Why suffering through a retinoid reaction just isn't worth it.

If you've tried your fair share of skin care products over the years you've probably tried out some sort of vitamin A during that time. Most people are familiar with vitamin A as retinol, even though retinol is only one of the many different forms of vitamin A.

If you've tried a high dose vitamin A from your doctor, you likely would've been given a 1% Tretonoin cream which is retinoic acid.
If you've gone the medical grade route and have used vitamin A products from clinics you've likely tried 1% retinol creams, and if you've gone to stores like Shoppers or Sephora it's likely been a lower dose such as .25-.5% retinol product.

No matter where you've got your vitamin A product in the past, you've likely been given the same instructions...start using it at night a couple times a week and slowly increase the frequency of use while pushing through any irritation it may cause such as peeling, flaking, dryness, burning and inflammation. Why? Because if you can tolerate this uncomfortable reaction for several weeks...perfect skin is waiting at the end!! Or so they say.

Once again I'm here to burst that bubble!!! What can I say? It's sort of like a hobby of mine.

So here's the problem with that concept....
Skin cell walls are not easily penetrated. Only certain chemicals with distinct shapes can enter through different receptors on the wall. Retinoid receptors are responsible for allowing vitamin A to enter into a cell. Since there are many forms of vitamin A, not all the receptors are meant for retinol.
Some receptors will only allow retinoic acid, or retinyl palmitate, retinyl acetate...you get the idea.

Another problem here is that as we age we naturally lose vitamin A from our skin and things like smoking or UV exposure quicken this process. As our skin becomes depleted in vitamin A, it also becomes depleted in retinoid receptors.

Suddenly the skin is flooded with an incredibly high dose of retinol and it simply can't use it all. The skin cells absorb what it can but seeing as how retinol only makes up 3% of the vitamin A in the skin, the majority of it sits around the cells and causes massive irritation. The skin reacts by purging and results in the peeling, burning and dryness....a retinoid reaction!

The most unnecessary, pointless, painful and embarrassing thing to go through that I've ever come across in this industry. Yet everyone believes this is the way to perfect skin, but usually because they're only regurgitating information that was given to them by the sales rep of companies who make products like these. Not because they know how the skin actually functions and how it is affected by different chemical substances.

The end result if someone can actually tolerate an on going retinoid reaction for that long until the skin acclimatizes is usually sensitive skin that is thinner than before, and likely more dehydrated too.
The constant inflammation and peeling caused from a retinoid reaction opens the skin up to more environmental damage such as dehydration, pollution, bacteria and can leave the skin hyper sensitive and prone to redness.
More often than not however, the ongoing reaction is not tolerated long enough for the skin to acclimatize and the use of the product is discontinued with the final impression being that vitamin A is awful and doesn't work.

There are so many vitamin A products on the market and sadly few of them are sophisticated enough    to work with the skin instead of against it. This is why vitamin A has acquired such a bad name over the years and is now thought of as a very harsh product to use.

The truth is vitamin A is vital for the skin and has many positive benefits such as anti-aging, normalizing the function of the skin and even repairing DNA damage caused from UV exposure.
So why is something as important as vitamin A not being formulated in a smarter way?
Well it is, but like I said it can be hard to find amongst the sea of 1% rip your face off strength retinol creams.

Environ makes all their vitamin A products in a step-up system and use a complex of several different forms of vitamin A to utilize all the different receptors on the skin cells. This means more of the vitamin A is actually used by the skin, is tolerated much better and makes the skin stronger.
By starting on a low dose and moving on to the higher doses, the skin can acclimatize to levels normally by making more retinoid receptors over time and therefor use the vitamin A properly and in a way that does not cause severe reactions.

Who would've thought that formulating a product according to how the skin functions would be a good idea?!

This is the main reason I swear by Environ products. They're smart, high quality, high concentrated products that are made from a company that actually has respect for the skin.


To book a consultation with me...
Call LAB11 Advanced Medical Aesthetics ‭(403) 283-0764‬

Why Environ Skin Care Is The Best Bang For Your Buck, By A Mile!!

It's definitely no secret that I truly believe Environ is the best skin care out there. 
I've been using it for over 5 years and I'm baffled at the transformation my skin has gone through. Not only in the way my skin looks, but in the way it functions as well.

As a skin health professional I also understand what it takes for a topical product to be effective and safe. There is nothing about Environ that doesn't make perfect sense to me.

Of course, I don't always expect people to simply take my word for it since almost anyone who sells skin care for a living will say their product is the best. For that reason people often take that statement with a grain of salt.

So, here's just a few reasons why investing in Environ is worth every single penny, and more.



No Fluff.

Environ doesn't use any "trendy" ingredients in any of their products.
I'm talking about things like 24 Karat Gold, caviar extract, coconut oil, plant stem cells...just to name a few.
Ingredients like these are recognizable, they seem fancy and therefor seem to justify the hefty price tag of the product.

In reality, they do diddly squat for your skin.

If I'm being honest the 24 Karat Gold thing particularly annoys me...how is applying a precious metal to your face going to make it healthier?! Our skin cells don't live off of gold people. Stop it already!

Anyways...
Environ only uses scientifically proven ingredients to feed, nourish and stimulate the skin. Things like vitamins, antioxidants and peptides. Things that your cells can actually absorb and put to good use which will increase the quality and normalize the function of the skin.



It Respects The Skin.

When I first started at Facial Esthetics One the clinic had already brought on a different brand of skin care. I will not name names, but it just happened to be a line that I honestly loathe. It's comprised of harsh scrubs, strong retinols that can only be compared to something like battery acid and drying, irritating acid soaked wipes.

I simply couldn't sell the line. I haven't scrubbed my face in 6 years and I don't believe in punishing the skin to force the desired outcome. So, we eventually made the switch over to Environ!

Aaaaah, sweet relief.

To give one great example of what makes Environs approach so different, lets talk about vitamin A, which is the corner stone of Environ.

We naturally lose vitamin A as we age, and things like diet, sun exposure, pollutants and more cause the depletion of vitamin A in the skin to occur even faster.
Since we lose vitamin A from our skin, our skin cells therefor lose the ability to absorb it normally over time.

Few people understand that a deficiency of vitamin A in the skin leads to the development of major problems and contributes to aging and sun damage...and even skin cancer.

Most skin care lines produce some sort of vitamin A/retinol product however, more often than not there is only one strength made, and it's a potent strength!

The problem with this is the skins inability to absorb a high dose of vitamin A right off the bat like that, as a result the cells will absorb what they can but everything left over sits around the cells and irritates the entire area.

The skin reacts by purging which creates major inflammation, peeling, burning, dryness and therefor opens up the skin to more damage.
This is called a retinoid reaction and can lasts for several weeks while continuing to use a product like this. Eventually the skin is forced to adjust and absorb more vitamin A, but until then people tend to go through quite the uncomfortable, embarrassing and even painful reaction until the skin finally normalizes.

This has never made any sense to me since there is literally zero benefit in putting your skin through such a reaction.

On the flip side, Environ has a unique step-up system to introduce levels of vitamin A slowly allowing the skin time to adjust, normalize, strengthen and repeat!

All of their corrective serums come in four different strengths. This ensures the skins barrier is maintained, the integrity is not compromised, the skin is properly nourished and function is improved. Only good things come from doing it this way!
Over time the skin can easily tolerate the highest dose of vitamin A and is much stronger as a result.

The skin is the largest organ of the body, it's our barrier from the environment and it's what we present to everyone around us, so it deserves nothing but love and respect.



Science!!!

Environ is one of the few skin care ranges with its own sterile manufacturing facilities with dedicated chemists and state of the art technology.
All products are manufactured and filled under red light to protect light sensitive ingredients. They are also manufactured under a vacuum to prevent exposure to air which can denature active ingredients.

The packaging is specially designed to protect the product from light and air to ensure maximum hygiene and freshness.

Every single batch is scientifically tested by internationally accredited independent laboratories to check the chemical content and sterility of the product.

For this reason Environ is the only skincare brand in the world to carry the prestigious "Swiss Vitamin Institute" label on their products... no big deal!!
This guarantees the products contain the strength of ingredients that are declared by Environ and that consumers are getting a quality, highly active and effective product.



No Animal Testing.

Environ products are only tests on human volunteers and trials are conducted on more than 100 people over an 18 month period.
What a concept to test a skin care line intended for human skin...on human skin!
No bunnies required.



Standards.

Environ is only sold by professionals. You will never find it at a kiosk in the mall or hear that your girlfriend is now selling it from home as a side gig.

When Environ branches into a new clinic many steps are taken to educate the staff on everything Environ does, makes and why.

Personally I've never received such thorough training on any skincare line like I have on Environ.
The company does this because they are committed to quality and not just the physical quality of what they make, but the quality of product consultations and education that skin health professionals give each and everyone of their clients.

This is just one reasons why Environ doesn't do celebrity endorsements and very little advertising at all. The company has become so successful by creating real results through their products, and that gets noticed all on its own!


*Oh, I would also like to add for good measure that I have never been paid by Environ to promote their products.

I'm simply just a huge skincare snob (I'm not ashamed!!) and promote what I believe in.