Cosméticos

Vaidade em alta

2008-05-28T19:12:00.000-07:00

Creme para o corpo feito com essência de champagne. Um desodorante inteligente. São algumas das novidades da indústria para deixar o brasileiro mais bonito - e cheiroso.
Há também um shampoo que não precisa de água. Você pode deixar os cabelos perfumados em qualquer lugar.
Um creme hidrante com gosto de champagne que também é comestível. Um batom que libera água. Um rímel colorido. Um SOS balada: um shampoo-talco para retirar impurezas e um spray recondicionador.
Tem também um desodorante inteligente, que age conforme a transpiração de cada um. Esses são alguns dos lançamentos de uma feira em São Paulo. Os produtos são criados para a indústria de cosméticos, que movimenta, por ano, mais de R$36 bilhões.
Na natureza, está a solução para os nossos males. A cada dia, uma nova descoberta. Na feira, estão sendo lançados dois cremes hidratantes. Um deles, à base de açúcares de uma planta africana. O outro, com uma levedura que só existe no fundo do mar da Antártida. Os dois prometem mais elasticidade para nossa pele.

Fonte: Jornal Hoje - 27.05.08

Os riscos da vaidade precoce

2008-04-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

CrianÃ§as e adolescentes estÃ£o cada vez mais preocupados com a aparÃªncia
GislÃ¢ndia Governo
Rio - Tamires Bento Ramos tem 6 anos. Vaidosa, nÃ£o sai de casa sem batom, perfume e gel ou escova no cabelo. Sem falar nas unhas com esmalte rosa. Clara da Costa Faria, 8, adora passar cremes e se maquiar. JÃ¡ Fernando Zorzan Lima, 13, pinta os cabelos. Nem mesmo uma reaÃ§Ã£o alÃ©rgica e o ressecamento dos fios o fez desistir. Ele agora quer fazer reflexo.A vaidade cada dia mais presente em crianÃ§as e adolescentes preocupa os pais, pois o uso precoce de cosmÃ©ticos pode ser prejudicial. â€œA pele da crianÃ§a Ã© mais sensÃvel e fina. Deve-se tomar cuidado, pois desenvolvem mais bolhas ou feridas ao serem expostos a produtos quÃmicosâ€, diz a dermatologista Ana Pia.MÃ£e de Tamires, a cabelereira Tatiane Nepomucemo Bento, 26, diz que a menina sÃ³ usa produtos para crianÃ§as. â€œSÃ³ deixo que use batom claro ou brilho nos lÃ¡biosâ€, afirma. Tamires explica que adora se pintar para ir a festas. â€œAcho que fico mais bonitaâ€, confessa. JÃ¡ Clara gosta tanto de hidratantes, que nÃ£o deixa ninguÃ©m mexer em seus potes. â€œTenho de vÃ¡rias marcas, porque adoro.â€Se for necessÃ¡ria a aplicaÃ§Ã£o de cosmÃ©ticos, os mÃ©dicos recomendam fÃ³rmulas suaves. â€œCom os hipoalergÃªnicos hÃ¡ menor probabilidade de alergia. Quanto mais cedo se comeÃ§a a usar cosmÃ©ticos, maiores as chances de desenvolver alergiaâ€, destaca Ana Pia. A dermatologista Mariana Pinheiro Machado de Miranda ressalta: â€œQuanto mais maquiagem, mais os poros se fecham. E com isso problemas como acne podem surgir.â€ Os cosmÃ©ticos que mais causam alergias sÃ£o esmaltes, sombras, rÃmel e produtos para cabelo. â€œA pÃ¡lpebra Ã© muito sensÃvel. CrianÃ§as podem ter irritaÃ§Ã£o e conjuntivite. Esmaltes, sÃ³ de vez em quando. Mais prejudicial ainda Ã© a acetona. O solvente pode causar danos com a simples inalaÃ§Ã£oâ€, avisa Ana Pia.Perfumes e xampus tambÃ©m merecem atenÃ§Ã£o. â€œXampus devem ser hipoalergÃªnicos e, de preferÃªncia sem salâ€, diz Mariana. CosmÃ©ticos com validade vencida â€” comumente usados pelas meninas em brincadeiras â€” nÃ£o devem ser utilizados. â€œSÃ£o grandes os riscos de desenvolver dermatiteâ€, avisa. DANOS AOS FIOS DE CABELO E Ã€ COLUNAPara ter os cabelos lisos, a escova progressiva Ã© a preferida dos jovens. Mas o formol, uma das substÃ¢ncias utilizadas, representa perigo. â€œO cheiro do formol Ã© tÃ³xicoâ€, frisa a dermatologista Mariana Pinheiro. â€œO couro cabeludo, por ser mais sensÃvel, ainda pode desenvolver dermatite seborrÃ©ica, queda de cabelo, ressecamento, ardÃªncia, alÃ©m de irritaÃ§Ã£o nos olhos. CrianÃ§as tÃªm mais chances de desenvolver problemas que os adultos, jÃ¡ que a imunidade nÃ£o Ã© tÃ£o forte. Recomendo que tratamentos quÃmicos nÃ£o sejam feitos antes dos 16 anosâ€, observa. O terapeuta capilar Marco AntÃ´nio da Silva, do Centro TÃ©cnico Never, alerta para o perigo dos danos aos fios e ao couro cabeludo causado pelo excesso de tinturas, alisamentos, chapinhas e outros procedimentos nesta faixa etÃ¡ria. â€œOs jovens usam cada vez mais produtos quÃmicos e seguem modismosâ€, observa Marco AntÃ´nio. O adolescente Fernando tinge mensalmente os fios. Tanta vaidade resultou em alergia e ressecamento do cabelo. â€œFaÃ§o tratamento na dermatologista. Mas acho importante ficar bonito para as meninasâ€, justifica. Os riscos do salto alto usado pelas garotas antes dos 12 anos sÃ£o lembrados pelo ortopedista Anselmo Lins: â€œÃ‰ prejudicial para a crianÃ§a em desenvolvimento, pois afeta a coluna.â€

Fonte: http://odia.terra.com.br/ciencia/htm/os_riscos_da_vaidade_precoce_167146.asp - 26/04/08

Saiba o que é dermocosmetologia

2008-04-25T05:07:00.000-07:00

por Sonia Corazza

Mas o que significa este termo, cada vez mais presente no linguajar dos técnicos e profissionais de marketing das empresas ligadas a beleza? Sob esta bandeira proliferam no mercado produtos com o intuito de cuidar da saúde da pele. É preciso separar muito bem o que é um mero modismo, do que me parece uma redundância.
Segundo o professor emérito do Departamento de Dermatologia da faculdade de medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, dr. Sebastião Sampaio "A aplicação de drogas na superfície cutânea, além do tratamento de dermatoses, objetiva proteção e conservação da pele normal". Considero também fundamental relembrar que a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária define cosmético como o produto de uso externo, destinado à proteção ou ao embelezamento das diferentes partes do corpo.
Dessa forma o termo "dermocosmético" se aplica a todo e qualquer produto cosmético que protege a pele e seus anexos.
Tenho observado que as empresas freqüentemente usam o termo dermocosmético para falar de seus produtos de grau de risco II, onde princípios ativos bem definidos e em concentrações efetivas, cumprem determinadas funções, como limpar, proteger, estimular e refrescar, entre tantas outras.
Ativos cada vez mais ativos
A obtenção de princípios ativos potentes, como os Alfa-hidróxi-ácidos, de fato movimentou o mercado cosmético há alguns anos, apontando para um caminho de resultados efetivos, no sentido de melhorar a textura e aparência da pele.
A partir de então, as empresas fabricantes de matérias-primas trouxeram, sempre sob o comando da comprovação científica, novíssimas substâncias com o poder de atenuar o aspecto da pele em processo de envelhecimento. Mas a grande preocupação é realmente a de proteger todas as estruturas dos efeitos deletérios, internos ou externos.
A atenção com a proteção solar se consagrou, trazendo uma nova cultura de formular produtos para cuidado facial. Há uma década, eram poucas as empresas que tinham em seu leque de opções fórmulas com hidratantes faciais contendo filtro solar UVA e UVB. Hoje, a média de mercado mostra que uma proteção ao redor de FPS-15 é a predominante.
A biotecnologia conseguiu sintetizar ou separar frações específicas de ativos, que podem promover efeitos que melhoram a luminosidade e tonalidade da pele, preenchem sulcos e melhoram o relevo cutâneo, estimulam o processo de regeneração celular, protegem as terminações nervosas, entre tantos outros benefícios.
Universo de possibilidades
Empresas líderes mundiais da área cosmética têm investido milhares de dólares, muito tempo e inteligência em busca de soluções para melhor compreender a biologia cutânea, os efeitos deletérios da oxidação e as formas de supressão dos mecanismos de defesa. Com tal base de dados, inovações cosméticas surgem a cada dia, tornando nossa aparência mais preservada e nossa pele mais sadia. Se isso é dermocosmetologia, então estamos conversados, que assim seja!

http://www1.uol.com.br/vyaestelar/beleza.htm

Operação interdita fábrica ilegal de cosméticos

2008-03-31T16:45:00.001-07:00

Uma operação conjunta entre a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa), a Polícia Federal e a Vigilância Sanitária de Curitiba (PR) fechou uma fábrica clandestina de cosméticos, nessa sexta-feira (28), na capital paranaense.
De acordo com o chefe da Assessoria de Segurança Institucional da Anvisa, Adilson Bezerra, a ação foi desencadeada após uma denúncia relacionada à produção e comércio irregular de cosméticos. “Os produtos fabricados utilizavam as marcas Pro-Care e Sul Wipes. Nenhuma delas possui registro na Anvisa, o que torna a fabricação e a comercialização irregulares”, ressalta.
O volume da apreensão ainda não foi calculado. Mas Bezerra prevê que a quantidade total deverá ser bastante significativa. “Somente um dos produtos apreendidos representa mais de 22 mil unidades”, revela.
Segundo Adilson Bezerra, o proprietário da fábrica foi intimado pela Polícia Federal e prestará esclarecimentos sobre o caso nos próximos dias.
Infração
A produção e comercialização de cosméticos sem registro na Anvisa é considerada infração sanitária. Além da interdição, os fabricantes e distribuidores em situação irregular poderão ser penalizados com multa que varia entre R$ 2 mil e R$ 1,5 milhão, definida conforme a avaliação da gravidade do fato e possíveis antecedentes ou irregularidades sanitárias.
O consumidor que estiver em dúvida em relação à regularidade do cosmético deverá acessar o site da Anvisa e selecionar a opção “Área de Atuação - Cosméticos”. Este banco de dados possibilita a consulta de informações sobre Produtos de Higiene Pessoal, Cosméticos e Perfumes.

Informações: Ascom/Assessoria de Imprensa da Anvisa

Cosméticos e água mineral têm venda e uso suspensos

2008-03-31T16:45:00.000-07:00

Água mineral Cascataí, sabonete Dove e Shampoo Escova Inteligente Prister apresentam irregularidades
Rio - Está suspensa a venda e uso da água mineral natural fluoretada radioativa na fonte, sem gás, da marca Cascataí, com data de fabricação 15/01/2008 e data de validade 15/03/2008. Também sofreram interdição e tiveram venda e uso suspensos o sabonete cremoso da marca Dove, fabricado pela IGL Industrial Ltda, com data de validade 31/08/2009, e o Shampoo Escova Inteligente – Prister.

A resolução do secretário de Saúde e Defesa Civil, Sérgio Côrtes, foi publicada no Diário Oficial desta segunda-feira, levando em conta o laudo de análise 812.00/2008 emitido pelo Laboratório Central Noel Nutels. De acordo com o laudo da água, a amostra analisada apresentou resultado insatisfatório quanto ao ensaio de contagem de pseudômonas aeruginosa em 100ml.

A amostra do lote 632B do sabonete cremoso Dove analisada pelo Instituto Nacional de Controle de Qualidade em Saúde apresentou resultados insatisfatórios quanto aos ensaios de análise de rótulo e irritação na pele primária.

Já a amostra analisada do Shampoo Escova Inteligente – Prister pelo Instituto Nacional de Controle de Qualidade em Saúde apresentou resultado insatisfatório quanto ao ensaio de análise de rótulo.

Fonte: http://odia.terra.com.br/rio/htm/cosmeticos_e_agua_mineral_tem_venda_e_uso_suspensos_161432.asp - 31/03/08

Botox pode espalhar toxina pelo corpo, diz estudo

2008-03-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

Um estudo realizado por cientistas canadenses sugere que a toxina botulínica, principal substância do Botox, se espalha com facilidade pelos músculos além da região onde foi injetada, o que pode provocar paralisia e enfraquecimento dos músculos vizinhos.
Publicado na edição desta semana da revista científica Journal of Biomechanics, o estudo foi liderado pelo médico e pesquisador Walter Herzog, da Universidade de Calgary. Ele vinha usando a toxina botulínica como parte de suas pesquisas sobre artrose e a influência do enfraquecimento dos músculos na degeneração das juntas.
A intenção do médico era usar a toxina para paralisar temporariamente os músculos e analisar o impacto nas juntas. Para isso, Herzog injetou a substância em um músculo na perna de um gato e observou que, quatro semanas depois da injeção - período no qual a toxina atinge o efeito máximo - a substância havia se espalhado pelos músculos vizinhos e os enfraquecido.
"A principal razão pela qual isso é relevante é que muitas pessoas acreditam que quando o Botox é injetado em um músculo, fica apenas naquela região. No entanto, a pesquisa mostra que isso não é assim tão fácil de controlar", afirma Herzog.
Segundo o médico, apesar dos benefícios do uso do Botox como ferramenta terapêutica, é preciso conhecer melhor sobre o produto.
"Com o aumento no uso da toxina botulínica tipo A nos humanos é importante entender mais sobre os efeitos funcionais deste produto que, no final das contas, é uma toxina", disse o médico.
Alerta
A publicação da pesquisa segue um alerta recente feito pela Food and Drug Administration (FDA, na sigla em inglês) - principal órgão de vigilância sanitária nos Estados Unidos - sobre os efeitos colaterais da toxina botulínica.
O alerta se referia à relação da toxina com sintomas graves de botulismo, como dificuldade de deglutição e respiração. Estas reações seriam causadas quando a toxina se espalha além da região onde teria sido aplicada, o que teria provocado, em alguns casos, a paralisia e enfraquecimento dos músculos responsáveis por estas funções - um efeito colateral que, segundo a agência, pode ser fatal.
Na época, a empresa Allergan, produtora do Botox, afirmou à BBC Brasil que o comunicado emitido pelo FDA dizia respeito "principalmente a relatos específicos de eventos adversos relacionados a crianças que sofrem de paralisia cerebral juvenil e são tratadas com Botox".
Segundo um porta-voz da empresa, os casos de eventos adversos relatados pela FDA, "envolvem crianças que estão seriamente comprometidas, muitas vezes por sintomas relacionadas à sua condição de saúde".
Indicações
A toxina botulínica é usada em tratamentos estéticos e medicinais. Os tipos mais comuns são o Botox (toxina tipo A) e o Myobloc (tipo B), usados em procedimentos estéticos para atenuar as rugas da pele e em diversas condições médicas.
Na medicina, a toxina é utilizada no tratamento de paralisia cerebral, espasticidade muscular, estrabismo e diversas síndromes neurológicas.
No Brasil, a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa), autoriza o uso da toxina desde 1992 para tratamentos de espasticidade e paralisia cerebral, entre outros diagnósticos.

Fonte: Extra Online
Fonte: http://www.portaldoconsumidor.gov.br/noticia.asp?busca=sim&id=10004 - 11/03/08

Consumidoras recebem dicas sobre uso de cosméticos

2008-03-06T21:27:00.000-08:00

A Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa) participa com um estande do evento “Mulher Brasil 2008”, de 6 a 9 de março, no Centro de Convenções Ulysses Guimarães, em Brasília. O evento ficará aberto das 9 às 22 horas para visitações.
Técnicos da Gerência-Geral de Cosméticos (GGCOS) e da Unidade de Inspeção e Certificação de Cosméticos e Saneantes (UINSC) estarão no estander prestando informações sobre a atuação da Agência na regulação desses produtos, bem como distribuindo materiais educativos – folder e cartilha, sobre os cuidados que o consumidor deve ter ao comprar e ao usar produtos.
O principal alerta, segundo a Gerência da área de Cosméticos, Josineire Melo Costa Sallum, é a conscientização das mulheres em só usar produtos regularizados pela Anvisa.
O “Mulher Brasil 2008’ foi inserido no calendário de comemorações ao Dia Internacional da Mulher. A previsão dos organizadores é receber mais de 100 mil visitantes.

Informação: Ascom/Assessoria de Imprensa da Anvisa

Peles desidratadas e sensíveis agora podem contar com Nexcare

2008-02-27T13:10:00.000-08:00

O Creme para a Pele Desidratada Nexcare, novidade da 3M que acaba de chegar às prateleiras de farmácias e drogarias, é hipoalergênico e atua no restabelecimento do equilíbrio da pele, além de ser extremamente útil no cuidado especial da pele dos diabéticos. Sempre atenta às necessidades do consumidor brasileiro, e às novidades que surgem no mercado de produtos voltados para os cuidados pessoais, o novo produto da 3M é enriquecido com 81% de ingredientes naturais (base de soja, aveia e girassol) e vitaminas A e E, hidratando o corpo na medida de sua desidratação, o que favorece a retenção de líquidos e restabelece o equilíbrio da pele. O Creme para a Pele Desidratada Nexcare, novidade da 3M, por ter formulação hipoalergênica, minimiza o possível surgimento de alergias, comuns em pessoas com peles delicadas. De acordo com Eliana Busch, especialista de marketing da área de cuidados pessoais da 3M, este creme especial também pode ser utilizado por portadores de diabetes: “estes pacientes normalmente precisam de cuidados especiais com a pele devido a freqüentes rachaduras, fissuras e áreas de desidratação intensa. O Nexcare, além de hidratar, permite um monitoramento da saúde da pele, essencial para evitar maiores complicações associadas ao diabetes”, explicou. O Creme para a Pele Desidratada Nexcare já está disponível nas principais redes e farmácias do país. O preço sugerido ao consumidor final é de R$ 19,80 (frasco com 200 ml), de acordo com informações do fabricante.

Fonte: CDN – Comunicação Corporativa, 26/2/2008

Para saber mais clique em: http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/pt_BR/WW/Country/

Group Seeks New Warning About Botox

2008-01-26T15:46:00.000-08:00

By GARDINER HARRIS

WASHINGTON

— Botox and a similar injected drug have been associated with 16 deaths, four of them in children, and scores of serious injuries that occurred after the drug spread to vital organs, a health advocacy group says.
The drug, a neurotoxin that is used to relax muscles, should come with a far stronger warning label and patients should be given a letter detailing its risks, the group, Public Citizen, said in a petition filed Thursday with the Food and Drug Administration.
Julie Zawisza, a spokeswoman for the agency, said she could not comment while the petition was under review.
Executives at Allergan, the maker of Botox, issued a statement saying that adverse reactions were rare. And because many patients who get the drug are seriously ill, the company said, it is not proved that Botox caused the reactions. Solstice Neurosciences, the maker of a similar drug, Myobloc, did not return a message for comment.
Perhaps best known as a wrinkle remover, Botox is also approved to treat cervical dystonia, a painful knotting of neck muscles. Doctors inject it into multiple spots on the neck, relieving sometimes disabling pain for weeks or months.
But the injection sites sometimes come perilously close to the esophagus, causing partial paralysis that can lead patients to have difficulty swallowing and suffer aspiration pneumonia, caused by breathing in food or liquids, Public Citizen said.
Of the 16 people who died, only one is known to have been undergoing a cosmetic treatment for wrinkles. Most of the others suffered muscle problems or their condition was unknown.
The deaths might have been prevented had patients been adequately warned of the possible dangers, said Dr. Sidney M. Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s health research group. The labels for Botox and Myobloc mention the issue but not prominently enough, Dr. Wolfe said.
“Nobody should die from the medical use of Botox,” Dr. Wolfe said. “The fact that they are shows that patients don’t have a clue about these problems.”
Health authorities in Europe have done a far better job of highlighting the drugs’ dangers, Dr. Wolfe said. The authorities in Britain and Germany have required drug manufacturers to send letters to doctors warning of the dangers.
On Aug. 9, the Danish Medicines Agency published an analysis of adverse events associated with the products. The analysis found 600 problems associated with the drugs, the petition stated. Half of the serious problems associated with the drugs occurred after the toxin spread, the petition said.
The drugs’ labels in Europe have a prominent section titled “special warnings and precautions for use” that warns of the dangers of the spread of the toxin. The Danish authorities also warned that muscle weakness associated with Botox may be long-lasting, especially among children, the elderly and those suffering serious neurological problems.
Patients in Europe also receive a leaflet warning them to seek medical help if they have trouble breathing, experience dry mouth or have trouble swallowing.
The drugs’ manufacturers and others have reported to the F.D.A. 658 cases of problems associated with Botox and Myobloc, Public Citizen said.

Fonte:http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/25/health/policy/25botox.html?ref=health - 25/01/08

Avon terá que pagar R$ 130 mil a cliente por manchas na pele

2007-12-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

Vendedora de Pelotas (RS) usou um produto para retardar envelhecimento

DA REPORTAGEM LOCAL
O STJ (Superior Tribunal de Justiça) manteve a condenação que obriga a Avon a pagar R$ 130 mil de indenização a uma vendedora de Pelotas (RS) que ficou com manchas no rosto após usar o Renew All-In-One, um complexo facial usado para retardar o envelhecimento da pele. A Avon, que pode recorrer, não se pronunciou.A empresa havia ingressado no STJ para tentar derrubar a decisão do Tribunal de Justiça do Rio Grande do Sul, que, por questões processuais, também havia confirmado a sentença da 4ª Vara Cível de Pelotas.O Renew All-In-One, que reúne vários agentes no mesmo produto, é indicado ao público acima de 25 anos. Ele ainda está no mercado -é vendido por R$ 30 na internet.A empresa promete que, após duas semanas de uso, o produto reduz rugas e linhas de expressão, tornando a pele mais hidratada, firme e macia.Aidêe Nunes Almeida decidiu usar o produto, comprado de uma revendedora da Avon, no final de 2000. Pouco depois, após uma semana de uso, notou sinais de escamação e manchas anormais na pele do rosto.Segundo seu advogado, Carlos Francisco Sica Diniz, Aidêe, após procurar o serviço de atendimento da Avon, foi orientada a continuar o tratamento, pois as reações seriam normais e passariam logo.A vendedora usou o produto por mais uma semana. O problema, em vez de diminuir, foi se agravando. Ela, por conta própria, decidiu suspender a aplicação do cosmético.Perda de cor na peleAs manchas não desapareceram e, no início de 2001, Aidêe procurou tratamento médico em clínicas de Porto Alegre (RS). "As opiniões foram sempre no sentido de que a paciente [Aidêe] estava apresentando acentuada acromia [perda de cor] na pele facial", relatou o advogado.Além disso, ela fez tratamento psiquiátrico, pois entrou em depressão. "É uma pessoa muito simples, nem tinha dinheiro para pagar o tratamento. Pediu ajuda para a filha."Diniz disse ainda que, quando a sentença for cumprida, o valor da indenização deve alcançar cerca de R$ 450 mil.A vendedora foi atendida pelo dermatologista Augusto Cesar Bopp, que confirmou que as manchas surgiram depois que ela começou a usar o complexo.Ontem, em entrevista à Folha, Bopp disse ser muito difícil identificar o que motivou a reação. "Teríamos que testar todos os componentes", disse.Segundo Bopp, as reações após o uso de cosméticos são muito comuns. "Há muitos fatores: o tipo de pele, a forma de uso, os componentes. As reações variam muito de pessoa para pessoa. O que é bom para uma pode fazer mal para outra", afirmou.Outro ladoProcurada ontem pela Folha no início da tarde, a Avon informou que não falaria sobre o caso. A empresa só vai se pronunciar oficialmente hoje.
Fonte: www.folha.com.br data: 30/11/07

Estudo confirma eficácia do pantenol na hidratação da pele

2007-11-05T16:53:00.000-08:00

Agência USP

Pesquisa da Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto (FCFRP) da USP revela que o pantenol (ácido pantotênico), substância largamente utilizada na indústria farmacêutica, possui propriedades hidratantes. O estudo do farmacêutico Flavio Bueno de Camargo Junior mostra que formulações cosméticas com 1% e 5% de pantenol reforça a hidratação da camada protetora natural da pele, que previne o envelhecimento e doenças como a escamação. Para avaliar os efeitos a curto prazo do pantenol, foram selecionadas 20 voluntárias com idade entre 20 e 35 anos, que testaram oito formulações diferentes (três géis, três géis-creme e duas emulsões), acrescidas ou não de 0,5%, 1% e 5% de D-Pantenol, versão industrializada do produto. A avaliação a longo prazo foi feita em 40 voluntárias que levaram para casa duas formulações de gel-creme das quatro estudadas, e aplicaram uma em cada antebraço, duas vezes ao dia, por um período de 30 dias. “A estabilidade física e hidratante do produto foi verificada por meio de medições do conteúdo aquoso do estrato córneo (camada mais superficial da pele), perda de água transepidérmica, função barreira da pele, viscoelasticidade e elasticidade biológica cutânea”, relata o pesquisador.“Após 15 e 30 dias de aplicação das formulações o estudo indicou que as formulações com 1% de pantenol se mostraram eficazes na hidratação, mantendo a proteção da função barreira da pele”. A concentração máxima de pantenol utilizada pela indústria farmacêutica é de 5%. As voluntárias que participaram do estudo tinham peles branca, morena clara e morena moderada, não fumavam e não apresentavam alterações hormonais, alergias ou dermatoses. Prevenção O ácido pantotênico é um constituinte natural da pele, que também pode ser sintetizado por bactérias intestinais, e é encontrado na carne, grãos integrais, gérmen de trigo, soro do leite, rins, fígado, coração, verduras, levedura de cerveja, frutas secas, frango e melaço. Por ser uma pró-vitamina, a B-5, o pantenol é largamente utilizado na indústria farmacêutica, mas existem poucos artigos científicos sobre seus benefícios, principalmente na pele.“O efeito hidratante, apesar de ser o mais simples na área cosmética, é o mais almejado, pois uma pele hidratada previne uma série de doenças, inclusive o envelhecimento” ressalta o pesquisador. “No caso de queimaduras, ele também pode ajudar na reconstituição da camada protetora”. O estudo mostrou a estabilidade física das formulações contendo pantenol, dado que não existia na literatura. “O uso de 1% de pantenol já atinge o objetivo de hidratar a pele, sendo indicado para formulações cosméticas ou dermatológicas com finalidades hidratantes, pós-sol e protetoras da saúde da pele”, ressalta Camargo. A pesquisa é descrita na dissertação de Mestrado Desenvolvimento de formulações cosméticas contendo pantenol e avaliação dos seus efeitos hidratantes na pele humana por técnicas biofísicas, defendida em novembro de 2006 e orientada pela professora Patrícia Maia Campos, da FCFRP. No último mês de setembro, os resultados do estudo foram apresentados na Internacional Federation Societies of Cosmetic Chemists Conference, em Amsterdam, (Holanda).

(Fonte: Rosemeire Soares Talamone, do Serviço de Comunicação Social da Prefeitura do Campus de Ribeirão Preto)

Mais informações: (0XX16) 3602.4307, com Flavio Bueno de Camargo Junior

Natural, Organic Beauty

2007-11-02T10:36:00.000-07:00

By NATASHA SINGER
Published: November 1, 2007

FOR Flavia Kawaja, an interior designer in Manhattan, a trip to the beauty department at Whole Foods Market comes not with a shopping list but with a mental list of what synthetic ingredients to avoid.Ms. Kawaja won’t use antiperspirant made with aluminum derivatives, in case the urban legend that they could cause diseases like Alzheimer’s turns out to be true. She also steers clear of skin-care products with parabens, common antibacterial agents used as preservatives in some cosmetics, drugs and foods.
Although there have been no rigorous large-scale prospective clinical trials to show that parabens in cosmetics represent a risk to beauty consumers, a few studies have shown that exposure to parabens can cause reproductive changes in lab rodents.
By choosing cosmetics marketed as natural or organic, Ms. Kawaja errs on the side of caution. Even so, she admits that she’s unsure whether her careful choice of natural shampoos and sunscreens translates into health benefits.
“I don’t assume that organic automatically means good for you,” she said. “I mean, if you fry an organic potato, it’s still a French fry.”
Organic connoisseurs have long made a practice of reading food labels to weed out those grown with pesticides or that contain synthetic colors, flavors or preservatives. Now, in the wake of recent health scares over tainted pet food and toothpaste, some beauty mavens are seeking synthetic-free cosmetics in the belief that products made without industrial ingredients like petrochemicals ought to be healthier for you.
These newly minted label inspectors are fueling a boom in so-called natural and organic personal care products. Natural cosmetics market themselves as containing plant or mineral ingredients; organic products say they are made with agricultural ingredients grown without pesticides.
During the 12 months through Sept. 9, Americans spent $150 million on the top three mass-market natural personal care brands, including Burt’s Bees, Jason Natural Cosmetics and Tom’s of Maine, an increase of $51 million over the year before, according to Information Resources Inc., a market research firm. Meanwhile, sales of organic personal care items reached $350 million last year, an increase of $68 million over 2005, according to manufacturers’ data compiled by the Organic Trade Association, an industry group.
“We’re seeing an increased consciousness that what you put on your body is as important as what goes in your body,” said Jeremiah McElwee, the senior coordinator in charge of personal care at Whole Foods, which is the company’s fastest-growing department. “The biggest impetus for buying natural or organic body care is the perceived health benefit.”
It would seem logical to assume that common ingestible ingredients like olives or soy would naturally be healthier for the skin and body than hard-to-pronounce, multisyllabic industrial cosmetic ingredients like the preservative methylchloroisothiazolinone. But representatives for the government and the beauty industry, as well as some environmental activists, acknowledge that there is no published scientific proof to support the notion that plant-based cosmetics are safer, healthier or more effective for people.
“Consumers should not necessarily assume that an ‘organic’ or ‘natural’ ingredient or product would possess greater inherent safety than another chemically identical version of the same ingredient,” Dr. Linda M. Katz, the director of the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors, wrote in an e-mail message to this reporter. “In fact, ‘natural’ ingredients may be harder to preserve against microbial contamination and growth than synthetic raw materials.”
The confusion over the “truthiness” of the natural personal care market also stems from the lack of national standards.
The F.D.A., which regulates cosmetics, has never imposed standard definitions for marketing terms like natural and organic as they apply to grooming products, Dr. Katz said via e-mail. So manufacturers are free to use such terms on everything from a synthetic-based shampoo with one plant derivative to a synthetic-free face powder formulated with only minerals.
The agency requires manufacturers to ensure that cosmetics are safe for their intended use. But the agency leaves it up to manufacturers to decide which safety and efficacy tests to perform on ingredients and finished products.
John Bailey, the executive vice president for science of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association, a trade group in Washington, said cosmetics are safe, whether their formulas contain synthetics or plants.
“On the most fundamental level, they are held to the same legal and regulatory standards,” said Dr. Bailey, who has a Ph.D. in chemistry.
But Jane Houlihan, the vice president for research of the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit group in Washington, said the lack of established federal standards is responsible for consumer confusion over whether natural products provide tangible advantages or are simply a sop to green mind-sets.
“Even if a beauty product claims it is purely from the earth, you need to read the ingredient label,” Ms. Houlihan said.
Ms. Houlihan said increased consumer interest in natural products is driving a few manufacturers to include exotic plants in formulas that lack an established track record in the beauty industry. For example, she said, her group could not find published safety data on newer cosmetic ingredients like West Indian rosewood bark oil and white peony flower extract.
“Just because an ingredient comes from a plant does not necessarily make it safe to use in a cosmetic,” Ms. Houlihan said. “Tobacco, hemlock and poison ivy are all examples of plants that can be hazardous.”
Indeed, some dermatologists said that even natural ingredients that seem benign can cause skin allergies. For example, Dr. David A. Kiken, a chief dermatology resident at the school of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, said he had seen skin irritation caused by tea tree oil, chamomile and green tea in cosmetics.
“Although the term natural botanical extracts inherently purports to have beneficial and benign properties, these extracts can cause adverse reactions in individuals,” Dr. Kiken wrote in a paper published in the American Journal of Contact Dermatitis.
In the absence of F.D.A. standards, dozens of beauty companies and stores are using words like botanical, herbal, natural, pure and organic to market brands, each using its own in-house definition.
For example, on www.sephora.com, the company distinguishes between botanical brands that use some plant ingredients; natural brands that eschew synthetic preservatives, colors and fragrances; and organic brands that employ some plant ingredients grown without pesticides.
Other brands style themselves as organic to signal ultimate wholesomeness. Even then, definitions vary widely. Some beauty companies simply employ organic in their brand names. Others promote certain ingredients that have been vetted by private companies that inspect organic foods.
A few brands — including Origins and Nature’s Gate — have even received certification for some products from the National Organic Program, the division of the Department of Agriculture whose logo appears on certified organic food products. Cosmetics are eligible to use such food seals if they contain at least 95 percent of certified organic ingredients that are agricultural products made from livestock or crops, grown and processed without chemical fertilizers, pesticides, growth hormones and antibiotics.
But people should not interpret even the U.S.D.A. Organic seal — www.ams.usda.gov/nop/FactSheets/Backgrounder.html — on cosmetics as proof of health benefits or of efficacy, said Joan Shaffer, a department spokeswoman. Government-accredited certifiers simply vet the manner in which these food ingredients are grown and processed, just as they would for a jar of organic tomato sauce, she said.
“The National Organic Program is a marketing program, not a safety program,” Ms. Shaffer said, likening the department’s organic seal to its grading system for beef. “Steak may be graded prime, but that has no bearing on whether it is safe or nutritious to eat.”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/01/fashion/01skin.html?pagewanted=2&ref=health - 01/11/07

Anti-aging range promises surgery-like results

2007-10-22T17:21:00.000-07:00

10/22/2007 - NutraLuxe MD releases its micro-encapsulated anti-aging range, which includes seven products that promise surgery-like results without pain or the use of harsh preservatives.The US-based company's newest range has been made available to consumers via the company's website, with plans to release the range in Europe mid-November.The NutraLuxe MD Plus range consists of seven products, including a muscle freezing face lift product, a skin firming product and a wrinkle repair serum. In addition all the products in the new range, designed in collaboration with cosmetic surgeon Dr Andrew Hawrych, are paraben and pthalate free.CosmeticsDesign.com spoke to Peter VonBerg of NutraLuxe MD who explained that as all of the active ingredients are micro-encapsulated, and the products are oil- rather than water-based, there is no need for chemical preservatives.In addition the micro-encapsulation of ingredients ensures that they remain active over time.The company's skin firming product utilises the micro-encapsulation technique in order to include vitamin C in the form of pure L-ascorbic acid into its products."L-ascorbic acid is not stable, if added to a cream it will disintegrate within 10 hours. We are the first US company, to our knowledge, to use pure and active L-ascorbic acid in their products," VonBerg told CosmeticsDesign.com.The face lift product from the same range, to be topically applied, contains two key ingredients, myoxinal and agiriline, both classed as neuropeptides. The chemicals block the signal from the neuron to the muscle, thereby stopping it from contracting - the same effect that is achieved through botox injections.VonBerg explained that the chemicals have both an immediate and a cumulative effect."The skin has a memory. As the muscle contracts less frequently the skin will flatten out and the wrinkles will get significantly smaller", he explained.After one to two months of daily topical application the consumer will begin to see the cumulative effects on the wrinkles, claimed VonBerg.The neuropeptides are a relatively new addition to the cosmetics market and NutraLuxe is the second company in the US to use them in its cosmetics products, according to VonBerg. Their popularity is likely to increase as the trend for surgery-inspired cosmetic products advances.The trade show Beyond Beauty, held in Paris this October, provided a launching pad for many new products of this kind. A significant number of these products come from relatively new companies, suggesting this development may play an important role in the cosmetics market of the future.The popularity of such products illustrates the nature of the modern consumer who is increasingly demanding of cosmetics products with high levels of efficacy.Simple anti-ageing and moisturising claims are not sufficient. Now it seems that cosmetics claiming to mimic the effects of surgery without the pain appear to be the way forward.NutraLuxe is looking to tap into this growing market worldwide. The company is currently applying for European registration for the range, through its sister company in Munich and plans to have the range available to consumers through its website in mid-November. NutraLuxe MD ultimately plans to release the range in high end pharmacies across Europe.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com/ - Segunda, 22 de outubro de 2007.

Why Should Kids Have All the Acne?

2007-10-22T17:18:00.000-07:00

By NATASHA SINGERPublished: October 18, 2007AT meetings of 12-step recovery programs, people offer gripping testimonials about their struggles, and rarely fail to mention how long they’ve been clean. In commercials for Proactiv Solution, the popular acne treatment, celebrities and average joes on the three-step skin-care program tell their tales of woe and often gush about how long their skin has been clear.The Proactiv sob sell has galvanized even people who rarely have blemishes to become, well, proactive about their skin.
Rebecca Powell, a graduate student in microbiology at New York University, ordered Proactiv three years ago after seeing an infomercial, although she only occasionally gets a pimple.
Ms. Powell said the products dried out her skin, and she stopped using them. But earlier this month, Ms. Powell, 24, purchased a Proactiv sulfur face mask designed to reduce inflamed pimples. “You see the infomercials and you become more aware of body image stuff and it makes you care more, so you buy it,” she said.
Founded in 1995 by two dermatologists, Proactiv has become a phenomenon by transforming the way consumers think about pimples. The brand captured public attention by hiring stars for its infomercials like Vanessa Williams, Jessica Simpson and Sean Combs to lay bare their valiant struggles to attain flawless skin, effectively turning acne into a celebrity malady. But the company’s real innovation was repositioning mild breakouts from a routine annoyance that a dab of Clearasil might fix to a preventable condition, like cavities, requiring vigilant daily upkeep.
“Ten years ago, we covered it up, but their message is ‘you don’t have to have bad skin,’” said Karen Young, the chief executive of the Young Group, a consulting firm to beauty companies. “They have shifted the consumer psyche.”
Proactiv has become a blockbuster by motivating consumers to trade up from a $4.99 drugstore product like Clearasil, made with the antibacterial agent benzoyl peroxide, to a 60-day, three-part regimen, also made with benzoyl peroxide, that costs $39.95 for ongoing subscribers.
The brand now has more than five million active customers and annual worldwide sales of about $850 million, 70 percent of which are in the United States. By contrast, sales of acne products in American drugstores were about $155 million for the year that ended July 15, according to Information Resources Inc., a market research firm.
“Right now, we own acne,” said Greg Renker, a chief executive of Guthy-Renker, the direct-response television company that sells Proactiv. The company spends about $125 million a year buying time for its infomercials on channels like VH1 and MTV as well as Web sites like Facebook, he said. “We are the fastest-growing acne brand in the world.”
The Proactiv story may be just as much about the promotion of acne as a serious disease as it is about the marketing of products to fight it.
“You can get the same amount of benzoyl peroxide at a drug store at a fraction of the cost and it will work as well, provided that you use it,” said Dr. Hilary E. Baldwin, the vice chairwoman of the dermatology department at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. Patients with serious acne who tried Proactiv, in her experience, were unhappy with the results and sought prescription treatments, she said.
People typically get acne after hormones cause oil to build up in the hair follicles, trapping bacteria and triggering superficial pimples as well as deep, painful lumps. The most severe forms of acne can be disfiguring and emotionally devastating and are often treated with prescription drugs. But until recently, adults with less serious facial blemishes did not necessarily view themselves as having acne, which they considered a teenage problem.
The founders of Proactiv, Dr. Katie P. Rodan and Dr. Kathy A. Fields, dermatologists in the Bay Area of California, developed the brand for this adult market, especially for women who get flare-ups every month before their periods. And in the process they rebranded the word “acne,” making it acceptable to grown-ups.
“Women did not identify with acne; they were using euphemisms like ‘stress bumps’ or ‘monthly breakouts’ to describe their problems because they thought acne was an ugly four-letter word or they thought acne was just for teenagers,” Dr. Rodan said. She and Dr. Fields receive royalties on Proactiv sales. “What the infomercial did was give us half an hour to explain that those breakouts you are suffering on a monthly basis are really acne and it is not a curable problem, but it is treatable and manageable,” Dr. Rodan said.
There are no definitive statistics on the prevalence of acne. Nearly 17 million Americans have acne, according to the Web site of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, www.niams.gov, a division of the National Institutes of Health. Meanwhile, the American Academy of Dermatology, which received several million dollars last year from pharmaceutical companies, said 40 million to 50 million Americans have acne; a spokeswoman said that figure is based on a paper, published in the academy’s medical journal, that applied estimates of acne incidence to census data.
But pimples are such a lucrative business that the skin industry is starting to promote acne as if it were a menace on par with heart disease.
Earlier this month, the American Acne and Rosacea Society held a news conference in Manhattan at which one dermatologist described acne as being “at nearly epidemic levels” and another doctor said the group’s purpose was “to defend acne’s status as a legitimate disease”; last year, the society received $285,000 from companies that make acne drugs. Meanwhile, the International Dermal Institute, which trains aestheticians and has just introduced its own acne product line, put out a news release titled “Adult Acne — A Growing Epidemic.”
“We don’t know whether acne is a real epidemic or whether more patients are being driven into dermatologists’ offices thanks to infomercials,” said Dr. Baldwin, who is the president of the American Acne and Rosacea Society; she said she is a paid speaker for nine companies that make acne drugs.
Spotless skin has always had aesthetic value. The zoologist Desmond Morris wrote in his book “Naked Woman” that a smooth, unblemished cheek suggests that a woman is youthful and healthy. Harvard psychologist Nancy Etcoff goes further in her book, “Survival of the Prettiest,” in which she argues that the stigma of pimples has its roots in evolutionary biology. Because acne can be caused by increased androgen levels, potential mates may unconsciously view a woman with blotchy skin as less fertile than someone with clear skin, she wrote.
The basic Proactiv kit includes an antibacterial cleanser with 2.5 percent benzoyl peroxide, a toner with witch hazel to reduce oil, and a treatment lotion with 2.5 percent benzoyl peroxide.
“When you work on prevention, you don’t have to worry anymore that you will wake up and your day will be ruined because you look in the mirror and you have a 50-pound honker on your nose,” Dr. Rodan said.
The doctors took their product formulas to Guthy-Renker, which had already found success marketing self-help guru Tony Robbins. The company developed half-hour Proactiv infomercials using ordinary people to recount their transformations from reticent loners with spotty skin into pimple-free social butterflies. The brand keeps customers coming back with an automatic replenishment system that sends products to people, and charges their credit cards every 60 days.
“Proactiv is automatically replenished, it comes to your own door and it works,” said Karen Grant, the senior beauty analyst at NPD Beauty, a market research firm. “What more could you want?”
Indeed, some people with moderate acne who follow the regimen said that it has worked.
“There used to be some new pimple flaring up on my face every day,” said Tammy Lewis, 28, a nurse in Queens, who has been using Proactiv daily for four years. “Now I only get a few minor red spots and it is manageable.”
But Proactiv may not be for everyone.
“One piddling little zit is not going to hurt you, it is not contagious and you might not need to do anything to treat it,” said Dr. Jodi E. Ganz, a dermatologist in Atlanta. “At the same time, you do worry about people with severe acne who might waste a year and hundreds of dollars trying something that is not going to work for them.”
She credited Proactiv’s popularity to a larger phenomenon: society’s increasingly intense pursuit of physical perfection.
“I don’t think people should be obsessed with one pimple,” Dr. Ganz said. “But now that everything from lasers to plastic surgery is so available, we as a society are becoming less tolerant. Any little imperfection, whether it is a blemish or an age spot, has turned into a big deal.”
Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/18/fashion/18skin.html?pagewanted=2&ref=health - 18/10/07

Going Skin Deep

2007-09-18T13:53:00.000-07:00

By Ishani GanguliSpecial to The Washington PostTuesday, September 18, 2007; Page HE01
Today's fountain of youth is filled with a strange brew of fairy-tale herbs and chemicals: Chaga mushrooms, osmolytes, coffeeberry extract, polyhydroxy acids, silver tip white tea, rhodiola.
Americans shelled out $44.6 billion for anti-aging products and services in 2004 alone, according to a report by Business Communications. A 2004 online survey of 1, 343 Americans 25 and older, conducted by Harris Interactive, found that 72 percent of women and 13 percent of men had used or were then using an over-the-counter anti-aging product. Nineteen percent of women and 6 percent of men reported using prescription face creams, masks or gels.
Now, Boots No. 7 Restore & Renew Beauty Serum -- the British "anti-aging sensation" that made a hyped transatlantic journey to the States this summer -- has become the latest emblem of our age-old desire not to age.
But what do these supposedly time-defying potions actually do for the tens of millions of Americans of all ages who seek immortal skin on drugstore shelves? The answer is often unclear.
Scientists dispute the definition of aging as well as its mechanisms, so claims that a product can stop or reverse the process are misleading at best, said Thomas Perls, a geriatrician at the Boston University School of Medicine and director of the New England Centenarian Study.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not approve anti-aging creams -- with the exception of a few that count as drugs rather than cosmetics -- and marketers have no requirement to prove that they work. The Federal Trade Commission looks into unsubstantiated claims, but it takes on lawsuits only after dissatisfied customers file complaints.
Anti-aging creams are "not being held to any standard, so we don't know if they work," said Rebecca Kazin, assistant professor of dermatology and medical director of the Johns Hopkins Cosmetic Center at Green Spring Station. She encourages consumers to buy and apply the creams with a healthy dollop of skepticism.
The best bet is to talk to your primary care physician or dermatologist about what skin care is best for your skin type, said Washington dermatologist Sandra Read.
And of course, Perls said, lifestyle choices such as avoiding cigarettes and sun, as well as following a healthful diet, are proven strategies for better skin.
Nonetheless, Americans show no sign of slowing their search for a panacea among the tubes and bottles on drugstore shelves. Here's a closer look at some of the products, their ingredients and the research behind them.
Sunscreens
The approach: Blocking the harmful ultraviolet rays (both UVA and UVB) that cause photoaging, which compounds the skin's natural sagging and deterioration and leads to the most visible signs we associate with aging.The ingredients: Inorganic chemicals (zinc oxide or titanium oxide) and organic compounds (octyl methoxycinnamate or oxybenzone).
What they do: Ingredients such as zinc oxide and titanium oxide reflect harmful rays, while octyl methoxycinnamate and oxybenzone work by absorbing the rays and dissipating them as heat.
Where to find them: Creams that have SPF labels, including Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer with SPF 15, Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream with SPF 15.
Do they work?: Sunscreen "is the number one anti-aging product," Kazin said. "I tell people, and they kind of laugh, but it's true. If you use it regularly, you'll definitely look better over time." Read calls it "the cornerstone of all of my treatment for patients."
Retinoids
The approach: Using a multi-step molecular block of photoaging effects.
The ingredients: Retinol, tretinoinWhat they do: These vitamin A derivatives block the degradation of the skin's structural proteins and interrupt the chemical pathways of UV skin damage.
Where to find them: In three prescription creams -- Renova, Retin-A and Avage -- and in over-the-counter retinol creams such as Estee Lauder Diminish Anti-Wrinkle Retinol Treatment.
Do they work?: Retinoids "increase cell turnover, reverse signs of photoaging and allow you to smooth out fine lines and lighten brown spots," Kazin said. Retin-A was developed in the 1970s to treat severe acne. Read said she prescribes retinoids regularly for mild to severe signs of photoaging, though not for women considering pregnancy because retinol can cause severe birth defects. Extensive clinical data and FDA approval support this approach.
Antioxidants
The approach: Replenishing the body's stores of skin-protective antioxidants, which diminish with age.
Examples: Vitamins A, C and E, coenzyme Q10, polyphenols.
What they do: Kazin said antioxidants "slow down the aging process," which occurs when ultraviolet rays from the sun generate free radicals -- reactive forms of oxygen that damage DNA and proteins in skin cells -- trigger inflammation and wreak havoc on the support structures underlying the skin. Antioxidants "basically mop up the free radicals and let the skin heal itself," Read said.Where to find them: SkinCeuticals products (containing vitamins C and E), Boots No. 7 Restore & Renew Beauty Serum (with pro-retinol, a form of vitamin A), Revaleskin products (polyphenols) and the ABRA therapeutic line (polyphenols).
Do they work?:"It is an improvement, a clear improvement," Read said of antioxidants as a whole. Studies show that vitamins C and E are effective in combination, though vitamin C may do little on its own. In studies, polyphenols derived from green tea, fruits and vegetables reduce UV-induced DNA damage and inflammation.
Hydroxy Acids

The approach: Sloughing off dead cells while increasing skin's thickness.
The ingredients: Alpha hydroxy acids (lactic acid, malic acid, citric acid, glycolic acid) and polyhydroxy acids (gluconolacton, lactobionic acid).
What they do: The acids work to increase the skin's thickness and the density of the collagen fibers that are responsible for the skin's strength and elasticity. They also have apparent antioxidant properties.
Where to find them: Neutrogena Healthy Skin Eye Cream (alpha hydroxy acids), Exuviance products (polyhydroxy acids).
Do they work?: Studies show that these fruit acids decrease wrinkling, roughness and discoloration. "They really do produce significant reversal," Read said, though alpha hydroxy acids can cause mild to severe skin irritation.
Fonte: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/14/AR2007091402101_4.html - 18/09/07

Active ingredients produced by plant cell cultures in lab

2007-09-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

The advantages of deriving active ingredients for cosmetics products from plant cell cultures were discussed at this year's congress, 'Plants for Human Health in the Post Genomic Era', held in Helsinki.The conference, organised by the Phytochemical Society of Europe, saw nearly 200 scientists present their research on emerging technologies, and the possibilities of using plants as production hosts for proteins and small molecules valuable for human health.Dr Cornelia Schürch from Mibelle AG Cosmetics, a Switzerland-based manufacturer of cosmetics products, discussed the possibilities for the large-scale production of plant cells for cosmetic applications."Plant cell culture is not yet common in the cosmetic field, but it may help to overcome essential problems in the manufacturing of cosmetic products" said Schürch.She went on to explain the approach taken by Mibelle AG Cosmetics in collaboration with the University of Wädenswil, a project that they have expanded from laboratory to production scale.Schürch described the use of a high pressure homogenisation technique that decomposes the plant cells and releases the beneficial constituents, which are encapsulated at the same time in liquid nanoparticles.Plant cell culture describes the growth of plant cells under laboratory conditions in isolation, outside of the intact plant, with the advantage that the products produced are of a high quality and a guaranteed standard.A further advantage of plant cell cultures over plant raw material is that the manufacturer is not restricted by seasonal harvesting; a factor becoming increasingly significant as companies look towards finding naturally sourced actives.Furthermore, only a very small amount of original plant cell material is necessary to grow the cells in culture, therefore concerns for the over harvesting of endangered species are addressed.This second point is particularly pertinent as an increasing number of companies are turning towards exotic sources for their active ingredients, such as plants from the Amazon or Africa, leading to concerns over the environmental sustainability of such practices.In addition, cells cultured in the laboratory can be manipulated to produce more of the desired compound by putting the cells under stress, subjecting them to UV radiation, or various toxic substances.Furthermore, manufacturers can select the most productive cell lines and ultimately modify the cell's genetic characteristics, in order to up production.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com/ - Segunda-feira, 17 de setembro de 2007.

O filtro solar impede o envelhecimento da pele?

2007-09-13T15:49:00.000-07:00

O aspecto envelhecido da pele pode ser causado por fatores intrínsecos (genéticos, familiares) e extrínsecos (exposição ao sol, poluição, fumo etc). Dos fatores extrínsecos, o sol é o principal deles e o causador do fotoenvelhecimento.
Por isso, a partir dos 25 anos de idade, o filtro solar deve ser usado com o hidratante de uso diário. As pessoas que trabalham expostas ao sol ou que praticam esportes diariamente ao ar livre desenvolvem antes e de maneira mais acentuada o fotoenvelhecimento, pois a radiação ultravioleta emitida pelo sol é cumulativa. Além da possibilidade de envelhecer precocemente, existe uma chance maior de ocorrer o aparecimento de câncer de pele, por isso, é imprescindível o uso correto dos filtros solares. Quando uma pessoa, qualquer que seja a idade, vai à praia ou piscina, deve fazê-lo antes das 10h e depois das 15h.
Também é importante aplicar o filtro solar meia hora antes de se expor ao sol e repassá-lo a cada duas horas, mesmo nos dias nublados. Em resumo: se você tem 25 anos ou mais, use hidratantes com protetores solares (com fator nunca menor do que 15) em áreas expostas diariamente, pois assim você estará fazendo uma prevenção adequada do envelhecimento cutâneo.
Luiza Kassab Vicencio, dermatologista
Fonte: http://www.bonde.com.br/folha/folhad.php?id=13478LINKCHMdt=20070913 - 12/09/07

Cognis taps into demand for exotic natural ingredients

2007-09-13T15:46:00.000-07:00

With the sourcing of natural ingredients becoming more and more of a problem as demand rockets, Germany-based supplier Cognis has extended its naturals portfolio with the launch of an Amazonian clay-based exfoliating ingredient.
The heightened demand for natural ingredients has also led to a search for increasingly unusual or exotic ingredients. Marajo Scrub LS 9843 taps into these factors, as it is based on natural clay sourced from Marajo island, in the Amazon region of Northern Brazil.
The ingredient has been developed and manufactured by the company's France-based Laboratories Serobiologiques division as a micro-exfoliator that is said to soften the skin, restoring its balance and radiance due to its rich mineral content.
The clay is a source of mineral salts such as iron, aluminium, potassium, calcium, boron and sulphur - constituents of good skin health - as well as kaolin, a clay mineral that is commonly used in cosmetics.
Likewise, as a raw material, the raw clay also confims to the Ecocert standard for ecological and organic cosmetics, allowing it to comply with increasingly strict certification processes, driven by consumer desire for the most natural products possible.
The manufacturer says the ingredient is suitable for a range of products, including scrubs aimed at the body and face, as well as purifying treatments for problem skin, scalp exfoliating products for dandruff and as an exfoliator in both bar and liquid soap formulations.
"Marajo scrub is an example of how we are helping manufacturers to meet the growing demand for natural-source cosmetic raw materials, allowing Ecocert Certification for ecological and organic cosmetics, without sacrificing efficacy," said Isabelle Benoit, global marketing manager for Laboratories Serobiologiquies.
"The ingredient should appeal to consumers' desire for escape, is environmentally sound, reliable in application, and delivers superior performance."
As a kaolin-based clay, the ingredient needs no preservative, has a whitish-gray appearance, is easily dispersible in water, has a mild but distinguishing odour and is recommended as a 3 - 5 per cent dosage for most formulation needs.
The company says that its own studies have proven the ingredient's efficacy, with a formulation containing a 3 per cent dose showing an immediate improvement in skin radiance for 70 per cent of subjects that were tested.
Likewise, the studies showed that an hour later the subjects' skin was smoother, less dull and more uniform, with pore size visibly reduced.
The latest launch by Cognis taps into a fast-growing sector that is driving some of the fastest rates of product development in the personal care industry as a whole.
Organic Monitor, a research company, estimates that the European market for natural and organic products is currently growing at 20 per cent a year, and is set to surpass a value of €1bn.
Fonte: http://cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/- Terça-feira, 11 de setembro de 2007.

Antioxidante à base de planta combate rugas

2007-09-01T13:03:00.000-07:00

Jerusalém. Um novo método para combater rugas na pele tem como base um antioxidante encontrado em plantas. A novidade foi desenvolvida por cientistas da Faculdade de Agricultura, Alimentos e Meio Ambiente da Universidade Hebraica de Jerusalém, em Israel. Em pesquisa de doutorado na universidade, Orit Bossi isolou um antioxidante baseado numa planta que atrasa o processo de envelhecimento reagindo contra a quebra de fibras de colágeno na pele. Orit conduziu sua pesquisa com a supervisão de Zecharia Madar, da universidade, e de Shlomo Grossman, da Universidade Bar-Ilan, também em Israel. Antioxidantes atuam contra radicais livres que danificam muitos tecidos no corpo, inclusive a pele. Quando encontrados em pequenas quantidades, os radicais livres não são prejudiciais, participando inclusive de vários processos orgânicos. Entretanto, quando em excesso, como ocorre durante o envelhecimento ou como resultado de exposição excessiva à radiação ultravioleta do sol, provocam a destruição do colágeno e das fibras elásticas na pele. Quando isso acontece, há uma perda acentuada de elasticidade e novas rugas são formadas. - Um problema de muitos antioxidantes comerciais encontrados hoje no mercado que dizem retardar o processo de envelhecimento é que eles oxidam rapidamente e, portanto, sua eficiência declina com o tempo - disse Orit. - A vitamina C, por exemplo, oxida muito rápido e é sensível a altas temperaturas. Isto também acontece com o antioxidante EGCG encontrado no chá verde e na vitamina E. Mas, ao contrário destes exemplos, o antioxidante usado na nova pesquisa é capaz de suportar altas temperaturas, é solúvel em água e não oxida facilmente, continuando eficiente com o tempo. Orit prevê uma nova geração de produtos cosméticos que não apenas combaterão o envelhecimento, como também serão mais eficientes contra os níveis mais profundos de rugas na pele do que os produtos atuais. O especialista não revelou qual a planta que usou para retirar o antioxidante, já que o estudo está em processo de ser patenteado. Na pesquisa, Orit conduziu experiências com tecido de pele de ratos, que se parecem com o dos humanos. A médica aplicou o antioxidante em dois grupos de células da pele - as que foram expostas a raios de sol e receberam o seu antioxidante e as que foram expostas e não receberam o produto. As células não tratadas mostraram um aumento nos radicais livres que causam rugas, enquanto as células tratadas não tiveram um aumento significativo nesses marcadores.

FONTE: http://jbonline.terra.com.br/ - 31.08.07

New vending machine hot chocolate makes beauty claims

2007-08-24T14:56:00.000-07:00

A new hot chocolate sold in vending machine is a novel addition to the growing market for drinkable and eatable beauty products.The Denmark-based firms, Eurogran and Chr Hansen, joined forces to make the beauty concoction called Le Royal ChocoDark, which is high in antioxidants, the molecules associated with skin health and anti-ageing. Ingredients specialists Chr. Hansen achieved this by adding palm oil carotenoids to the brew, which is already high in antioxidants thanks to the high cocoa content of the dark chocolate.The hot chocolate drink will be sold from vending machines across Europe, after the launch of the product at the EU Vend exhibition in Cologne, Germany, on September, 20.The product will find its way into hotels, offices and restaurants as well as health shops and gyms so as to ensure that it reaches its target audience."We see great possibilities for Le Royal ChocoDark to be included in vending machines - not only in offices, but also at places like fitness centres and life-style-stores," said Thomas Stilling from vending supplier Eurogran.Food and beverages with cosmetic effects represent an emerging market that is developing fast in America, Europe and Asia, said Eleni Grammenou from Euromonitor.Reflecting this is two unusual product launches over the last few weeks. A nutritional scientist has developed an anti-wrinkle pizza in Italy and a range of beauty teas have been launched in America.Le Royal ChocoDark aims to tap into the large potential market of women who buy both chocolate and beauty products."We are sure that this chocolate drink will appeal to a wide range of consumers all over, and especially for those interested in beauty. Worldwide, female consumers are the main consumers of cocoa products, and combining cocoa with natural carotene creates a good synergy effect," said Sami Sassi from Chr Hansen. The growth in the market for cosmetic food and drink products has a knock on effect on the market for carotenoids. A 2003 Frost and Sullivan report suggested that the ingredient was being underused due to the lack of public awareness of its health benefits. A recent report from Global Industry Analysts suggested that the tide is turning and estimates that the total world market for carotenoids will reach €0.78bn by 2010.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com - Sexta-feira, 24 de agosto de 2007.

New class of bio-lipids for use in cosmetics formulations

2007-08-24T14:55:00.000-07:00

An Illinois based biotechnology firm is launching a class of natural bio-lipids off the back of its soy based sunscreen discoveries; promising to deliver the benefits of active ingredients that have previously been unsuitable for use in cosmetic formulations.Scientists from the company iSoy Technologies, have developed a molecule with sunscreen properties, known as FSG33 - the result of joining a compound found in the soy plant with ferulic acid.The ferulic soy glyceride (FSG) is produced through a unique enzyme reaction, which according to the company produces no toxic by-products, unlike the usual synthetic chemical reaction. A variation of FSG made its commercial debut earlier this year in an anti wrinkle formulation marketed by a cosmetics company in New York, and iSoy now propose to use the same technology to create many other bio-lipid molecules, as well as continuing to market the possible applications of FSG. The bio-lipid molecules, when applied to the surface of the skin, act as a reservoir for essential nutrients from which depleted skin can replenish itself as it needs, explained company president Raymond Willis. "The core idea of our technology is to allow natural actives that have no lipid form, or a very poor lipid form, to be converted into useable lipids that are skin friendly with an ability to stay in the skin for long periods of time" Willis told CosmeticsDesign.com.The original innovation, FSG33, exhibits strong antioxidant properties and neutralizes harmful UVA rays, explaining the interest in the compound as an anti-aging ingredient. Furthermore, the FSG molecules appear to improve the solubility, stability and delivery of other skincare actives such as vitamins, thereby helping to transport the nutrients into the skin. In addition to the anti-wrinkle formulation, iSoy is currently testing a natural FSG soap bar that, according to Willis, has seen outstanding results, with many users reporting the products ability to improve the quality of extremely dry and rough skin. The company expect to market this particular attribute of FSG in formulations where the consumer might encounter particularly harsh environmental conditions. In addition to FSG, the company is exploring the potential of other bio-lipids, aiming to create at least 25 new molecules based on the same technology, and are currently searching for industry partners.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com - Sexta-feira, 24 de agosto de 2007.

Research points to unknown properties of skin care lotions

2007-08-22T17:03:00.000-07:00

Recent research suggests that the properties of a lotion change radically on application to the skin; changes that were previously unknown to scientists, and opening up the industry's research and development to criticism.The study, presented at this year's 234th national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston, suggests that the nature of skin care lotions radically alter after just 10 minutes contact with the skin, affecting the product's absorption properties.The research, presented by Dr Stig E. Frinberg, regards the nature of the oil, water and surfactant mix that form the basis of most cosmetic lotions; specifically focusing how the structure changes when its moves from the bottle onto the skin. Friberg's research reveals that after application onto the skin a lotion begins to evaporate, causing its internal structure to change. The lotion moves from a liquid phase into a more orderly state such as a liquid crystalline or solid amorphous state, and it is this new state that will determine the effects on the skin.Importantly, Friberg states that these changes may affect the absorption of molecules into the skin, therefore radically altering the activity and efficacy of the product in general."The appearance of liquid crystalline structures in the emulsion acts as if you have a much higher concentration of the active substance on the skin" Friberg explained.The research suggests that further study of the new structures the lotion forms on application could be extremely beneficial to the cosmetics industry, as companies are currently working with a template that is, according to the researcher, flawed.It is hoped that further investigation may help manufacturers to better tailor the active ingredients to the emulsion; one example could be salicylic acid, an active ingredient often used in formulations used to treat acne and psoriasis.Traditionally scientists have assumed that the structure of an emulsion remains intact as a lotion evaporates. And Friberg blames this ignorance on the industry's tendency to 'jump on the bandwagon' rather than to push the boundaries of original research.He references the plethora of research into the effects the form of the lotion - for example emulsions, microemulsions and vesicle solutions - has on the skin, and claims that his research shows that such efforts are in vain as the lotion is radically changed within 10 minutes after application.The scientist told the meeting that the cosmetics and skin-care product industry is sometimes beset by a 'me-too' mindset, where research and development focus on matching the competition rather than applying sound science to improve products.In terms of his own discoveries, Friberg does not expect the industry to respond straight away to his claims, stating that any view which deviates from the tradition takes a long time to penetrate the commercial world.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com - Quarta-feira, 22 de agosto de 2007.

Anti-aging tea competes for shelf space

2007-08-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

By Guy Montague

Beauty tea is the latest addition to a range of food and beverage products to hit the market that are specifically formulated to enhance physical appearance.Boston-based Sipping Beauty is launching six teas this month that, among other things, claim to fight the effects of aging, help the complexion and ensure fresh breath.The company says that the ingredients used are clinically proven to carry significant beauty benefits. Its Forever Young tea contains pure cocoa, which the company claims helps to preserve the skin's youthful appearance.Sipping beauty was created and is distributed by Maswel Brands. The company has not announced where its teas will be sold but it is likely that they will follow other products like Borba drinks onto the cosmetics aisles rather than drinks aisles.The news comes as a new line of Borba drinks from Anheuser-Busch is launched that is said to contain antioxidants, vitamins and botanicals to improve the skin's appearance.On the quirky side, Eugenio Luigo Iorio, a nutrionist from the University of Naples, has created an 'anti-wrinkle' pizza, La Stampa newspaper reported.Food and beverages with cosmetic effects represent an emerging market that is developing fast in America, Europe and Asia, said Eleni Grammenor from Euromonitor.Grammenor said foods and drinks that claim to enhance the appearance of skin, nails and hair are hitting the shelves and have proved particularly popular with Japanese consumers.Although the market for such products is growing, signs are that the total size of the market remains small. Their close compatriots, dietary supplements with beauty claims, represent only one per cent of the $8.46bn total US market for dietary supplements, according to Euromonitor.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com - Terça-feira, 21 de agosto de 2007.

Anti-aging compound claims to reset the clock

2007-08-22T10:44:00.000-07:00

A California-based skin care company has recently announced the release of the Age Intervention Regeneration Booster, promising to allow cells to 'reset their aging clocks'.Jan Marini''s Age Intervention Regeneration Booster is a six week anti-aging program consisting of six 'one a week' ¼ oz. bottles, with a suggested retail price of $225.The product is part of the Jan Marini's Age Intervention line that already includes a face cream and serum, an eyelash enhancer and a hair conditioner - all designed to fight against the aging process.The California based skin care company is well known for its medically-based skin care therapies using patented formulas and ingredients. This latest product is based on the topical application of telomerase enzyme, incorporating the enzyme with anti-inflammatory agents, specially chosen peptides and other skin enhancing ingredients.The company claim that an independent clinical study has demonstrated significant and lasting improvements in the appearance of lines and wrinkles, elasticity, firmness and general texture of the skin.Telomerase is an enzyme involved in DNA replication, which, under certain circumstances, stops the telomeres from shortening. Shortening telomeres are thought to be involved in the aging process, explaining the interest that the compound has received as a possible anti-aging ingredient.A telomere is the region of highly repetitive DNA at the end of chromosomes that act as a buffer during chromosome replication. Such a buffer is necessary as the replication process cannot reach the ends of the chromosome - if the telomere buffer was not present then vital DNA information would be lost.With each replication the telomeres get slightly shorter except when the telomerase enzyme is activated. However, in adult humans the enzyme is generally not active hence the shortening of the telomeres.The hope is that the topical application of telomerase may help stem the shortening of telomeres and therefore help skin to remain youthful, although little conclusive scientific evidence is available on the effects of lengthening telomeres via telomerase activation on aging in humans.The age Intervention Regeneration Booster is not the only product on the market promising to harness the power of telomerase as an anti-aging compound. For example Revive's Peau Magnifique claims to reset your skin's aging clock by a minimum of five years and costs a mere $1500 for the four week treatment.

Fonte: http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com - Terça-feira, 21 de agosto de 2007.

CABELOS E PELE

2007-08-17T15:40:00.000-07:00

Como escolher o melhor produto para a minha pele?
Trocas de shampoo ou de condicionador podem prejudicar os meus cabelos?

Nos últimos 20 anos, o ramo da beleza vem galgando um promissor caminho rumo à profissionalização. Os tradicionais ‘‘institutos de beleza’’ se transformaram em sólidas empresas geradoras de empregos. A este crescimento podemos contemplar a capacitação dos profissionais. A indústria, por sua vez, vem apontando índices de investimentos de qualidade, chegando a ganhar respeito no mercado internacional. Já o consumidor contempla um mercado de trabalho onde a imagem pessoal recebe igual atenção à sua qualificação profissional. Somos surpreendidos a cada dia com novos produtos e tratamentos, entretanto poucas pessoas se sentem satisfeitas com o resultado. Qual a principal causa desta frustração? Como profissional da área há quase 15 anos, tenho acompanhado todo esse processo e vivenciado diariamente esta questão: ‘‘Por que o produto que eu comprei, testei em mim por dias, não correspondeu às minhas expectativas?’’. Os princípios ativos oferecidos com toda certeza não são os responsáveis, mas sim a potencialização, ou seja, como a pele foi avaliada e preparada para aproveitar o ativo oferecido é a principal causa desta frustração. Os produtos para cabelos também sofrem com esta queixa: ‘‘Qual o melhor shampoo, condicionador ou creme de pentear?’’ Salientamos que o couro cabeludo e o cabelo obedecem ao ciclo sazonal, fisiológico e idiossincrático (ou seja, de cada pessoa). E como qualquer cosmético, é necessário haver uma ‘‘preparação’’, onde o profissional (hair dresser ou esteticista capilar) de sua confiança promoverá a avaliação e a conduta adequada ao fim proposto, para então haver o cuidado diário. O uso aleatório com toda certeza levará à frustração e perda do aproveitamento que o cosmético em questão poderia oferecer. Salientamos que a avaliação adequada necessita de alguns procedimentos. É aplicada uma anamnese (histórico pessoal), avaliado o couro cabeludo antes e após higienização, dentre outros. O vendedor, por mais qualificado que seja, não disporá de recursos para tal precisão. Margareth Watanabe, nutricionista, esteticista e maquiadora

Fonte: http://www.bonde.com.br/folha/folhad.php?id=21214LINKCHMdt=20070817 - 17/08/07

Q: Who Is the Real Face of Plastic Surgery?

2007-08-16T14:38:00.000-07:00

By NATASHA SINGER
Published: August 16, 2007

IT was the pale green and pink striped bikini that did it.
When Sandra Cornier, a mother of two from Brooklyn, looked at a recent photo of herself taken at Manhattan Beach, N.Y., she didn’t like what she saw. She had been nursing her son for 11 months, and now she could barely fill out the bathing suit top.
She made a decision: She would have breast implant surgery, and right away, because she wanted to be cozy in her favorite bikini by the end of the summer. She did not have the cash available, but she was willing to borrow.
“I just wanted to proportion myself out and look like I did before I had children, simple as that,” said Ms. Cornier, 33, who is married and works for a government agency. She took a loan for $10,800. “I did not want to wait two or three years to save up for surgery.”
Cosmetic medicine used to be the province of the rich and celebrated who would pay cash or write a check up front for their tummy tucks and eyelid lifts. (Such procedures are not typically covered by health insurance.) But in the last five years, with the advent of reality shows like “Extreme Makeover” and the popularization of nonsurgical treatments like lasers and wrinkle injections, people with blue- or pink-collar incomes and Beverly Hills ideals are embracing vanity medicine.
Doctors around the country are noting a democratization of cosmetic medicine, a redefinition of it as a coveted yet attainable luxury purchase, on par with products like Louis Vuitton handbags or flat-screen televisions.
The medical industry has responded by marketing plastic surgery as if it were an appliance or other big-ticket consumer product: a commodity to be financed with credit cards and loans.
About a third of people considering plastic surgery reported average household incomes below $30,000, according to a survey conducted in 2004 for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The poll of 644 people found that 13 percent of those seeking information on plastic surgery procedures reported an annual household income of more than $90,000.
Dr. Paul A. Blair, a facial surgeon in Hurricane, W.Va., said his patients have included high-school teachers, truck drivers and school-bus drivers. Dr. L. Mike Nayak, a facial surgeon in St. Louis, said that his patients include blue-collar or lower-salary professionals — “teachers, retirees, psychologists, regular middle-class working folks.”
“I have a couple of jail wardens,” Dr. Nayak said.
Laurie L. Essig, who teaches sociology at Middlebury College in Vermont, said there is little mystery why this is so: Middle-class Americans are buying into the idea of better living through surgery. Makeover shows, magazines and advertising campaigns have convinced people that flatter stomachs, inflated bosoms, smoother brows and whiter teeth will so improve their careers or their romantic lives that it is even worth going into debt, she said.
“In a bosom-obsessed society where you think you can earn $20,000 more with bigger breasts, is it insane to consider taking out a loan to have surgery?” said Dr. Essig, who is writing a book on the economics behind plastic surgery. “The demographic is teachers, law enforcement officers and stay-at-home moms.”
One of the most vivid illustrations of this economic reality is the rise of finance companies offering middle-income patients easy access to credit to pay for their surgeries.
Patients throughout the country find brochures in their doctor’s office with slogans like “Get the Cosmetic Procedure You Want — Today!” from established financing companies like Capital One and CareCredit, a unit of GE Money. In Star magazine, among ads for weight-loss pills and slimming gels, an Internet-based financer called DoctorsSayYes.net advertises: “Absolutely no one will be turned down. Now you can finance your cosmetic procedure for as little as $99 down and $99 per month.”
Mike Testa, the president of CareCredit, said that Americans spent about $14 billion last year on cosmetic medical procedures, from liposuction to laser skin treatments. Of that, $1 billion is financed by companies like his, he said.
“It is certainly getting more patients to say yes today rather than delaying treatment,” Mr. Testa said. “If you had to pay cash for a car, how many cars would you buy in your lifetime?”
The car analogy came up frequently in interviews with more than 30 doctors and patients.
“One of my patients said: ‘I financed my car. Why shouldn’t I finance my face?’ ” said Dr. Lisa Cassileth, a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills, Calif. “Plastic surgery has become just like any other high-ticket item you put on credit and pay for later.”
Cosmetic patients said financing — including home equity loans — allows them to proceed as soon as they are ready.
Ms. Cornier, the Brooklyn mother, was matched by the manager of the office of her Park Avenue plastic surgeon, Dr. David P. Rapaport, with Capital One health care finance for her $10,800 loan. She received approval in minutes for the breast implant surgery, she said.“Financing gives the average person like me the opportunity to do this without having to wait,” Ms. Cornier said.
For many patients, the plastic surgery loan is just another bill — a way to build up frequent-flier miles if they put it on a credit card, or another check to write once a month. Michelle Lee, 28, a saleswoman at a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Pleasanton, Calif., used a finance company to pay for $6,000 in liposuction after her regular workouts failed to perfect her arms, stomach and inner thighs, she said.
“Those were problem areas for me and I needed results now,” she said. “It is all about instant gratification for me.”
She was charged a $600 processing fee for the loan, but she made sure to pay off her balance before the 25 percent interest kicked in, she said.
Other patients face years of payments; there are no published statistics about bankruptcy or even default associated with plastic surgery loans.
Lani Guzman, 21, who works part-time jobs as an administrator at a law firm and at a carpet company in South Pasadena, Calif., had surgery in May to smooth a bump on her nose that had been bothering her for years, she said. She put $5,000 on a credit card and took out a three-year loan with a financing firm for the other $5,000.
“They charged dumb fees like $650 to put the loan together, which is kind of a rip-off,” said Ms. Guzman, who also serves in the Army Reserve. She said she pays $178.01 monthly to the finance company and does not know how long it will take her to pay off the debt on her credit card.
Dr. Robert Kotler, the facial surgeon in Beverly Hills who operated on Ms. Guzman, said that orthodontists invented the idea of paying in installments for elective medical procedures. Now a crooked nose is becoming the new overbite, he said. And, just as pay-as-you-go orthodontics turned the Hollywood smile into a rite of passage for the children of middle-class families, financing is widening the audience for plastic surgery from Mercedes S-Class drivers to subway riders.
“What does it cost to amortize a nose over the useful life of it?” Dr. Kotler said. “It costs 30 cents a day, cheaper than a can of soda, and unlike a car, you get the benefit of a nose for the rest of your life.”
But some doctors worry that some patients are spending on vanity care, even as they forgo health insurance because of its expense — a decision that is particularly risky should something go wrong or need to be corrected after the elective procedures.
“I have some 23-year-old women who are getting breast implants who think they are young and healthy and don’t need health insurance,” Dr. Rapaport said. “But they are used to paying for clothing and makeup, so there is no cognitive dissonance for them in paying for procedures to maintain their bodies.”
Doctors also worry that easy access to credit could induce people to sign up for (and perhaps regret) procedures they otherwise might not be able to afford. Every month, said Dr. Darrick E. Antell, a plastic surgeon in Manhattan, as they make their loan payment, they might question whether their surgery decision was worth it.
“In cases where funds are tight for the patients, they might be better off buying a new dress instead of a new chin,” Dr. Antell said.
As for Ms. Cornier, she was still happy two weeks after she had the breast implant operation, even though it is likely that, with interest, her procedure could ultimately cost $16,440, about a 50 percent increase. She said the gratification of having a new silhouette more than compensated.
“I did not want to look like Pamela Anderson,” Ms. Cornier said. “I just wanted my bathing suit to fill out right.”

Fonte:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/16/fashion/16skin.html?pagewanted=1&ref=health - 16/08/07

Alisantes para cabelo: orientações de segurança

2007-08-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

A Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa) lança material informativo sobre o uso correto de alisantes e alerta para os perigos do formol, nesta sexta-feira (3), em congresso internacional de estética, em São Paulo (SP).
Os folderes (pdf) e adesivos (pdf) destinados a salões de beleza e clínicas de estética estarão disponíveis ao público durante o 15. Congresso Científico Internacional de Estética.
A gerente-geral de cosméticos da Anvisa, Josineire Sallum, participa, nesta sexta-feira (3), da abertura do congresso. Até o próximo domingo (5), profissionais de saúde e de estética estarão reunidos no Centro de Exposição do Anhembi para aprimorar conhecimentos e trocar experiências na área. Material informativo sobre alisantesData: 3 de agosto de 2007 – abertura do congressoHora: 9h30Local: Palácio de Convenções do Anhembi em São Paulo (SP).

Mais informações: Assessoria de Imprensa da Anvisa
Telefones: (61) 3448-1299 / 9674-8388

Informação: Assessoria de Imprensa da Anvisa

Health Panel: Ease Limits on Acne Drug

2007-08-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

By ANDREW BRIDGES
The Associated PressWednesday
August 1, 2007; 2:53 PM

WASHINGTON -- Health advisers are urging slightly more flexibility in rules designed to prevent pregnancies among women taking an acne drug that has caused birth defects _ even though women taking the drug still are getting pregnant.
Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration decided Wednesday that minor changes would ease access to Accutane and its generic competitors without further increasing those troubling pregnancies.
There were 122 pregnancies in the program's first year and another 37 in the four months since, administrators of the privately run program told the panel.
The program lost track of 35 of the women who became pregnant. Most of the rest of the pregnancies, 54, ended in abortion, and an additional 17 women miscarried. The one child known to have been born so far escaped birth defects, and officials are watching to see what happens with 15 continuing pregnancies.
Moreover, Accutane's manufacturer learned of another 19 pregnancies in women who took the drug despite never enrolling in iPledge _ a program that was supposed to cover every user of the drug, every doctor who prescribed it and every pharmacy that sold it. Women taking the drug pledged not to become pregnant.
"Why does that not represent a major failure of the iPledge system?" asked panelist Sean Hennessy, an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
It's unknown how most of the women obtained the drug, said Dr. Daniel Reshef, of Accutane manufacturer Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. Two got it from outside the country, two directly from pharmacies, one took the drug by accident _ she thought it was ibuprofen _ and another took her mother's prescription.
The FDA convened the panel of experts to conduct an initial review of the program meant to prevent women from becoming pregnant while taking the drug. Exposure to isotretinoin _ as the drug is formally known _ in the womb can cause severe brain and heart defects, mental retardation and other abnormalities.
In the only vote Wednesday, the 18 panelists agreed unanimously to recommend making the program more flexible, something long sought by dermatologists.
For example, they said women who don't fill a prescription within seven days of a pregnancy test should be allowed to get another test and then fill the prescription. Currently, those who don't act within seven days are frozen out of the program for 23 days.
In a second change, they said women should have to fill the prescription within seven days of seeing their doctor, rather than within seven days of the pregnancy test.
All patients _ men and women _ who want the drug must enroll in the program, along with wholesalers, doctors and pharmacies. Women must meet additional requirements, including using two forms of birth control (or pledging abstinence) and passing pregnancy tests before each monthly refill.
Most of the reported pregnancies appear due to women's failure to back up their birth control, or to failure of birth control itself, said Reshef.
The FDA wants more information about those pregnancies to improve the $100 million program, the most rigorous risk-management program the agency has approved for any drug.
But just 10 percent of the 122 women who conceived while taking the drug provided the detailed, follow-up information needed to do so, Cynthia Kornegay, of the FDA's drug risk evaluation office, told panelists.
Several advisers called the questionnaires punitive in tone. For example, a question about a woman's educational background followed others about their experiences with contraception failure, said adviser Dr. Judith Kramer.
"If that's not implying you're stupid because you're pregnant, I don't know what it's doing," said Kramer, an associate professor at Duke University Medical Center. Panelists recommended encouraging women upfront to engage in the detailed follow-up should they become pregnant.
Even further changes to the program may do little to prevent pregnancies: Agency officials acknowledged their efforts may be thwarted by a limited ability to change human behavior.
"The agency is very cognizant of the fact that getting to a zero goal is not possible to attain," said Dr. Susan Walker, director of the FDA's dermatology drugs office.
More than 305,000 patients registered to use the drug, including 137,415 women of childbearing age. The registry allowed 91,894 of them to receive at least one prescription.

Fonte: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/01/AR2007080101423_2.html - 01/08/07

Tempo de cuidar da beleza

2007-08-02T09:48:00.000-07:00

Ana Luiza Guimarães

O inverno é a época do ano mais recomendada pelos médicos para quem faz tratamento estético. Até o mês de julho, houve um aumento de 60% na procura por esses tratamentos, segundo a Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Plástica.
Apaixonada por praia, Ana Beatriz Buonochristiano não queria perder o verão se recuperando do peeling cirúrgico. “Recomendaram que eu fizesse num período de temperatura mais baixa, porque a recuperação é melhor. Quando chegar o final do ano eu vou estar recuperada para poder caminhar, fazer minha programação de verão em condições melhores”, fala a empresária.
Isabela está fazendo um peeling de cristal que ajuda a tirar manchas e melhora a textura da pele. “Nessa época é melhor, porque faz esfoliação e não tem intensidade solar do verão”, explica a médica dermatologista Heloísa Hofmeister.
Seja por que a radiação solar é menor, as temperaturas mais amenas ou até por uma conveniência do período de férias escolares, quando muitos pais aproveitam para tirar férias também e por isso têm mais tempo. O fato é que o inverno é a melhor época do ano não só para os tratamentos mais simples, feitos no próprio consultório, mas também para os mais complexos como cirurgias plásticas e lipoaspiração. “O clima é mais favorável, a temperatura mais amena, incidência da radiação solar é menor,. É mais vantajoso, mais confortável e mais adequado sob ponto de vista técnico“, afirma o cirurgião plástico Everardo Abramo.
Foi no inverno de 2006 que Aparecida Teixeira fez uma plástica de abdome e implante de prótese de silicone nos seios. “Foi maravilhoso, você vai pra praia, veste uma roupa legal, a auto-estima vai lá pra cima mesmo”, conta.
Durante o inverno, os médicos também recomendam cuidados caseiros que podem dar um bom resultado:- O uso do protetor solar deve ser mantido. A radiação solar do inverno também queima a pele e pode causar manchas e escurecimento de cicatrizes;- O banho não deve ser quente demais. Antes de se enxugar é bom passar óleo mineral pelo corpo e, mesmo assim, usar um hidratante depois;
Seja em casa ou na clínica, o inverno é uma boa época para elevar a auto-estima. Há também que tomar outro grande cuidado no inverno. Com o frio temos mais fome e é mais fácil de engordar.

Fonte: Jornal Hoje - 01/08/07

Dermatologistas alertam sobre os possíveis efeitos colaterais

2007-07-16T13:41:00.000-07:00

DA REPORTAGEM LOCAL

Preocupados com possíveis efeitos colaterais de cosméticos ou remédios à base de nanotecnologia, Europa e Estados Unidos começam a investir em pesquisas que apontem os riscos da novidade. No Brasil, a Anvisa (Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária), responsável pela liberação de medicamentos e cosméticos, ainda não realiza testes específicos com os novos produtos.Questionado pela Folha, o órgão afirmou não ter estatística sobre quantos deles foram aprovados e estão à venda no país. A assessoria de imprensa informou que não há legislação nem testes específicos para nanotecnologia, mas que todo cosmético ou remédio passa por testes de eficácia e segurança antes de ser liberado.Os dermatologistas alertam que é preciso cautela com o uso desses produtos. "Se não houver receptor específico, as pequenas partículas podem ir para a corrente sangüínea e serem prejudiciais ao organismo", diz Denise Steiner, coordenadora do Departamento de Cosmiatria da Sociedade Brasileira de Dermatologia.Maurício Pupo, consultor na formulação do Corrige Lines, da Ada Tina, e também coordenador de pós-graduação em cosmetologia da Unicastelo (SP), da Unigranrio (RJ) e da Metrocamp (Campinas, interior de SP), reconhece que é preciso começar a considerar a possibilidade dessas partículas entrarem no organismo. "Se essa partícula não for de uma substância já tolerada pelo organismo, como vitaminas, ferro, zinco, não sabemos o que pode acontecer."Israel Feferman, diretor de pesquisa e desenvolvimento do Boticário, afirma que não há o que temer com substâncias toleradas pelo organismo. "Temos protocolos de testes que mostram que não há riscos. As partículas não chegam à corrente sangüínea e, em uma hipótese impossível disso acontecer com nossos produtos, usamos componentes naturais, e não farmacêuticos, que são aceitos pelos organismos."Jean Luc Gesztezi, cientista da Natura, explica que o tamanho da partícula utilizado pela empresa (150 nanômetros) é seguro. "Ele é grande o suficiente para não causar efeitos indesejáveis ou adversos", afirma. "Além disso, realizamos todas as avaliações que determinam o uso seguro desses produtos, desde estudos das matérias primas até estudos clínicos." (DT)

Fonte: www.folha.com.br -15/07/07

Nanotecnologia ganha adeptas no Brasil

2007-07-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

Tendência mundial chega ao país e consumidoras descobrem cosméticos com partículas que penetram mais na peleCremes têm partículas de substâncias já encontradas nos produtos reduzidas a um bilionésimo do metro, explicam os pesquisadores

DANIELA TÓFOLIDA
REPORTAGEM LOCAL

Micropartículas de vitaminas e de substâncias como colágeno entram na pele e prometem fazer milagres. O fim das rugas, o clareamento das manchas, a redução da celulite. Quase tudo parece possível no mundo dos cosméticos com nanotecnologia. Nova mania mundial, esses produtos começam a ganhar adeptas no Brasil."Não abro mão do meu creme contra celulite que usa nanotecnologia", conta a professora Andréa Müller, 31, uma das defensoras dos produtos. "Sou vaidosa e os resultados estão sendo excelentes. Minha pele melhorou tanto que não fico mais sem", confessa.Nanotecnologia em cosméticos nada mais é do que o uso de partículas de substâncias já comumente encontradas nos produtos, como a vitamina C, reduzidas a um bilionésimo do metro. Bem menores, elas conseguem penetrar mais fundo na pele e, dessa forma, agir de forma mais eficaz, explicam os pesquisadores.O problema dessa tecnologia é que não se sabe ainda o que pode acontecer se as micropartículas ultrapassarem as camadas mais profundas da derme e caírem na corrente sangüínea (leia texto abaixo).A dermatologista Carolina Ferolla, proprietária de uma clínica que leva seu nome na Vila Nova Conceição, zona sul de São Paulo, confirma que a procura por produtos com nanotecnologia tem aumentado a cada mês. "Como alguns deles precisam de receita médica, tem paciente que marca consulta só para pedir o creme. Está virando uma mania."Não é preciso, porém, procurar um dermatologista para ter acesso a cosméticos com nanotecnologia. O Boticário, por exemplo, lançou neste ano o Nanopeeling Renovador (R$ 119), kit de esfoliação com nanoemulsão que promete funcionar como um poderoso antiidade. No ano passado, a empresa lançou o Nanoserum anti-sinais (R$ 89), também para combater o envelhecimento.O Boticário mantém um laboratório com 30 pesquisadores, que estão em busca de aplicações cosméticas da nanotecnologia. O mesmo está fazendo a Natura. Há três anos, a empresa investe em pesquisas sobre o assunto. Em março, lançou as Brumas de Leite Hidratante (R$ 29,80), que hidratam por 24 horas, tendo rápida absorção graças à nanotecnologia. Na quarta-feira, a Natura colocou à venda o Spray Corporal Refrescante (R$ 29,80), para o público masculino.Já a Galena Farmacêutica oferece substâncias feitas à base de nanotecnologia que prometem resultados nas primeiras aplicações. O X-Solve, lançado em maio, é um deles. O ativo tem como objetivo melhorar celulite e estrias em 30 minutos após aplicação. Em 2006, a empresa havia lançado um produto para tratar manchas na pele e outro que diz reduzir 2,5 cm no diâmetro abdominal em seis semanas. As substâncias estão à venda em farmácias de manipulação, mas precisam de receita.Outro produto à base de nanotecnologia encontrado em farmácias de manipulação é o Corrige Lines, do laboratório Ada Tina, que promete tratamento instantâneo das rugas. O creme custa R$ 125 e acaba de ser lançado.

Fonte: www.folha.com.br - 15/07/07

Black for Me, Light for My Hips

2007-07-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

By ANNA JANE GROSSMAN
Published: July 12, 2007

THE line between caffeine and, well, everything else you can buy is a little blurry. At Starbucks, you can pick up CDs and a book about child soldiers with your espresso. At Kiehl’s in New York, the scent of espresso beans wafts from the cafe through the aisles of soaps and hair tonics.
Now drugstore shelves, which once had few things caffeine-related, save perhaps the odd mug cozy or cappuccino-scented candle, are offering an array of skin care products containing the beloved stimulant.
The 20th century was a confusing time for caffeine. The Food and Drug Administration vacillated on whether it was good or bad for you. Sanka was created, but so was the frappuccino. The new millennium, however, is shaping up to be a good one for it.
Over the last few years, studies have suggested that caffeine is capable of staving off baldness and lowering the risks of Parkinson’s disease, among other wonders. And now, because of a boom in caffeinated topical agents, caffeine’s possible benefits are accessible even to the 10 percent of the population that abstains from drinking it.
More than 140 cosmetic skin care products containing caffeine were released in the United States last year alone, compared with 21 in 2003, according to the Mintel Global New Products Database, a company that tracks trends in skin care products.
As any coffee drinker can attest, caffeine has two indubitable qualities: It is a stimulant and a diuretic. And these are the two main properties that companies are trying to transfer into topical lotions and potions.
The majority of products containing caffeine are skin-firming tonics that attempt to use its dehydrating qualities to decrease liquid in fat cells. While there are numerous facial firming products containing caffeine, such as eye creams by Kiehl’s and Anthony Logistics for Men, most of the caffeinated lotions claim to be cellulite busters, including Bliss’s Fat Girl Slim and Avon’s Super Shape Anti-Cellulite and Stretchmark Cream.
“There’s a direct correlation between the increase in the amount of products that contain caffeine and the huge trend toward skin-firming products that work on cellulite, since so many of those products contain it,” said Rachael McFarland, Mintel’s cosmetic research analyst for the United States.
Many of these products entered the market after a 1999 study published in the American Society of Dermatologic Surgery concluded that caffeine-based liposome-encapsulated cream temporarily reduced the thickness of fat, particularly in the hips and triceps.
“The caffeine gets into the fat cell and this makes the fat cell get a little more energized,” said Dr. Lawrence Moy, a dermatologist in Manhattan Beach, Calif., who was one of the study’s authors and sells his own line of firming creams containing caffeine. “When fat cells get more energized, it affects the sodium-potassium balance in the cell. The sodium runs out of the cell and water leaves with it. Potassium runs into the cell and all this helps the cell to become a bit dehydrated and to shrink.”
The layman’s translation? It might make your legs look a bit less like cottage cheese, if only for a few hours.
Of course, all this assumes that the caffeine can penetrate the skin once its applied. According to a 2004 study conducted at the TNO Nutrition and Food Research center in the Netherlands, caffeine can indeed penetrate, at the rate of about 2 micrograms per centimeter squared per hour. That means it would take an hour for an amount the size of 1/15th of a grain of salt to penetrate a fingernail-size patch of skin.
Some companies would like you to believe that once it gets under the skin, it can make you feel like you just took a shot of espresso. V-tonic Bath Spheres by Fresh contains a cola-nut extract that the company promises will energize the skin, and Kiss My Face’s Wake Up toothpaste has guaranine, a form of caffeine found in guarana seeds. But Mia DiFrancesco-Licata, a Kiss My Face spokeswoman, said: “It’s such a small amount. It really just works subliminally.”
But the idea that a simple daily ablution could help speed the waking-up process is appealing, especially in an on-the-go culture that guzzles products like Red Bull and supports a Dunkin’ Donuts or a Starbucks on just about every corner.
“People are looking for more ways to jump-start the day now more than ever before,” said Ms. McFarland of Mintel. “It’s innovative and smart for companies to capitalize on that by creating more products that you’d use every day anyway, like soap, that just happen to also contain caffeine.”
Costic, a New Jersey-based wholesale company, sells a peppermint-scented soap that it says contains 2,400 milligrams of caffeine. (An average cup of coffee contains 200 milligrams.) The soap is available on various Web sites under different names; its biggest retailer is ThinkGeek.com, which sells it as “Shower Shock.”
But Jeff Costic, the company’s founder, said in an interview that he did not have any scientific research to back up ThinkGeek’s claim that the soap can provide the “ultimate clean buzz.”
“It was just an idea I came up with when I was trying to give consumers something they’re addicted to,” Mr. Costic said.
A similar soap containing close to 4,000 milligrams of caffeine is available at Xoxide.com.
But even if caffeine does enter the bloodstream via soap, the jury is out on whether enough of it can penetrate to make a difference in alertness.
“There is no way that enough caffeine could be absorbed through the skin during the amount of time that the average person showers,” said Dr. David Bank, director of the Center for Dermatology, Cosmetic and Laser Surgery in Mount Kisco, N.Y.
The bloggers behind TheBeautyBrains.com, a cosmetics-debunking Web site written by a group of cosmetic chemists who remain anonymous to keep from jeopardizing their day jobs, used the TNO Nutrition and Food Research study to estimate that it would take an hour of full-body scrubbing — without rinsing — for a body to absorb the amount of caffeine in one cup of coffee.
Caffeine is an antioxidant that can combat cell damage caused by free radicals, which is one reason it is an ingredient in some sunscreens, Dr. Bank said.
It can be found in products like Rodan & Fields Essentials Protect S.P.F. 30 and Origins Have a Nice Day Super-Charged Moisture Cream and Lotion S.P.F. 15; these companies say it’s there because of its anti-oxidant, anti-irritant and anti-redness benefits.Dr. Allan Conney, a professor of chemical biology, leukemia and cancer research at Rutgers University, said users of any caffeine-rich cosmetic could also unwittingly be benefiting from a possible side effect that one study hinted at: they might be killing off existing skin cancer cells.
In 2002, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science published a study led by Dr. Conney that used caffeine to kill off skin cancer sells on radiated mice. The results were promising, especially if you’re a mouse living in a coffee urn.
“Although caffeine has a sunscreen effect, it also has a biological effect of causing apoptosis — programmed cell death — in UVB-damaged skin cells and in tumors but not in normal skin or in areas adjacent to tumors in tumor-bearing mice,” Dr. Conney said in an e-mail message. “To the best of my knowledge, caffeine and caffeine sodium benzoate are the first examples of substances that have both a sunscreen effect and enhance cell death in a DNA-damaged tissue.”
There is no proof that this effect can translate to human skin. Nevertheless, Dr. Conney and Dr. Bank are among the doctors open to the idea that one day a once lumpy thigh may also be one that is free of skin cancer.
Even if it is someday proven that the benefits do translate to humans, it might be just as effective to spend a couple of dollars at the cafe inside Kiehl’s rather than loading up on the expensive lotions nearby.
“You’d get the same effect from just drinking it,” Dr. Conney said.

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/12/fashion/12skin.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=fitnessandnutrition - 12/07/07

Do Sunscreens Have You Covered?

2007-07-06T07:11:00.000-07:00

By NATASHA SINGER
Published: July 5, 2007

AS the noon sun began to cook bathers in Long Beach, N.Y., last Sunday, members of the Sofferman family lounged on towels, each wearing a sun lotion chosen with the care usually given to picking out a new bathing suit.
Denise Sofferman and Ilene Sofferman, sisters who both work in the apparel industry in Manhattan, had put on tanning oil, their bodies already golden brown. Denise’s daughter, Lauren Levy, 21, a student at the University of Pennsylvania, had protected her pale skin with a heavy-duty S.P.F. 50 product formulated for children. Ilene’s 9-year-old daughter, Alison, had received a head-to-toe coating of S.P.F. 30.
Two hours later, the daughters were sunburned, their backs as pink as watermelon.
“It says waterproof, but Lauren didn’t even go swimming,” said Denise Sofferman, reapplying sunscreen to her daughter.
Ilene Sofferman, smearing another coat of lotion on Alison’s pink face, read from the back of the sunscreen bottle. “They have all these different marketing terms —S.P.F., UVA, UVB, waterproof, sweat-resistant — but you have to figure out what they mean by trial and error,” she said.
After decades of warnings about the dangers of sun exposure, an increasing number of Americans are making sunscreen part of their skin-care routines. Americans bought 60 million units of sunscreen last year, a 13 percent increase compared with 2005, according to Information Resources Inc., which tracks cosmetics sales.
But the increased demand has spurred an explosion of lotions, sprays, pads and gels with such diverse marketing claims — All-day Protection! Ultra Sweatproof! Total Block! Continuous Protection! Ultra Sport! Instant Protection! Extra UVA Protection! — that the Soffermans are not alone in their confusion over how to choose the most effective sunscreen.
In the nearly 30 years since the Food and Drug Administration issued its first regulations for sunscreen as an over-the-counter drug intended to reduce sunburn risk, the science surrounding skin and cancer has expanded dramatically.
Critics have clamored for the F.D.A to update the rules, saying that the standards have not kept pace. At the same time, they complain, the agency has allowed manufacturers to make vague and improbable-sounding marketing claims, leaving consumers confused and, worse, misled about what to use and how to use it to protect themselves.
The pressure on the agency has been mounting in recent weeks. Last month, reports by Consumer Reports and by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit group in Washington, found that a variety of popular sunscreens lacked sufficient broad protection against the sun’s harmful rays. And in May, Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut’s attorney general, sent a scathing petition to the F.D.A. saying that unclear sunscreen labels and inflated marketing put people at risk.
“Most sunscreens are deceptively and misleadingly labeled, most perniciously to give consumers a false sense of security,” Mr. Blumenthal said last week. “In my view, the F.D.A.’s failure to act is unconscionable and unjustifiable in any public sense.”
John Bailey, the executive vice president for science at the Cosmetics, Toiletry and Fragrance Association, an industry trade group, said that the directions on sunscreens adequately convey coverage. “These are very beneficial products which should be used to protect against the adverse effects of sunlight,” said Dr. Bailey, who has a Ph.D. in chemistry.
Nonetheless, the F.D.A. seems poised to address the labeling issue. Although it has been planning since 1999 to confirm new rules, Rita Chappelle, a spokeswoman for the F.D.A., said the agency expected to issue new sunscreen standards in the coming weeks. But until they are released, Ms. Chappelle said the agency would not answer questions about forthcoming regulations.
One fact about sunscreens is indisputable: They can impede sunburn and lower the incidence of at least one form of skin cancer in humans.
Dr. Allan C. Halpern, chief of dermatology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan, said that the regular use of sunscreen can inhibit squamous cell carcinoma, a cancer that kills 2,000 to 2,500 Americans a year.
In a study of about 1,600 residents of Nambour, Australia, volunteers who were given sunscreen to use every day for four and a half years had 40 percent fewer squamous cell cancers than a control group who maintained their normal skin-care routines. Even 10 years after the study concluded, the volunteers assigned to use sunscreen during the trial period had fewer cancers.
“It shows that using sun protection for almost five years gives you an intense, longer-term benefit against squamous cell carcinoma,” said Dr. Adèle C. Green, deputy director of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Brisbane, Australia, which ran the study.
Dr. Halpern said that sunscreen should also protect against melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer, and basal cell carcinoma, because the product can inhibit harmful ultraviolet rays that can contribute to the diseases.
Yet even after new F.D.A. labeling rules are published, it may take two years for the changes take effect.
Dr. James M. Spencer, a dermatologist in St. Petersburg, Fla., who specializes in skin cancer, said that he hopes the updated standards will clarify how much protection sunscreens provide, the dose needed to achieve significant protection, and the frequency with which a sunscreen should be reapplied.
The F.D.A. in 1978 first proposed a system of labeling products with an S.P.F. or Sun Protection Factor, which measures how effective the product is in preventing burn caused by the sun’s ultraviolet B rays. UVB radiation can also be a factor in skin cancer.
Dr. Spencer said that an S.P.F. 15 product screens about 94 percent of UVB rays while an S.P.F. 30 product screens 97 percent. Manufacturers determine the S.P.F. by dividing how many minutes it takes lab volunteers to burn wearing a thick layer of the product by the minutes they take to burn without the product.
But people rarely get the level of S.P.F. listed because labels do not explain how much to use, said Dr. Vincent A. DeLeo, chairman of dermatology at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in Manhattan.
“Sunscreen is tested at 2 milligrams per square centimeter of skin, which means you should be using two ounces each time to cover your whole body,” Dr. DeLeo said. “But for most people an eight-ounce bottle lasts the whole summer.”
People who apply S.P.F. 30 too sparingly, for example, may end up with only S.P.F. 3 to S.P.F. 10, according to the Web site of the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, www.bccdc.org/downloads/pdf/rps/reports/RIN15.pdf, which has comprehensive guidelines.
“The S.P.F. is a terrible system to guide consumers,” Dr. Spencer said. “Nobody is using sunscreen the way it is measured in a lab.” He said he hopes that the new standards will call for S.P.F. to be replaced with a system defining sun protection as high, medium or low.
Until then, Dr. Spencer said that people should use about a shot glass of sunscreen for the body and a teaspoon for the face to best achieve the S.P.F. protection listed on labels. It should be reapplied every few hours and immediately after swimming or sweating.
Dermatologists said that the agency is also likely to introduce a rating system for the sun’s ultraviolet A rays, which can contribute to cancer and skin aging. Many products already contain UVA screening agents, but under the current rules there is no rating for them.
Manufacturers are catching on that some consumers seek UVA protection. In print advertisements this month, Neutrogena and Banana Boat have been battling for UVA supremacy, including graphs in which each shows their product offering the highest coverage.
But Dr. David M. Pariser, the president-elect of the American Academy of Dermatology, said that without a standardized UVA rating system, consumers can’t be sure how much a sunscreen provides.
“Right now, we don’t know whether doubling the percentage of a UVA sunscreen ingredient doubles UVA protection or not,” Dr. Pariser said. “That is part of the muddled system we hope will be cleared up.”
Until then, Dr. Pariser said to choose sunscreens that contain ingredients known to filter UVA. These include Mexoryl SX, avobenzone, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. He also recommended a database at www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/special/sunscreens/summary.php created by the Environmental Working Group that lists products with UVA protection.
Some doctors, along with Mr. Blumenthal of Connecticut, predicted that the new sunscreen rules would prohibit outsized marketing terms.
“ ‘All-day protection’ is just plain false since sunscreen has to be frequently reapplied,” Mr. Blumenthal said. “And ‘waterproof,’ which may be O.K. for an adult taking a quick dip in the pool but not for kids who are in and out of the water all day, is just plain deceptive.”
Dr. Green in Australia said the best way to prevent skin cancer is to stay out of the sun during peak hours and wear sun-protective clothing. But Dr. Halpern said you can’t keep Americans wrapped up.
“There is only a small subset of American society that is willing to wear long-sleeved shirts and wide-brimmed — defined as four inches wide — hats on a sunny day at the beach,” he said. “Until we can get that behavior, the next best thing is sunscreen. Put on two coats, so you won’t miss any spots.”
Precautions
Protection from the sun’s harmful rays requires more than slapping on a coating of cream. There are multiple precautions to take, according to interviews with doctors.
• Avoid outdoor activities during peak sun hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Wear protective clothing, sunglasses and wide-brimmed hats.
• If you are prone to burn, use a sunscreen with S.P.F. 30 or higher.
• Apply about a teaspoon of sunscreen to your face and a shot glass of it to your body.
• Make sure your sunscreen contains at least one ingredient known to filter UVA rays, such as zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, avobenzone or Mexoryl SX.
• Reapply sunscreen frequently, and immediately after swimming.

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/05/fashion/05skin.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=health - 05/07/07

Can Shots Safely 'Melt Away Fat'?

2007-06-27T14:06:00.000-07:00

By Sandra G. Boodman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Physicians Spar Over Injections Touted As an Easy Alternative to Liposuction

Beauty sometimes demands toughness, as many women discover, but Suzanne Thomas had never imagined she would agree to have 72 injections of a fat-burning chemical cocktail in her neck and chin.
Yet that is the treatment called lipo-dissolve that the 35-year-old Fairfax County preschool computer teacher underwent -- twice -- several months ago to eradicate the jowls and double chin she had long hated. Thomas said the discomfort was worth it because "I absolutely love my results."
"I just really didn't want to do anything invasive like liposuction," said Thomas, who, with three children younger than 6, would have little time to recuperate from cosmetic surgery. Her procedures, which cost a total of $1,000, were performed at MedSculpt, a six-month-old center in Rockville that specializes exclusively in the controversial fat-loss technique.
Marketed as a safer and less invasive alternative to liposuction, proponents say lipo-dissolve is useful for treating small "problem areas" such as love handles, bra fat and a softening jaw line. A growing number of doctors, nurses and even spa personnel are offering the procedure known in medical circles as injection lipolysis -- and more colloquially as the "flab jab."
But critics, among them officials of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the American Society of Dermatologic Surgery and the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) say there is no convincing evidence that lipo-dissolve is effective -- or safe -- and they warn patients to stay away from fat-loss shots.
The procedure is similar to mesotherapy, an older treatment that involves injections of various drugs, vitamins or herbs to banish the dimpled flab known as cellulite. Lipo-dissolve injections typically contain two ingredients believed to work synergistically. As with mesotherapy, the formula, which is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is prepared by compounding pharmacies, which are subject to little regulation.
Lipo-dissolve "is catching on because it works," said Robert Adrian, one of the Washington area's best-known and busiest cosmetic dermatologists, who says he has treated 400 patients in the past three years. Adrian, whose Web site says the procedure "literally melts away fat in just a few short treatment sessions," maintains that most of his patients have achieved good long-term results.
Roger Friedman, a well-known Maryland plastic surgeon who is medical director of MedSculpt, which is set to open a second center in Tysons Corner on Thursday, says the procedure appeals to patients looking to lose inches without surgery.
"It's something plastic surgeons need in their armamentarium," said Friedman, who performs both lipo-dissolve and liposuction.
Officials of ASAPS, whose membership includes cosmetic dermatologists and plastic surgeons, vehemently disagree. Fat-loss injections, the group cautioned recently, are "scientifically unproven," lack approval from the FDA and use "poorly defined ingredients." The group cited "numerous reports of complications . . . including bacterial infection, granulomas [disfiguring masses of chronically inflamed tissue] and localized necrosis [tissue death]." To assess its safety and efficacy, the society is sponsoring a small placebo-controlled study of the procedure under the supervision of the FDA.
Medical experts aren't the only ones who have reservations. Kansas recently became the first state to regulate the treatment, sparked by concerns about the rapid proliferation of clinics and spas performing lipo-dissolve and the qualifications of practitioners.
Science or Snake Oil?

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"There is no real evidence that this is an advance over snake oil," said Alastair Carruthers, president of the dermatologic surgery society and a clinical professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. What some proponents tout as impressive results, he said, appear to be temporary. And patients who shell out thousands of dollars of their own money for fat-loss injections, critics note, are more likely to watch what they eat and to exercise, which may explain why lipo-dissolve patients say they are satisfied with their results.
Safety remains a paramount concern, according to Carruthers. He said he recently treated a woman in her 40s who nearly lost both lower eyelids after she developed a potentially sight-threatening complication following lipo-dissolve injections administered by a physician. The shots killed tissue under her eyes.
Cosmetic dermatologist Elizabeth Tanzi of Washington said she has treated several patients with red lacy discolorations on their legs caused by lipo-dissolve. It is not clear whether the marks are permanent, she said.
Lipo-dissolve typically contains a mixture of phosphatidylcholine, which is derived from soybeans, and sodium deoxycholate, a bile salt that aids waste removal.
This cocktail, often dubbed "PCDC," is prepared in compounding pharmacies, which typically make small quantities of drugs for specialized treatments. Quality control and sterility can be spotty or nonexistent, experts say.
Using a fine needle, the PCDC solution is injected into fat deposits, typically in the abdomen, face, hips or back.
For large areas such as the stomach, as many as 120 injections may be required at one time. Sometimes the shots are administered using a rapid-fire instrument called a "mesogun" rather than a syringe. Numbing cream may be used first.
PCDC shots cause redness, temporary burning or pain and considerable swelling. The injections are believed to trigger an inflammatory response that results in the breakdown and excretion of fat; proponents say the mechanism by which this occurs is unknown. Two to six treatments are usually required, each of which costs $300 to $1,500.
When performed by experienced physicians, Adrian said, lipo-dissolve is safe and effective. Many doctors critical of the procedure, he contends, lack "basic scientific knowledge" and have ulterior economic motives.
"Lipolysis represents a significant threat to anyone who does liposuction," Adrian said. Typically plastic surgeons, not dermatologists, perform liposuction.
"This is not a procedure developed in some garage behind a house," he added, noting that it has been widely used in Europe.
To Friedman, the opposition to lipo-dissolve is reminiscent of the hostility that greeted liposuction when it was introduced in the United States in the 1980s. It has since become one of the most popular cosmetic procedures, and studies have demonstrated its safety and effectiveness, he said.
Safety Concerns

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The debate about lipo-dissolve mirrors the controversy surrounding mesotherapy, which was invented in France more than half a century ago. It is used to treat a host of problems including headaches, gout and cellulite.
Mesotherapy has been associated with serious complications. Brazil, known for its freewheeling attitude toward cosmetic medicine, banned injections of phosphatidylcholine, a common mesotherapy ingredient, in 2003 after the treatment had become so popular that shots were being given in gyms and beauty salons.
Two years ago the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention investigated the cases of 14 patients in the Washington area who developed prolonged swelling and skin ulceration from infections caused by mesotherapy injections administered by a man who claimed to be a physician from Colombia but did not have a valid medical license.
Although Friedman and others say that lipo-dissolve and mesotherapy are different, Carruthers said he fails to understand the distinction.
Michael Olding, chief of plastic surgery at George Washington University Medical Center and a spokesman for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, said it is unclear what's in lipo-dissolve. "There is no accepted standard of what is included in these injections," he said.
In March, three people died after receiving injections of a drug made in a compounding pharmacy in Texas that was administered to patients at an alternative medicine clinic in Portland, Ore. Investigators found that the medicine, used to treat back pain, was 10 times more potent than the label indicated.
And two years ago, a contaminated solution used in open-heart surgery was linked to the death of four patients at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg. The solution was made by a large compounding pharmacy in Maryland; federal officials subsequently found significant contamination at the plant.
Lipo-dissolve proponents, including MedSculpt officials and Adrian, say that no deaths have been reported anywhere from the procedure and that their shots are carefully prepared in reputable pharmacies.
But in Tanzi's view, basic questions about the treatment remain unanswered.
"I had a baby two months ago," she said. "If I thought it worked and was safe, I'd have it." ·

Fonte: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/22/AR2007062201870.html - 26/06/07

Making Botox Both Medicine and Cosmetic

2007-06-24T14:20:00.000-07:00

By BARNABY J. FEDER
Published: June 23, 2007

David E. I. Pyott, 53, became president and chief executive of Allergan in 1998 after spending his earlier management career in the nutrition subsidiaries of Novartis and Sandoz. The stock stood at $15.74 and the company was best known for its contact lens care solutions.
Allergan, based in Irvine, Calif., spun off the lens care and eye surgery businesses into Advanced Medical Optics in 2002. Since then, its identity has been increasingly linked to Botox, its branded delivery system for minute doses of a bacterial toxin that can paralyze muscles for several months. Thanks to Botox’s growing portfolio of cosmetic and medical applications, Allergan has forecast Botox sales this year of up to $1.16 billion.
But the company also makes a range of pharmaceuticals for various eye and skin care products. Wall Street has applauded the company’s strong growth and strategic moves like the $3.4 billion acquisition last year of Inamed, which made Allergan a leader in silicone breast implants and implants to treat obesity in addition to giving it Juvéderm, a new injectable gel for combating wrinkles. Yesterday, the stock closed at $114.47, down $2.79. Mr. Pyott discussed these recent developments. Following are excerpts:
Q. How should we think of today’s Allergan?
A. We’re seen as a biologics company because of Botox. Our valuation is in line with Genentech. But we are a very small version of Johnson & Johnson in many ways. Wall Street likes that a third of our business is discretionary spending. It’s a hedge against Medicare and insurers tightening their coverage.
Q. You started out viewing Botox strictly as a medical product, right?
A. Yes. Dr. Alan Scott was treating crossed eyes and fluttering eyelids, which is how we got into the business. We thought we’d get $5 million in worldwide sales. Fortunately, we got that wrong.
Q. Botox’s medical sales will top $500 million this year. How does the medical market work?
A. Twenty indications have been approved in various countries. Cervical dystonia (a neck muscle disorder that pulls the head out of position) is the biggest approved medical use in the U.S. Excessive sweating — that’s hyperhidrosis — is another interesting application, which affects eight million people in the U.S. The price per vial for medical and cosmetics is the same almost everywhere in the world but you need 300 to 400 units to treat spasticity in a leg or arm, compared to 20 to remove a crease between the eyes.
Q. But far more people are now getting Botox for cosmetic purposes and that segment is growing faster, right?
A. Last year, worldwide, Botox use accelerated in cosmetics by 32 percent. Botox for therapeutics grew 17 percent. In the short term, cosmetics will become more than 50 percent of the use. But it could swing back at the end of the decade. We are working on headache relief and bladder control for people with spinal cord injuries. We’re looking at 2009 for approval on the headache and 2011 for bladder control.
Q. People have been opening storefronts in shopping centers for Botox treatments. Is misuse a concern?
A. Patients should receive their treatments in an appropriate medical setting from people who are well trained. If you are just looking for a simple removal of the crease between the eyes, most people can do that. If you are looking to change the shape of the eyebrows, it requires a very precise weakening of six or seven muscles and that’s where you need an expert.
We heavily discourage — we even mandate — that our sales people don’t go to places like spas. We will supply to anyone who can establish their credentials as a medical professional. If it’s someone new, we make sure they have a valid license through a state medical society.
Q. Isn’t the huge amount of money spent on Botox for cosmetic purposes — and your other products like dermal fillers and breast implants — a horrifying sign of misplaced priorities in American society?
A. This is a worldwide phenomenon wherever there is a buildup of wealth. The cosmetic use comes out of the entertainment budget.
Q. So how reliant are you on the state of the economy?
A. People ask and I have to tell them it doesn’t seem to have much effect if you look back to what happened after the Internet bubble burst. We go down to households with $50,000 but most have a lot more than that.

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/23/business/23interview.html?ref=health - 23/06/07

Cartilha da beleza

2007-06-15T20:15:00.000-07:00

Ana Paula Araújo

Encontrar uma mulher satisfeita com o corpo, rosto e cabelos é uma tarefa difícil. Segundo elas, sempre tem algo para melhorar. Prova disso é que o Brasil é o terceiro maior consumidor de cosméticos do mundo. Para evitar danos à saúde, a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária lançou um manual do que pode e do que não pode ser usado.
Cabelos lisos só no salão e com produtos liberados pela Vigilância Sanitária. Uma lição que Paula Ferreira aprendeu depois de uma experiência traumática com uma escova progressiva feita em casa. “Meu cabelo continuou caindo, eu não sabia o que fazer. Depois todo o meu couro cabeludo passou a descamar”, conta a gerente de loja.
Mas, com os produtos, certos, ela viu que não precisava desistir do visual que tanto queria. “Eu procurei um produto adequado, que desse o mesmo efeito e sem provocar os mesmos danos que ela havia sofrido”, diz Luiz França, cabeleireiro
As opções para cuidar da aparência são muitas, e a brasileira não faz por menos: o país é o terceiro maior consumidor de cosméticos, atrás apenas dos EUA e do Japão. Para regular esse mercado, a Vigilância Sanitária lançou uma cartilha com orientações para os profissionais da beleza.
A Anvisa recebe por ano de três mil e quatro mil pedidos de registro de novos produtos. Para quem quer experimentar as novidades, a vigilância orienta:
- Só compre produtos com a embalagem limpa e não danificada; - Verifique se o produto tem registro na Anvisa; - Não use cosméticos com prazo de validade vencido; - Sempre observe as advertências e restrições de uso; - Para as crianças, somente produtos infantis.
"Produtos que oferecem milagres têm que ser evitados. Não existe cosmético capaz de eliminar rugas, capaz de fazer crescer cabelos, eliminar celulite ou emagrecer. Se isso consta no rótulo, não compre", orienta Cláudio Maierovitch, diretor da Anvisa.
Fugindo das armadilhas... “Querer estar melhor é sempre sinal de saúde. E saúde sempre gera beleza”, garante o dermatologista Celso Sodré.
A Anvisa também alerta que produtos contrabandeados ou feitos em laboratórios clandestinos podem conter ingredientes diferentes dos descritos no rótulo e há riscos de alergias e queimaduras.

Fonte: Jornal Hoje - 16/06/07

You Can Smooth or Zap but Will the Results Hit Home?

2007-06-15T08:18:00.000-07:00

By MELENA RYZIK
Published: June 14, 2007

IN pursuit of a glowing, smooth, youthful complexion, Ann Runnels, 44, has tried Botox, microdermabrasion, injectable fillers, Fraxel lasers (a treatment said to stimulate cell growth) and the usual array of creams, ointments and $120-a-bottle serums.
“My father was an oilman and cattle rancher and I spent my whole life out in the sun,” said Ms. Runnels, who lives in Kyle, Tex., and works at home helping her husband with his real estate business. “Now I’m seeing fine lines show up, and I try to be proactive about it.”
So when she read a rave review of an odd-looking mallet-like device called a Baby Quasar on a skin-care message board last year, Ms. Runnels thought, well, it couldn’t hurt. She ordered the light-emitting gadget, affectionately called a Baby Q by its devotees. It cost $399, but she was impressed with its sturdy packaging and was eager to see the results. “I used it immediately,” she said.
As quickly as the next morning, she said, “my skin looked plumper.” She was so pleased that a few months later she upgraded to the full-size Quasar, a more powerful professional machine that costs $1,800.
Though the fight against wrinkles long ago went high tech (and high cost), it is only recently that technologies such as pulsing heat, L.E.D.s and electrical currents have become safe and easy enough for consumers to use on themselves. Years after women first started recreating professional treatments with at-home spa days, a growing array of devices have migrated from the aesthetician’s office to the bathroom, where they now compete with topical solutions, medications and other prescribed remedies to combat aging.
Though it is hard to say exactly how many of these products exist, new ones seem to arrive daily: the HairMax LaserComb, for “thicker, fuller, healthier looking hair”; the DermaVie, for microdermabrasion; the Crystalift, a vacuum, to “resurface” the skin. That they often cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars is little deterrent to people for whom youth is priceless — or at least financially attainable.
“If you do the math, a spa session or a clinic session would probably cost $100 for a cosmetic treatment, whereas if you do this for five minutes a day, it has the same results,” said Donna Regii, a manager at Bliss, the spa chain. The company stocks NuFace, which emits microelectrocurrents and at $450 is a top seller.
But as an increasing number of devices fill up electrical outlets, many dermatologists question their efficacy, if not their safety.
“One of the major issues with these home-use devices is they promise more than they can deliver,” said Dr. Arielle Kauvar, a dermatologist and associate professor at New York University School of Medicine who specializes in laser-assisted treatments. The claims they make — that skin will be tightened or fine lines and wrinkles minimized — are largely cosmetic, so the manufacturers do not need approval by the Food and Drug Administration, only clearance, said Dr. Kauvar, which is easier to get.
A manufacturer that claims scientific proof of its product’s effectiveness is probably using the term loosely. For example, the makers of the RejuvaWand, an L.E.D.-based massaging tool said to “reverse the signs of aging” that came on the market in February, promote their two-month clinical trial. But the trial involved only 36 women, with no controls. Of the 36 women, 31 reported their skin had improved, said Marc Maisel, a company founder. The participants used a gel with hyaluronic acid, which also can plump skin, Dr. Kauvar said.
NuFace, too, advertises its scientific appeal. Based loosely on a procedure used to treat Bell’s palsy, the hand-held device emits electrical microcurrents meant to stimulate muscles, which the makers claim tightens the skin. But it hurts. So does the ThermaClear, a heat pulsing tool for combating acne. Applied to the skin, it emits a hot zap, enough to make you recoil. NuFace stings. Except for the eye-crossing bright light it emits, RejuvaWand is not painful, though it does carry an explicit warning not to look into the beam, even when it is off.
Once customers are buzzing or zapping in their own rooms, it is hard to say what they are doing. NuFace is recommended for use only once a day, and is not for pregnant women or people with pacemakers or subject to seizures.
Nevertheless, the company is besieged with questions from customers about increasing the frequency. “They think if one time’s good, then twice is even better and three times is even better than that,” said Tera N. Valdez, the vice president for sales and marketing for Skin Star Inc., NuFace’s manufacturer. “It is really important not to overstimulate the muscles.” (Prolonged use could cause the muscles to atrophy, she said, though the likelihood is “very slim.”)
Alternately, the devices can be too targeted. ThermaClear specifies that it be used on mild or moderate acne only; no blackheads, whiteheads or hard pustules. Using it in combination with prescription treatments or on sensitive skin is discouraged and best results are achieved if the pimple is zapped right away.
How many treatable pimples does that add up to? Not many, Dr. Kauvar said: “What these devices can do is get rid of an individual pimple a little faster, but you’re doing nothing to prevent further pimples. If that’s your goal, there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.”
But, she added, “if someone is zapping something that they think is a pimple but it really isn’t, or they’re spreading an infection around the face, they can get into trouble.”
Safety is generally not the issue; price and efficacy are: NuFace costs $450, RejuvaWand $199.95 and ThermaClear $149.99.
“I don’t think people are going to hurt themselves,” said Dr. William P. Coleman, clinical professor of dermatology and adjunct professor of plastic surgery at Tulane University School of Medicine. “I think they’re much more likely to waste their money.”
He added: “When I read these claims, none of them are based on true science, none of them are based on articles in peer-reviewed journals. They’re all based on a kernel of science, and extrapolating that to the advertisers’ benefit.”
For example, the name of the Baby Quasar suggests that it is a laser, a clinically-proven treatment; in fact it is a high-powered L.E.D. like the kind found in a remote control, Dr. Coleman said. RejuvaWand also uses L.E.D.s. Likewise, the marketing materials for ThermaClear draw parallels to lasers, though it is essentially a heating element.
Heat does help decrease pimples. But, Dr. Coleman said, “I still don’t know whether using warm water or a Q-tip that’s been warmed up” is any less effective. Microcurrents and lasers approved for home use are likely to be too weak to do anything, he added.
The Baby Q was not even intended for home use, its manufacturer said. But last fall a few people bought the Baby Q and posted glowing comments on message boards. The company’s sales went from a handful every few months to the thousands, said Alex Webster, director of sales at AdvanThera, which makes the device.
Ms. Runnels eventually returned the $1,800 Quasar, which she found too painful. “It just got so hot,” she said, “I couldn’t even put my hand to it. It made my rosacea worse and my skin drier.”
She exchanged it for her old Baby Q, which she uses in combination with her vitamin C and olive oil serums, Restylane fillers and occasional Botox. “It’s not like a miracle worker,” she said. “You can’t really say what it does.”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/14/fashion/14skin.html?pagewanted=2&ref=health - 14/06/07

Congresso Brasileiro de Medicina Estética debate novas tecnologias

2007-06-07T13:18:00.001-07:00

Rio - O 14° Congresso Brasileiro de Medicina Estética, promovido pela Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Estética, que acontece de 6 a 9 de junho no Rio, no Centro de Convenções do Hotel Intercontinental, em São Conrado, vai abordar o crescimento da medicina estética no Brasil e a necessidade do profissional se capacitar para atuar com novos métodos e tecnologias do mercado.
A entidade médica revela ainda que a média anual de procura de médicos pela especialização em medicina estética, tem aumentado 30% ao ano. De acordo com o dermatologista Valcinir Bedin, presidente da SBME, regional São Paulo, a indústria cosmética e da beleza movimenta no Brasil aproximadamente 4 bilhões de dólares anuais, sendo o segundo no ranking mundial. O primeiro é os Estados Unidos. Segundo o médico, em tratamentos estéticos, sem incluir produtos, o consumo médio gasto são de 500 milhões de dólares por ano. Cerca de 6000 mil médicos atuam na área da Medicina Estética no país. E para não desrespeitar a comprovação científica que deve fundamentar qualquer princípio médico, as controvérsias se tornam evidentes a cada novo aparelho ou técnica lançado no mercado. A compreensão desse fenômeno de teorias e técnicas acontece através de confrontações terapêuticas, que prometem melhorar os resultados dos tratamentos estéticos.
A presidente da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Estética da Regional Rio, Angela Chichierchio explica que o evento é uma ótima oportunidade para o médico se atualizar, sobre as principais modificações em tratamentos já consagrados e quais resultados oferecem as principais técnicas e produtos internacionais encontrados no mercado de Medicina Estética. Novas tecnologias do universo da beleza De acordo com o presidente da SBME, Aloízio Faria de Souza, o evento vai enfatizar os tratamentos para gordura localizada, celulite, rejuvenescimento facial, entre outros. Dentre os tratamentos em discussão, técnicas de rejuvenescimento facial, como a tecnologia de plasma, do aparelho Portrait, o Aluma, o preenchimento com PMMA, os aparelhos Thermacool e Fraxel, terapias com ácido polilático, entre outros. A mesa de discussão sobre tratamentos no combate da celulite vai apresentar as novas tecnologias dos aparelhos Dermosonic e Dhermia, o Thermacool Body, com nova ponteira para uso corporal e a Carboxiterapia, com e sem gás carbônico aquecido. Já os tratamentos que visa o combate à gordura localizada serão questionados resultados oferecidos pelos aparelhos de radiofreqüência profunda e controlada, o aparelho com tecnologia de ultra-som Ultrashape e a cirurgia que propõe corrigir o excesso de tecido (gordura ou pele), na região abdominal. “Um debate que promete ampla discussão ainda é o uso do GH, hormônio de crescimento por homens e mulheres, na busca pelo rejuvenescimento. Não podemos deixar de assimilar o que pode prejudicar o desequilíbrio hormonal na saúde humana”, destaca a médica Angela Chichierchio. SERVIÇO:14ª Congresso Brasileiro de Medicina EstéticaLocal: Hotel Intercontinental - Centro de ConvençõesEnd. Prefeito Mendes de Moraes, 222 - São Conrado – Rio (RJ)Dias: 6 a 9 de junho de 2007 – De 8h30min às 18h.

Fonte: http://odia.terra.com.br/ciencia/htm/geral_103019.asp - 06/06/2007

Guia traz parâmetros de qualidade para indústria cosmética

2007-05-29T15:21:00.000-07:00

Foi lançado, nesta segunda-feira (28), em Belo Horizonte (MG), o Guia de controle de Qualidade de Cosméticos. A publicação traz diretrizes, informações e métodos de ensaio para o controle de qualidade destes produtos, além de compilar recomendações das metodologias mais usuais para a análise dos ensaios industriais. O trabalho é resultado de uma parceria entre a Anvisa, a Câmara Técnica de Cosméticos (Catec) da Agência, a comunidade acadêmica, os laboratórios oficiais e o setor produtivo. A escolha da cidade foi uma forma de homenagear o centenário da fundação Ezequiel Dias (Funed), instituição que possui produtos e serviços na área da saúde, trabalhando também com pesquisa e ensino. “O guia é uma orientação para que as empresas alcancem os resultados exigidos pela legislação. Nele, os profissionais poderão ter, por exemplo, informações de como melhor proceder na análise das substâncias que compõe a fórmula”, explica a Gerente-Geral de Cosméticos da Anvisa, Josineire Sallum. Para o presidente da Funed, Carlos Alberto Pereira Gomes, a iniciativa é de grande importância, considerados o tamanho deste mercado e os impactos na saúde da população. “A indústria cosmética é, hoje, um segmento industrial em crescimento acelerado, que movimenta a economia, agrega valor e incentiva a produção técnica. O uso dos produtos dessa indústria, ao contrário do que se pensa, também traz riscos. E a experiência mostra que é infinitamente mais fácil evitar que o problema aconteça do que tentar remediá-lo”, define. Neste sentido, o papel do controle de qualidade dentro das empresas é essencial. Os setores responsáveis por este conjunto de atividades é que verificam e asseguram que os ensaios necessários e relevantes sejam executados. Também cabe ao controle de qualidade garantir que o material não será disponibilizado para venda e uso até que o mesmo cumpra com a qualidade preestabelecida.
Para a diretora do Conselho Regional de Farmácia de Minas Gerais, Adriana Pereira Gomes, o guia pode fornecer subsídios às ações de fiscalização. “É uma base de dados a mais para que possamos fazer a fiscalização do exercício profissional de forma mais eficiente”, aponta. Os processos de controle de qualidade devem ser permanentemente auditados, de maneira a corrigir distorções e garantir sua melhoria contínua. A calibração e aferição dos equipamentos, o uso de métodos e procedimentos apropriados para os ensaios desejados e a amostragem (coleta de uma parte representativa) são passos fundamentais para a excelência dos processos.NúmerosA Anvisa recebe anualmente entre 3 mil e 4 mil pedidos de registro de produtos cosméticos. Já as notificações – obrigatórias para produtos de grau de risco baixo – chegaram a quase 70 mil em 2006. O Brasil é hoje o terceiro maior mercado consumidor desses produtos no mundo, perdendo apenas para os Estados Unidos, que ocupam o primeiro lugar, e o Japão. Informação: Assessoria de Imprensa da Anvisa

Fonte: ANVISA - 28/05/07

Pesquisa confirma efeito anti-rugas de vitamina A

2007-05-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

Agência JB
WASHINGTON - Uma pesquisa feita por cientistas da Escola de Medicina da Universidade de Michigan, nos Estados Unidos, confirmou que cremes contendo vitamina A ajudam a reduzir os sinais de envelhecimento da pele.
Muitos produtos de beleza contêm retinol - a forma pura da vitamina A - e seus fabricantes dizem que a substância ajuda a combater rugas, mas até agora havia pouca evidência científica da eficácia desses cremes.
O estudo americano, publicado na Archives of Dermatology, recrutou 36 pessoas com uma idade média de 87 anos e pediu que elas usassem um creme com vitamina A debaixo de um dos braços e um creme sem nenhum componente ativo debaixo do outro.
Esta parte do corpo foi escolhida porque tem pouca exposição ao sol, logo sofre apenas um envelhecimento natural. Depois de 24 semanas, houve uma avaliação da aparência da pele e uma pequena amostra foi enviada para análise.
Os resultados da pesquisa revelaram que o retinol não apenas reduziu as rugas na grande maioria dos voluntários, mas também aumentou os níveis de substâncias químicas importantes na regeneração da pele.
Com a idade, a pele passa a produzir menos colágeno e perde elasticidade, ficando mais fina e menos macia. As amostras retiradas dos voluntários mostraram que o retinol ajudou a pele a reter mais água e a se recuperar.
Além de melhorar a aparência, a substância também poderia trazer benefícios para a saúde, deixando a pele menos suscetível a lesões cutâneas, um problema comum em pessoas mais velhas.
(Com BBC Brasil)
[ 16:45 ] 23/05/2007

Nanotecnologia vai se tornando uma realidade para medicina e cosméticos

2007-05-22T15:01:00.000-07:00

Carolina Landulfo / USP Online carolsl@usp.br

De acordo com o professor Henrique Toma, do Instituto de Química (IQ) da USP, “a nanotecnologia vai movimentar por volta de um trilhão de dólares nos próximos 10 anos”. Ele ainda diz que a técnica já está entre as cinco prioridades nos países desenvolvidos: “é a chance do Brasil pegar o bonde - que já está atrasado - e desenvolver-se nessa nova tecnologia”, afirma.

Nanotecnologia é a aplicação da ciência de sistemas em escala nanométrica. Um nanômetro (nm) é 1 bilionésimo de metro. Nesta dimensão, os materiais têm comportamentos especiais e possuem maior eficiência nas suas propriedades. É possível, usando as técnicas e ferramentas adequadas, colocar cada átomo e cada molécula no lugar desejado.

A manipulação do átomo pode permitir guardar informações a nível atômico, sendo assim, espera-se que os nanocomputadores sejam 1000 vezes mais rápidos que os atuais e que consigam armazenar 1000 vezes mais informação. Já na área médica, essa tecnologia abre outras perspectivas: pesquisas ao redor do mundo estudam a possibilidade de construir nanomáquinas, capazes de interagir com as células humanas ou mesmo com componentes das células, como o DNA. Esta tecnologia permite, por exemplo, criar pequenas máquinas que circulam na corrente sanguínea e que estão concebidas para detectar e destruir células cancerosas. Também permite criar pequenas máquinas programadas para corrigir doenças genéticas alterando o DNA de cada célula.

Ainda são suposições e pesquisas, porém, com o investimento feito, principalmente por países desenvolvidos, os avanços na área nano podem acontecer rapidamente.
E um exemplo desse avanço vem do Centro Incubador de Empresas Tecnológicas (Cietec), órgão apoiado pela USP que procura dar auxílio administrativo e científico a micro e pequenas empresas com planos de negócios inovadores na área tecnológica. A empresa Incrementha, que lá está incubada, anunciou o primeiro fármaco desenvolvido com nanotecnologia no Brasil: um anestésico local.

Um dos diretores da empresa, Enri Suzuki, ressalta como o uso da nanotecnologia possibilita uma maior eficácia e segurança ao produto: “por ser uma tecnologia que trabalha na escala nano - com átomos -, permite uma maior eficácia, através do direcionamento do fármaco ao local que ele deve ser liberado e em uma velocidade maior”, explica. Devido ao caminho direto do medicamento ao “alvo”, haverá, segundo Suzuki, uma diminuição da dose recomendada, “contribuindo para a redução dos gastos e do contato do produto com outras regiões do corpo”.

O empresário ainda destaca um outro benefício dos medicamentos que se utilizam da nanotecnologia: a ação mais prolongada. “Com a dose certa no local exato se terá um prolongamento dos efeitos terapêuticos”, diz.

O anestésico deve ser finalizado até o final de 2008. “Acabamos a fase laboratorial do produto e os testes animais. Vamos iniciar agora uma etapa de ampliação de escala de produção e início dos testes em humanos”, afirma Suzuki.

Segundo o diretor, o produto será comercializado inicialmente no Brasil, para depois ser inserido no mercado externo: “esse é o primeiro nanofármaco genuinamente brasileiro. Queremos, a partir dele, expandir a participação do Brasil no mercado farmacêutico mundial, que hoje é só de 1,8%”.

Revolução
A nanotecnologia representa uma revolução na medicina? Para o professor Toma, ainda não. Ele afirma que a nova tecnologia tem um potencial enorme e uma “aplicação fantástica” em fármacos, porém ali sua percepção é mais lenta que em outras áreas. Além disso, ele reforça o poder da nanotecnologia e a necessidade de ser utilizada por um profissional de alta competência: “por estarmos lidando com átomos, temos a ventagem de poder introduzir na célula componentes terapêuticos e vitaminas. Porém é possível também produzir coisas que podem fazer mal, pois, por serem muito pequenas, irão passar despercebidas pelas barreiras naturais do organismo”, explica.

A revolução, de acordo com o professor, está, por enquanto, afetando mais outras áreas: “pode-se dizer que a nanotecnologia está revolucionando o ramo de materiais, a indústria de embalagens, plásticos, tornando-os mais inteligentes, bioambientalmente corretos”.

Outro setor que o professor ressalta o progresso é a indústria têxtil: “pode-se aumentar a resistência física do tecido, proporcionando vários benefícios, como respiração pelo tecido e restrição de umidade. Além disso, estão se desenvolvendo tecidos antibacterianos”, afirma Toma.

Cosmetologia
Não chega a ser uma revolução, pelo menos por enquanto; porém, a nanotecnologia já atingiu também a área dos cosméticos, e com bons resultados. Os produtos de beleza tradicionais, segundo o professor Toma, atuam de forma superficial na pele, apenas para encobrir defeitos e falhas, de maneira paliativa. A nanotecnologia proporciona a manipulação das partículas atômicas do produto, permitindo aumentar o poder de penetração na pele em vários níveis. “Um anti-rugas, por exemplo, não vai esconder a ruga. Mas sim eliminá-la, estimulando, por meio de células germinativas, o aparecimento de novas células sadias”.

Toma acredita que o mercado de cosméticos, devido à nanotecnologia, tende a crescer consideravelmente. Principalmente porque o fator custo, para o professor, não é um dos “grandes empecilhos para o consumo desses produtos”.

Futuro
Assim como no ramo de cosméticos, Toma diz que a nanotecnologia nas demais áreas pode e deve desenvolver-se no país. Ele afirma que essa é a última tecnologia que o mundo pode atingir, sendo assim, o Brasil precisa “investir na área e aumentar as iniciativas que ainda são escassas”. Além disso, o professor ressalta a importância da cultura nano chegar à população: “em pouco tempo essa tecnologia pode estar no nosso dia-a-dia e a maior parte das pessoas não sabe o que ela significa. É a oportunidade de se debater a nanotecnologia que, logo, vai mexer com todos os setores da humanidade”, conclui.

FONTE: http://noticias.usp.br/acontece/obterNoticia?codnucjrn=1&codntc=16289 - 21/05/07

Botox é tratamento de beleza mais usado em 2006

2007-05-11T08:13:00.000-07:00

RIO - De acordo com dados recentes divulgados pela Sociedade Americana de Cirurgia Plástica Estética (ASAPS), o Botox (Toxina Botulínica Tipo A) foi o tipo de tratamento de beleza não invasivo mais realizado em 2006, seguido pelo preenchimento com ácido hialurônico, depilação a laser, microdermabrasão e tratamento com laser.
Esses resultados podem ser explicados pelo alto grau de satisfação dos pacientes tratados com Botox, como o atenuamento das rugas e das linhas de expressão. Outro fator que eleva ainda mais os níveis de satisfação com o produto é o tratamento individualizado, levando-se em consideração não somente as características clínicas de cada paciente, mas também suas preferências, desejos e objetivos com o tratamento.
Embora as mulheres continuem sendo as principais usuárias do produto, o aumento das aplicações de Botox no segmento masculino foi, desde 1997, de 5.599 % (o aumento entre mulheres, desde 1997, foi de 4.710%). Vale destacar que nenhum outro procedimento cosmético não cirúrgico apresenta índices de aumento que superem aos 300%.
Outros dados interessantes da pesquisa ASAPS mostram que os procedimentos cirúrgicos cresceram 98% desde 1997, enquanto os não cirúrgicos, liderados por Botox, tiveram um aumento de 747%.
Segundo Simone Veloso, dermatologista e membro da Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Dermatológica, o tratamento com Botox deve ser sempre individual porque as doses e os pontos de aplicação dependem de cada rosto, de cada expressão.
- As pessoas têm objetivos de tratamentos diferentes e é necessário que o médico compartilhe com o paciente a sua demanda e o oriente, dizendo o que é possível e o que não é - explica a médica.
O sexo também é importante no tratamento individual. Homens precisam de uma dosagem maior porque o músculo é mais forte e a espessura da pele é diferente.
- Na aplicação de Botox é necessário observar toda a anatomia facial e, por este motivo, não pode ser uma receita de bolo, com dosagens e pontos pré-determinados - complementa Simone.
Para o Vitório Maddarena, cirurgião plástico e membro titular da Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Plástica, o tratamento com a Toxina Botulínica do Tipo A é também preventivo.
- Existem as rugas dinâmicas, formadas pela expressão facial, e rugas estáticas, presentes sem que haja movimento facial. Quando uma pessoa faz muitas expressões faciais, contrai muito um mesmo músculo, as fibras de colágeno se quebram e forma-se a ruga estática. Sendo assim, a toxina previne o aparecimento das rugas estáticas porque a musculatura fica relaxada e sem contração - diz o cirurgião plástico.
A Toxina Botulínica Tipo A relaxa o músculo responsável pela formação da ruga que está sendo tratada e seu efeito é temporário. Depois de aproximadamente quatro a seis meses da aplicação, os músculos recuperam sua capacidade de se contrair, mas com um detalhe: as rugas futuras terão sua intensidade reduzida, já que houve um repouso da musculatura devido ao uso do produto.
Simone explica que Botox é um produto seguro, inclusive utilizado em crianças na neurologia, e cabe ao médico analisar a necessidade do paciente se submeter ao tratamento. Existem pessoas jovens, geralmente clarinhas e que tomam muito sol, que precisam fazer a aplicação. Por outro lado, existem pessoas de mais idade que não precisam do tratamento.
- O médico habilitado à aplicação de Botox é aquele que tem o conhecimento da anatomia dos músculos faciais e que tenha recebido treinamento adequado para a aplicação do medicamento - enfatiza a dermatologista.

Fonte: Portal Terra - 10/05/2007

Beware the Afterglow

2007-05-03T15:09:00.000-07:00

By NATASHA SINGER
Published: May 3, 2007

YEARS before Ursula Andress, the Swiss actress who was the first Bond girl, emerged from the waves in “Dr. No” with her caramel skin offset by a blindingly white bikini, the tan had taken hold as the abiding fashion image.
A honey-glowing face and a body that is buff and bronzed had come to conjure up associations of beauty, leisure and upper-class privilege: of exotic private beaches, robust games of tennis, long afternoons aboard a yacht and, of course, the healthy-looking afterglow of exercise or sex.
Even in the 25 years since medical groups began warning that ultraviolet irradiation can lead to skin cancer as well as to dire consequences for the appearance-conscious — wrinkles! — tan-looking skin has remained an iconic beauty image, promoted by fashion magazines, advertisements and celebrities.
But the chic method of acquiring a tan has shifted. With sunbathing and tanning beds deemed risky, some doctors, magazines and beauty companies are promoting the idea of a “sunless” tan begat by cosmetics as the safe alternative to UV irradiation.
And so simulated tanning is booming. This month, cosmetics brands are introducing new artificial bronzing agents including sprays, lotions, mousses, powders and towelettes into a market that is already brimming with products. Meanwhile, fashion magazines are enthusing over the fake tan with buzzwords like sun-kissed, radiant, natural-looking, tawny, healthy and glowing.
“We are being inundated with the look of a woman of leisure who has a beautiful glow, whether from a sunless tanner or a bronzer,” said Karen Grant, the senior beauty industry analyst for the NPD Group, a market research firm. “The marketing theme is that the products can give you the same glow that the sun can provide without the risks of going out into the sun.”
Indeed, the notion of a safe, healthy sunless tan is making Malibu Barbie the retro icon of the season.
But some researchers who study the skin are worried that promulgating the simulated tan as a beauty ideal is simply perpetuating an image that is fundamentally linked to risky behavior. The concern is that the fashion for a bronzed look, even a cosmetically induced one, may encourage young women to seek a tanned appearance at any cost.
According to a study published last year in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, for example, young women who used sunless tanners were more likely to have been sunburned and to have visited tanning parlors compared with those who were not interested in and did not use such bronzing lotions. The study, conducted at Boston University School of Medicine, also reported that, although many self-tanning products do not contain sunscreen, a number of young women believe they offer sun protection.
“We know that physicians are urging patients to use sunless tanning products instead of tanning booths,” said Alan C. Geller, a research associate professor in dermatology at Boston University and one of the authors of the study. “But sunless tanners are not serving the purpose of a safe alternative because we found young women using them as an adjunct to sunbathing and tanning beds.”
Many women say self-tanners have become as regular a part of their beauty routine as moisturizer or mascara. Most commonly, they apply powdered bronzer to their faces and tanning moisturizers to their arms and legs.
The sales figures bear this out. In the last five years, department-store bronzer sales have increased to about $62 million from about $30 million, according to NPD. At the mass market level, self-tanners, bronzers and tanning moisturizers, called “natural glow” lotions, have annual sales of about $229 million, according to Information Resources Inc., a market research firm that covers the personal care industry.
Nina Jablonski, the chairwoman of the anthropology department at Penn State University, said that trying to change one’s skin color is a peculiar and disturbing phenomenon — whether it be Africans and Asians who use bleaching products to lighten skin or lighter-pigmented Americans seeking to emulate deck stain. Along that continuum, the sun-tanned look is a relatively new beauty ideal, she said.
“For most of the last 500 years, a tan was considered the mark of a hard-working person who toiled outside,” said Dr. Jablonski, the author of “Skin: A Natural History.” “A tan was eschewed by people who considered themselves upper class.”
During the Industrial Revolution, as work increasingly moved to indoor factories, sun-baked skin became the province of the upper classes who had more leisure time and money to travel. Coco Chanel, who returned to Paris with a dramatic suntan acquired during a holiday on the Riviera in the 1920s, is credited with initiating the vogue for sunbathing. She reincarnated what had been a lower-class stigma as an aspiration, a symbol of upper-class wealth, leisure, good looks and healthy athleticism.
In the 1960s, George Hamilton personified the perpetual tan. In 1971, Mattel introduced Malibu Barbie, the ultimate beach bunny. And baby oil, used to hasten a deeper tan, was the rage in the 1970s.
“The tan went from being a thing that working people got by the sweat of their brows to being associated with a glamorous, luxurious lifestyle,” Dr. Jablonski said. “It is one of the most deeply ingrained images in American advertising.”
But in the early 1980s, the tan began to lose some of its allure after health authorities in Australia noticed an increased incidence of skin cancer among residents who had emigrated from Europe. They began to link skin cancer and sunbathing. In 1985, the American Academy of Dermatology conducted its first national campaign to warn Americans about the risks of sun exposure.
As a result, the product-induced tan has replaced the outdoorsy tan as a beauty ideal. And celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Alba and Eva Longoria, with their own naturally glowing skin, are inspiring legions of imitators. Now starlets like Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton often appear preternaturally bronzed. Even the model Natalia Vodianova, known for her porcelain face, appears this month in a Calvin Klein perfume ad looking as if she has been powdered with baked earth.
“Bronzer makes you look healthy, healthy, healthy,” said Olivier Échaudemaison, the makeup artistic designer for Guerlain. “Pale skin makes you look tired, but if you are wearing bronzer nobody knows you are tired underneath.”
To provide that simulacrum of health, cosmetics that create ersatz tans now come in three categories: self-tanners, bronzers and “glow” lotions.
Self-tanners trigger a chemical reaction, causing a brownish stain to form on the outer layer of the skin. Until recently, self-tanners were often messy to use, noxious-smelling, time-consuming and capable of turning the skin a bright shade of Oompa-Loompa orange. In the last few years, however, cosmetics companies have introduced improved formulas.
Bronzers are powders that are applied like blush. Guerlain is credited with creating the category in 1984 when it introduced Terracotta Powder, which could be brushed on for an instant coppery sheen.
“Suddenly, they have the look of just coming back from St. Barth’s, but really they spent the weekend at home and put on the powder,” Mr. Échaudemaison said.
Meanwhile, other brands, including Lancôme, are bringing out increasingly elaborate bronzing compacts that are embossed with patterns and come in multiple luminescent hues that can be used all over the body.
“Women today are on the go and they have no time or desire to sit down and sunbathe or wait overnight for a tanner to show its real color,” said Gracemarie Papaleo, assistant vice president for new product development at Lancôme USA. “With a bronzer, you get immediate results.”
“Glow” lotions, which are moisturizers that gradually darken the skin with each use, are also a growing trend. Jergens Natural Glow, introduced in 2005, was the first successful tanning moisturizer. Now other beauty brands are coming out with similar products based on the idea of a healthy, natural-looking glow. Ads for the new Nivea Visage Sunkissed Facial Moisturizer, for example, promise “a healthy-looking tan in just five days.”
“People want to look healthy without getting sun damage, to have that same California, sun-kissed type of look like every celebrity on the red carpet,” said Leigh Anne Rowinski, director of client solutions at Information Resources Inc.
But some critics worry that promoting sunless tans and glows as healthy, stylish and natural perpetuates the tan — whether cosmetic induced or sun-induced— as a beauty ideal, even as it posits pale skin as unhealthy, dull, unnatural and even passé.
“Even though a tan is now associated with pathology, it has had such a profound impact on the American psyche that to be untan is to look as terribly uncool as an unplucked chicken,” said Dr. Jablonski of Penn State. “People tend to think they look healthier if they have some sort of glow on their cheeks.”
But researchers at Boston University School of Medicine did not find that those who use self-tanners necessarily avoid UV rays. In a survey of 448 people age 18 to 30, the researchers found that young women who used sunless tanners were more likely to get sunburns and use sun beds than their peers who were not interested in self-tanning products; the results were similar to those found in studies in Australia. The researchers urged companies to include a minimum of S.P.F. 15 sunscreen in every sunless tanning product.
In a related research project, Zeina Dajani, a medical student at Boston University, found that a number of sunless tanners that did not contain sunscreen failed to carry a warning label, mandated by the Food and Drug Administration, to indicate that the products do not protect against sunburn and other damage.
“The question is whether dermatologists should stop recommending sunless tanning products as an alternative to tanning beds and discourage the idea of a tan altogether,” Ms. Dajani said.
At least one celebrity is glow-averse. In the May issue of Allure magazine, the actress Michelle Trachtenberg said the pressure to bronze is her pet peeve with beauty advisers at makeup counters.
“They’re like, ‘Maybe you’d like to warm up your skin tone,’ ” Ms. Trachtenberg is quoted as saying. “And I’m like, ‘No, I’m going to embrace the pale.’ ”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/fashion/03skin.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=health - 03/05/07

Conheça o controle de produtos ligados à saúde

2007-04-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

Cosméticos e saneantes são alguns dos produtos de interesse à saúde que exigem atuação da vigilância sanitária. Os produtos de higiene doméstica, como desinfetantes e águas sanitárias, são a segunda causa de ocorrência de danos à saúde por intoxicaçãoO controle sanitário sobre os estabelecimentos que produzem ou comercializam cosméticos, perfumes, produtos de higiene e saneantes é necessário para garantir o consumo de produtos seguros e de qualidade. Com a fiscalização e normalização dos estabelecimentos que os fabricam, a vigilância sanitária deve verificar o processo de produção, os métodos e as técnicas empregados até o consumo final. No Brasil, temos algumas estatísticas de ocorrência de danos à saúde em decorrência do mau uso desse tipo de produto. O Sistema Nacional de Informações Tóxico-Farmacológicas (Sinitox), ligado à Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), possui dados sobre intoxicações provocados por vários produtos. Registros de 2004 acusam os produtos usados em higiene doméstica (os chamados saneantes), como águas sanitárias e desinfetantes, de ser a segunda causa de intoxicação, com 6.404 casos (7,83%). A primeira causa são os medicamentos, com 23.700 casos ou 28,96%. Os cosméticos aparecem com 756 casos (0,92%).Há, ainda, as denúncias não contabilizadas nas estatísticas e os casos não informados. É o que alerta a publicação Vigilância Sanitária - Alimentos, Medicamentos, Produtos e Serviços de Interesse à Saúde (ANEXO), feita pelo Idec em parceria com a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa), do Ministério da Saúde (MS).Cuidados com os cosméticosOs cosméticos, que incluem produtos de higiene e perfumes, fazem parte do grupo de produtos de uso externo destinados a proteção, higienização e embelezamento. São classificados pela Anvisa de acordo com sua aplicação, destinação e finalidade de uso em grau de Risco I e grau de Risco II. Os do primeiro grupo, com risco menor, devem apresentar em seu rótulo apenas o número de autorização de funcionamento da empresa. Já os do segundo grupo têm de ser registrados na Anvisa/MS e passar por uma avaliação antes de receber o número de registro, que tem sempre treze dígitos. Alguns exemplos de cosméticos são pós faciais, talcos, loções para as mãos, bases de maquiagem, ruges, blushes, batons, lápis labiais, protetores solares, bronzeadores, sombras, delineadores, tinturas capilares, clareadores de cabelos, alisantes capilares, fixadores de cabelos, depilatórios, esmaltes e outros.Para compra, utilização e armazenamento de cosméticos deve-se:
· Verificar se o rótulo apresenta prazo de validade, composição, país de origem, fabricante/importador, nome do produto, marca, lote e número de registro, conforme determina a Anvisa.
· Guardar e manter os cosméticos ao abrigo da luz, do calor e da umidade, separados de alimentos e produtos de limpeza.
· Antes de aplicar qualquer produto, ler as informações do rótulo. Na dúvida, ligar para o Serviço de Atendimento ao Consumidor (SAC) do fabricante, entrar em contato com a vigilância sanitária ou enviar um e-mail para a Anvisa: cosmeticos@anvisa.gov.br.
· Caso ocorra alguma reação, procurar um médico imediatamente e levar a embalagem do produto, para que o profissional de saúde possa tomar as medidas de socorro.

Alisamento e formol
O consumidor deve atentar para os produtos destinados ao alisamento de cabelos usados em salões de beleza. Com a moda de alisamento dos cabelos, o formol passou a ser adicionado em produtos capilares com o objetivo de alisá-los. Isso é grave, já que o contato do formol com a pele e o couro cabeludo resulta em danos irreversíveis aos olhos e aos cabelos, além de poder causar danos às vias respiratórias. Nenhum produto registrado na Anvisa pode conter formol com função de alisante. Portanto, ao procurar um salão de beleza para alisar os cabelos, verifique se os produtos empregados são permitidos e registrados pela Anvisa. Se não forem registrados, não os utilize.O formol é normalmente usado em produtos de higiene e cosméticos como conservante, e é permitido em concentrações de até 0,1% para produtos de higiene oral, de 0,2% para outros cosméticos e, excepcionalmente, de até 5% para produtos destinados ao endurecimento das unhas. Nessas concentrações, o formol não causa danos à saúde.Quando utilizado indevidamente, o formol pode ter efeitos nocivos imediatos à saúde, como irritação, coceira, queimadura, inchaço, descamação do couro cabeludo e queda de cabelo, ao entrar em contato com a pele. Ardência, coriza, falta de ar, tosse e dor de cabeça ocorrem quando ele entra em contato com as vias aéreas superiores. Nos olhos, causa ardência, irritação e lacrimejamento. A longo prazo, pode provocar boca amarga, dores de barriga, enjoos, vômitos, desmaios e feridas na boca, nas narinas e nos olhos.
Classificação de saneantes
A vigilância sanitária também estabelece padrões para as substâncias que compõem a maioria dos saneantes, dependendo da finalidade desejada. Os alvejantes, branqueadores, detergentes, amaciantes, lustradores, polidores, engomadores e limpadores, como os neutralizadores de odores, removedores, sabões e saponáceos, são classificados como de Risco I e devem possuir no rótulo um aviso de que estão notificados na Anvisa/MS. Já os saneantes classificados como de Risco II devem ter registro na Anvisa/MS. São as substâncias freqüentemente ácidas e alcalinas, produtos com ação antimicrobiana, ou seja, que destroem microrganismos, desinfetantes e produtos biológicos. O número de registro do produto saneante deve constar do rótulo e também apresentar treze dígitos. Sobre a segurança das embalagens de saneantes e também sobre a sua rotulagem, a Revista do Idec nº 106 (dezembro de 2006) publicou um teste no qual 43 amostras foram analisadas, entre águas sanitárias, desinfetantes e limpadores. O resultado não foi animador: mais da metade das amostras possuía alguma irregularidade na rotulagem, e cerca de 7% tinham problemas de vazamento. Além dos cuidados com produtos regulares, o usuário deve fugir dos saneantes clandestinos, que são vendidos por ambulantes em caminhões ou peruas, de porta em porta ou em lojas que revendem produtos para limpeza. Normalmente estão acondicionados em garrafas reaproveitadas de refrigerantes ou outras bebidas. Esse tipo de produto não limpa nem mata microrganismos, e ainda pode causar sérios riscos à saúde humana.ServiçoFaça download do manual Vigilância Sanitária - Alimentos, Medicamentos, Produtos e Serviços de Interesse à SaúdeEm caso de intoxicação, ligue para os Centros de Informação e Assistência Toxicológica:
· Belém-PA: (91) 3249-6370
· Belo Horizonte-MG: (31) 3224-4000
· Brasília-DF: 0800 644-6774
· Curitiba-PR: 0800 410-148
· Fortaleza-CE: (85) 3255-5050
· Goiânia-GO: 0800 646-4350
· Porto Alegre-RS: 0800 780-200
· Recife-PE: (81) 3421-5444, r. 151
· Rio de Janeiro-RJ: (21) 2573-3244
· Salvador-BA: 0800 284-4343
· São Paulo-SP: 0800 771-3733 (CCI) ou 0800 148-110 (Ceatox)Para outros locais, acesse: www.anvisa.gov.br/toxicologia/centros.htm, ou ligue para a Anvisa: 0800-722-6001 (Disque Intoxicação), (61) 3448-6203 ou 3448-6194Para denúncias:Ouvidoria/Anvisa: (61) 3448-1235; (61) 3448-1464; fax (61) 3448-1144www.anvisa.gov.br/ouvidoria; e-mail: ouvidoria@anvisa.gov.br

- Revista IDEC - n° 109 Abril/2007

New Hope at the Beauty Counter: Bling in a Jar

2007-04-27T13:58:00.000-07:00

By ANNA JANE GROSSMAN
Published: April 26, 2007

FOR most people, bathing in diamonds and gold is as likely an occurrence as washing the car with truffles. And yet it now appears that the endless search for smoother and younger-looking skin and the tireless acquisition of conspicuous signs of wealth have collided at the cosmetics counter. The result is an array of topical products almost too precious to be anywhere near a sink drain.
Bling might be less noticeable in fashion magazines of late, but the gems and precious metals have not disappeared; they have simply migrated from jewelry boxes into medicine cabinets.
Beauty companies are making use of an ever-expanding list of exotic — and pricey — ingredients, hoping to create the next new thing. So it is hardly a surprise that they are trotting out items like gold-flecked Perfect Cream for Body from Carita ($275 for 6.7 fluid ounces); La Mer’s diamond powder Refining Facial ($75 for 3.4 ounces); and products from Aveda charged with tourmaline, multicolored gems that resemble rubies and emerald.
A diamond necklace or gold ring can do little more than create envy, but manufacturers claim that, when pulverized, distilled or blended with oils, precious metals and stones can tighten, clarify and reverse the signs of age.
In recent years, many skin products were derived from unglamorous substances like bovine collagen and hyaluronic acid from cockscombs. Dermatologists are unsurprised at the latest cosmetological shift.
“A few years ago, there was caviar in everything. Next year, it’ll probably be champagne,” said Dr. Michele S. Green, a dermatologist with a practice on the Upper East Side who has been paid as a consultant to develop and test products for numerous cosmetics companies.
The real future isn’t gem or gold creams, Dr. Green said. “But it doesn’t sound sexy to say you’re rubbing marine algae on your face.”
In its defense, gold was once commonly used to heal leg ulcers. Research published last year by the American Chemical Society also suggested that nanoparticles of it (combined with radiation, among other things) could possibly help treat neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
But Dr. Vincent DeLeo, chairman of the dermatology department at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital and Beth Israel Medical Centers in New York, is doubtful, especially of the products that shimmer after application.
“Some metals might have antioxidant effects because metals can react with free radicals, theoretically,” he said. “But if you can see it after you use it, it’s not doing anything but sitting on a dead layer of skin.”
He added that 5 percent of people who have contact dermatitis are sensitive to wearing gold, let alone spreading it on their faces.
Liquid silver is an ingredient in products from Julisis, a 3-year-old German skincare company. Other Julisis products contain essences of diamonds, gold, rubies and copper.
Julius Eulberg, the company’s founder, said he hit upon the idea to make products using precious metals and gemstones after reading the writings of Paracelsus, a 16th-century Swiss alchemist.
“They’re very special, amazing, wonderful products,” Mr. Eulberg said. “They act on a cellular level. The gold helps to strengthen every single skin cell and there are microparticles that help with glandular function.”
(Of course, Paracelsus also made astrology part of his medicine.)
Wesley Rowell, the public relations director of New London Pharmacy on the West Side of Manhattan, said customers regularly buy all of the 18 Julisis products ($2,400 for the line). The store also stocks Roses & Diamonds, an organic “age-erasing” facial oil with a .06-carat brilliant-cut diamond at the bottom of every $250 bottle. The maker is Ray Simons, a company in Amsterdam.
Similarly marketed oils from Shiffa, a company in Dubai, are sold for as much as $455 for a 3.4-ounce bottle at the Peninsula Spa in Beverly Hills, Calif. Every bottle contains a small ruby, emerald, sapphire or diamond.
The squinting involved in actually seeing the stones in these products is enough to bring on early crow’s-feet. Nonetheless, they sell.
“In the last year, I’ve seen more and more people who would normally spend $200 on a department store face cream coming in wanting something completely natural,” Mr. Rowell said. Products by Burt’s Bees are often the gateway to the world of organic cosmetics, but the line doesn’t satiate all cravings.
“There are people who don’t want the stuff in the recycled box with the granola-hippyish bad fonts,” Mr. Rowell said. “But they’re saying, ‘If I can’t read all the ingredients in this cream, I don’t want it.’ ”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/26/fashion/26skin.html?pagewanted=2&ref=health - 26/04/07

Após morte por escova progressiva, formol é tema em feira

2007-04-17T14:51:00.000-07:00

Técnicos da Anvisa fizeram palestra condenando uso do produto em salões
Marcela Spinosa

SÃO PAULO - O combate ao uso do formol em produtos que prometem deixar os cabelos lisos foi um dos principais temas da feira Hair Brasil, que terminou na segunda-feira, 16, em São Paulo. No último dia do evento, técnicos da Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa) deram uma palestra sobre o uso inadequado da substância. As empresas de cosméticos, por outro lado, oferecem produtos e técnicas que deixam os cabelos lisos, sem formol em sua composição.
De acordo com o técnico da Anvisa Marcelo Sidi, que presidiu a palestra, o formol, nas concentrações permitidas, não age como um alisante de cabelos. "Utilizamos até 0,2% de formol, mas com a ação de conservar o produto e não com a função de alisar" explicou. Segundo Sidi, a substância também pode ser utilizada como endurecedor de unhas. "É permitido o uso de até 5% em esmaltes, mas a cutícula deve ser protegida com óleo ou cera."
Em março, uma mulher morreu após fazer escova progressiva em Goiás. Três dias após aplicar o produto durante a técnica de alisamento, a dona de casa Maria Eni da Silva, de 33 anos, teve uma reação alérgica e uma intoxicação causou sua morte.
O uso do formol em cosméticos é nocivo ao organismo. "O formol é um agente irritante da pele e sua utilização pode causar, a médio e longo prazo, câncer de pele e pulmão", disse. Se o gás for inalado, causa tosse, dor de garganta, tontura, irritação no nariz, não só no cliente, mas também no profissional.
Existem no mercado produtos que, sem utilizar formol, garantem o liso prolongado aos cabelos. É o caso do tioglicolato de amônia. "Deixa o cabelo definitivamente liso", explicou a técnica do departamento de alisamento e tratamento da marca Tânagra, Márcia Esther Gomes de Oliveira.
Tire suas dúvidas O presidente da Sociedade Brasileira para Estudo do Cabelo, Valcinir Bedin responde sobre as principais dúvidas sobre o uso da escola progressiva:
Qualquer mulher pode fazer escova progressiva ?
As restrições são as de sempre. Menores de 12 anos de idade não devem fazer de jeito nenhum, porque essas meninas ainda não têm a produção de hormônios que influenciam o cabelo. Se fizer antes dessa idade pode ter um prejuízo definitivo.
A partir daí, pode-se fazer, sempre observando os cuidados para os casos que tenham restrição, do tipo doença do couro cabeludo ou alergia aos componentes, o que é mais sério ainda.
As idosas podem fazer também, sem limites, mas o melhor é que as mulheres gostassem do cabelo que têm.
Como a mulher percebe que o alisamento não deu certo?
As reações imediatas de alergia são irritação nos olhos, secura no nariz e na boca e ardor ou inchaço na cabeça. Se tiver essas reações, a pessoa deve procurar ajuda médica. A longo prazo, não há problemas.
O cabelo pode ficar mais frágil. E é importante que a pessoa saiba qual produto causou a reação alérgica, para evitá-lo.
A longo prazo a escova progressiva pode trazer danos à mulher, mesmo que tenha sido feita de forma correta?
Não há evidências desse fato. O cabelo pode ficar mais frágil, quebradiço, porque a escova mexe na estrutura capilar, mas pode-se fazer sem restrição.
Os riscos1) O uso do formol em cosméticos é permitido apenas nas funções de conservante (no limite máximo de 0,2%) e como agente endurecedor de unhas (limite máximo de 5%). Como alisante, o formol age destruindo as moléculas que dão forma aos fios de cabelo e por isso, provoca ressecamento.
2) O uso dessa solução em alisantes resulta em graves riscos à saúde como irritação, dor e queimadura na pele, ferimentos em vias respiratórias e danos irreversíveis aos olhos e ao cabelo.
3) O formol é considerado cancerígeno pela Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS).
4) O que deve ser observado no rótulo: o número do registro na Anvisa, o modo de uso, o prazo da validade, as advertências e restrições de uso.
5) Os alisantes capilares são registrados para uso comercial e/ou profissional, com concentrações e condições de uso diferenciadas. Quem não atuar na área, não deve adquirir um produto de uso profissional.
6) No salão, observe se o profissional é experiente; se o produto possui registro na Anvisa; E se a substância ativa que será utilizada não vai causar reação com produtos usados anteriormente no cabelo. Tenha certeza de que todas as etapas foram respeitadas e se o tempo de pausa foi obedecido.
7) Os alisantes registrados na Anvisa não têm formol na composição. A legislação brasileira aprova o uso de outras substâncias para alisamento capilar, como: ácido tioglicólico, hidróxido de sódio, hidróxido de lítio, carbonato de guanidina e hidróxido de cálcio.
8) Se perceber que o profissional vai usar formol, a cliente deve se recusar a fazer o tratamento e acionar o órgão de Vigilância Sanitária de sua cidade.

Fonte: http://www.estadao.com.br/ultimas/cidades/noticias/2007/abr/17/106.htm - 17/04/07

Feira traz novidades de beleza

2007-04-15T10:48:00.000-07:00

Em São Paulo, uma feira mostra as novidades da indústria para deixar a pele e os cabelos lindos. E muito mais.
É uma feira de produtos para transformar e rejuvenescer. Culote, glúteo, abdômen. Um trio que só traz dores de cabeça para as mulheres. É uma luta árdua, diária, sem tréguas para o corpo feminino, mas que ajuda muito no crescimento da indústria brasileira. “O Brasil hoje no mercado mundial é o terceiro maior consumidor de produtos de beleza, de cabelo. Esse mercado cresce entre 9% e 10% ao ano”, calcula o diretor da feira Jéferson Santos.
Os padrões de beleza dos nossos tempos empurram a tecnologia da cosmética, que promete cada vez mais: cremes que reduzem medidas, cremes para as mãos à base de fio de seda, cremes à base de uva.
E se nada funcionar rapidamente, o maravilhoso mundo da beleza garante uma maquiagem instantânea em spray, ideal para quem trabalha no cinema e televisão.
Tem também profissionais que anunciam tendências e lançam produtos altamente duráveis. “Um batom que pode chegar a durar até três dias. Ele age como uma espécie de tinta que não prejudica o lábio”, conta o maquiador Marcelo Hicho.
Para os cabelos, moldura do rosto, novidades de todos os tipos: escova de luz para alisar, banho de chocolate para hidratar, chapinhas portáteis que alisam e também enrolam. Tem até pente bactericida. “Ele evita a proliferação das bactérias. E tem partículas de prata, e isso é uma tecnologia empregada na composição do pente”, explica o cabeleireiro Leandro Pires.

Fonte: http://jornalhoje.globo.com/JHoje/0,19125,VJS0-3076-20070414-276229,00.html - 14/04/07

Eaten alive

2007-04-10T14:09:00.000-07:00

Can the best way to treat dead or diseased skin really be to immerse yourself in a pool of ravenous creatures? Lucy Atkins on the rise of 'doctor fish'
Tuesday April 10, 2007

Exfoliation is a key part of any skin beautifying treatment. But forget salt scrubs, rubs and foot files. Why not try something far more efficient: the toothless mouths of hundreds of tiny, voraciously feeding fish?
"Doctor fish" - so named for their ability to produce healthy, glowing results from even the most crusty or diseased epidermis - are the key ingredient in a spa and skin treatment becoming increasingly popular across Japan, China, Turkey and Europe. The idea is that you immerse your feet, hands or, if you are brave enough, your entire body in a warm pool that swarms with hundreds of hungry minnow-sized feeders. The fish zoom in on your most crusty, flaky or scabby skin and chomp away at it to reveal the fresh layer beneath. According to the spas and their enthusiasts, you emerge refreshed, healthy, buffed and glowing.Doctor fish are a species called garra rufa and originate in pools near two small Turkish towns, Kangal and Sivas. They have long been known for their ability to treat the symptoms of skin conditions such as psoriasis. The Kangal spa, the biggest of the two, has been a healing destination for more than 100 years and since 1988 has been a treatment centre for psoriasis sufferers from all over the world. Affecting around 2% of people in the UK, psoriasis is a recurrent skin condition which causes sufferers to develop raised red patches of skin covered with silvery scales - "psoriatic plaques" - that can be very sore or itchy; the playwright Dennis Potter famously struggled with a severe form of the condition.
In Kangal, the water's high temperature makes it difficult for any nutrients to survive; the doctor fish are therefore ravenous. Handily, they also have a penchant for dead, diseased or scabby skin. With their gummy mouths they strike and lick the psoriatic plaques, eating away the scaly skin that has been softened by the warm spa pool. Their nibbles can cause minor bleeding, which the selenium-rich water and high-altitude Turkish sunlight then heals.
"We have about 3,000 visitors every year suffering from skin conditions such as psoriasis," says Koray Altan, manager of psoriasisfishcure.com, the company that organises bookings. "The combination of the doctor fish, the chemical composition of the water and the heat of the water really works. Every sufferer will go away with clear skin if they follow the treatment exactly [they must spend eight hours a day for 21 days in the water]."
However, this is not a permanent cure. "The results will always be temporary," Altan says. "We encourage visitors to see this as the starting point in the battle against the condition."
But doesn't immersing yourself in a pool laced with fish that have been gorging on people's scabs offer some chance of infection? The bleeding issue, alone, would surely be a big concern? "The HIV virus, for example, cannot survive outside the human body and fish cannot transmit the virus from one person to another," says Altan. For hygiene reasons, the centre advises patients to keep a distance from others in the pool and everyone has to bring their own slippers and towels.
Dr Tim Clayton, a consultant dermatologist at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool, agrees that the treatment is safe. "I've known of a few patients trying the treatment," he says. "The overall idea that the fish feed on the thickened dead skin cells found on the surface of skin is sound. It is certainly a novel and interesting way of alleviating thickened psoriasis. It's unlikely to be a cure, but may help improve the skin surface. A good holiday and the sunshine also probably helps, since psoriasis can be exacerbated by stress and ultraviolet light can improve the condition - but people should take care to avoid excessive sun exposure due to the risks of skin cancer.".
Therese Dillon, who suffered from severe psoriasis for years and had tried everything to treat it, came across the Sivas spa while on holiday in Turkey. "The first time I got in was very scary - hundreds of the fish came towards me. My legs and back were very bad, and they were all over them. I got straight out. Eventually, I realised the fish were lovely - not at all aggressive." After just four days, "the effects were fantastic - my skin was clean". The results lasted four months.
Dillon was so convinced by the fish that she spent the next six years, with her Turkish husband, setting up a clinic - Skin Therapy Ireland - to treat psoriasis, dermatitis and eczema. It opened at the end of last year and is the sixth doctor fish skin clinic in Europe (the others are in Germany, Austria and Croatia).
The Kangal spa maintains that the chemical and mineral components in the water (visitors drink it - from a clean source - as well as bathe in it) are as important as the fish. Dillon, however, believes that the saliva of doctor fish is the key to the treatment's success. In the absence of a clinical trial, the science is perhaps muddy. But this, along with the "ick" factor of being eaten by fish, does not seem to deter people. Dillon has been overwhelmed by inquiries and is already looking for an investor to expand her business.
The exfoliating efficiency - and novelty value - of doctor fish makes them hot property in the leisure market too. In Japan enterprising spa owners have realised that as an exfoliation gimmick for healthy skin, this one has legs (or fins). They have begun to import buckets of doctor fish from entrepreneurial breeders and are promoting them as nature's best pedicure.
Canadian journalist Thomasina Larkin, who lives in Tokyo, tried both the foot and hand fish exfoliating treatments at Ooedo Onsen, a trendy Japanese spa. "I was totally freaked out. I stayed in the pool for about 15 minutes, as long as I could bear, and the fish - about 500 minnow-sized feeders - continued to flock to my feet. It felt like a cross between tweezers and suction cups pecking at me and tickled to the point where I had to pull them out several times." So, how does it compare with a standard foot file? "It wasn't quite as relaxing as a usual exfoliation because it tickled too much for me to be able to just sit back and enjoy," says Larkin.
Certainly, doctor fish seem happy to devour any old epidermis - in fact, the older and thicker the better (if you put a child in the water next to an old person, the fish will apparently go for the old person). However, despite spa claims that the fish offer a relaxing "micro-massage", sticking your feet in a bucket of minnows is hardly swimming with dolphins.

Fonte: http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,,2053417,00.html#article_continue - 10/04/07

Vigilância Sanitária de Goiás recolhe produtos de alisamento

2007-04-04T16:17:00.000-07:00

Decisão foi tomada após a morte de uma mulher que fez escova progressiva
Marília Assunção
GOIÂNIA - A Superintendência de Vigilância Sanitária Estadual de Goiás determinou o recolhimento de dois tipos de produtos usados para fazer escova progressiva.
A decisão foi tomada por causa da morte da dona de casa Maria Eni da Silva, de Porangatu, três dias depois de ter feito a escova progressiva. Além dela, uma moradora de Formosa apresentou quadro alérgico no rosto depois de ter feito alisamento nos cabelos.
Os produtos recolhidos são o Profissional Sistema Nacional de Alisamento Natural de Escova Progressiva (Sanep) e a Escova Inteligente de Formol, que estão com uso suspenso por não serem registrados na Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (Anvisa) e por conter formol em suas fórmulas.
Tire suas dúvidas
O presidente da Sociedade Brasileira para Estudo do Cabelo, Valcinir Bedin responde sobre as principais dúvidas sobre o uso da escola progressiva:
Qualquer mulher pode fazer escova progressiva ?
As restrições são as de sempre. Menores de 12 anos de idade não devem fazer de jeito nenhum, porque essas meninas ainda não têm a produção de hormônios que influenciam o cabelo. Se fizer antes dessa idade pode ter um prejuízo definitivo.
A partir daí, pode-se fazer, sempre observando os cuidados para os casos que tenham restrição, do tipo doença do couro cabeludo ou alergia aos componentes, o que é mais sério ainda.
As idosas podem fazer também, sem limites, mas o melhor é que as mulheres gostassem do cabelo que têm.
Como a mulher percebe que o alisamento não deu certo?
As reações imediatas de alergia são irritação nos olhos, secura no nariz e na boca e ardor ou inchaço na cabeça. Se tiver essas reações, a pessoa deve procurar ajuda médica. A longo prazo, não há problemas.
O cabelo pode ficar mais frágil. E é importante que a pessoa saiba qual produto causou a reação alérgica, para evitá-lo.
A longo prazo a escova progressiva pode trazer danos à mulher, mesmo que tenha sido feita de forma correta?
Não há evidências desse fato. O cabelo pode ficar mais frágil, quebradiço, porque a escova mexe na estrutura capilar, mas pode-se fazer sem restrição.
Os riscos
1) O uso do formol em cosméticos é permitido apenas nas funções de conservante (no limite máximo de 0,2%) e como agente endurecedor de unhas (limite máximo de 5%). Como alisante, o formol age destruindo as moléculas que dão forma aos fios de cabelo e por isso, provoca ressecamento.
2) O uso dessa solução em alisantes resulta em graves riscos à saúde como irritação, dor e queimadura na pele, ferimentos em vias respiratórias e danos irreversíveis aos olhos e ao cabelo.
3) O formol é considerado cancerígeno pela Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS).
4) O que deve ser observado no rótulo: o número do registro na Anvisa, o modo de uso, o prazo da validade, as advertências e restrições de uso.
5) Os alisantes capilares são registrados para uso comercial e/ou profissional, com concentrações e condições de uso diferenciadas. Quem não atuar na área, não deve adquirir um produto de uso profissional.
6) No salão, observe se o profissional é experiente; se o produto possui registro na Anvisa; E se a substância ativa que será utilizada não vai causar reação com produtos usados anteriormente no cabelo. Tenha certeza de que todas as etapas foram respeitadas e se o tempo de pausa foi obedecido.
7) Os alisantes registrados na Anvisa não têm formol na composição. A legislação brasileira aprova o uso de outras substâncias para alisamento capilar, como: ácido tioglicólico, hidróxido de sódio, hidróxido de lítio, carbonato de guanidina e hidróxido de cálcio.
8) Se perceber que o profissional vai usar formol, a cliente deve se recusar a fazer o tratamento e acionar o órgão de Vigilância Sanitária de sua cidade.

Fonte: http://www.estadao.com.br/ultimas/cidades/noticias/2007/abr/04/161.htm - 04/04/07

Hands up if you've had cosmetic surgery

2007-04-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

By Jonathan Thompson
Published: 01 April 2007

They've had the tummy tuck, chin-tightening, Botox jabs, face and bottom lifts, but, to the appearance-obsessed, those scrawny, tell-tale fingers will give away their true age. But now, help is at hand - cosmetic surgery has finally reached the ends of the arms. Hand rejuvenation is the new must-have procedure.
These "hand-lifts" are achieved by one of two methods: either fat transfer from elsewhere in the body or mesotherapy, injecting cosmetic fillers similar to those used on the face. Wrinkled, bony hands with prominent veins and deep grooves suddenly become plump and healthy looking.
Simon Withey, a consultant plastic surgeon at London Plastic Surgery Associates (LPSA), said demand for the little-known procedure had picked up by between 300 and 400 per cent over the last three years, with his clinic now conducting at least one hand-lift a week.
"Hand rejuvenation is not something that is really in the public eye, but more and more people are requesting it," said Mr Withey. "A lot of them are afraid that their hands give away their age, particularly if they've had other work done.
"You notice your hands almost as much as your face, of course. Whether you're greeting people or expressing yourself, they're always on display. A common complaint is that they are starting to look a bit like deflated balloons - as the skin loses its elasticity and some of the fatty tissue underneath, you get this slightly sunken, wrinkled look between the bones."
The complaint is a common one, particularly among women. Celebrities including Madonna, Teri Hatcher and Cameron Diaz have all attracted criticism for the ageing, veiny appearance of their hands, which are seen, rightly or wrongly, to detract from their beauty.
Manufacturers of specialist hand rejuvenation injectables are also reporting a rise in demand. Q-Med, which makes one of the most commonly used brands, Restylane Vital, has reported a 40 per cent increase in sales of the product this year - twice the growth rate of last year.
The procedure itself, which costs in the region of £400, is surprisingly simple. According to Dr Lucy Glancey of Glancey Medical Associates, a string of clinics across the country, hand-lifts with injectable fillers need three sessions of five to 10 minutes over six weeks. At each session, the patient has 25-30 injections in the back of each hand.
"Quite often, sun damage is an issue, because we usually remember to put sunblock on our faces, but not always our hands," said Dr Glancey. "On average, every third or fourth person who comes into our clinics will inquire about hand rejuvenation now."
The overwhelming majority of these patients are female, she added. "Increasingly, it is women who are noticing in photographs of themselves that their hands don't match their face," said Dr Glancey. "Men have a thicker skin, that's due to their hormones, particularly testosterone, and thicker hair which protects them."
Lindsay Stewart, 46, a marketing executive from Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire, recently underwent hand rejuvenation and said it was the best decision she'd ever made.
"I take after my dad, who is Scottish and calls himself a 'peely-wally' because he has incredibly white skin that burns easily," said Ms Stewart. "I'd begun to notice that my hands looked a lot older than my face. The skin was looking thin and crepe-like, with more veins showing and I felt incredibly self-conscious about them. They looked like old ladies' hands.
"Now I feel incredibly confident. You won't hear me complaining about my hands any more: now I'll be whingeing about something else - like my eye bags."

Fonte: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2411387.ece - 01/04/07

Cuidado ao comprar cosméticos, alerta Departamento de Defesa do Consumidor

2007-03-10T13:48:00.000-08:00

Com a comemoração do ‘Dia Internacional da Mulher’, nesta quinta-feira (08.03), o Departamento de Proteção e Defesa do Consumidor (DPDC) encaminhou aos Procon’s Estaduais e demais órgãos do Sistema Nacional de Defesa do Consumidor (SNDC), a nota técnica nº. 25, orientando os consumidores quanto ao uso e consumo de cosméticos e alertando quais os principais cuidados que se deve tomar ao comprar esses produtos.
De acordo com o documento, o Brasil é tem o terceiro maior mercado consumidor de cosméticos no mundo (dados da Associação Brasileira da Indústria de Higiene Pessoal, Perfumaria e Cosméticos), o que torna tal divulgação ainda mais relevante.
Classificados de acordo com o grau de risco que representam á saúde humana e a sua segurança de uso, os cosméticos são divididos em Produtos de Grau 1, como batons, cremes, loções, óleos, demaquilantes e esfoliantes, e de Grau 2, como bronzeadores, clareadores de pele, depilatórios químicos e maquilagem com fotoprotetores, por exemplo. Sendo assim, antes da aquisição do cosmético, é importante que o consumidor esteja atento para todas as informações trazidas nos rótulos dos produtos.
Deve ser verificado o nome do produto e o grupo/ tipo ao qual pertence, marca, número de registro, lote ou partida, conteúdo, país de origem, fabricante/ importador, modo de uso, advertências e restrições de uso, ingredientes/ composição e, claro, data de fabricação e prazo de validade. As orientações e instruções informadas pelo fabricante devem ser seguidas para que o consumidor faça uso adequado e seguro do produto.
Caso o cosmético traga a recomendação de prova de toque ou teste de sensibilidade a possíveis reações alérgicas, o consumidor deve atendê-lo. Apresentando algum sintoma inesperado após o uso do produto, um auxílio médico deve ser procurado e o fornecedor imediatamente informado para que sejam tomadas medidas cabíveis.
Para se certificar quanto a procedência e regularidade dos produtos cosméticos, o consumidor pode procurar, ainda, a Anvisa – Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária, que tem por finalidade institucional promover a proteção da saúde da população, mediante controle sanitário da produção e comercialização de produtos e serviços.
Para mais informações ou esclarecimentos é só procurar o Procon-MT pelos telefones 151 e 3613-8500 ou acessar o site www.setecs.mt.gov.br/procon. Para registrar reclamações, a sede Estadual (Av. do CPA, 917 Bairro Araés, Edifício Eldorado Executive Center – ao lado da Polícia Federal) atende de segunda a sexta-feira, das 12h ás 18h, e o posto de atendimento do órgão no Ganha Tempo (Centro, Praça Ipiranga) de segunda a sexta-feira, das 7h30 às 18h30, e aos sábados, das 7h30 ás 12h30.
Fonte: SECOM-MT

Fonte: http://www.portaldoconsumidor.gov.br/noticia.asp?busca=sim&id=7413 - 08/03/2007

Tea tree oil crisis

2007-02-27T14:20:00.000-08:00

It's nature's healer, treating ailments from acne to MRSA. But now there are real worries about the safety of tea tree products. Jeremy Laurance reports

Published: 27 February 2007
Personally, I wouldn't mind if the stuff was banned tomorrow. I once used tea tree oil in a shampoo. Never again. I liked the smell of menthol and the cooling sensation - the top of my skull felt as though it had lifted half an inch off my head. But after every up there is always a down. Within hours my scalp started to itch, and then to flake. The next day, it looked like a Colombian drug baron had sneezed across my shoulders. I dived into the shower for relief.
Tea tree oil is powerful stuff. It is also ubiquitous. Its popularity has seen it included as an ingredient of lotions and creams for acne, as an antiseptic for cuts and grazes and as a mild astringent in shampoos, shower gels and vapour rubs.
Its versatility has attracted the interest of scientists - and they have sounded a note of caution. The International Fragrance Association warned in 2001 that the product could be irritating to the skin; this warning was mainly to protect factory workers producing and handling the stuff in large quantities.
The European Cosmetics Association recommended in 2002 that tea tree oil should be limited to a concentration of 1 per cent in cosmetic products. This opinion was backed by Germany's Federal Institute of Risk Assessment in 2003.
In December 2004, the European Commission's scientific committee on consumer products published the most thorough analysis yet of the safety of tea tree oil. It concluded that its use in cosmetics and soaps, where its concentration did not exceed 1 per cent, was unlikely to be harmful. At higher than 1 per cent, there was a risk it might cause skin irritation in some people.
But tea tree oil is also sold neat - as an antiseptic; as a treatment for spots and pimples; and as an insect and lice repellant. The scientific committee said it could not judge whether products containing high concentrations of tea tree oil, of up to 100 per cent, were safe and requested more information from the manufacturers. Its blunt conclusion was: "The sparse data available suggest [that] undiluted oil as a commercial product is not safe."
Most tea tree oil is produced in Australia; it is derived from the Australian metaleuca tree and has been used as a traditional remedy by Australian Aborigines for centuries. It was used by Australian soldiers during the First World War as an antiseptic for wounds, and more recently it has been cited as a potential weapon against the superbug MRSA.
The Australian Tea Tree Oil Industry Association is due to submit a dossier of evidence on the safety of the neat product by the end of next month, having missed the initial deadline of the end of 2005. The EU scientific committee will then consider its verdict.
Customers, retailers and manufacturers now await the outcome with varying degrees of anxiety. Chris Flower, the director general of the Cosmetic Toiletry and Perfumery Association, is relaxed. He says: "People using tea tree oil products should carry on without worrying. There is no issue in relation to its safety in cosmetics. The only real concern is over its use neat. The problems in that case can be avoided by not overdoing it. It is a matter of common sense."
Flower added: "I expect the EU committee to say [that the neat product] is fine. They may have specific recommendations about the number of times it is used. Or they may say they are not convinced and they may demand more data."
A spokeswoman for the European Commission said that tea tree oil contained "several hundred constituents" and it would take time to assess their safety. It might be possible to adjust the constituents if any were found to be unsafe, she said: "We cannot prejudge the scientific opinion."
Two factors have muddied the waters. Earlier this month, a review in The New England Journal of Medicine warned parents to avoid using tea tree oil products on their children after three reports of boys growing breasts.
Researchers in the US believe that the oils, which included lavender oil, may have hormone-like properties that lead to gynaecomastia - the growth of breasts. When the boys stopped using the oils, their breasts disappeared. One of the boys, aged 10, had regularly used a styling gel containing lavender and tea tree oil on his hair and scalp.
The researchers from the National Institutes of Health and the University of Colorado School of Medicine said that the oils "may possess endocrine-disrupting activity that causes an imbalance in oestrogen and androgen pathway signalling". Laboratory tests showed that the oils mimicked the activity of the female hormone oestrogen.
Flower dismissed the research. "The findings seem very unlikely to me. We are talking about a very small number of cases who were not thoroughly investigated to see what other things they might have been exposed to. I am not aware of people working in tea tree oil factories suffering ill effects , or of people in the South of France where most lavender is grown and processed."
A second factor worrying scientists is the stability of the product. Tea tree oil tends to oxidise when exposed to light and air, and this can increase its irritant effect. The EU scientific committee said the stability of the oil in cosmetics was questionable and tests should be developed to monitor its degradation. "Our major concern is that toxic and risky chemicals become even more potent - up to three times as strong - if stored at room temperature and exposed to light and air," the committee said.
Some campaigners think this is alarmist. Oxidation can be minimised by adding antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, or altering the formulation of the product.
Tony Burfield of Cropwatch, a lobbying group for traditional remedies, warns of the danger of pandering to the interests of big pharmaceutical business. He says a full scientific critique is in preparation that will meet the EU scientific committee's concerns. But until the boffins of Brussels are satisfied, the centuries-old remedy's place on pharmacy shelves is under threat.

Fonte: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2308729.ece- 27/02/07

Protetor solar nacional

2007-02-21T14:14:00.000-08:00

Sabe onde os pesquisadores foram descobrir o protetor nacional? Em uma fruta brasileiríssima, o caju! Mais precisamente, na casca da castanha do caju. E sai pela metade do preço!
O Instituto Nacional do Câncer botou o bloco na rua: lançou, neste fim de semana, uma campanha contra o câncer de pele. Entre as recomendações, usar sempre o filtro solar. E olha, tem novidade das boas no mercado.
Como diz o povo, o sol é para todos. Já o protetor solar... “Eu não uso protetor solar, porque é muito caro”, diz um vendedor ambulante. A dermatologista Fátima Pires pergunta para um banhista quantas vezes ele passa o filtro solar. “Eu só passo o filtro solar uma vez”, responde o rapaz. “Mas não pode, porque você transpira e o filtro solar sai. Você passa a mão no rosto e o filtro solar sai. Você tem que repetir isso várias vezes”, aconselha Fátima. “Isso eu não sabia”, alega o jovem. Mas será que o brasileiro tem dinheiro pra comprar tanto protetor solar? “O preço é exagerado, porque quem pega sol e que está sujeito a câncer não é só quem tem poder aquisitivo, é o pobre também”, ressalta o aposentado Gilberto Souza. O Fantástico foi às ruas com a dermatologista Fátima Pires e confirmou: a maioria das pessoas não usa protetor ou usa muito menos do que deveria. Um frasco de filtro solar de 120 mililitros com fator de proteção 20 custa, em média, R$ 20. O preço é alto, ainda mais em país onde, a cada ano, cerca de 120 mil pessoas têm câncer de pele. O protetor solar é feito com substâncias importadas – justamente os filtros que protegem a pele contra queimaduras e o câncer. A boa notícia é que o filtro solar nacional já está chegando. Ele foi criado por três universidades brasileiras: a Católica de Brasília, a Universidade de Brasília e a Federal do Rio de Janeiro. “Nesse momento, a gente está exatamente na fase de transformar o que a gente fez em processo de laboratório em processo industrial”, explica a diretora do Instituto de Química da Universidade de Brasília, Maria Lucília dos Santos. Sabe onde os pesquisadores foram descobrir o protetor nacional? Em uma fruta brasileiríssima, o caju! Mais precisamente, na casca da castanha do caju. É um líquido retirado da casca da castanha que dá origem ao protetor solar nacional. Em aproximadamente dois anos, ele deve estar no mercado. Poderá custar até 50% mais barato. “A partir de maio de 2006, a gente depositou a patente internacional dela. Então, ela esta sob proteção”, informa a professora da UFRJ Sheila Garcia. Mas é muito importante lembrar: a casca ou o óleo da castanha do caju jamais passar diretamente na pele, porque provocam queimaduras. Somente depois de processado em laboratório o produto passa a proteger a pele. Em qualquer estação do ano, não se esqueça: mesmo com protetor solar, é perigoso pegar muito sol, principalmente entre 10h e 16h, quando os raios Ultravioleta castigam mais. Para os trabalhadores, atenção! Quem se expõe ao sol diariamente, não facilite. Além do protetor solar, use chapéus e roupas que protejam o corpo. A lei ainda não obriga as empresas a fornecer protetor solar, mas algumas já fazem isso espontaneamente como os Correios. No Brasil inteiro, mais de 40 mil funcionários são orientados pela empresa a não ir para rua sem protetor solar. “Aqui a gente tem de graça, então não tem como dizer que não vai usar”, conta a carteira Kellen Christine Soares.
“Está muito bom mesmo. Evoluiu bastante e a gente passa todo dia o protetor solar”, diz o carteiro Gilberto Nunes. Esta aí um bom exemplo que poderia ser seguido por outras empresas.

Fonte: - http://fantastico.globo.com/Jornalismo/Fantastico/0,,AA1461579-4005-640847-0-18022007,00.html - 18/02/2007

Should You Trust Your Makeup?

2007-02-15T13:43:00.000-08:00

By NATASHA SINGER

Published: February 15, 2007
FOR decades, companies that make everything from after-shave to lip gloss have conducted safety testing on grooming products and shipped the cosmetics to stores to be sold to consumers, all with very little government involvement. And over the years, there have been few health or safety problems associated with the myriad grooming products and cosmetics on the market.
Nonetheless, momentum has been building for greater oversight of the chemicals in everyday products, with the European Union and California taking the lead in imposing new rules for monitoring what is in the perfumes, creams, nail polish and hair sprays that are sold.
The California Safe Cosmetics Act, which took effect on Jan. 1, requires cosmetics companies to tell state health authorities if a product contains any chemical on several government lists covering possible cancer-causing agents or substances that may harm the reproductive system.
State Senator Carole Migden, Democrat of San Francisco, said that such chemicals, even in trace amounts, should be removed from beauty products because they have been found to cause cancer or hormonal changes in lab animals.
“The bill mandates that manufacturers reveal potentially poisonous ingredients,” said Senator Migden, the bill’s author. “I hope that the bill will lead manufacturers to voluntarily eliminate suspect ingredients from cosmetics.”
The cosmetics industry is already taking steps to heighten self-monitoring, though representatives said the ingredients that the California law regulates pose no risk to human health when used topically in the small quantities found in some cosmetics.
Indeed, no rigorous large-scale clinical trials have been conducted that would indicate that cosmetics trigger major diseases in humans. But some small case reports published in medical journals suggest that a few substances used in cosmetics may affect hormone function in humans.
Scientists are particularly interested in a group of chemicals called phthalates — used in some nail polishes, fragrances, medical devices and shower curtains — some of which have had an effect on the reproductive systems of lab animals and can be absorbed and excreted by the human body.
Although the cosmetics industry considers the phthalates used in its products to be safe, some companies have voluntarily removed dibutyl phthalate, which California considers harmful to the reproductive system, from their nail polishes.
But some environmentalists are pressing for a deeper analysis of the possible long-term effects of exposure to these chemicals. Some have formed a group called the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics to publicize their concerns, using the Internet to highlight ingredients and manufacturers. Their efforts have raised the possibility that the cosmetics industry eventually could be subject to greater government regulation, with perhaps mandatory testing and product approval.
Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families in Washington, said that activists are singling out cosmetics because, unlike medical devices, they are optional purchases.
“If you are looking for chemical exposures that everyone can relate to, it’s not medical devices like IV bags,” Dr. Zuckerman said. “It’s shampoos and creams that are ubiquitous, that men, women and children are using every day.”
Since 1938, when Congress gave the Food and Drug Administration limited authority over beauty products, cosmetics has been a largely self-regulating industry. Prescription and over-the-counter drugs must submit safety data to the agency before it approves them for sale to the public. But cosmetics do not need agency approval because they are defined as topical products (like moisturizer or mascara) that alter neither the structure nor the function of the skin.
Beauty manufacturers are required to ensure the safety of their cosmetics before they go on sale, but the federal agency has never defined safety, according to an agency spokeswoman. That has left it to the beauty industry to settle on a definition, with the overall standard being that products are safe for use if they do not irritate the skin when applied as directed.
By that standard, the industry has a long record of safety, with about six billion products manufactured annually worldwide, and only rare reports of problems like allergic reactions. Americans spent about $50 billion last year on cosmetics and toiletries, according to Euromonitor International, a market research firm.
But some health groups have raised questions about the possible long-term or cumulative effects of exposure to all the chemicals in everyday products. In response to their concerns, the European Union imposed new regulations on the industry in 2004, banning more than 600 chemicals from use in cosmetics. In 2005, it went further to require more package information on product shelf life and allergenic ingredients.
Later this year, the European Union will take its oversight another step, instituting a policy called the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH), which will require companies — including cosmetics firms — that produce chemicals or use them in their products, packaging or manufacturing, to collect comprehensive data on the possible risks of the substances to human health and to the environment. The European Commission has estimated that the new law will cost the chemical industry as much as $6.7 billion over the next decade, but that it could save up to $70 billion in health costs over the next 30 years.
Part of the push for greater oversight stems from concerns about health trends, like increased reports of early puberty, asthma and allergies. Some scientists and health groups want to know if there is any connection to the aggregate exposure to chemicals.
A handful of small case studies and anecdotal reports, published in medical journals, suggest that a few ingredients used in some cosmetics could potentially have a hormonal or allergenic affect on humans.
A report published Feb. 1 in the New England Journal of Medicine described the cases of three preteenage boys who each used shampoo, hair gel or body products that contained either lavender oil or tea tree oil and who each grew breast tissue; the tissue receded after the boys stopped using the products. The researchers said their findings, though far from conclusive, suggest that repeated exposure to these oils has the potential to affect hormones.
On Feb. 2, BMJ (formerly known as the British Medical Journal) published an editorial from doctors in which they cited reports of a marked increase in allergic reactions to hair dyes. The editorial called for increased scrutiny of hair dyes.
California has done the most of any state to address the issue of chemicals in cosmetics. Legislators in a few other states have discussed similar measures.
The cosmetics industry has not been resistant to greater disclosure. It has embraced the new European regulations, and it is working with California regulators to institute the new law.
But industry representatives said their goal is increased self-regulation, not government oversight. Toward that aim, the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association, an industry trade group, last month began to offer companies a voluntary program to make their safety data available to the F.D.A. and to report adverse reactions to the agency. They also said manufacturers would be more accountable to the guidance of an industry panel that reviews the safety of cosmetic ingredients.
At the same time, though, the industry has employed lobbyists to counter legislation and has argued that the new regulations are prompted by unsubstantiated fears rather than by hard science.
John Bailey, executive vice president for science of the cosmetics industry trade group, said that each beauty company conducts its own safety assessment of ingredients and final products. This typically includes a review of scientific literature to ensure that chemicals used in formulas don’t cause toxic reactions or cell mutations in the body; patch tests on volunteers to make sure finished products won’t irritate; and bacterial tests to make sure products won’t spoil, he said.
Dr. Bailey added that substances being singled out by regulators and environmental groups are present in such small amounts in such a limited number of cosmetics that they pose no threat to human health. He compared them to salt in cooking.
“A little salt on your peas or tomatoes can be good,” Dr. Bailey said. “But a lot of salt can have adverse health effects on your blood pressure, and too much can be fatal.”
But some say the possible cumulative effect is exactly the point.
“They test in the short term for immediate reactions to make sure the product doesn’t cause your skin to itch, get red or fall off,” said Jeanne Rizzo, executive director of the Breast Cancer Fund, a nonprofit group in San Francisco that was one of the sponsors of the new California law. “But we don’t know the long-term effect of multiple exposures to chemicals in cosmetics that can get absorbed in your skin and end up in your urine or your bloodstream.”
Antonia M. Calafat, lead researcher at the National Center for Environmental Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, said the body’s absorption and excretion of chemicals do not necessarily indicate an impact on human health.
“All we can say at the moment is that humans are exposed to these chemicals, but the presence of a chemical in the body does not necessarily constitute a negative effect,” said Dr. Calafat, who added, “There need to be comprehensive, well-designed studies to understand whether indeed these compounds are harmful for humans.”
The chemicals that must be reported to health officials under the California law include lead acetate, found in some hair dyes; formaldehyde, which can be used as a cosmetic preservative; and toluene, a solvent used in some nail products.
“The law only requires that a cosmetic manufacturer with a product that contains a toxicant report it,” said Kevin Reilly, deputy director of prevention services of the state’s public health program. “But it will be interesting to see whether this bill drives reformulation of products.”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/15/fashion/15skin.html?pagewanted=2&ref=health - 15/02/07

Breast growth in boys blamed on cosmetics

2007-02-01T06:52:00.000-08:00

James Randerson, science correspondent
Thursday February 1, 2007

Cosmetics containing lavender and tea tree oil can disrupt the hormonal development of pre-pubescent boys causing them to grow breasts, doctors say in a warning that follows three American boys experiencing the rare condition after they used gels, shampoos or lotions containing the essential oils.
The researchers say they do not yet know which chemicals in the oils caused the changes. Once identified these substances might need to be removed from products designed for children.
"If you use these products on your child and you see changes in their body talk to your doctor or paediatrician," said Kenneth Korach, at the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, in Maryland.
Although six in 10 boys experience some temporary breast enlargement during puberty, it is very rare for pre-pubescent boys to begin developing breasts, a condition called gynecomastia. Scientists know this is caused by a disruption of sex hormone signals to breast tissue, but it can have a variety of causes.
The researchers began to suspect lavender and tea tree oil after Clifford Bloch, a paediatrician at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, examined the cases of three boys, aged four, seven and 10. "We speculated that environmental factors might be contributing to their condition," he said. The link was that the parents had given the children products containing the essential oils, including a skin balm with lavender oil, a gel and shampoo with lavender and tea tree oil, lavender soap and lavender-scented skin lotion.
To see if the oils were the culprits, the team tested lavender and tea tree oil on human breast cells in the laboratory. They report in the New England Journal of Medicine that the oils stimulated breast cells to produce oestrogen and inhibit male sex hormones. The breasts of all three boys returned to normal a few months after they stopped using the cosmetics.
"We want to encourage doctors who may be seeing patients with gynecomastia to ask [them] about the products they are using," said Dr Korach.

Fonte: http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,,2003340,00.html - 01/02/07

Men's mascara? It will take a magic wand

2007-01-22T05:37:00.000-08:00

James Wallman
Monday January 22, 2007

Mascara for men is now on the high street. H&M stock its own £3.99 brand. In the men's section. For men. Not hidden in a corner, but next to the V-necked jumpers and polo shirts. Seeing it last week, my reaction was like vertigo. I knew I shouldn't go nearer, but felt somehow compelled. My wife said, "You've worn makeup before. Don't you remember that wedding last summer? You moaned about looking pasty so I put bronzer on you."The male cosmetics market in the UK is driven by men wanting to look younger and smell nicer, according to research company Mintel. Mascara's recent rise, though, comes from the punk/goth revival, agree trends expert Martin Raymond at The Future Laboratory and Aly Hazlewood, Russell Brand's makeup artist.
I bought some. One. A packet. A bottle. I don't know what you call it. It's tough putting on mascara. It doesn't come with instructions. But if women can put it on in front of a carriage full of people on the move, surely I could manage it standing still at home, alone? I soon resembled Rambo in war-paint. You have to use both hands, hold steady and brush up. You can't do it with your mouth shut. It's like applying glue to your eyes. That's why women flutter their eyelids. If they don't, their eyes will get stuck shut.
After half an hour and using most of a toilet roll to clear my face of unwanted black stuff, I went to work. And no one noticed the difference. It was like carrying around a dirty secret. I whispered it to a colleague. "If," said Piers loudly, "I'd even noticed that you looked different - which I didn't - mascara is the last thing that would enter my head."
A crowd gathered to see the office car crash. Did anyone else want to try it? A colleague called Steve piped up: "There's no way you're putting that on me."
So what made H&M sell mascara? The company's Jenni Tapper-Hoel told me: "Customers were asking for it in stores." Which customers, I asked. She couldn't say. Steve wears something from H&M most days of the week. I wonder if he mentioned it at the till.

Fonte: http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/fashion/story/0,,1995814,00.html#article_continue - 22/01/07

The chin job: Britain's latest must-have cosmetic surgery is the new jawline

2007-01-14T07:38:00.000-08:00

By Jonathan Thompson

First it was breasts; then hips, lips and buttocks. Now Britain's seemingly insatiable appetite for cosmetic curves has seized upon yet another part of the body: the chin. Plastic surgeons are reporting a sharp increase in the number of patients signing up for the latest must-have procedure.
Disillusioned with weak jawlines or unbecoming jowls, and enamoured with the strong, confident profiles of celebrities such as Claudia Schiffer and Sarah Jessica Parker, or Brad Pitt and Daniel Craig, growing numbers of Britons are deciding to part with thousands of pounds in order to augment their chins.
Britain's leading surgeons are reporting an increase of up to a 35 per cent in the number of patients, both male and female, booking in for surgical chin enhancement. Across Europe, the rise is even higher, with Dr Javier de Benito, a leading Spanish surgeon and president elect of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (Isaps), estimating it to be nearer 50 per cent.
The procedure - unlike genioplasty, which entails the breaking and resetting of the jaw - involves the insertion of a permanent, usually silicon, implant through an incision made inside the mouth. The effect, although only pushing the chin forward by a few millimetres, is said to dramatically improve the balance and contours of the face. It typically costs about £3,500.
Simon Withey, a consultant surgeon at London Plastic Surgery Associates, said many of those now undergoing chin augmentation had initially been considering rhinoplasty. "A lot of people come in to have their noses operated on, but then realise the problem is a recessive chin which makes their nose look proportionately larger."
Emma Hunt, 29, had a chin implant before her wedding in 2005. Two years later and now happily married, she is overjoyed with the results. "I'm thrilled to bits with it and so is my husband; the results are very good," she said.

Fonte: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2152455.ece - 14/01/07

Anti-ageing creams: What really works?

2007-01-09T16:39:00.000-08:00

Women are prepared to spend a fortune on anti-ageing creams with hi-tech ingredients. But new research shows the cheap stuff may do the job better

By Jane Feinmann

Another year, another wrinkle; inevitably you wonder how much money you can afford to throw at the problem you see in the mirror every morning.
L'Oréal's advertising slogan, "Because You're Worth It", has seeped into the national consciousness. Youthful, glowing skin has a price tag that's well into three figures - if you care about yourself, that is.
Of course, we all know that the promise of a miracle in a pot of cream, however expensive, is unrealistic. Experts point to the "coincidence" that astronomical "cosmaceutical" prices have followed the visible success of today's invasive treatments, with sales pitches claiming that products are "better than Botox" or "achieving the same results as a peel".
The latest scientific study to debunk beauty-counter prices comes from Consumer Reports, the US version of Which? Scientists used a "high-tech optical device" to monitor changes in wrinkle depth and skin roughness achieved by 10 of the best-selling anti-ageing creams on a group of women, aged 30 to 70, over 12 weeks. As the team reported in the January issue of its magazine, the price of products was unrelated to efficacy.
The best performer was one of the cheapest: at £16 for 30ml, Olay Regenerist achieved slightly better results than its more expensive rivals. The La Prairie Cellular range, costing up to £229 for a 30ml pot, was among the least effective, as was StriVectin-SD, costing £67 for a 6oz tube. Other luxury products such as Lancôme Renergie and Roc Retin-Ox were also less effective than Olay.
The message, however, was unequivocal: you may be worth it, but most anti-ageing face creams aren't. "Even the best creams reduced the average depth of wrinkles by less than 10 per cent, a magnitude of change that was barely visible to the naked eye," according to Consumer Reports.
Such reports, however, are unlikely to dent the profits of the multi-million-pound industry. It's not just vain hope: what Jennifer Aniston calls "the science bit" convincingly persuades us to spend money on making the most of our largest organ.
The upmarket botanical beauty company, Sisley, claims that it took 20 years to develop Essential Day Care Anti-Ageing Shield (£152 for 50ml). We may decide to take this with a pinch of a salt - along with its "unique combination" of apple skin, sesame and rice extracts. But palmitoyl pentapeptide, the protein molecule that is claimed to achieve "dramatic results without the celebrity price-tag" in Olay Regenerist, has a good evidence base. Creams containing Vitamins A, C and E all have substantial scientific basis as do AHA products, which work like a gentler version of Retin-A. Some women swear that hormones keep them looking young - and a handful of studies even underpin claims for copper and Q10 as important ingredients.
Credible research has also been devoted to ensuring that these ingredients hit the spot: peeling away roughness and age spots, and stimulating rejuvenating collagen and elastin. So why are clinical trials of products containing these ingredients consistently disappointing?
Partly the reason is that wrinkles are like scar tissue: once they're formed, as a result of non-elastic skin being stretched and then hardening into furrows, they can only be removed by surgery. There are numerous ways to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, however - depending on the problem. But treatments that work are not on sale in beauty counters. "For a start, creams that are strong enough to make a difference are also likely to have side effects," explains Michelle Irving, director of Cheshire Image Clinic in Chester. "Companies cannot take the risk that their products will cause reddening or irritation and so they sell products with low levels of active ingredients."
Product ranges from companies such as Environ, NeoStrata, Dermalogica and SkinCeuticals are only available from cosmetic clinics, staffed by therapists with either a medical or nursing qualification or the proven skills and expertise to provide tailored advice that takes account of medical history.
Irving is a registered nurse and a member of the steering committee of the Royal College of Nursing's Aesthetic Nurses' Forum, an organisation set up three years ago to achieve minimum standards of expertise, training and safety in cosmetic medicine - and which already has 300 qualified members. "I have patients, not customers," she says. "They're healthy patients but they need just as much individualised attention and follow-up as people on ordinary drugs." Sally Penfold, education manager of the International Dermal Institute, which also trains beauty therapists, says there is little point in getting anti-ageing treatments without a thorough examination of the face under a magnifying lamp.
"The therapist needs to know about any dryness, secretions or rough patches before deciding which creams will help," she says. "Touching the skin all over the face is the best way to diagnose problems. Yet a beauty counter assistant with no training has to make confident a diagnosis by glancing at someone who is often wearing full make-up."
Once diagnosed, a good therapist will take a long-term, holistic view of treatment. "We would very rarely start someone on a full-strength cream," says Marie Duckett, co-director of Fiona & Marie Aesthetics in Harley Street. "People want to get the strongest treatment straight away. But it can be far more effective to start off on a mild dose and gradually work upwards. We encourage people to call up if they're worried and to come back regularly, so that we keep an eye on their skin," she says.
While beauty therapists are widely seen as catering for the super-rich, this doesn't necessarily apply when it comes to dispensing creams. Go and see Duckett at her Harley Street practice, staffed by two qualified nurses, and the chances are you'll pay substantially less than at an Oxford Street department store. "We offer a free half-hour initial consultation and most people leave with a bag of samples to try out to make sure you're using the right cream."
Once identified, a combination of facial cleansers and creams are likely to leave plenty of change from £100. Her advice is to stick to the simplest products if you want to buy over-the-counter. But an appointment with an expert is a must for anyone with delicate, sun-damaged or problem skin or who just wants to make sure their skin is as good as it can be.
Behind the labels
* PEPTIDES
Found in: Olay Regenerist, £16. Strivectin SD, £120 for 6oz
These short-chain amino acids are small enough to be able to penetrate the epidermis and can be synthesized to perform specific functions such as stimulating the healing process and turning on the fibroblasts responsible for producing collagen and elastin. "There are a lot of different types of peptides, all of which have different impact," says Sally Penfold. "They are expensive, so don't expect much from a low-cost product." If you're going for over-the-counter, go for simple, says Marie Duckett. "Olay is unlikely to do any harm. It's pleasant to use though it's unlikely to change the skin's structure."
* FRUIT ACIDS OR ALPHA-HYDROXY ACIDS (AHAs)
Found in: NeoStrata Smoothing Cream (Glycolic Formulation) £35
Glycolic acid improves the smoothness and feel of the skin. At effective levels, they need to be dispensed by a physician because they can cause irritation. "Over-the-counter creams containing AHAs are not particularly effective," says Irving.
* ANTIOXIDANTS
Found in: SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic. Crème de la Mer, Clinique CX
Vitamins C and E products can counteract sun damage and promote rejuvenation. "To us, it makes far more sense to build up the skin with effective antioxidants than to strip it down with Retin-A products or AHAs," says Duckett. Vitamins in over-the-counter products are often unstable, however, and are unlikely to penetrate the skin effectively. Crème de la Mer is too rich for most skins, says Duckett. "Because of the price, an element of Emperor's New Clothes can creep in. Women feel that they look better because they've paid so much for a pot of cream."
* COENZYME Q10
Found in: Nivea Visage Anti-wrinkle Q10 Plus Night Cream, £5.99
Coenzyme Q10 is a vitamin-like substance thought to have antioxidant free radical-quenching properties. "There is some evidence that in products such as Eucerin or Nivea, it can help in skin protection," says Dr Lowe.
* RETIN-A
Found in: ROC Retinox Correction, Sisley Global Anti-Age
This Vitamin A derivative, used since the Sixties to treat acne, is also a beauty treatment. In high doses, it causes dryness and flaking. Lower-strength creams can reverse skin ageing, says Dr Lowe "by increasing cell production, shedding dark pigment and increasing collagen formation".
What really works?
* Use a sunscreen every day. "The biggest cause of skin ageing is free radical damage caused by exposure to UV rays," says Sally Penfold, of the International Dermal Institute. "Best to use a sunscreen that also works as a moisturiser."
* Avoid white sugar, chocolate, sweets and processed food - this prevents acne, which ages the skin.
* Avoid crash dieting - wrinkles can be caused by a loss of supportive fat under the skin. "Even popular diets such as the Atkins can have this effect by producing rapid weight loss," says dermatologist Dr Nick Lowe in his book Away With Wrinkles (Kyle Cathie, £14.99)
* Reduce intake of saturated and trans fats: instead eat regular, moderate amounts of oily varities of fish, which help to mop up free radicals and reduce the rate at which skin ages, according to Dr Lowe. Also, consume more essential fatty acids, found in oils, nuts and cereals.
* Exfoliation will help the skin to appear smoother and fresher, but there's no need to buy special products. Anything mildly abrasive, such as a warm flannel, will help to slough away dead skin cells.
* Include in your diet plenty of slow-release complex carbohydrates, a wide range of fresh fruit and veg as well as protein, "which plays a vital role in the formation of collagen and elastin".
* Cut out smoking and reduce alcohol and stress.

Fonte: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2138031.ece - 09/01/07

Alisar ou não alisar

2007-01-07T17:33:00.000-08:00

Laura Ming

Depois dos 60, a mulher que faz plástica,Botox e preenchimento corre sério riscode ficar com cara de quem fez plástica,Botox e preenchimento

Praticamente toda mulher, dada a opção, prefere adiar quanto pode a manifestação de rugas, manchas, cabelos brancos, flacidez e quaisquer outras evidências de que está envelhecendo. A caixa de ferramentas antiidade, que não pára de se expandir, começa com cremes, Botox, laser, Botox, ácidos e mais Botox, com eventuais passagens pela mesa de lipoaspiração – este, um procedimento de maior risco, que exige internação e anestesia. Chega a hora, porém, em que a vaidosa militante tem de encarar a inevitável primeira cirurgia plástica, e aí mora o perigo. Seguem-se a segunda, a terceira, injeções de ácidos para inflar áreas muito esticadas, mais Botox, que é de praxe, e de repente a mulher ganhou outra cara e nem percebe. Ou alguém reconhece de pronto na plastificada loira acima a bela atriz Faye Dunaway, estrela de Bonnie e Clyde e de Chinatown, hoje com 65 anos? "Trata-se de um problema que atinge principalmente mulheres com mais de 60 anos e diversas plásticas no currículo", diz o cirurgião Pedro Vital, de São Paulo. "Há casos em que a pessoa está tão deformada que não tenho como mexer. Mando para casa."
Há um limite numérico para tratamentos e cirurgias estéticas? Em termos, dizem os médicos. O problema, segundo eles, não está no procedimento em si, que se for bem feito pode ser repetido sem problema. O que marca, em geral de forma indelével, é o exagero. Das cirurgias de rejuvenescimento facial, a mais comum é o lifting, que, como indica o nome em inglês, "levanta" o rosto ao puxar a pele, cortar o excesso e recosturá-la em pontos escondidos, geralmente atrás da orelha. Feito da maneira certa, rejuvenesce sem que se note a diferença. "Ao operar, o médico tem de ter sempre em mente a idade da paciente. Não faz sentido dar a quem tem 50 anos um rosto de 25. Um pouco de pé-de-galinha não faz mal a ninguém", ensina o cirurgião Juarez Avelar, ex-presidente da Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Plástica em São Paulo. Perfeito na teoria, difícil de aceitar na prática. "Já tive pacientes que, quando as amigas não perceberam que tinham sido operadas, ficaram chateadas. Precisei mostrar as fotos de antes para que elas conferissem as melhoras e saíssem satisfeitas", diz o cirurgião carioca José de Gervais. Como exageros são recorrentes, considera-se que até três liftings, a intervalos de no mínimo dez anos, são aceitáveis (veja o quadro). Mais do que isso, é grande o risco de a pessoa ficar (toc, toc, toc) com cara de quem fez plástica. É melhor, no caso, apelar para tratamentos temporários, como Botox (que alisa, paralisando os músculos) e preenchimentos (que inflam, com substâncias variadas, áreas murchas como maçãs do rosto e lábios). Mais uma vez: basta um pequeno erro de proporção para que a pessoa fique (de novo: toc, toc, toc) com cara de quem pôs Botox ou fez preenchimento. "O preenchimento pode ser tanto uma dádiva quanto um pecado", alerta Aristóteles Bersou Júnior, cirurgião plástico de São Paulo. "O mais importante é que seja feito com substâncias que o corpo absorva com o tempo. Assim, um eventual exagero pode mais tarde ser corrigido."
Inevitavelmente, quanto mais a mulher (e o homem, diga-se de passagem) se empenha em rejuvenescer, maior a certeza de que, em dado momento, vai extrapolar. Umas extrapolam mais, outras menos. A apresentadora de TV Hebe Camargo (pela própria contabilidade, duas plásticas de mamas, duas lipos, dois liftings) está conservadíssima para seus 77 anos, não obstante os zigomas mais estufados do que o bom senso recomenda. "Com tantos recursos, por que não ficar melhor?", pergunta. E reitera: "Nunca fico doente. Só vou a hospital para cirurgia plástica". Já Faye Dunaway é vítima notória da dupla maçãs e lábios hiperestufados (no seu caso, assessorados por dentes milimetricamente perfeitos), excessos que também afetam Suzanne Somers, 60 anos, a loirinha dos seriados Three's Company, megassucesso da TV americana nos anos 70, e, mais recentemente, Step by Step, exibido no Brasil pela TV a cabo, que fez a primeira e muito comentada plástica ainda "menina", aos 55, e saiu da cirurgia outra pessoa, de olhos quase amendoados e lábios triplicados. Entre as brasileiras de pele lisíssima, a atriz Rosamaria Murtinho, que passou dos 70 e vamos mudar de assunto, fez dois liftings e está criando coragem para operar o pescoço, usa Botox entre as sobrancelhas "para não ficar com cara de brava" e tem planos de ganhar uns 2 quilos e, na seqüência, lipoaspirar a barriga. "Acho que as pessoas na minha idade ficam mais bonitas com mais peso e não quero que vá tudo para a barriga. Mas ao mesmo tempo me questiono se nessa idade vale a pena", diz, muito sensata. De fato, lipo sob a pele envelhecida é prática arriscada: uma vez removida a camada de gordura, a área externa, sem elasticidade, tende a ficar ondulada. Sabendo-se portanto que depois dos 60 lipo ondula, lifting estica demais, Botox paralisa e preenchimentos inflam em excesso, conclui-se que fórmula perfeita para o bem envelhecer não há. Ou melhor, há, só que é privilégio de pouquíssimas – quem diz que Suzana Vieira, capaz de tirar de letra cenas de tórrida paixão em novelas, tem 64 anos? Ou então é questão de encarar a passagem do tempo da melhor forma possível, exibindo rugas e cabelos brancos com pose e altivez, como faz, aos 80 anos, a rainha Elizabeth da Inglaterra – provavelmente a única milionária do planeta que jamais se submeteu a uma cirurgia plástica.

Fonte: http://veja.abril.com.br/100107/p_092.html - 07/01/2007

Teeth-whitening products flood shoppers with choices

2007-01-06T08:40:00.000-08:00

By Susan Jenks, Florida Today

Once confined to a small section of the grocery store or pharmacy, teeth-whitening products are so numerous today, they occupy the "dental aisle of confusion," according to many dentists.
Consumers face an array of over-the-counter whitening gels; toothpaste with whitener in them; and even an oral mouthwash or two, which claim to whiten your teeth as you swish.
"It's a huge market," says Dr. Kimberly Harms, a private-practice dentist in Farmington, Minn., and a consumer spokeswoman for the American Dental Association in Chicago.
"So many people are bleaching their teeth today, we had to adjust our shade guides upward recently" to reflect the demand for brighter, whiter teeth, she says.
Another dental group, the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, which represents dentists who specialize in cosmetic treatments, estimates the demand for tooth whitening has risen 300% in the past decade. Millions of Americans buy whitening products over the counter, or turn to dentists for a brighter, more dazzling smile.
"Bleaching is the No. 1 dental procedure requested by patients under 20, and in those 30 to 50 years of age, as well," says Dr. Bert Chodorov, a dentist who is an accredited-Academy member and runs the Center for Advanced Cosmetic Dentistry in Melbourne, Fla. "Older individuals also want this. White and bright is beautiful."
Chodorov cautions that, while some people want "white, white, white," his personal preference is for a more natural look, which sometimes is the only realistic option.
"You don't want the first thing that comes into the room to be your teeth," he jokes.
Dentist Dr. Lisa Goff describes the tooth-whitening demand as "absolutely huge" with costs that range from $300 to $550. Although there are two in-office dental whitening procedures available, neither is covered by insurance.
The lowest price tag is for standard whitening, which involves creating a customized plastic model of the mouth for in-home bleaching. Typically, individuals wear customized mouth "trays" containing a whitening solution for several hours a day or overnight, for two weeks, after a proper fitting.
"In about two weeks, you're usually set," Goff says, with the trays reusable for touch-ups, whenever necessary.
Plus, because they slide snugly into the mouth, the solution "doesn't gush out everywhere," as so often is the case with an over-the-counter product, she says — thus providing a higher concentration of bleach where you want it.
Light treatment whitening
The alternative, a more expensive whitening procedure, uses a light to accelerate the bleaching process during a one- to two-hour visit to the dentist's office. The best known system is called the "Zoom."
What makes it so much more expensive is the chair time, Goff says, although "the Zoom gives you a great jump-start" on whitening, and there is less gum irritation and sensitivity than with the trays.
Cindy Ville, an Indialantic, Fla., resident who recently underwent the procedure at Goff's office, says she is happy with the results, seeing an immediate difference in her teeth in the "before" and "after" photos.
"It was a long time to sit in the chair," she concedes. "But, from what I understand, you use the Zoom just once and then maintain with the trays and the (whitening) gel."
Still, the American Dental Association's Harms calls the light treatment "an accessory" at this point.
"The question is: Does it matter if you use the light or not?" she asks. "Does it actually accelerate the whitening process? The results, so far, vary, so we aren't sure."
But, no matter which treatment individuals choose, the at-home tray approach or the light-based treatment, Harms stressed, the teeth get bleached by the concentrated hydrogen peroxide solution that is a part of each.
"You are getting your teeth bleached in a few hours," she said. "And, for some patients who can't stand the trays, this is the way to go."
Dr. Ronald Richardson also emphasized the convenience of the Zoom, especially for the busy businessman or — woman who want whiter-looking teeth in a hurry.
He says he combines the light-based treatment with a backup tray, so whitening is easily touched up later at home — a practice commonly followed.
Offerings vary
As to the difference with over-the-counter products, Richardson, like his colleagues, cites several:
Most over-the-counter whitening products tend to have weaker bleaching solutions, and while many of them work, the process tends to take longer to whiten the teeth.
"It takes so long, many consumers get discouraged," Richardson says. "Dentists use prescription-grade products," with a hydrogen-peroxide strength of 20% or more, compared with less than 10% in most over-the-counter products.
Some over-the-counter whiteners, especially strips, are difficult to position, except on the front teeth, so you may get whitening in front, but the side teeth stay yellow, according to several dentists. Dentists treat the whole mouth to ensure a totally white smile, they say. How white is white enough, and at what point does too much whitening erode enamel? Although not clearly defined, with over-the-counter whiteners, Chodorov says, consumers make these judgments themselves, and that's "the biggest problem."
Moreover, "if they think it will whiten the crowns or fillings, they are wasting their money," he says. Office-based whitening will not do this, either, the dental group's Harms says, as bleach does not whiten porcelain, "and if you have a lot of fillings, they don't bleach."
"This is for natural teeth," she says.
Some individuals who need a new crown in front can have their natural teeth whitened to match it first, she says, and if that fails to work, there are other options available to spruce up a smile, such as bonding or creating veneers.
Ultimately, "the biggest thing (with whitening) is what you're comfortable with" — whether it's custom-made trays, a quick zap with the Zoom or a whitening product found in a drugstore.
In this latter case, however, she advises, read the labels.
Those carrying the American Dental Association's seal of approval, "at least shows there has been some independent evaluation of the product," she says.

Fonte: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-01-06-teeth_x.htm - 05/01/07

The Cosmetics Restriction Diet

2007-01-05T06:18:00.000-08:00

By NATASHA SINGER

DR. FRAN E. COOK-BOLDEN, a dermatologist in Manhattan, is an advocate of skin-care minimalism. When a patient recently arrived for an appointment toting 20 different products she was using regularly — including an eye cream, a vitamin C cream, a wrinkle serum, a pigmentation cream, a mask, a peel, a scrub and “some sort of special oxygen detoxifying cream” — Dr. Cook-Bolden said she confiscated all but three.“It gave me a headache just to look at all of those products,” Dr. Cook-Bolden said. “Just two products, a gentle cleanser and a good sunscreen, are enough daily skin care for most people, and you can buy those at a drugstore or a grocery store.” Dr. Cook-Bolden is part of a back-to-basics movement among dermatologists. At a time when beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts —including necks, creases around the mouth and eyelids — or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite, these doctors are putting their patients on cosmetics restriction diets. They are prescribing simplified skin-care routines requiring at most three steps: soap; sunscreen every day, no matter the weather or the season; and, if necessary, a product tailored to specific skin needs, whether a cream for pimples or pigmented spots, or a vitamin-enriched moisturizer for aging skin. Each product, they say, can be bought at drugstores for $30 or less. Among those doctors who have become experts at uncluttering their patients’ vanity tables and medicine cabinets is Dr. Sarah Boyce Sawyer, an assistant professor of dermatology at the School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “My New Year’s beauty resolution for patients is: cut down on skin-care products and cut your skin-care budget,” Dr. Sawyer said. “Cut down on those $100 potions.” For some doctors, simplifying skin-care routines is a way to make patients follow a regimen or a means to soothe irritated skin. But some dermatologists are also suggesting patients use fewer, less expensive products because they believe there is little scientific research to justify buying an armload of pricey cosmetics, Dr. Sawyer said. “We have good medical evidence on prescription products,” she said. “But the science is fuzzy with a lot of cosmetics.” Unlike drugs, cosmetics are not required to prove their efficacy. Prescription medications like Accutane for acne and over-the-counter drugs such as sunscreen ingredients must undergo rigorous clinical testing before they gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration. But cosmetics are not subject to the agency’s scrutiny before they go on sale. The F.D.A. defines cosmetics as topical products that do not alter the structure or function of the skin. Dr. William P. Coleman III, the vice president of the American Academy of Dermatology, said consumers should view moisturizers and wrinkle creams as no more than superficial treatments. “You have to think of cosmetics as decorative and hygienic, not as things that are going to change your skin,” said Dr. Coleman, who is a clinical professor of dermatology at Tulane University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. “A $200 cream may have better perfume or packaging, but as far as it moisturizing your skin better than a $10 cream, it probably won’t.” According to F.D.A. regulations, beauty manufacturers are responsible for the safety of their cosmetics and for their own marketing claims. Although many beauty companies perform studies on their products, they are not required to conduct clinical trials on the level of medical research or to make their proprietary research available to the public. Dr. Mary Ellen Brademas, a clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center, said the paucity of rigorous published science on cosmetics makes it difficult to determine how well creams work, whether they cost $10, $100 or $1,000. “People are spending $450 on a jar of cream just because it is made out of something exotic like salmon eggs or cocoons,” Dr. Brademas said. “But the cheapest products work just as well as the more expensive ones.” A study of wrinkle creams published last month by Consumer Reports concluded that there was no correlation between price and effectiveness. The study, which tested nine brands of wrinkle creams over 12 weeks, also concluded that none of the products reduced the depth of wrinkles by more than 10 percent, an amount “barely visible to the naked eye.” The Consumer Reports study found, for example, that a three-step regimen of Olay Regenerist products costing $57 was slightly more effective at reducing the appearance of wrinkles than a $135 tube of StriVectin-SD or a $335 combination of two La Prairie Cellular lotions. “I am seduced by fancy packaging as much as the next person,” Dr. Brademas said. “But I have a theory that all these skin-care things come out of the same vat in New Jersey.”“It gave me a headache just to look at all of those products,” Dr. Cook-Bolden said. “Just two products, a gentle cleanser and a good sunscreen, are enough daily skin care for most people, and you can buy those at a drugstore or a grocery store.” Dr. Cook-Bolden is part of a back-to-basics movement among dermatologists. At a time when beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts —including necks, creases around the mouth and eyelids — or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite, these doctors are putting their patients on cosmetics restriction diets. They are prescribing simplified skin-care routines requiring at most three steps: soap; sunscreen every day, no matter the weather or the season; and, if necessary, a product tailored to specific skin needs, whether a cream for pimples or pigmented spots, or a vitamin-enriched moisturizer for aging skin. Each product, they say, can be bought at drugstores for $30 or less. Among those doctors who have become experts at uncluttering their patients’ vanity tables and medicine cabinets is Dr. Sarah Boyce Sawyer, an assistant professor of dermatology at the School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “My New Year’s beauty resolution for patients is: cut down on skin-care products and cut your skin-care budget,” Dr. Sawyer said. “Cut down on those $100 potions.” For some doctors, simplifying skin-care routines is a way to make patients follow a regimen or a means to soothe irritated skin. But some dermatologists are also suggesting patients use fewer, less expensive products because they believe there is little scientific research to justify buying an armload of pricey cosmetics, Dr. Sawyer said. “We have good medical evidence on prescription products,” she said. “But the science is fuzzy with a lot of cosmetics.” Unlike drugs, cosmetics are not required to prove their efficacy. Prescription medications like Accutane for acne and over-the-counter drugs such as sunscreen ingredients must undergo rigorous clinical testing before they gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration. But cosmetics are not subject to the agency’s scrutiny before they go on sale. The F.D.A. defines cosmetics as topical products that do not alter the structure or function of the skin. Dr. William P. Coleman III, the vice president of the American Academy of Dermatology, said consumers should view moisturizers and wrinkle creams as no more than superficial treatments. “You have to think of cosmetics as decorative and hygienic, not as things that are going to change your skin,” said Dr. Coleman, who is a clinical professor of dermatology at Tulane University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. “A $200 cream may have better perfume or packaging, but as far as it moisturizing your skin better than a $10 cream, it probably won’t.” According to F.D.A. regulations, beauty manufacturers are responsible for the safety of their cosmetics and for their own marketing claims. Although many beauty companies perform studies on their products, they are not required to conduct clinical trials on the level of medical research or to make their proprietary research available to the public. Dr. Mary Ellen Brademas, a clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center, said the paucity of rigorous published science on cosmetics makes it difficult to determine how well creams work, whether they cost $10, $100 or $1,000. “People are spending $450 on a jar of cream just because it is made out of something exotic like salmon eggs or cocoons,” Dr. Brademas said. “But the cheapest products work just as well as the more expensive ones.” A study of wrinkle creams published last month by Consumer Reports concluded that there was no correlation between price and effectiveness. The study, which tested nine brands of wrinkle creams over 12 weeks, also concluded that none of the products reduced the depth of wrinkles by more than 10 percent, an amount “barely visible to the naked eye.” The Consumer Reports study found, for example, that a three-step regimen of Olay Regenerist products costing $57 was slightly more effective at reducing the appearance of wrinkles than a $135 tube of StriVectin-SD or a $335 combination of two La Prairie Cellular lotions. “I am seduced by fancy packaging as much as the next person,” Dr. Brademas said. “But I have a theory that all these skin-care things come out of the same vat in New Jersey.”John Bailey, the executive vice president for science of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association, an industry trade group in Washington, said that skin care varies widely in price because of amounts spent on research and development of ingredients and product formulas, and the cost of manufacturing and packaging.But, he said, it is difficult to measure performance differences among products. “Cosmetics don’t have the same quantitative analysis as drugs, so you don’t have a set gauge you can use to determine perceived and actual benefits,” said Dr. Bailey, who has a Ph.D. in chemistry. “Ultimately, consumers will have to try products out and find what works best for them.” THE back-to-basics skin-care regimen is based on practicality rather than marketing claims. It does not rely on exotic ingredients grown on far-flung islands hand-picked by natives only under a full moon. Dr. Diane C. Madfes, a clinical instructor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, said that basic skin care requires washing one’s face to remove dirt, sweat and bacteria, and using sunscreen to impede sun damage. People who worry about wrinkles, pimples, dry spots or pores may want to add one or two treatment products, she said. Dr. Cook-Bolden, who has been a paid consultant for several mass-market cosmetics brands, suggested a mild liquid cleanser for the face. Instead of using toners, which may strip skin, or gritty exfoliation beads and microdermabrasion systems, which may irritate skin, she recommended using a washcloth to slough off dead skin cells. “If you have dry, sensitive skin, you just pat the washcloth on your face gently in a circular motion,” she said. “If you don’t have irritated skin, you can put more speed and pressure on the washcloth.” Dermatologists disagree whether a moisturizer is then needed. Dr. Brademas said it is superfluous. “Moisturizer is optional unless you are in the Arctic,” said Dr. Brademas, who favors Vaseline petroleum jelly for dry hands, feet, knees and elbows. “I’m not sure moisturizers do very much except for creating a smooth surface so that makeup can go on without drag.” Dr. Cook-Bolden took a more agnostic position. “If you need a moisturizer, moisturize,” she said. “If you want less moisture, use a lotion. If you want more, use a cream. And if you have acne-prone skin, use a gel or a spray.” Although the dermatologists interviewed for this article disagreed about moisturizer, they agreed on one point: the importance of sun protection, including hats, avoidance of midday sun and the use of an effective sunscreen. They recommended that consumers look for formulas that include ingredients — like zinc oxide, titanium dioxide or Mexoryl SX — that impede damage from the sun’s longer wavelength UVA rays, a protective effect that is not indicated by a product’s SPF rating. Beyond soap and sunscreen, Dr. Madfes said that one or two additional products might be added to personalize a skin-care routine. “People who see wrinkles around their eyes are going to reach for an eye cream,” Dr. Madfes said. “Someone who looks in the mirror and sees large pores may want to use a cleanser with salicylic acid, which can reduce clogged pores.” She is also a proponent of night creams that combine retinol, a form of vitamin A that may help speed up the turnover of skin cells, and antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E or lycopene that may help thwart environmental damage to the skin. People with skin conditions like severe acne or people interested in topical anti-wrinkle drugs should consult their doctors about prescription medications, she said. On an expedition last week to a CVS Pharmacy at Columbus Circle with a reporter, Dr. Madfes examined the product labels on skin-care items from a variety of mass-market brands and recommended a few basic products, including Cetaphil cleanser and La Roche-Posay Anthelios SX sunscreen. “Higher end, more expensive products may look better in the box and feel better on your face, but they don’t necessarily work better than less expensive products as long as you look for ingredients that are known for efficacy,” Dr. Madfes said. But she did see one benefit to splurging. “The thing is, when someone buys a $200 cream, they are going to use that cream,” Dr. Madfes said. “So, in the end, their skin may benefit.”

Fonte: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/04/fashion/04skin.html?pagewanted=1&ref=health - 04/01/07

Women are advised: Keep an eye on your makeup

2007-01-03T15:33:00.000-08:00

By Liz Szabo

As an optometrist, Andrea Thau often advises her patients about preventing eye infections. And as a spokeswoman for the American Optometric Association, she frequently speaks about eye health on television.
But Thau says she learned one hygiene lesson the hard way: She developed a sty after a TV station artist did her makeup. Thau says she most likely developed the sty — a small lump on the eyelid near the lash line — because of bacteria from the makeup artist's hands or supplies.
Thau now brings her own makeup artist before going on the air.
Though few of her patients have to worry about TV appearances, Thau says many unknowingly expose themselves to germs while sampling products at department store makeup counters or undergoing makeovers from saleswomen.
Marguerite McDonald, an eye doctor and spokeswoman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology, agrees. Consumers should never put their fingers into display products or use cosmetics that other customers may have touched.
McDonald, a former model, says she never has had a store makeover.
Pinkeye, which can make the eye red, swollen, tender and full of pus, is extremely contagious. Like colds and flu viruses, it's especially common this time of year.
Though there's no solid research exploring a link between makeup counters and eye infections, McDonald says she has treated many patients who developed pinkeye after visiting such counters at the shopping mall.
The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association says its members take safety seriously.
Clinique employees, for example, are told to sanitize their hands before touching clients, says Susan Kasziba, Clinique's executive director of global education development.
Product samples "should never touch a customer's skin," Kasziba says. "If someone has used it, we would throw out that tester and create a new one."
Thau says customers should use common sense, but they shouldn't worry about contracting a dangerous disease. Most eye infections clear up within a week or so, even without treatment.
"People have enough neuroses," she says. "They don't need to get totally crazed."

CLINIQUE PUTS CLEAN FACE ON SAMPLING PRODUCTS
Clinique's Susan Kasziba says the company instructs salespeople to follow basic rules when they are demonstrating products:Mascara. Cosmetics consultants should use a new, disposable brush for each customer. Eye shadow. Salespeople should scrape the pigment onto a tissue, then use a disposable wand to apply it to the eyelid. They should not place the applicator directly into the sample shadow.Eyeliner. Consultants should disinfect eyeliner pencils with alcohol, then sharpen them to pare away any surfaces that have come in contact with skin.

Fonte: www.usatoday.com - 03/01/07