Think Celebrities are Perfect?

Think again...(Click Here)

Adobe Photoshop is a lovely little tool and helps celebrities appear perfectly coiffed, tanned and flawless. Everyone (including ME!) could use a little Photoshopping on a daily basis too!!!!

Things like this are what is helping to contribute to the lack of self-esteem in many young girls today. Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty (and the Dove Self Esteem Fund) is a HUGE proponent of positive self-esteem and showing these young girls that celebrities and models don't REALLY look like that everyday -- that they too have flaw and it's who you are as a person that makes you beautiful.

Watch this great video from Dove called "Evolution" showing the actual steps involved in taking a normal, everyday model to the glamourous woman we see on the billboard.

I hope someday all young girls will know that all this is not real and will feel beautiful, no matter their size, eye shape, hair color, skin color or social status...

Wine is Good for You!!!

(Thank you to Sephora's Beauty and the Blog for the inspiration for this post)

Good news to all you wine aficionados...an ingredient found in red and white wine, reveratrol68, has been found to fight viruses, inflammation (MAJOR cause of cellular damage and, consequently, skin aging per Dr. Nicholas Perricone MD ), cancer, neurological symptoms (read: Alzheimer's Disease) and aging. So drink up!!! Red wine has a higher quantity of reveratrol68, just so you know :-)

To glean the benefits of reveratrol68 topically, look to Caudalie -- their skin care line is "the first to use (and patent) stabalized grape seed polyphenols in skincare". Polyphenols are very potent antioxidents and can be taken orally (check out Dr. Frederick Brandt's line of antioxidant water boosters -- I'm a BIG fan) and applied topically.

Now I'm going to have a big glass of wine ;-)

What Supplements Are Important?

In addition to eating well and using the right products for your skin, it's extremely important to take targeted nutritional supplements. My current daily supplement regimen includes vitamin C, Omega-3 fatty acid, selenium and vitamin E...but I know I could be doing more.

Since I'm a HUGE fan of Nicholas Perricone M.D. (and since he's a HUGE proponent of taking nutritional supplements for skin health), I looked to his site for recommendations. As expected, Dr. Perricone has developed a supplement recommendation guide based on health and skin-specific concerns.

While the supplement recommendations on this chart are Dr. Perricone's branded supplements, it will at least give you an idea of what types of supplements you should incorporate into your daily routine. If you're looking for less expensive options, check out the ingredients in Dr. Perricone's supplements and go to www.iherb.com (my personal favorite site for buying supplements and herbs) to purchase.

I Never Thought I Would Say This But...

For my inaugural post, I want to say "YOU ROCK" to Jennifer Love Hewitt for recently taking on the bloggers who are accusing her of being 'fat' because she has cellulite on her upper thighs! Her reply to those statements makes a great point of using her celebrity for good and showing postive body image -- pointing out that it doesn't matter what size you are, a 2, a 6, a 12 a 16...what matters is that if YOU are happy with yourself and your life, it shouldn't matter what others think about you (and that maybe they should look in the mirror and deal with their own insecurities).

These over-critical individuals should also do their research...cellulite is NOT the same as obesity, it is a condition that affects most women after puberty due to changes in hormones and metabolism. Cellulite is simply fat (which is underneath your skin and acts as the body's shock absorber) that pushes against the connective tissue above it. There are several ways to decrease the amount and lumpy appearance of cellulite - but the fact of the matter is that the fat layer will not just go away. It's a part of the skin - period.

So to all the critics, I have one thing to say: It's biology, get over it. Think before you say something stupid.