About Face A Plastic Surgeon's 4-step Nonsurgical Program For Younger, Beautiful Skin

Chapter 1 How Skin Works The skin is the largest organ of the body. It is about two one-hundredths of an inch thick, and covers an area of roughly twenty square feet. Its inner layers are called the dermis, which contains blood vessels and cells known as fibroblasts. These cells produce collagen, elastin, and proteoglycans, the mortar that holds your skin together. The outer component is the epidermis. This contains somewhere between twelve and fifteen layers of cells but, as we age, they diminish to nine or ten layers. Only the very bottom layers of cells divide and replace themselves. They slowly rise to the skin's surface and, as they rise, the cells lose their nuclei and die. This outer layerknown as the stratum corneumis then imperceptibly sloughed off in tiny pieces during everyday activity, which in turn compels the bottom layer to start making new skin cells. In a teenager this exfoliation cycle takes about two or three weeks; if your skin is injured, the process goes into overdrive to make new skin to replace the damaged. This replacement cycle slows with aging, as the cells become sluggish, less apt to divide, and less hydrated. Part of this cycle is affected by the formation of free radicals. These are oxygen molecules that have an odd number of electrons, causing them to be unstable. As they seek out healthier electrons from other molecules, including those of our skin cells, free radicals cause a chain reaction of damage known as oxidation. Free radicals not only harm skin cells, but they are known to impede blood circulation and cause varicose veins. The most significant external sources of free radicals are cigarette smoke, air pollution, and pesticides. The growing susceptibility to free radicals is one of the causes of aging in various parts of our bodies. Antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E have been shown to defend against free radicals, lending the free radicals their own electrons and forming a barrier that protects human skin cells. These vitamins are found in a variety of vegetables, meat, and dairy products. The cycle is also affected by a number of other factors, such as diet, sun exposure, smoking, and physical exercise. No doubt, you already know that some of these behaviors and habits are harmful to your body. Let me tell you how they specifically affect your skin. Your Face Is a Reflection of How You Eat The average American's diet is filled with carbohydrates, sugar, salt, and caffeine. If you kept track of these elements over the course of just one day, you would be amazed at the quantity you consume. Of all of these, sugar and carbohydrates have the worst effects on your complexion. They cause inflammation of the epidermis, and rob your skin of the oxygen it needs to stay youthful. On the other hand, there are foods that feed your skin helpful nutrients and oxygen, such as fish, walnuts, and olive oil. You cannot improve your skin without first addressing your daily diet, which is detailed in Chapter 2. In only a week, you will see clearer skin and feel the effects of rejuvenated oxygen flow throughout your body. Smoking This habit creates a toxic metabolism in your whole body. Many people know the lungs are damaged by smoking, which is harmful enough in itself. The more visible effects are in oxygen-deprived skin. When you smoke, it shows on your face. In addition to more wrinkles around the lips and eyes, smokers have skin that is slower to heal. Blood is actually directed away from the skin by the destructive effects of nicotine, causing a grayish tone. We call this overall effect "smoker's skin." The physiological basis is that nicotine causes the tiny subdermal capillaries to go into chronic spasms. These capillaries are the only source of blood supply to your skin. Over time, suchBrown, Gregory is the author of 'About Face A Plastic Surgeon's 4-step Nonsurgical Program For Younger, Beautiful Skin', published 2005 under ISBN 9780345467287 and ISBN 0345467280.