Dr. Zein Obagi's ZO Skin Health Offects Exfoliating Polish

                                                                                                                                       

     
     I was first introduced to Dr. Zein Obagi's Offects Exfoliating Polish (and breath!), quite unexpectedly whilst taking weekly trips to Lymm for Dermalux LED Phototherapy (which at some point I will get round to reviewing!) Before each session, the nurse practitioner would cleanse and exfoliate my face in order to promote optimum results from the Dermalux system. Having touched my skin once she had finished, I could not believe how soft it had felt, bit of an "Omg, is that my face?!" moment. Upon asking her which products she had used she informed me that it was in fact Dr. Zein Obagi's Offects. In particular she raved about the Exfoliating Polish and insisted that it was this product within the System which had created the results I couldn't stop touching!! So naturally I had to have it!
    I am sure by now we are all familiar with the world-renowned skin health expert Dr. Zein and his iconic Obagi Nu Derm System or the tell-tale Smurfette look of the Blue Peel Kit. However this Exfoliating Polish actually comes from a whole new skincare range he has since created called ZO Skin Health (established in 2007). In fact, according to Dr. Zein, he is no longer affiliated with Obagi Medical Products stating, ' I was thinking skin health, and the business people were thinking profit'. He even goes so far as to call the original system 'outdated'. Meow!!
   Anyway I won't go into too much detail ( though if you wish to read the full article you can do so here) but to quickly sum-up, the ZO Skin Health System comes in three programs:

                                                              

                
                   Level 1 Daily Skincare
                     
                   Level 2 Anti-Aging

                   Level 3 Aggressive Anti-Aging
  



    Each is aimed on some level at achieving healthier skin, promoting cellular function and restoring and maintaining that youthful glow. You will come to find that each of the Systems include the Exfoliating Polish, which according to their website contains: 

  'Ultra-fine magnesium crystals which exfoliate dead skin cells and increase epidermal turnover for a cleaner, smoother, more even-toned complexion. Vitamins A, C, E, and C-Esters provide antioxidant benefits to help maintain skin barrier function'.

   The product comes in a luxurious, sleek, blue and metallic glass jar and certainly made a welcome addition sat at the forefront of my array of cosmetics. It somehow always manages to catch my eye with a cheeky flash of its mirrored exterior. Yet it has to be said, like most wow-factor cosmetics, it doesn't contain a great deal of product but as we all know by now, great things come in small packages! Further justification for the £35 price-tag is that you only need a pea-sized amount to cover your entire face and to be fair it has lasted me several months. Better still, if I may also add, there are many reviews which claim this product has achieved results greater than or comparable to a professional microdermabrasion, and at roughly £70 a session, who can argue with that?!

     Once I opened it, I was surprised that the Polish itself was pale blue in colour and my thoughts automatically flashed back to the online pictures of the stained 'Blue Peel' face, but I can assure you that it does not impart any of the colour onto your skin. Thank God!!
   It has a very fine grittiness to it which you can just about feel if you rub it between your fingers and whilst some describe its texture as feeling similar to that of sand, I instantly compared it to the feeling of a baking soda face scrub I had tried and tested a few weeks previous. Therefore It was no surprise to discover that Sodium Bicarbonate is one of the first listed ingredients. Of course there will always be those who argue, why not just use Baking Soda given that it is a much cheaper alternative?! Well simply because in my experience, though the two felt comparable in texture, they were by no means comparable in results!
    Its scent is a little harder to pin-point though it is definitely refreshing. Some reviews described it as citrusy, there have been a few peppermint shouts, but for me, it does kind of remind me of the sea air; fresh with a hint of saltiness. If that makes any sense?!

   In terms of its application, I usually dampen my face and neck first, then using a spatula scoop out a pea-sized amount of product and apply to skin. On contact with water I find that it becomes somewhat slimy which I'm fine with, since this tends to help the product move around your face with more ease. However the wetter your skin the less abrasive the Magnesium Crystals tend to be, so bare this in mind depending on how intensive an exfoliation you wish to have. As a sufferer of very sensitive skin plus Rosacea, I tend to leave my face pretty wet, as I find even dabbing some of the water off makes this product too abrasive and can leave my skin red and irritated. Also it goes without saying, be sure to avoid the eye area to prevent thinning of the delicate under-eye skin. Back to my technique... I then massage the scrub in a circular motion for one to two minutes and then rinse. 

    As I mentioned at the beginning of the post I love love love the results this product achieves on my skin so long as I am gentle in my approach.  I can definitely say that it leaves it feeling baby-soft, more even toned and less clogged. Therefore this is a great treatment to use prior to any special occasion as it leaves skin with a healthy glow and enables foundation to glide on flawlessly. You will also notice that any topical's you apply following this scrub, your skin just drinks right up, as if the removal of the dead surface layer enables better absorption of products.

    However now for the negatives, the recommended usage is twice a week  and my skin simply could not tolerate this, as I found it can be quite drying. I've come to use it maybe every other week when my skin is feeling a little textured or congested. However I am always quick to follow it with a thick oil such as Fushi's Virgin Moringa Seed Oil, to counteract any dryness. Also as mentioned earlier, as a Rosacea sufferer with extremely sensitive skin, it does create redness upon my cheeks where I am especially sensitive even whilst being delicate in my technique, so please beware not to scrub too hard, you will only serve to upset your skin's natural barrier. I usually opt to use it during the evening so that I am not left with persistent redness throughout the day and I would particularly advise fellow sensitive-skinned readers to commit to the same.
    Unfortunately, a major down point for me is that it doesn't have the 'cleanest' of ingredients; sounds a little akin to a science experiment and PEG's, parfum and propylparaben's are each examples of ingredients which can be found within The Dirty Dozen. Nasty!

Ingredients: Size 65g

PEG-8, Sodium Bicarbonate, Ethoxydiglycol, Magnesium Oxide, Glycerin, Oleth-20, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Trihydroxystearin, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate,Tocopheryl Acetate, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Linoleic Acid, Glycine Soja Sterols, Phospholipids, Melaleuca Alternifolia Oil, Propylparaben, Stearyl Glycyrrhetinate, Parfum, Hexyl Cinnamic Aldehyde, Citronellol, Limonene, Linalool, Green 6 (CI 61565).

    This is a real shame and contradiction considering Dr. Zein declares skin health to be his main passion behind his skincare lines. It would be great if he could re-think some of his ingredient choices so that they where a little more appealing. Then again, it is difficult to falter the results!
  By far my biggest gripe however is basically owed to inconvenience, you cannot purchase this product or any of the system online to my knowledge which for me is a massive inconvenience as this is how I like to shop. I believe it is only available through various Spa's or Beauty Salons which means for me, having to take a trip to Lymm - a good thirty minutes away - every time I need to re-stock! This has probably resulted in me being even more sparing with use and I dread the day that it runs out!!! 
   

  

 Disclaimer: I purchased this product with my own money and all reviews represent my opinion based upon personal use and results. I do not receive monetary compensation for any of my product reviews!





   

   

When Life Gives You Lemons...Rub Them All Over Your Face!

   
   Ok so first a little history!I have suffered with acne since having my son six years ago...damn hormones...when overnight I literally went from a fresh-faced teenager to a pimple-filled stranger. I had never really had to 'care' for my skin before, it kind of looked after itself. I didn't have the slightest clue about cleansers, let alone all the steps which followed them, and I kid you not, I actually spent my teen years scrubbing my face with a body buffer!! Extreme exfoliation or what?! Still makes me shudder.

  So back to the sudden break out, I found myself faced with extremely congested, oily, unbearable skin. In sheer desperation I began trialling several methods raved about in various acne forums to help 'cure' my acne woes. Cue the lemon; the raved about 'miracle remedy'. Many have touted the huge assortment of benefits the standard lemon has to offer our skin. To name a few:

Reduces oil: The acid in lemon juice has mild astringent qualities. The astringents work by constricting the body tissues and pushing the oil out of your skin. Yummy!

Kills bacteria: The citric acid of lemon juice also acts as an antiseptic. Since bacteria have a difficult time adjusting to acidic environments, the lemon juice can help reduce the number of bacteria that are living inside or on top of your skin.

Cheap: An inexpensive alternative to mainstream skincare products!

Reduces redness: Many find that applying an astringent like lemon juice greatly reduces the redness caused by acne.

Scar therapy: Some believe lemon juice is a natural way to reduce scars caused by acne. 

   Sounded too good to be true but I was willing to give it a whirl. In fact, I've never wanted a lemon more! 
   So the method goes...simply slice open a lemon and rub it across your face, it's as easy as that! 
   This is to be done at least once a day, waiting for a minimum of ten minutes before rinsing off with warm water (some recommend sleeping overnight with the lemon juice on your skin, however I was personally a little too nervous to do this!). It is also recommended that you add a few drops of honey to a lemon before applying it directly to areas suffering heavily with blackheads. 

    So I applied the lemon juice to my skin and waited...It did burn and sting a little upon application which did worry me but I figured at least it was doing something, right?! I washed it off after ten minutes, moisturised and went to bed! I must admit, when I awoke the next morning I was pleasantly surprised to see that my skin was more even in tone, my pores seemed smaller and my oiliness was  greatly reduced. So I continued this process each evening happy in the knowledge that my skin was on the mend!

     However after roughly one week, the fairytale soon turned into a nightmare. Sure my spots may have been shrivelling at the mere sight of a lemon but something worse was happening. My face was taking on the appearance of a ninety year old woman; it was dehydrated, peeling, any healing spots seemed to be taking a ridiculously long time to do so. What was going on??

    Basically after a little research, I discovered that this seemingly wondorous fruit could actually cause more harm to your skin than do good. The listed negative side effects of using lemon juice for acne include:

Lack of Clinical Studies: There have actually been no studies to prove/support the acne-fighting capabilities of lemon juice nor the potential damage it can do to the skin's surface. Many dermatologists believe that since lemon juice is extremely acidic it can potentially disturb the natural PH balance of skin causing several negative side effects. I personally believe this is exactly why my skin became extremely dehydrated, a problem I have unfortunately struggled with since!

Dry skin: If you have dry to normal skin, the lemon juice may cause excessively dry and flakey skin which let's be honest, is not exactly the 'glowing' look we were going for!

Painful: The acid in lemon juice may cause your pimples to sting or possibly even bleed. Yikes!!

Lightens skin: Astringents like lemon juice can cause your skin to lighten where you’ve applied it, which I know some express is a welcome result, but for me,being extremely pale-skinned already, I didn't like the extra ghostliness about my face. Furthermore please be sensible with this, lemon juice contains limonene which when exposed to UV rays can cause discoluration of the skin. Therefore it is a MUST to couple this method with a strong SPF.

Not for dark skin: Those with darker skin tones should avoid using lemon juice as an acne treatment as it can cause dark spots to appear where applied.

  So there you have it! If however you still wish to give lemon juice a try, after all, all skin is individual, these are the best practices I have found:

Wash your face: Gently rub lukewarm water and a mild soap on your skin using your fingertips. Wash with warm water and allow your skin to dry for 5-10 minutes.

Create treatment: Cut a fresh lemon in half and squeeze each half into a bowl.

Apply treatment: Dip a cotton ball into the freshly squeezed juice. Dab the wet cotton ball to your affected area. A small stinging or itching sensation is normal. If the stinging is unmanageable add water to the solution to dilute the acidity.

Wait 20 minutes and rinse: Allow the lemon juice to dry, letting your skin absorb all of the acid. After 20 to 30 minutes rinse your face with warm water. Apply moisturiser if necessary.

   I soon ditched the topical application of lemons, left with worse skin than I'd had to begin with. The lesson I learnt from this experience was to always do my research first (though I cannot say this was my only disaster!!) Not just looking for articles/posts to support what I wanted to hear but both sides of the argument. Hopefully I have offered an insight into that here for others looking to try out the so-called 'miracle acne remedy' sitting in your fruit bowl!!