Category: Blog

Do you know why I added carotenoids to the golden serum? 🥕🍑

The topic is particularly relevant now, as we want to avoid tanning our faces but also don’t want to appear unhealthy, pale, or dull—some of us with a slight greenish tint.
Explanation: The color of human skin consists of three pigments: hemoglobin, melanin, and carotenoids. While melanin pigmentation changes skin tones from light to dark, carotenoid pigmentation balances pale, greenish skin tones by adding orange color and “vitality.”

Carotenoids (provitamin A) cannot be synthesized by the human body—we must obtain them from food, such as vegetables like broccoli, tomatoes, or carrots. When consumed, carotenoids accumulate in all layers of the skin. People who eat more fruits and vegetables have a skin tone that looks healthier and more vibrant.

A study has shown that skin with insufficient carotenoid content is perceived as dull, pale, and greenish, whereas skin with a higher amount of carotenoids appears lively and attractive across cultures. Interestingly, this improvement in skin color can be achieved not only through a diet rich in carotenoids but also through local application of carotenoids to human skin in the form of a serum with carotoline. 🥦🍒🍑🥕

Contains an intelligent delivery vehicle that supports better penetration of active ingredients deeper into the epidermis. It enhances the skin’s own ceramide synthesis through phytosphingosine while simultaneously restoring the barrier lipid film by supplying ceramide.

From my posts, you know that the skin serves as an effective barrier against the penetration of harmful substances from the external environment, which also poses a challenge in delivering active ingredients into the skin. Thanks to science and research, we are getting closer to our goal.

Skin as a natural barrier is a genius, and its natural protection against harmful elements inspired the creation of a new cream for the natural protection of your skin. Why did I use ceramides in my latest cream?

🌹Ceramides are lipid compounds naturally present in the skin. They play a crucial role in maintaining the health and integrity of the skin. Here are some functions of ceramides:

🌺Skin Protection: Ceramides form a protective barrier on the skin’s surface. This barrier prevents moisture loss and blocks external irritants such as pollution and irritation from penetrating the skin. This maintains proper hydration and prevents excessive moisture loss.

🌷Improved Hydration: Ceramides have the ability to bind water and keep it in the upper layers of the skin. They help maintain the optimal level of skin hydration, which is essential for its elasticity and smoothness.

🌹Reinforcement of Barrier Function: Ceramides help strengthen the skin’s barrier function. When this barrier is strong and intact, it protects the skin from external stressors and potential irritants. This minimizes the risk of irritation, allergic reactions, and moisture loss.

🍃Supporting Skin Regeneration: Ceramides support regenerative processes in the skin. They help repair damaged cells and promote faster epidermal renewal, which can help improve the appearance of the skin and alleviate symptoms such as dryness and skin dehydration.

It is almost 17 000 of us, given my introversion it is relatively lot, nearly as much as many citizens can be in one district town.

I am a dermatologist, my mother is a doctor (internist) and also a mother to a doctor, hopefully a surgeon in the future, which applies that we got medicine written in our genes.

My surname might sound familiar to you, my husband is well known moderator.

Our wedding (thankfully in mature age) was a big test for me due to my introvert ways. I have to take this worldly fame- worth as much as the lowly- field grass of his because I love him so much weather, I like it or not.

After graduating medicine, I desired to become a psychiatrist but I did not have the right connections and enough patronage and seemed like it was not enough that I graduated with red diploma. I was given a position at dermatological department, which was not really what I desired and dreamed of.

That is when I learned the true meaning of saying “If you can’t be with the one you love, then love the one you are with”. That is how I fell in love with dermatology. I spend two years at the biggest Vienna hospital AKH as a hosting scientist and after returning back home I passed dermatovenerology attestation.

I randomly picked new methods in esthetical dermatology and the usage of botulotoxin in dermatology as the theme for my PhD. dissertation work. At the time it was worlds newest sensation and it pulled me into the world of esthetical dermatology and also lead to me attending courses and trainings with my doctor colleagues. Esthetical dermatology was a pleasant turn in my professional career (as a girl I attended a Sports Gymnasium and at the time female beauty was as much important to me as the wildlife of penguins in Antarctica).

I consider myself really lucky because in the late nineties the number of various treatment techniques skyrocketed and also there was a huge rise in newly developed technologies and much more lead to many worldwide congresses, internships abroad and studying. We benefit from what was developed and applied to use in the nineties even today but in new, perfected and safeties versions. Lasers, Botox, implants of hyaluronic acid, radiofrequency, intensive pulse light are still being used in various versions to this day and what fulfilled my profession was the combination of theory and practical procedures, mostly cannula technique, face modulations without chirurgical intervention. There is lot more to say so part two is coming.

… the proof is that they even have different skin.

Hormone called testosterone is making the main difference between female and male skin and it is also the cause why they have different features. That is why male skin is about 20 % thicker, oilier and also ages differently. It also contains more collagen and elastin which makes it look firmer.

Collagen in male skin decreases constantly as the years go by contrary to female skin in which the collagen decreases mainly in mature age, mostly during menopause when it thins out.

Males also have more active ceruminous glands and many more pores than females. Male skin produces in average almost two times more oil than female skin does. It causes men to struggle with acne but the possibility of men having dry skin is significantly lower.

Male skin ages in later stages of life than female skin, but once it reaches its aging point it progresses faster and the sings of aging are more visible.

What tires the skin on male face is mostly shaving. Average man shaves his face around 13 000 to 15 000 times and that can be the cause of why their skin can be sometimes sensitive, irritated, can be struggling with inflammation and later on scurf can be created.

After everything said it is clear that male and female skin has to be treated differently and taken care of differently.

It is really important to use sharp and fine razors that tire the skin less.

The ones with wet blades can be used on sensitive skin (do not say this at home or they’ll take it and you will be left with none more as I did). Crucial step is to apply shaving cream before shaving. Shaving cream will provide easier sliding on the skin.

Important is to shave in the direction of hair growth, never the other way, against the way the hair grows.

Hydrating and also antiaging products for males should be of lightweight consistency. That is why we recommend the combination of Hydrating cream with urea and Acidic toner for males by Doctor Sandra. Oily products are mostly not well tolerated by male skin.

We also recommend gentle exfoliation, abrasive peeling once a week.

“Beauty sleep” is a real thing. It is proven that whole organism and also our skin regenerates at night and damages caused by various outside or even inside influences are being fixed and repaired during bedtime. Lack of sleep can be also considered as shortening the time for mother nature to perform its magic. We are robbing ourselves of really effective antiaging process (even thou I do not really like to use this term, but we will talk about that sometimes later).

Statistically speaking, more than one third of adults do not get enough of quality sleep at night and that leads to affecting our health in various ways. Those we identified are for example gaining unnecessary weight, weakening of our immunity system, lowering of psychological resistance, lowering of concentration levels, weakened memory, struggling with learning and also memory loss.

If it is possible try to get at between seven to eight hours of sleep each night. Try increasing the number of hours of deep quality sleep that has the tendency to decrease as the years go by. Listen to your gut feeling when finding the optimal and ideal time to wake up and go back to sleep. If you cannot figure it out on your own you can download app to help you with it, for example Oura ring.

The position you sleep in is also crucial for your skin. Sleeping on one side of your face for too long causes asymmetric wrinkles on your face. Sleeping on your belly is also bad for skin and does not compliment your face, it makes puffed face and undereye area even puffier. The best and cheapest way to prevent wrinkles is to sleep on your back and get yourself a smooth pillowcase.

Keep low temperature in your bedroom, clear out the air before going to sleep, keep the room dark and turn off all electrical devices (even your smartphone).

Healthy sleep is the base for your health. You can fix your sleep deprivation by routinely going to sleep and waking up at the exact same hours each day.

Good night. If you are reading these lines during the day- I wish you a good night the next.

Seems like the best way to exercise is taking walks on broken topography.

On the other hand, running too often may cause sagging known as “running face”. Soft exercising (defined as exercising in in the range between 40 to 60 percent of your maximum pulse frequency) is not only beneficial to keep mobility up, maintain healthy weight, keep your heart and lungs on the right track but also has rejuvenating effects on your skin.

If you exercise for short period of time and you get sweaty, purpose of so called HIIT- high intensity interval training- performing short intervals of intensive exercise for example cycling, sprints, swimming, rope jumping followed with short pause for regeneration such as slow walking. The reason for this pause is to return the pulse frequency back to normal before you start to perform anaerobic activity.

By the combination of both methods, you will be harvesting the fruit of both activities.

It may come as surprise but exercising for short periods can be very effective, I tried it myself. If you can find few minutes and two barbells at home and perform activity daily you can achieve great results. Such as by squatting as you brush your teeth. There is no reason to feel desperate because you don’t spend hours in the gym, all you need to do is to bring consistent and regular exercise to your daily life. You can also try going to the grocery store by walk or meet for coffee with friend over a walk. It is also beneficial to do a little exercise every 50 minutes in work after no movement.

Why is it better to use derma cosmetic and why we, dermatologists, follow the rule “less is more”? Experienced dermatologists don’t use every new thing on the market and always stay consistent with the cosmetics they use and why?

The reason behind it is they do know how easy it is to disturb the natural balance of skin and they also know how hard it is to fix this situation once it happens.

What exactly is your skin barrier, what is its purpose and what can cause the damage of skin barrier?

Your skin consists of layers and every one of its layers has its purpose when it comes to protecting human body.

The outside layer, also called stratum corneum, can be described as brick wall. It is built out of skin cells called corneocytes that are connected together by lipids similar to mortar.

In the inside of skin cells or as we called it “bricks” keratin and natural moisturizers can be found. Layer of lipids contains cholesterol, acids and ceramides.

You can be surprised but this thin brick wall is what is actually keeping you alive. Without this layer all variety of toxins and pathogens in your surrounding would be able to penetrate into your skin and cause chaos. On the top of that, without your skin barrier all the water would be able to leave your body and evaporate which would eventually lead to complete dehydration.

What can damage your skin barrier?

If the environment is too moist or too dry. Allergens and irritating substances. Alkalic cleaning products and soaps. Exposure of skin to aggressive chemicals. Over exfoliating and overusing peelings (I have got to mention popular cleaning brushes). Excessive cleaning. Local corticosteroids. Unbalanced psyche.

Genetics can play its part if considering if you will or will not be more likely to get your skin barrier damaged. Next time we will talk about how can you find out if your skin barrier is damaged or not.

Be careful when taking care of your skin, don’t overuse cosmetic products because it can really damage your skin barrier.

These days we are being overwhelmed by large quantity of cosmetical products with its purpose to rejuvenate our skin. They are working on outer layer of your body which is called skin barrier.

Every skin has its own story. Our skin goes through various stages in different times of our lives depending on our age, surrounding, environment, hormonal changes and genetical predispositions. Sometimes it is important to hydrate, sometimes nourish and sometimes it is important to exfoliate.

Oily base, called vehiculum, can be beneficial and even therapeutic. But only if it is chosen right for the skin type… It can be either hydrophilic or lipophilic, based on if it contains more water or oil.

The right oily base can be recognized by easy applying and optimal absorbing of product into the skin. It also hydrates, reoils but does not clog pores. This is how I created my creams inspired by traditional dermatological recipes. These recipes were originally made in pharmacy, but nowadays, due to higher production products are made in laboratories following strict rules same as the rules that are followed when medicine is made.

I get asked a lot about what is the second step when the barrier is regenerated and fixed. What decorative cosmetics should be used afterwards? My recommendation are in the gallery, made by @avene_czsk @pierre.fabre.group

If you are feeling stressed you automatically feel older. It is not just a feeling; chronical stress is causing accelerated aging.

Scientific studies are working with telomers, covers at the ends of chromosomes. Anytime a cell divides, telomers inside the cells get bit shorter. When telomer is shortened too much, the cell cannot be divided anymore and it wanes. That is the main reason for aging and also the reason why humans can’t live forever.

Yet unfortunately studies don’t explain how stress affects and shortens the lifespan of cells creating immunity system. We are not familiar with the exact mechanisms that are connecting our mind and cells. As for this moment many studies are saying that stress hormones, such as cortisol, can be the cause for shortening telomers and its lifespan.

Good news is that what we do know about stress and aging can be used in our advantage and we have a better shot at longer and healthier life. It seems like people with positive attitude are handling stress in better ways. It also seems convenient to build social surroundings and contacts- family, friends, even supportive groups that make people feel safe and where they can share their problems, frequent walks, cycling or Pilates can help to block the effects of cortisol and prevent aging.

In the final run, everything that eliminates unnecessary stress and lowers the stress levels is beneficial for our future.

Some people need to stop multitasking and finally concentrate on present moment as even Eckard Tolle advises. Others need to try breathing exercises advised by Wim Hof or other relaxing techniques, some need to talk with psychologist to help them find new perspective on life.

Regardless the way we choose to fight stress, it is definitely worth it to help prevent civilizational diseases and premature aging.

The goal is to feel younger, healthier and stronger.

Nourishing and revitalizing cream was created for mature or even dry skin type. The cream is supposed to be applied to face, neck and chest.

Dry skin needs special treatment when reaching certain age and that is why we created our nourishing cream. Works great on dry, mature skin showing signs of aging.

This is the right moisturizer for you if your skin feels dry, tense without elasticity and dehydrated. We also recommend using this product to smokers and anyone facing stressful environment created by living in larger cities.

Besides always wanting our skin to be perfect it also has other very important functions and uses.

The most important one is to protect us, our organism, from the possible outside damage, the physical or chemical ones, such as heat, cold, pressure, sunlight, humidity, drought or various chemicals from entering. Keeps the right temperature for our body and also prevents from dehydrating.

Human skin is the biggest organ of our body. It is around 1,8 m2 and weights 4,3-5 kg.

Epidermis is covered by hydrolipidic film- water and lipid-based emulsion. This film maintaining the secretion of sweat and sebaceous glands helps to keep the skin moisturized and also created a protecting barrier against bacteria and mold.

Why am I writing so much about the functions of our skin? If the skin barrier is damaged, our skin loses the ability to protect, becomes oversensitive, inflammation and irritated spots are being created. I like to call this type or stage of skin the Tiktok skin. So many products, huge temptation to try everything, to change and to layer… Be careful, sometintimes less is more. We got only one skin and nothing and no one can change that. If you overuse the products, and overwhelm your skin your dermatologist will probably prescribe the null therapy for you, which is basically a cosmetical celibacy until your skin regenerates and goes back to normal. You can trust me on that it takes really long time to do that and also lot of patience. During this time period you will probably grow to hate your dermatologist and even secretly try on some miracle accelerator.

That is why we are always following the rule less is more and everything new needs to be applied in slow process, slowly increasing and never mixing new products together etc.

Simply said, we got only one skin and it is only ours ?

Reduce time spent in bath or in shower. Stay there no longer than 10 minutes, ideally even less.

Do not take hot showers, don’t use hot water on your face (hot water dissolves natural oily film on our skin and damages skin barrier). Use gentle soaps and syndets.

Gently pad your skin to dry using towel without unnecessary rubbing and being harsh on your skin.

Hydrate and moisturize your skin immediately after cleansing.

I recommend using Oil elixir Fairy for daily use during wintertime. This elixir contains glycerol, squalene, hyaluronic acid, urea, stem cells of alpine rose. After getting in contact with skin this gentle gel-like mass immediately changes to its consistency to oily one and gets absorbed into the skin. I recommend using during pregnancy to prevent creating stretch marks.

We cannot expect any cream or moisturizer to erase wrinkles, even in our wildest fantasies.

First of all it is not possible due to the structure of our skin and depth of changes that were created in the process of aging (the resorption of bones, atrophy of in-depth sebaceous tissue, lower production of collagen and elastin, overall lowered the amount of glycosaminoglycans in intercellular mass etc.) Our skin is not a sponge, it is a barrier, trans epidermal and transdermal tunnel for substances that are targeting certain structures in depth of skin, our knowledge on the active ingredients and taking care of them is pretty low when it comes into the depth of our skin.

Why are we using moisturizers?

Active ingredients in cosmetics are mostly for prevention, they serve us to prevent something. Keeping and protecting skin barrier and its function, hydration, preventing damaging and drying out of skin can visibly delay creating the signs of aging ang premature aging of skin. We need to protect our skin from well-known accelerators of aging such as UV light or even smoking. If you take care of your skin in the right way you can achieve that aging, which is a natural process of human life, won’t be accelerated or even premature but on the other hand it will be significantly slower.

Everyone wants to be pretty and graceful when old, man or woman, because living up until getting old is a privilege, so it comes logical to be grateful for getting and growing old. By the way (time for a little joke) it is not so hard getting old in Slovakia because they tell to 50-year-olds “seniors” to be careful etc… When I read serious sociological studies, they described old age ad 80 years old. So now I am a little confused ?

Regular exercise.

Walk everywhere it is possible to walk by foot. Spend as much time in the woods as it is possible. It is ideal to practise fast walking up the hill. Do you sleep as much as you need to?

On average it is ideal to sleep 8 hours, best to fall asleep before midnight. If you are having troubles sleeping, you need to concentrate on rituals and stick to them.

Diet?

Reduce your caloric intake. I am trying to follow intermittent fasting 16:8, it suits my needs. The best time for me to eat is 11-19. Reduce the intake of red meat, sugars, salt and eat at least one apple a day. It is a little bit more complicated for me because I have food allergies, I do not consume gluten, eggs, garlic and I also watch my histamine intake, but I do love vegetables and fruits in all forms, so it is not such a big problem.

Don’t drink alcohol!

Alcohol is the enemy of healthy skin and health overall. Some do recommend a glass of red wine to refill resveratrol, I would rather eat grapes.

Don’t smoke ?

Reconsider taking supplements and vitamins, if you are not taking enough in your diet. Studies show amazing and positive effects of vitamins (D, C groups, resveratrol, melatonin, carnosine, EGCG). Study and find out what suits you the best.

Meditate.

I breathe as Wima Hoffa on YouTube.

Winterisation.

This year I did not get into a lake but I use cold water in the shower as a part of my morning rituals.

Take probiotics.

Healthy digestive system has amazing effects on our immunity and health overall.

Love yourself and spoil yourself.

This is a safe place to get creative. I for example like going into the forest, into the woods, moisturize, cook, clean, I find joy in learning and education, mostly when I am learning Spanish, but sometimes I just lay and don’t do nothing at all, other times I listen to podcasts and watch Netflix with Vilo.

Surround yourself with people that love you and you love them. Don’t get jealous, indulge.