Make Your Own Homemade Face Mask

From Julyne Derrick,
Your Guide to Beauty.
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14 Recipes for 6 Different Skin Types

You can use basic ingredients found around the house to make your own simple, hydrating masks. If you have oily or acne prone skin, mud or clay-based masks are great for balancing out your skin. Dry skin will benefit from hydrating masks made from glycerin, honey and oils. Ginseng or green tea masks are great for soothing skin.

Masks (homemade or otherwise) should stay on for 10-15 minutes, should follow with a cleansing and a thin layer of moisturizer.

Here are recipes we've gathered over the years arranged by skin type.

All Skin Types

Homemade Clay Mask for All Skin Types

Yogurt Face Mask for All Skin Types

Homemade 'Cat Litter' Mask for All Skin Types
We got this recipe off a TV show years ago.

Are You Using Too Many Skincare Products?

From Julyne Derrick,
Your Guide to Beauty.
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Yesterday's "Skin Deep" column in the New York Times had an interesting bit about women using too many skincare products. Overtreating skin with too many acidic products can inflame skin, according to Dr. Bradford R. Katchen, a Manhattan dermatologist. He suggests women need no more than four products and prescribes the following skincare regimen:

A mild cleanser; a sunscreen or moisturizer containing sunscreen; a product that contains antioxidants like vitamin C, vitamin E, pomegranate, soy and green tea; and an antiwrinkle product containing ingredients like retinoids, a form of vitamin A, or protein fragments called peptides.

Read the full article.

More Information on Retin-A & Other Vitamin A Derivatives

From Julyne Derrick,
Your Guide to Beauty.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!I've gotten a slew of emails and positive responses to an earlier post on Retin-A and why I love it. To answer some more of your questions:

1. If you are getting a doctor's prescription, consider Renova or Retin-A Micro. These are formulations of Retin-A created to combat wrinkles. They are more moisturizing than Retin-A. I use Retin-A because I travel to Mexico and it's super cheap there.
2. Do not use any Vitamin A creams if you are breastfeeding, pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant while using Retin-A. Vitamin A is dangerous to unborn children and can be passed through breast milk.
3. If you live in a very sunny climate, consider that you really need to keep your face out of the sun.
4. There will be redness and peeling at first. This is normal. Breakouts and hives are not.
5. I do not know about other countries and if you can get it without a doctor's prescription. (Sorry!) I can tell you that in the U.S. you need a prescription. Yes, you can buy it online.

New Book for Women Over Age 40: "How Not to Look Old"

From Julyne Derrick,
Your Guide to Beauty.
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Did you know the most flattering skirt length on older women is right below the knee, just at where the calf begins? That the right bra can hitch your breasts up higher than a 20-year-old's? That you should ditch the dark lips for pink lipstick or gloss? A new book, "How Not to Look Old," is full of these tips and dozens more:

Super long hair with a center part is aging

Lose the metal frame granny glasses and opt for colored plastic frames instead (never, ever use a chain)

Try a trendy nail color like a pretty light pink, almost white, or a dark, dark color like deep burgundy

Find a comfortable pair of heels (she suggests Cole Haan's Nike Air heels)

Author Charla Krupp was featured on the Today Show today and I collected the above tips for you guys. If I can remember others, I'll post them (ha!). The book is out now. Get it at the book store or online.

Thursday January 3, 2008

Asthma Diary

From Kathleen MacNaughton, R.N.,
Your Guide to Asthma.
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A Tool for Tracking SymptomsHere is a tool you can use to track your asthma symptoms. You can also record and identify your asthma triggers, which are the things that set off asthma symptoms or asthma attacks.

You can use this page as a reference for the types of information you can keep track of in your own asthma diary or notebook. Or, if you prefer, print our PDF version and make copies you can write on each week.

Asthma Treatment: Overview of Current Asthma Treatment, Asthma Medicines & More

From Kathleen MacNaughton, R.N.,
Your Guide to Asthma.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by Sanja Jelic, MD

INTRODUCTION: The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) has set five goals for asthma treatment:

• Control your asthma
• Prevent asthma symptoms
• Decrease the number of asthma attacks
• Help you use quick-relief medicines less often
• Do normal activities without having symptoms

Your asthma treatment should be part of an overall asthma management plan that you develop with your asthma doctor. Your doctor is guided by current asthma treatment guidelines published by the US National Institutes of Health and / or the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA).

Learn More About Asthma Treatment Guidelines:

• National Asthma Education Program (NIH) Treatment Guidelines
• GINA Guidelines for Asthma

THREE APPROACHES TO ASTHMA TREATMENT:

There are 3 main approaches to asthma treatment:

1. Asessement and monitoring
2. Avoidance of asthma triggers
3. Asthma medication therapy

Each of these areas is an important component of asthma management and control.

1. Assessing and Monitoring Your Asthma

To manage asthma effectively, you and your doctor need to monitor your health. This can be accomplished by:

• Tracking asthma signs and symptoms and asthma attacks
• Monitoring pulmonary function via a peak flow monitor
• Assessing how much asthma is interfering with daily life
• Tracking your response to medication

Help With Monitoring:

• How to Track Asthma Symptoms
• How to Use a Peak Flow Meter

2. Avoiding Asthma Triggers:

Asthma is your body's response to something it perceives as a threat to your health. These "threatening" substances or events are known as asthma triggers.

A Tool for Tracking SymptomsHere is a tool you can use to track your asthma symptoms. You can also record and identify your asthma triggers, which are the things that set off asthma symptoms or asthma attacks.

You can use this page as a reference for the types of information you can keep track of in your own asthma diary or notebook. Or, if you prefer, print our PDF version and make copies you can write on each week.