Spider vein removal is one of many things that we can do to help our bodies look and feel better, contributing to our general feeling of wellbeing. Spider veins are completely harmless and this is primarily a cosmetic treatment. Still, for some people whose faces or legs are affected, treatment can bring new confidence and help with depression and relationship problems.

Spider veins are the common name for telangiectasias which are small dilated blood vessels near the surface of the skin. They mainly form on the legs and face, and 80% of sufferers are women. They usually start to develop between the ages of 18 and 35, and peak in late middle age.

A tendency to telangiectasia is hereditary. Facial spider veins are sometimes caused by rosacea which is also often inherited and is associated with light skin. Obesity, pregnancy hormonal fluctuations and birth control pills, a sedentary lifestyle, a job that involves a lot of standing, and even high heeled shoes can contribute to the likelihood of developing spider veins on the legs. Read the rest of this entry »

Looking to make a change and lose some weight? I have reviewed the top diet on the internet and you can go and read over 200 comments people have made about why this diet has worked well for them, as well as some of the problems.

If you are are a man affected by a receding hairline or a bald patch, you are going to be wanting an effective way to treat baldness so that you can keep looking young as long as possible.

First let’s be clear that there are different kinds of baldness. There is complete alopecia which can happen at any age, develops quickly and often results in the person having no hair anywhere, not just on the head. This can be caused by cancer treatments, by stress, disease or sometimes has an unknown cause. In the case of cancer therapy, the hair usually grows back when the treatment is over. In other cases it may or it may not. There is no real treatment for this type of baldness and most people either live with it or wear a wig.

What we will be considering here is Male Pattern Baldness, which happens gradually to many men as they get older (sometimes starting right after adolescence) and is inherited. The hairline recedes on the forehead and sometimes a bald patch develops at the crown. Women may also find their hairline receding but it tends to start at a later age and they do not get the patch of baldness on the top of the head. Read the rest of this entry »

There are many types of baldness treatment advertised on the internet, and the good news is that some of them do work in slowing the progression of Male Pattern Baldness or even helping hair to grow back. But don’t go buying the first ‘miracle cream’ that you see. Here we take a look at some of the genuine treatments that are available.

The first of these methods, and the most drastic, is to transplant hair follicles that are still active, from another part of the head. This is a surgical procedure that works best for men whose remaining hair is thick and abundant, so they can afford to lose some of it. It does not create new hairs, but redistributes the hair more evenly over the head. However, the area of baldness will continue to grow, so once you begin transplant treatment, you must be prepared to repeat it.

Alternatives to straight one-for-one transplanting of hairs are currently under development and testing. If proven, these will allow multiplication of transplanted hairs so that several new follicles can be developed from one existing follicle. This could revolutionize baldness treatments because it would mean that in theory, nobody need ever go bald. Read the rest of this entry »

As you may know I live in Calgary and here in Calgary we have two real problems with the affects of the sun. In the Summer we have very strong sun and lots of it with long days this far noth of the equator. In the Winter time there is also lots of sun and very low humidity leading to dry skin – and lots of skiers in the mountains.

Samara Felesky-Hunt is a registered dietitian in Calgary at The Downtown Sports Clinics. Her website is at dietitian-online.com and she wrote the following article for the Calgary Herald newspaper.

Although summer is a time to get outside, the sun can leave skin looking and feeling dry and worn out. You tan it, shave it, scrub it and exfoliate it; it gets scratched, scraped and burned. It endures pimples, bites, freckles and moles, while wear and tear may show up as lines, wrinkles, blotches, spots and sags, rashes or even adult acne.

So, this summer, care and nourish your skin. Sunscreens can protect against sun damage, but a healthy, nutritious diet plays a role, too. Fill your grocery basket with foods that are good for your complexion and feed your skin from the inside out. Read the rest of this entry »

If you have wrinkled or sun damaged skin or acne, you may be considering a chemical face peel. There are several different types ranging from the mild AHA peel which is just one step up from many exfoliating skin products, to a deep peel that requires anaesthetic and can take several months to heal.

Whatever type of peel you choose in consultation with your dermatologist or cosmetic surgeon, the idea is that the new skin revealed by the peel is less wrinkled or blemished. This can be a great bonus for people wanting to maintain a youthful look, as well as having health benefits for some people.

The AHA or alpha hydroxy acid peel is usually applied by a dermatologist. Beta hydroxy acid is sometimes used as an alternative. These treatments are not painful and do not require an anesthetic, although there will be some discomfort during the process and for a few days after treatment you are likely to have some stinging, redness and mild irritation. Read the rest of this entry »

As soon as Botox was approved by the FDA for cosmetic use in 2002, there was a huge demand for Botox injections for wrinkles. Botox remains one of the most popular anti aging procedures available, and is often chosen as an alternative to face lifts and other plastic surgery.

What is Botox?

Botox is derived from a highly poisonous substance called botulinum toxin which is responsible for the form of food poisoning known as botulism. Botulinum toxin makes the muscles unable to contract. It began to be injected in tiny doses into the muscles around the eyes in the 1980s to treat uncontrollable blinking spasms and crossed eyes. That’s why the rights to Botox are owned by the opthalmic product manufacturer Allergan Inc.

The opthalmologists using Botox to treat eye spasms soon noticed that it also had the effect of reducing wrinkles around the eyes. Clinical trials then began for its use for cosmetic purposes. Read the rest of this entry »

Some people consider that the myth of the Fountain of Youth has been around for as long as people have been growing old. There are traces of it in stories of pools or springs that heal sickness and disability or restore life to the dead, in almost all cultures.

However, the legend of the Fountain of Youth is a little different, in fact. Its waters are supposed to have restorative powers which keep us young and immortal or at least, young and healthy until our dying day.

Belief in the Fountain of Youth was widespread among the native people of the Caribbean islands at the time when the Spanish were discovering the American continents. The Arawak people of Cuba and Puerto Rico told the Spanish explorers that the fountain was believed to be in the land of Bimini to the north, approximately where the Bahamas are located. An Arawak tribal chief who had disappeared in search of it and never returned was said to be still enjoying his youth beside the fountain centuries later. Read the rest of this entry »

Getting a free virtual hair makeover is a great idea if you are considering a new haircut, especially if you are thinking of a big change of style such as long to short, or a dramatically new hair color. Instead of the old style of articles in the hair and beauty magazines where you would search through trying to find a model whose face was shaped like yours with a cut that you liked, now you can upload your own photo to the internet and try different kinds of styles using your real face. Then print it and take it to the beauty parlor.

A makeover is a great way of staying young-looking. Whether it is a new haircut or a different range of cosmetics, the process automatically brings you up to date. Think of what you see when you look at a photo of young people in the 1970s or 1980s. Don’t they look older than they are? That is because their style is now long out of fashion. Keeping up with today’s looks keeps you young.

If you still have the same hair or makeup brand that you had 10 years ago, you are surely out of date and looking older than you should. It is time for a makeover. Take along a look that you like but always let the beautician or hair stylist make suggestions too. If you ask her to recommend something for you she will choose something that is popular now. Read the rest of this entry »

What is the anti aging secret weapon? It’s water. Yes, plain old water – our best friend in the battle to restore or hold on to our youth.

Without water there would be no life. It’s that important. Water is something that NASA looks for on new planets to establish whether there might be life on the planet. Although for humans, oxygen is a more urgent need and we would die very fast without it, there are known forms of life that do not need oxygen or even are poisoned by it. But every living thing needs water.

Water makes up 55% to 75% of the human body, depending on a person’s build and size. It is essential for all of our metabolic processes. It helps transport nutrients and eliminate toxins. These substances are dissolved or held in suspension by our bodily fluids that are mostly water, and carried around the body. It is important for a healthy colon, kidneys, liver, brain and just about everything else. Read the rest of this entry »

I just drop ideas on my wife sometimes and she just shakes her head wondering what I am thinking. This happened a couple of days ago when I mentioned that I was going to do microderm abrasion at home. May not be entirely a good idea but I will get to that a bit farther down the page.

Microderm abrasion is a method used either in office or at home to scrape the top of your skin off. I know that this description is not very fair but most articles on the subject are very fluffy and vague. Actually in an esthetician or dermatologist office there is specialized equipment which will help the person to gently scrape that top layer of skin off and then suck that off your skin so that it does not clog your pores.

Usually people will go for about 12 sessions or so of microderm abration and this should clear the skin really well getting rid of some of your scars and uneven coloring of your skin. So if it is so easy why not do this procedure at home? Read the rest of this entry »