Thursday, March 31, 2016

Reducing Cancer Risks and Saving the Budget

Credit: Banana Boat
While I do use this product , it is here to illustrate
the post, and should not be interpreted as an endorsement.

At the beginning you may jump to three conclusions, and they would all be incorrect.  The assumptions would be that this is not a paddling article, that this just involves women, and it must be some type of advertisement.  Again, ‘NO’ on all three, so please read to the end.  It could save you thousands of dollars and also reduce your likelihood of suffering pre-mature aging or cancer.

On the CBS morning program for March 30, they did a very good investigative piece on skin care and cosmetics.  The Senate is considering a bill designed to increase regulation of the ingredients that go into cosmetics.  These regulations have not be updated or revised since the 1930’s, which has been much to the advantage of the industry’s $60-billion annual income.  There are over 60,000 ingredients that go into cosmetic creams for blemish removal, smoothing, wrinkle remover, eye cream, moisturizer, anti-aging cream, and much, much more.  Many of these ingredients are a health hazard in themselves, attacking growth and reproductive hormones, and some are even cancer causing.  On the cost side of the issue, women on average use twelve cosmetic products each day containing 168 unregulated ingredients.  Men use on average six products containing 85 unregulated ingredients.  Not only are the ingredients unregulated, but so are the claims about what they will accomplish for the user, and what the costs of the products should be.  For example, they showed two containers holding the same product.  One was a tube for $10, and the other was the same product put in a small jar for $170.  Another related issue was using the same product for multiple applications, such as a cream that is used as a moisturizer, or which is put into very small tubes with greatly inflated prices and sold as an eye cream.

For the paddler, fisherman, or anyone that spends time outside, time and the sun are the two greatest elements that attack and age the skin, the body’s most important defense system, and the one everyone sees.  To combat these problems, many people turn to anti-aging cosmetics.  Unfortunately, science has never found anything that stops or reverses the aging process.  Plus, not only does the sun try to give us cancer, but the products we use to supposedly reverse the clock may also introduce dangerous or cancer-causing chemicals into our bodies. 


However, all is not lost.  Now that you’ve scratched all the cosmetics counters off your shopping list and saved thousands of dollars from trying to buy false hope or a magic potion, the good news is that there are two products that do work, and those are the only two you need.  “The most biologically active anti-aging products on the market today, bar none, are moisturizers and sunscreen, and they are not expensive.”  For men, it has been said many times that the first thing a man should reach for after shaving is sunscreen.  While they don’t reverse the clock, moisturizers and sunscreen both help the skin, slow the effects of time and sun, and keeping the skin healthier.  It is important to remember that both are temporary, and so should be used repeatedly.  You also don’t need to buy products with French names that sell for $105 and make wild claims.  Inexpensive or reasonably priced over-the-counter products are just as effective as the expensive products found in department stores and salons, and can be found at the local drug store.   Especially for those spending the day outdoors, don’t start your day or leave home without them.   


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