka Face Care range, provides the skin with everything it needs to get safely through the winter. With its tried and trusted qualities it offers ideal protection against wind and weather.

A winter coat for the face

Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream acts like a winter coat: shea butter, rose wax and beeswax with extract of avocado form a film on the skin and give it the necessary protection. But Rose Day Cream can do even more – with its special properties and extracts of roses it develops a balm-like, conditioning action and supports the structure of normal skin, as well as that of dry or sensitive skin. With over 30 roses in each tube, it will always be a soothing winter favorite.

Maintains the moisture content of the skin

Even after 50 years of Dr.Hauschka Skin Care, Rose Day Cream is as well loved as on day one. This is due, among other things, to its harmonising influence on skin functions. Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream agreeably regulates the oil-moisture balance of the skin. The tried and tested skincare product is readily absorbed and lastingly protects the sensitive skin of the face against drying out, aided by costly ingredients such as rose oil, rose petal wax and specially rhythmitised extracts of rose petals and rose hips. Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream also makes dry, flaky skin velvety soft and silky. After application Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream continues to maintain hydration over many hours.

Beneficial for red, blotchy skin and broken capillaries

Skin prone to blotchiness and broken capillaries (couperose) benefits especially from Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream with its protective action. The strength and the softness of the rose combine to act with other natural substances for optimum care of the fine structure of the skin. So with Dr.Hauschka Rose Day Cream winter always shows itself from its best side.

Ingredients: Water, Arachis Oil, Marshmallow Root Extract, Beeswax, Avocado Oil Extract, St. John’s Wort Extract, Shea Butter, Lecithin, Essential Oils, Rose Wax, Rose Petal and Rose Hip Extracts.

Healthy Skin

To keep your skin healthy, you must get into the habit of a daily ritual!

Publicity campaigns and beauty magazines are broadcasting to Western society an ideal vision of women, in which they are characterized by their youth. Amongst cosmetics procedures, which are offered to women in order to help them fight the aging process, Botox occupies an important place. With Botox, which paralyses facial muscles, the skin is stretched, turns solid and looks smoother. However, if wrinkles disappear it’s only temporary because even if the skin appears younger, it continues to develop and to age. In order to well understand Botox’s effects, think about a person whose leg muscles’ are paralysed. He would regularly see a physiotherapist whose massages would help and stimulate the paralysed limbs. For women that have chosen to use Botox, it’s exactly the same principle, so it is important to understand that as this cosmetic procedure paralyses facial muscles, the skin still needs to be stimulated. Indeed, when the effect of Botox come to an end, wrinkles might reappear more prominent. With the prospect of preventing the eventual escalation of the skin aging process, it is necessary to keep a daily skin care ritual, which you might sometimes complete with additional care from a spa.

At home, make sure to clean, tone, and to hydrate your skin daily, with for example some of the products proposed by Dr. Hauschka natural face care assortment. You may apply creams and serums to your skin while massaging your face. Also, ensure that you don’t forget the sensitive spots on your face, such as your eyes and lips. Your daily face care ritual will stimulate and help the skin’s regenerative and auto-corrective abilities.

Additional trips to the spa such as Bradshaw Pure Esthetics, can be helpful. Indeed, we will know how to emphasize your natural beauty with target massages, which will help and stimulate your entire body. You will receive care which will help your face to look smoother and radiant.

With more than 9 years of experience, I have noticed that some customers may not have sufficiently considered the effect of the paralysing process by Botox on their facial muscles. And though their skin has a smooth appearance, it is temporary, and it requires to be completed with daily care to nurture and stimulate your skin. This winter lets not forget to nurture and look after ourselves.

Best,

Diana