Many of us felt fortunate to view the solar eclipse this week – either here in Charlotte or nearby areas that experienced 100% eclipse. The sight was amazing indeed. American Indian tribes across the country observe the eclipse in quiet contemplation as they anticipate renewal that this unique event is believed to bring. Many believe that the eclipse represents the sun dying and then coming back to life thus eclipse time is a time of renewal.

In honor of the eclipse, this week’s blog will discuss renewal for your skin. And for many – after a summer of sun filled days – a renewal is indeed desired:

 

A great start is with some skin care products you can use at home. We recommend year round use of tretinoin or retinol which will keep the upper layer of your skin smooth and will protect and renew collagen An alpha hydroxy acid cream or lotion can be added to your skin care regimen a few days a week to boost exfoliation of the upper layer of skin that can make the skin look dull if the layer gets too thick. An exfoliating scrub followed by a mask is a great way to create the look of a professional facial from the comfort and convenience of your home.

In office treatments can include a light chemical peel or a mild laser treatment to refresh and renew. SilkPeel DermalInfusion is a great skin-resurfacing treatment option that combines exfoliation, extraction, and infusion of condition-specific serums to improve skin health and appearance. This treatment is suitable for all skin types and tones and there is no associated downtime. Skin will feel immediately refreshed and more radiant.

Fraxel Clear + Brilliant and IPL (intense pulsed light) treatments – either alone or paired together will improve skin tone and texture and stimulate collagen renewal. Fraxel Clear + Brilliant is a lighter fractional laser treatment that works by creating thousands of small treatment zones in your skin. These laser treatment zones resurface the top layer of skin and stimulate new collagen in the deeper layer. Photofacial or IPL is another popular rejuvenation treatment that uses intense pulsed light (IPL) to target and treat both red and brown discolorations as well as stimulate collagen renewal. IPL is thus great for improving sun damage, red blotches or broken capillaries and brown spots on the face, neck and chest. These 2 different technologies can be combined in the same session for enhanced results without adding to downtime.