Happy Halloween Everyone!! I hope all of you have a fun and safe Halloween!

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Breaking news everyone! I am featured in Cosmopolitan’s September issue (pg. 116 to be exact)!  I had the opporunity to test out OLAY’s newest product – OLAY Regenerist Advanced Anti-Aging Wrinkle Revolution Complex.  As an added bonus, this month, purchase any OLAY product and receive a limited edition pouch (details are in the mag)!

Thank you again Cosmopolitan for this wonderful and fun opportunity! And a HUGE  thank you to my readers for motivating me to keep up this awesome hobby!

Check me out and my review in this September’s Cosmopolitan Magazine on newsstands now.

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The September 2011 issue of ShopSmart magazine, from the publisher of Consumer Reports¸ tested seven anti-wrinkle creams on 79 people over the course of 12 weeks to identify which anti-aging product worked the best.

Based on their test results, they found that the claims on the creams can be a bit overblown. While each cream made a small difference for some people, none of the products showed results as promised.

How the Products Fared

Because most of the products, with the exception of the Garnier cream, worked about the same—that is to say, not very well — ShopSmart suggests trying Garnier first to see whether it might work for you. ShopSmart also recommends shopping by price. Below are four of the seven creams that ShopSmart tested, listed in order of least expensive to most expensive.

Equate Advanced Firming Face and Neck Cream

Price: $7.87 for 1.7 fluid ounces

Testers’ Notes: It initially has a slight floral aroma, but that fades over time. It leaves a slightly waxy, draggy residual feeling on the skin.

Where to get it: Walmart

CVS Pharmacy Firming Moisturizer SPF 15

Price: $11.99 for 1.6 fluid ounces

Testers’ Notes: This store-brand cream has a very slight, soapy smell and leaves behind very little residual product.

Where to get it: CVS

Garnier Nutritioniste Ultra-Lift Firming Moisturizer SPF 15

Price: $16 for 1.6 ounces

Testers’ Notes: The results weren’t dramatic, but after 12 weeks of use, this cream slightly reduced fine lines and wrinkles on more testers than other products. Its scent was slightly floral with a hint of plastic. It took longer to rub in (more than 30 seconds for about half of our panelists) than many other products.

Where to get it: Drugstores, mass retailers, online

Lancôme Paris Rénergie Double Performance Treatment Firming

Price: $80 for 1.7 ounces

Testers’ Notes: This cream has a moderately intense floral, perfumey scent and leaves a slight waxy, draggy residual feeling on the skin.

Where to get it: Department stores, online

Anti-Wrinkle Cream Q & A

ShopSmart offers advice on how to decode the claims made on the labels of skin care products and decipher the ingredients in everyday topical creams.

1. Do claims like “natural” or “dermatologist recommended” mean that products are safer or more likely to work? Those claims are not verified or regulated by the Food and Drug Administration or any other agency. One claim to count on is the “USDA Organic” seal that ensures at least 95% of the product is made from organic ingredients. To find out what specific claims on labels mean—or whether they’re meaningless—you can check them using our label decoder, at www.greenerchoices.org/eco-labels.
2. Are there chemicals in those creams we should worry about? Some anti-wrinkle creams do contain potentially harmful ingredients. Examples include parabens, some of which mimic estrogen and might interact with your body’s hormones, and fragrances, because scented products often contain phthalates, which have been linked to reproductive problems. More research is needed before we fully understand the risks. But for now, an easy way to help avoid those questionable chemicals is to choose products without “-parabens” or “fragrance” on the ingredients label. Parabens may also be listed as “methyl-,” “ethyl-,” “propyl-,” and “butylparabens.”
3. Many anti-wrinkle creams on the market have sunscreens built in—is that enough sun protection for me? Even if the cream has an SPF label, do not count on it to protect your skin from the sun’s harmful rays all day long. Layer on a sunscreen with at least SPF 30 (or a moisturizer with a built-in sunscreen) on top of the anti-wrinkle cream to be on the safe side. Make sure to reapply every two hours or more if you are sweating or swimming! ShopSmart also recommends reading the ingredients on the product label. For instance, retinyl palmitate, tested without sunscreen, has been linked in animal studies to an increased risk of skin cancer. Additionally, pregnant women may want to avoid the ingredient given concerns about possible birth defects from vitamin A derivatives.

For more information, check out the September Issue of ShopSmart.  I hope this helps those in the market looking for anti-aging products!

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This just in – new rules were published by the FDA for sunscreens!  Starting next summer, sunscreens with less than an SPF of 15 will have to carry a warning label: “This product has been shown only to help prevent sunburn, not skin cancer or early skin aging.”

Under the new rules:

* The FDA will prohibit sunscreen marketing claims like “waterproof” and “sweatproof,” which the agency said “are exaggerations of performance.”
* The FDA also proposes capping the highest SPF value at 50, unless companies can provide results of further testing that support a higher number.
* FDA says manufacturers must phase out a four-star system currently used by some companies to rate UVA protection.

I strongly believe that SPFs over 50 is too high for us. Although, I do love Neutrogena sunscreens, they are notorious for high SPF sunscreens! So what do you all think of these new rules? They are a yay in my book!

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