peter Helton’s blog

Skin is a reflection

2008-06-12T23:45:55Z

Your skin is a reflection of your inner health, so the first step is to act in a way that is consistent with health. Eating, exercising and avoiding excessive sunlight go a long ways too. We are past the point of doing what our parents instructe...

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lip wrinkles

2008-06-11T08:59:25Z

There is a common misconception that wrinkles around the mouth are caused from slurping through a straw or caused by smoking. I have counciled many female patients that are saddened by these vertical wrinkles around their mouth, and they will exc...

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The tanning wars

2008-06-10T03:42:54Z

My license plates on my car are personalized, the say WEAR SPF. I thought it was an amusing plate for a dermatologist. Today, at the end of my day , I am walking to my car to go home and notice a business card on the window. It is a card for ...

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Tanning beds and young adults

2008-06-06T06:09:40Z

Today was interesting, I had a 22 year old female patient come see me and she incidentally mentioned that she was using a tanning bed. Now this is a little of a bit of dilemma to a dermatologist. At this age group, if I give unrequested inform...

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What do I do about dark circles under my eyes?

2008-06-05T00:10:45Z

Certain rays of light called UVB will tan or sometimes burn your skin. Other rays of light will penetrate more deeply and do no tan you, but will disfigure the skin DNA setting you up for cancer at a later date. These rays are called UVA. These ...

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things I have learned

2008-06-04T08:57:37Z

George Burns once said, "If I knew that I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of my self" As those of us who have aches and pains can attest, he was right. I have noticed that my 30's were when I started to realize I wa...

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Chemical exfoliators, the acids

2008-06-03T06:03:34Z

There are 2 types of exfoliation, chemical and physical. Today we will discuss chemical exfoliaters and how they impact acne and anti-aging. There are several different types and are composed of acids. The way acids exfoliate the skin will depe...

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Microdermabrasion and acne

2008-06-02T02:10:36Z

Microdermabrasion and acne Treatment of acne needs to be based at the three causes. 1) Hyper-hormonal states 2) Unplugging the pores so the bodies’ oil can flow 3) Reduce opportunistic bacteria, those bacteria that take advantage of the blocked ...

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Lasers and acne

2008-06-01T05:24:49Z

Now that we have covered the conventional treatments of acne it is time to consider alternative options for those who can not tolerate topical and oral antibiotics. There are a lot of topical acne programs out there. Many designed by dermatolog...

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Acne Treatments

2008-05-31T05:55:27Z

Since acne is caused by plugged pores the best way to combat it is to keep the pores open. First off do not use products that are non comedogenic. This means they either have ingredients shown not to plug pores or they have been tested to not ...

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