why why

[Guest guest]

Nothing out there seems to be chemical free, everything contains some irritating

ingredient or other, what about looking at the product as a whole, i mean the

last few ingredients are always going to be irritating, where do you draw the

line, why is it o.k to have certain irritating ingredients at the bottom of the

list and then discard a product that has alcohol at the bottom of the list?

[Guest guest]

> Nothing out there seems to be chemical free, everything contains

some irritating ingredient or other, what about looking at the

product as a whole, i mean the last few ingredients are always going

to be irritating, where do you draw the line, why is it o.k to have

certain irritating ingredients at the bottom of the list and then

discard a product that has alcohol at the bottom of the list?

=-=-=-=

Valarie, I think that's a great question, one I've also been

struggling with.

I've read in a few places that, since these ingredient lists are

constructed in descending order of concentration, anything beyond the

first three ingredients in the list appear in too small concentration

to do much of anything. But I don't know if that holds true for those

of us with rosacea -- inflamed skin absorbs more than normal skin

because the protective barrier is compromised, and skin that is

already sensitized is likely to require very little to over-react. I

also wonder about substances building up over time, especially those

carried in my so-called carrier molecules (like cetyl alcohol, as we

discussed a few days ago) rather than naturally absorbed.

So I look at everything on the list of ingredients as a potential

irritant, no matter how far down it falls. That's why I rely on

topical antibiotics, not my skin care products, to be my major source

of anti-inflammatories, and to look for skin care products with the

least number of non-reactive, do-nothing ingredients.

But if a product already works well for you, I wouldn't worry about a

single ingredient that theoretically should be irritating or drying

or whatever. Everything is potentially irritating, you're right, but

most things are not irritating to every skin. It seems we have to

learn what our own skin likes and doesn't like, using known irritants

as a guide -- but not as absolute edicts. And our skins change as our

rosacea varies, and as we age and/or our general health improves or

worsens, so likely our sensitivities will change as well.

For me, I think what's most frustrating is the lack of quality

products that are basic, simple, and do their job. The other

frustration for me is all the marketing hooplah about this great new

anti-aging product, that wonderful new anti-wrinkle formula, blah

blah blah. They make me feel like I'm doing my skin an injustice if I

don't use a dozen anti-oxidants and exfoliate and rejuvinate with ten

different products twice a day. I'm beginning to suspect it's all a

big scam -- whether big corporations or small Internet companies, the

skin care products sold through doctors' offices or through

independent distributors, whether filled with all-natural botanicals

and with breakthrough technology using encapsulated microsized

whatever.

Marjorie

Marjorie Lazoff, MD

[Guest guest]

> Nothing out there seems to be chemical free, everything contains

some irritating ingredient or other, what about looking at the

product as a whole, i mean the last few ingredients are always going

to be irritating, where do you draw the line, why is it o.k to have

certain irritating ingredients at the bottom of the list and then

discard a product that has alcohol at the bottom of the list?

=-=-=-=

Valarie, I think that's a great question, one I've also been

struggling with.

I've read in a few places that, since these ingredient lists are

constructed in descending order of concentration, anything beyond the

first three ingredients in the list appear in too small concentration

to do much of anything. But I don't know if that holds true for those

of us with rosacea -- inflamed skin absorbs more than normal skin

because the protective barrier is compromised, and skin that is

already sensitized is likely to require very little to over-react. I

also wonder about substances building up over time, especially those

carried in my so-called carrier molecules (like cetyl alcohol, as we

discussed a few days ago) rather than naturally absorbed.

So I look at everything on the list of ingredients as a potential

irritant, no matter how far down it falls. That's why I rely on

topical antibiotics, not my skin care products, to be my major source

of anti-inflammatories, and to look for skin care products with the

least number of non-reactive, do-nothing ingredients.

But if a product already works well for you, I wouldn't worry about a

single ingredient that theoretically should be irritating or drying

or whatever. Everything is potentially irritating, you're right, but

most things are not irritating to every skin. It seems we have to

learn what our own skin likes and doesn't like, using known irritants

as a guide -- but not as absolute edicts. And our skins change as our

rosacea varies, and as we age and/or our general health improves or

worsens, so likely our sensitivities will change as well.

For me, I think what's most frustrating is the lack of quality

products that are basic, simple, and do their job. The other

frustration for me is all the marketing hooplah about this great new

anti-aging product, that wonderful new anti-wrinkle formula, blah

blah blah. They make me feel like I'm doing my skin an injustice if I

don't use a dozen anti-oxidants and exfoliate and rejuvinate with ten

different products twice a day. I'm beginning to suspect it's all a

big scam -- whether big corporations or small Internet companies, the

skin care products sold through doctors' offices or through

independent distributors, whether filled with all-natural botanicals

and with breakthrough technology using encapsulated microsized

whatever.

Marjorie

Marjorie Lazoff, MD

[Guest guest]

> Nothing out there seems to be chemical free, everything contains

some irritating ingredient or other, what about looking at the

product as a whole, i mean the last few ingredients are always going

to be irritating, where do you draw the line, why is it o.k to have

certain irritating ingredients at the bottom of the list and then

discard a product that has alcohol at the bottom of the list?

=-=-=-=

Valarie, I think that's a great question, one I've also been

struggling with.

I've read in a few places that, since these ingredient lists are

constructed in descending order of concentration, anything beyond the

first three ingredients in the list appear in too small concentration

to do much of anything. But I don't know if that holds true for those

of us with rosacea -- inflamed skin absorbs more than normal skin

because the protective barrier is compromised, and skin that is

already sensitized is likely to require very little to over-react. I

also wonder about substances building up over time, especially those

carried in my so-called carrier molecules (like cetyl alcohol, as we

discussed a few days ago) rather than naturally absorbed.

So I look at everything on the list of ingredients as a potential

irritant, no matter how far down it falls. That's why I rely on

topical antibiotics, not my skin care products, to be my major source

of anti-inflammatories, and to look for skin care products with the

least number of non-reactive, do-nothing ingredients.

But if a product already works well for you, I wouldn't worry about a

single ingredient that theoretically should be irritating or drying

or whatever. Everything is potentially irritating, you're right, but

most things are not irritating to every skin. It seems we have to

learn what our own skin likes and doesn't like, using known irritants

as a guide -- but not as absolute edicts. And our skins change as our

rosacea varies, and as we age and/or our general health improves or

worsens, so likely our sensitivities will change as well.

For me, I think what's most frustrating is the lack of quality

products that are basic, simple, and do their job. The other

frustration for me is all the marketing hooplah about this great new

anti-aging product, that wonderful new anti-wrinkle formula, blah

blah blah. They make me feel like I'm doing my skin an injustice if I

don't use a dozen anti-oxidants and exfoliate and rejuvinate with ten

different products twice a day. I'm beginning to suspect it's all a

big scam -- whether big corporations or small Internet companies, the

skin care products sold through doctors' offices or through

independent distributors, whether filled with all-natural botanicals

and with breakthrough technology using encapsulated microsized

whatever.

Marjorie

Marjorie Lazoff, MD