Manicures and UV Risk

Millions of women visit nail salons to have their nails shaped, buffed, and polished every year. Most walk out with beautiful nails, but there are those who unfortunately develop nail fungus, rashes, and bacterial infections related to unlicensed technicians or poorly sanitized tools. It appears now that manicures may pose an additional threat related to exposure from UV nail lights.

The UV nail lights often used at salons to dry and cure regular and gel manicures are essentially mini tanning beds. I understand they harden polish and cut drying times considerably, but like full-sized tanning beds, they emit mostly UVA rays, the strongest most penetrating ultra-violet rays. And according to studies, they emit similar amounts of UV radiation per square inch. For women getting multiple manicures a year, this is considerable exposure.

The Food and Drug Administration has not released a statement about UV nail lamps, but regulates them as a radiation-emitting electronic product. One study described the cases of two healthy middle aged women with no risk factors who developed non-melanoma skin cancers on their hands. More studies are needed, but until then I recommend reducing your exposure.

Visia Complexion Analysis

As part of our new Flawless Friday special we are offering each participant a complimentary Visia complexion analysis. I have found the Visia system to be the best start to any skin care program. A session generally runs about 30 minutes. First your skin is thoroughly cleaned. Then multispectral imaging and analysis is used to capture key visual information for six areas affecting complexion health and appearance. It then compares your skin assessment against baseline averages based on your skin type and age scoring you for wrinkles, spots, enlarged pores, uneven texture, bacterial accumulation, and photodamage.

This first scan not only serves as a clinical measurement of your skin’s surface and subsurface epidermal irregularities, it enables me to customize a skin care routine and recommend the best treatment options for your unique complexion profile. Going forward, it is an invaluable tool for measuring and monitoring your progress.

If you’ve been considering a new cosmetic dermatology treatment or wondering about your overall skin health, I heartily encourage you to take advantage of our Visia special and let me customize a skin care program that addresses your specific combination of facial characteristics.

Good Genes vs. Good Living

People will often credit their health or appearance to “good genes” as if lifestyle choices and environmental factors don’t play into a person’s issues with weight, longevity, or premature aging. Granted Mother Nature does have a role, but she can only carry a person so far. You might look at the photos above and think I’m displaying before and after photos of my work. Actually what you are seeing is a set of identical twins whose very different lifestyles created a severe aging disparity.

I constantly remind my patients that we’re a team. I’ll do my part providing the best in medical and cosmetic dermatological care but outside of my office they need to practice good living. If you thought it was all just “doctor-speak” when told to use sun screen, eat right, don’t smoke and exercise you can see for yourself that poor choices will show on your face.

A study of identical twins with obvious aging gaps narrowed the most damaging factors to sunbathing, smoking, and stress. Twin 1, the older looking twin, lived in California for thirty years, worshipping the sun year-round. She was a pack-a-day smoker, liked to drink, and dealt with some very stressful life situations. Twin 2 lived in Maryland with limited sun exposure, never drank or smoked, and lived rather stress free. She looks a good 10 years younger.

If you’re a smoker with too much sun exposure, you probably do look older than nature intended. But that doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. It’s never too late to start living clean, and laser resurfacing, chemical peels and topical treatments can drastically improve skin quality, shrink pores and fade age spots.

Chocolate Benefits

It’s February. February means Valentine’s Day and Valentine’s Day means chocolate – lots of chocolate. If you’re like everyone else you’ve spent the holidays enjoying chocolate covered nuts, dipped fruits, gourmet chocolates, cakes, cookies, truffles, turtles and now hearts. And while this chocolate indulgence may not have done your waistline any favors, it surprisingly may have benefited your skin.

It turns out that dark chocolate has numerous health benefits. It lowers a person’s risk of heart attack and cancer, improves mood, and has a positive effect on bad cholesterol. Cocoa, it turns out, contains more antioxidants per cup than red wine or green tea. These antioxidants called flavanols promote healthy cellular tissue and increase blood flow to the skin resulting in improved texture and better hydration. Researchers have even found that subjects who regularly consumed at least 20 grams (about the size of one bar) daily were better protected from exposure to UV light.

I’m not giving anyone a license to replace healthy food choices with chocolate or to stop wearing sun screen. Of course, chocolate is high in calories and saturated fat so as always moderation is the key. Just remember the next time you think that chocolate is just a guilty pleasure, you’re helping your body maintain collagen and fight against sun damage.

Smartphone Skin Cancer Apps

Looking back at my first cell phone I never realized that it would become a technology that I rely on so heavily. But smartphones and their millions of applications have changed the way we communicate, track appointments, follow the news, bank, shop, watch movies, listen to music, and check the weather. Now mobile technology is even changing how we approach wellness, fitness, healthcare, and medicine. An estimated 44 million health apps were downloaded in 2011 ranging from simple calorie counters and workout logs to ones that track symptoms and even diagnosis illness. There are now even new skin cancer apps: Skin Scan and LoveMySkin.

I like that these apps raise awareness about the importance of skin cancer screening, however I have strong concerns about anyone using a $5.00 app for real medical decision making. The key to surviving a diagnosis of melanoma is catching it early, and so I cannot recommend any app that might delay a lifesaving medical check-up. Recently I wrote about Melafind, a new imaging technology that looks below the skin’s surface to analyze moles for signs of cancer. It went through years of testing and a thorough FDA approval process. Skin Scan is basically a photo app that can give different readings on the same mole depending on how bright the ambient light is.

If you are concerned about skin cancer and want to use these apps, use them for mole mapping and as a photo archive, but leave the analysis to a trained dermatologist. I do like and recommend apps that have been developed for improving sun-smart behaviors. MyUVAlert by Coppertone is free and provides local UV forecasts and reapplication reminders. It even lets you create profiles for every family member.

There is a strong drive to empower consumers across all levels of healthcare which has led to a surge in medical apps. But with Apple’s recent hire of a Director of Medical Marketing, and the FDA soon to publish its final guidelines on mobile medical applications, health apps should become more medically trustworthy. Until then there is no substitute for a professional medical evaluation.

Skincare for the Mommy-to-Be

You’re expecting and you’re dealing with the wild hormone fluctuations, weird food cravings, and drastic changes to your body that go along with growing a healthy baby. There are a million things to do to prepare and the last thing you probably want to think about is your skin.

We’ve all heard of “the glow” of pregnancy. Unfortunately, in reality skin problems turn out to be just as common as radiant skin. Although, most over-the-counter treatments are fine to use, many of the products you depended on before are now unsafe. Since creams and lotions get absorbed into the bloodstream and ultimately come in contact with your developing baby, it is important to know which products and ingredients need to be avoided.

Soy products are appealing to many women looking for natural ingredients and are generally safe to use. However, they can have strong estrogenic effects causing some women to experience the “mask of pregnancy” or melasma. If you have dark skin tones you should avoid soy or look for products with “active soy” which has had those compounds removed.

Retinoids are vitamin A derivatives that boost collagen production and cell division. These anti-aging products are great for reducing fine lines and improving skin tone, but oral retinoids are a known cause of birth defects. To be safe, it’s wise to avoid even topical skin care products containing them.

Salicylic acid is in the aspirin family. It is commonly found in acne treatments, creams, cleansers, gels, and toners. It works as an exfoliant, keeping pores clear and preventing breakouts. Like retinoids, salicylic acid has been shown to cause birth defects in its oral form and is best to be avoided.

Manufacturers for both BOTOX and Restylane recommend discontinuing use during pregnancy. If you had treatments before learning you were pregnant, don’t worry. It is unlikely toxin levels would be high enough to cause any harm. Just wait until post-partum to resume injections.

Since many products and ingredients get listed under different names below is a chart to help you sort through them all.

SAFE	AVOID
Active soy	Accutane
Alpha hydroxy acid	Avage
Azelaic acid	Benzoyl peroxide
Glycolic acid	Beta hydroxy acid
Lactic acid	BHA
Mineral based products	Differin
Sulfur based products	Renova
Topical vitamin C	Retin-A
	Retinoic acid
	Retinol
	Retinyl linoleate
	Retinyl palmitate
	Salicylic acid
	Soy
	Tazorac
	Tretinoin
	Vitamin A derivatives

Flawless Fridays

Greenville Dermatology would like to wish all of you a Happy New Year, and to celebrate we are launching a new promotion for 2012. On January 20th, we will host our first Flawless Friday. Be sure to join us for $10 off per unit of BOTOX and $50 off JUVÉDERM. Throughout the year, we will continue to bring you new discounts on the last Friday of each month*. Please check our website or call to speak with our staff for more details.

In addition to the monthly specials, all year we will be offering buy one, get one free LATISSE kits. You can learn more about LATISSE from my website by clicking here.

I’m looking forward to a great year and hope you’ll take advantage of these offers. As always I am proud to serve you with the best in skin health, cosmetic treatments and spa services. Trust your skin to the best and be sure to join us for Flawless Fridays.

*Due to a scheduling conflict I will be hosting Flawless Fridays on the third Friday in January, (January 20th) call our office to book your appointment today.