Peptides: Powerful Weapons in the War on Aging Skin
Aging is inevitable, but looking old is optional. There are some very exciting ingredients available in anti-aging skincare today, and peptides are at the top of the list.
Simply put, peptides are made up of long chains of amino acids that communicate with cells in the body. As the body ages, the communication between cells is disrupted. Peptides help increase the communication, which results in dramatically healthier skin.
There are three major peptides used in skincare products today: pentapeptides, copper peptides, and neuropeptides. Pentapeptides help reduce wrinkles while copper peptides are useful in healing damaged skin. Neuropeptides work as an anti-wrinkle agent. As we age, the skin produces less collagen and fewer of these peptides are produced. To help offset this negative effect of the natural aging process, these powerful amino acids (peptides) can be incorporated into a healthy skincare formula to increase the firmness and elasticity of your skin and increase collagen production.
As you mature, your skin loses collagen and moisture, and the elasticity of the skin’s fiber network begins to degenerate. This leaves your skin feeling tighter, dryer, and generally much less supple. This is known as intrinsic aging, and it’s an unavoidable natural body process.
Externally, daily exposure to harsh environmental elements dramatically accelerates the skin’s aging process, and is known as extrinsic aging. The more often your skin comes into direct contact with harmful ultraviolet light, the more likely you will develop the unwanted signs of photo damage (wrinkles, hyper-pigmentation, and possibly even lesions that can lead to skin cancer). In addition, this UV exposure causes the skin to lose collagen and elastin even more quickly than intrinsic aging does alone.
Don’t think sun exposure is the only UV damage that can age skin. Are you in front of a computer screen all day long? Computer screens also give off small amounts of UV radiation. Most people are not affected by it, but people with lupus or other photosensitivities should take precaution, especially if they are in front of the screen for long periods of time (more than an hour at a time, for days in a row). The best thing you can purchase to help eliminate the problem is an anti-glare screen that fits over the computer monitor itself. It knocks down the glare as well as blocks the UV rays.
People with lupus are most known for being sensitive to indoor lighting, but other people with sun sensitivity (photosensitivity) can also be sensitive to UV rays from indoor lighting. In particular, people with Xeroderma Pigmentosum must totally avoid all forms of ultraviolet light. With lupus specifically, UV light can trigger flares, rashes, itching, low-grade fevers, and cause muscle and joint pain. Other folks describe the effects of UV lighting as giving them a "woozy" feeling, making them feel nauseous or fatigued. A two-hour shopping spree in Wal-Mart is equivalent to a full hour in the sun—you don't get sunburned but you DO get the full hour of UV rays. Other sources of UV radiation come from copiers, computer screens, welding, and various kinds of lighting. Awareness is the first step to prevention and correction.
When peptides are incorporated into an effective delivery system and combined with specific botanicals, beautiful changes can occur quickly to UV-damaged skin—especially when combined with n-acetyl glucosomine and niacinimide. This is a powerful combination, and a more effective natural alternative to chemical skin bleaches and retinol serums for aging skin repair. Including r-lipoic acid and vitamin C in this formula increases collage production even more, and acts as a potent anti-inflammatory, providing an effective solution to both aging and rosacea skin conditions.
Reducing the effects of free-radical damage that come from UV exposure cannot be emphasized enough. The need for antioxidants in an effective skincare formula are HUGE. Sunshine Botanicals Biopeptide Cellular Complex neutralizes free radicals and provides a combination of potent peptides, collagen, intense antioxidant protection, and will help restore your skins healthy, natural “glow.” This unique anti-aging serum is also infused with horse chestnut extract, which strengthens capillaries and acts as an antioxidant to inhibit collagen and elastin destruction.
Emily Fritchey is a holistic skin therapist, award-winning product formulator, and nationally recognized aesthetics educator who's unique and highly effective approaches for the treatment of aging and problem skin conditions have been presented at national aesthetics conferences, wellness seminars, and natural health workshops across the country. She has been featured in Cosmetic Surgery Times and Dermatology Times, and has received the endorsement of beauty experts and nationally syndicated radio talk show hosts across the country, including Kat James, author of "The Truth About Beauty." Emily is the founder and president of Sunshine Botanicals and the recipient of three consecutive "Beauty with a Conscience" awards from Natural Solutions magazine for outstanding product formulation. For more information, visit www.sunshinebotanicals.com, as well as her Facebook and Twitter pages.