Skin care professionals may have noticed more free advertising alongside everyday products in the grocery store, intended to steer customers towards or away from buying certain products. “Gluten-free,” “sugar-free,” and “phthalate-free” are popular buzzwords across the aisles.  

A popular claim in the skin care and cosmetics realm has become “silicone-free,” but why would the absence of silicone, a naturally abundant and harmless material on the planet, be marketed as a health benefit? Whether strolling on a grassy field or riding a dune buggy in the desert outside Dubai, people interact with silica. It is not a toxic, rare substance that needs to be avoided. It is important to understand the facts behind silicone and why unnecessary negative messaging has cropped up around it. 

SILICONE’S BEAUTY HISTORY

Silicone can come in many forms in the beauty industry. Four of ten products introduced in the 1990s included silicone in the formula. Since then, silica has received growing acceptance in dozens of personal care products. Many shampoos and beauty products include silicone. In shampoos, silicone smooths, detangles, and adds volume to hair. In skin products, it locks in moisture, soothes wounds, and smooths skin. 

There are contraindications to silicone use. For example, those with acne-prone skin can be more sensitive to the occlusive nature of silicone, but according to Medical News Today, “The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel concluded that silicone in skin care products, such as moisturizers and patches, is safe. Forms of silicone, such as dimethicone, do not interact with the epidermis, the upper layer of skin, and are therefore unlikely to penetrate the skin barrier.” Even in more invasive procedures, countless people retain silicone breast implants for decades with no problems. Of course, there is the odd complication, as there can be with any treatment, but complications tend to be sensationalized in the press, fueling the “bad silicone” fiasco.  

Reference

1. “Silicone for Skin: Uses, Benefits, Risks, and More.” Medical News Today. Accessed February 20, 2024. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/silicone-for-skin#safety. 

Re-establishing Homeostasis: The Aesthetic Management of Hyperproliferative Skin Disorders

The aesthetic manifestations of hyperproliferative skin disorders can be severely socially debilitating. Tune in to hear about the two most frequently observed conditions in this category, psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. This webinar will address the science behind each disorder’s altered or pathologically deviated epidermal homeostasis and the makeup of nonmelanoma skin cancers. Learn how to adjuvant the respective medical treatments with skin care solutions. By reestablishing skin homeostasis with novel aesthetic treatments, professionals can help clients rediscover confidence in their skin and themselves and enhance their quality of life.

MEET THE PRESENTERS

Dr. Jayant N. Lokhande, M.D.(Botanical Drugs) : MBA - Biotechnology is an expert in Botanical Drugs & Biotechnology Business Management. He has successfully strategized and formulated products for several cosmeceuticals, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and medical foods companies globally. He has significant clinical experience especially in using Botanical Drugs and Medical Foods for Complex and Chronic Diseases. His other professional interests are in Biodiversity Entrepreneurship, Bio prospecting, Medical Anthropology, Disease Reversal Therapeutics, and Ashtanga Yoga. He has special interest and practice in translating Yoga & Ayurveda Principles in Innovation, System & Technology Development. H has edited and authored 3 books so far and that are published by Taylor & Francis. He is currently working as Chief Scientific Officer at DMK Skincare and his responsibilities include Innovation and Product & Service End-User Education Developmen

DMK founder, Danné Montague-King, is a pioneer in his industry. He has seen the depths of depression associated with poorly functioning skin. In fact, his everlasting passion was born from his dissatisfaction with his own acne as a teenager. From not understanding the condition completely, to failed attempts from top United States dermatologists to cure his acne, Montague-King had to take things into his own hands and, desperate for a cure, became his own guinea pig. A string of breakthroughs, trials, tribulations, and many travels would follow, until he found his first true breakthrough in the 1960s, involving vitamin C therapy. Thats all it took to spark what would be decades of developing successful treatments and products that would combine to form the iconic brand that is DMK – sold throughout 30 countries.

The incomparable Angela Bassett is no stranger to DMK. Throughout her career, she has benefitted from the restorative skin-tightening powers of DMK Enzyme Treatments and graciously allowed DMK therapists to post her skin health journey on social media. Her makeup artist D’Andre Michael, a genius in his own right, also uses DMK Cosmetics to enhance his clients’ natural beauty. DMK’s noncomedogenic products allow Michael to carefully highlight and sculpt Bassett into a masterpiece fit for any role or red-carpet look. Meanwhile, Bassett is free to focus on her acting, not her makeup, while DMK formulations stand up to harsh lighting, sweat, and long wear. 

Angela Bassett is a Yale University alumnus with a Bachelor of Arts in African American studies and an Master of Fine Arts from the Yale School of Drama. She is known for her crisp, powerful voice and elegant countenance, bringing fiery confidence and regality to any role. Bassett establishes herself as an iconic cornerstone of film and television, with a long and accomplished career – from her role in Spike Lee’s “Malcolm X” to portraying Tina Turner in “What's Love got to Do with It” to her recent forays in “American Horror Story” and the Black Panther series. She proves her undeniable talent and magnetism again and again.

We extend our congratulations to this accomplished actor, who recently won a Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Movie Award for her role in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” In addition, she is nominated for Best Supporting Actress in the upcoming 2023 Oscar race. Angela Bassett is one of this generation’s most powerful examples of perseverance and stands as a bastion of proud, black womanhood. She is DMK royalty, Hollywood royalty, and a queen in her own right.

Skin care is a balancing act. Skin care professionals must evaluate what skin lacks, what it produces in excess, and the appropriate combination of treatments to catalyze glowing equilibrium. The hiring process works the same way; business owners or managers must appraise their teams, decide what gaps to fill, and then hunt for the ideal candidate. The right person in the proper position can breathe new life into the workspace. The question is, how does one choose the right person? 

On the never-to-be-forgotten date September 11th, 2001, I was in Moscow, Russia, watching the twin towers go down on CNN. I continued my tri-country tour with all airports closed, including Ukraine and Germany. In Kyiv, the horror of what happened did not sink in until I stood in front of the vast Ukrainian audience of dermatologists and cosmetologs, as they are called. I burst into tears, and they all leaped to their feet with a resounding round of applause in support of the United States.,

The evening before, nestled in the Dnipro Hotel, the convention organizer, Sophia Rogal, called me to announce that many speakers from the United States and Europe had canceled flights and asked if I could replace them. A few local skin practitioners and I then ran the conference. I had to come up with five different lecture subjects appropriate to the original speakers’ formats and was on my feet for hours with an increasingly hoarse voice. The only other time this had happened was my first trip to China, when a group of native wellness practitioners would not let me get off the stage for three hours running. Needless to say, the DMK Booth in Kyiv was packed non-stop the entire day.

THE BEGINNING

This was the beginning of a long, familial relationship fraught with heartache and triumph. Dr. Andrey Sotnik was 23 years old, just out of medical school and into cosmetic surgery and other medical aesthetic practices, when he started working with us. His parents had a trauma center in Donetsk where they conducted many clinical tests on scar revision and other bad skin anomalies that gave us stunning before and after results that I had never dreamed possible in my 40-year career in skin revision. 

I was taken aback by how different their processes were. They were not interested in trendy ingredients, machines, or miracle breakthroughs prevalent in western marketing. After a time, I became aware that I had to be very upfront with them on everything I taught. They respected proper diagnostics, protocol, and home prescriptions, resulting in desirable results. When I expressed shock and surprise at their achievements based upon our concepts (products only being tools to achieve the results and not the main “show”), they were a little taken back, stating, “Nothing remarkable here; you gave us the protocol, the tools, and the concept. We just did the work.” This dedication and humility prompted me to always be truthful with them. If I did not know something when asked, I’d admit it, but I would try like hell to come up with a solution later!

This also led to my conclusion that rosacea was started by the presence of the microscopic demodex mite, bacterial and viral aspects appearing as another group of invaders coming to the party the parasites started.

We had inadvertently been “melting” the mites with our alkaline treatments for years and then built skin health back up, shrinking and strengthening the damaged capillaries without knowing why such aggressive treatments got such good results.

It was young Dr. Andrey Sotnik who asked me one afternoon, “Danné, what is a protocol for demodex? It is very common in Ukraine.”

I had never heard of demodex. After days of researching all kinds of dermatological textbooks, including a veterinarian tome, I finally came across demodex folliculitis, an animal to human parasite crossover and realized why we were getting such great rosacea results for years.

DR. SOTNIK

Dr. Sotnik went on to marry a childhood sweetheart, Dr. Yulia Borzykh, and the entire medical family continued to build their distribution and training – giving us even more case histories that were medically backed and used the proper equipment necessary to measure tangible results – something that would cost cosmetic companies here a fortune! In return, we supported them 100% with everything we had, including going on many lecture tours in Ukraine with my nephew, Drew Coleman and partner, Randy Larsen. The most difficult time during all of this was the Crimea attack. Eight years ago, I was asked to be the keynote speaker at a dermatological conference in Kyiv.

My European schedule was already overloaded, so I expressed energy deficits, claiming I would be so tired that I would be less than charismatic or influential when I arrived in Kyiv. I received a panicked call from Dr. Sotnik announcing that the Crimea section of Ukraine was under attack; they had to flee Donetsk and come to Kyiv. So many dermatologists thought about canceling on the conference, not knowing what the economic situation for the rest of Ukraine would be. I was told that advertising my personal appearance at the conference would offer credibility and get people to attend. So, I came.

The streets of Kyiv were full of soldiers. Guards were all over the hotel lobby. I went upstairs to my suite to unpack, looked out over the beautiful city of Kyiv, and nearly had a nervous breakdown!

The enormity of why I was there crushed down on me like a massive weight. I was not there to sell products. I was there as a figure of hope from the West, assuring all attendees that everything would be okay. The Ukrainian people are homogenous team players; people with heart who, under adverse circumstances, carry on with life as usual, working and helping one another as if everything were as it should be. They are still doing it today.

DEVASTATING CIRCUMSTANCES

Dr. Andrey Sotnik was assassinated in the streets of Kyiva few weeks later – gunned down while bringing his little son Leo a bag of pastries after work one night. We flew in the dead of winter for the funeral. The family asked me to officiate and do the eulogy.

As I stood there in subzero weather in that vast orthodox cathedral, gazing down at the body of my young protégé', my go-to Dermatologist whenever I needed real medical backup, my surrogate son, and my friend, I gazed out over the large crowd of friends and family waiting to hear what I had to say – I was overwhelmed and weighted down with lack of words to express the surreal events.

Due to the political winds and struggles, I cannot say anything more about this terrible event. But I can say that I begged Yulia, for the sake of their son, to overcome her grief as well as she could and become a superwoman for her company and the colleagues that depended on it. She did just that.

TODAY

Several days after the current attack on Ukraine, she sponsored and performed in a webinar for her accounts in Poland and the Czech Republic from her basement in Kyiv. Believe it or not, I recently heard some dermatologists are still doing skin revision treatments in areas that are not yet militarized.

I had only personally seen this one time before. Years ago, when Northern Ireland was in conflict, soldiers were creeping around the Belfast streets with carbines raised. Small tanks would greet us in the morning on our way to the Roberta Mecham Clinic on Lisbon Road. 

We had around eight clients on treatment beads undergoing enzyme treatments when a Marshall appeared yelling, “Clear these premises! There is a bomb scheduled to go off in an hour up the street!

The Irish therapists calmly pushed all the trolleys (It was then I noted they all had wheels.) out the back and into a pub yard down the alley. They calmly finished the treatments, the bomb did not blow, and when the all-clear sounded, the clients all got up, paid their bills, and left as if it were a typical day! The epitome of the old saying: “Do what you have to do!”

Whatever the outcome of this war is, by the time this is published, I am compelled to honor with all humility a people that express genuine commitment and passion to our industry – really changing people’s lives as their own lives change dramatically around them.

My skin care colleagues and team all over the planet have always been interested in expanding their services. By planning programs and gifts of beautiful skin promotions, they are able to take advantage of people’s “goodwill towards man” euphoria, the spirit of giving, New Years’ Eve appearances, and resolutions to start a new year fresh. This year especially, professionals can benefit from the approaching 2022 with confidence from outside-in messages that can overcome clients’ uncertainties brought about by the pandemic. 

Offers a quick and non-irritating method of removing dead cells and debris to improve the appearance of dull, coarse, or wrinkled skin. Micro Peel is a gentle exfoliant to eliminate dead cell material ideal for acne and congested skin. This is the perfect at home “preparing the canvas” treatment before applying DMK Cosmetics.
888-326-6348  https://www.dannemking.com/

Over the last 50 years, I have survived epidemics and plagues – but never a pandemic. There is, of course, a lot of conspiracy theories, finger pointing, and political flack that comes when a country undergoes a lockdown. Many small spas and start-up aestheticians have gone under, but many will re-open again.

Being responsible for around 7,000 spas globally, staffs’ families, and incomes hit me like a ton of bricks when I returned (safely) from Australia in March. Already I could sense the panic from the doctors and practitioners as country by country shut down.

 In addition to toilet paper, people in Ukraine and Russia were hoarding sugar, cereals, flour, and rice, as if a high carbohydrate and starch diet while wrapping oneself in toilet tissue would keep the virus at bay. This trend proves how the world is shrinking due to social media.

It was this very common denominator that gave me the idea that a catastrophe could be turned into an opportunity on many levels in the industry. I immediately did a series of videos for every country (using the power of the green screen) that were designed to inspire practitioners to use this downtime to not only upgrade their educations from home but, actually increase their income with retail sales, products shipped, or hand delivery.

One may wonder how all these professionals managed this, with Amazon and online products being so predominant. They managed this by simply being a professional.

Medical doctors have already been doing online consultations to shut-ins in their homes for a few years, and the trend is growing. I foresee an app that will take vitals and relay the information to the remote physician.

I think we will have similar apps in our field as well. There are a few already in a personal use virtual screen that can use old blacklight technology to diagnose the skin at home and keep a record of all the findings and recommendations.

For now, however, my tutorials depict practitioners alone in their homes or spas fully made up, in uniforms or laboratory coats on, hair back, and lighting as good as they can organize. (LED rings on Amazon are reasonably cheap and fantastic in making an individual appear alert and flawless.)

The skin care professional then sets their pre-booked appointments up by time, using their current client base. Portals are good for this, but Skype, Zoom, or FaceTime works as well.

 I prefer portals because they give me a range of movement and offer a better view for my client. From behind my desk, I can appear relaxed and diagnose the client as if they were sitting three feet away.

Have the client’s chart on the desk ready for notes and updates as they describe their concerns. Have them hold their cellphones up close to the areas of skin anomalies, such as melasmas, rashes, acne breakouts, or deep lines. This will seem awkward at first but eventually becomes easier with each client.

After, make the prognosis and detail the home use products you are going to “put them on” (not sell them). Explain the why and when of each product, what it is for, how is it synergistic with the other prescriptive, and when to apply. Offer a follow-up call when the products have arrived to walk them through the process.

There is a psychological bonding here – if you maintain a professional profile during the consultation. People tend to do what the doctor says, and in that case, even without a medical doctor behind the spa’s name, you are kind of the skin doctor to this isolated, lockdown client.

I have had several practitioners call me after presenting themselves in this fashion claiming their retail sales had gone up 50% more then what they made in their spas when they were open.

No surprise here – people tend to put more effort into retail sales when that is all they have to offer until spas are open once again.

No, it is not fair – but in the confusion of what this virus really is, a lot of ‘fairness” falls by the wayside as our country struggles to its feet again.

To a scientist, the virus is a puzzle in many ways. I have inside sources in China and other countries. I speak candidly with these scientists without the specter of politics looming over our heads inasmuch as viruses are now a permanent part of the world ever since Dolly the sheep was cloned, and the genomic blueprints of things have been permanently altered.

Many virologists in China and India have been studying viruses for a long time – seeking a way to modify them into some sort of bioengineered template that could be used as a upgraded vaccine program that would offset many other animal-to-human viruses in the future.

We will all get through this – if other companies start promoting online education and not just product knowledge. By reaching out to a stressed public in a highly professional manner, spas can not only reassure the client but instill confidence from the outside. Doing these things despite the downturns that may have happened, will create a business model that will be better than before.

Nature has considered this a reset – earth taking a big breath with less fluorocarbons in the atmosphere. (Look at recent satellite photos over major industrial countries; the ozone is coming back.) We can follow nature’s pathway and reset our thinking, businesses, and how to react with fellow human beings regardless of race, creeds, lifestyles, or genders from now on.

DMK founder – Danné Montague-King is a botanical scientist and cosmetic chemist who spent over 40 years researching and developing the Danné Method of Natural Pharmacology with decades of developing successful treatments and products that would combine to form the iconic brand that is DMK – sold throughout 30 countries.

Carefully crafted kit that includes three best-selling products:

• Maximum Moisture - A deep-penetrating body moisturizer, Maximum Moisture body lotion is a blend of ingredients that will not clog pores or leave a greasy film on the skin. Formulated with healthy skin oils, rich skin-loving lipids, allantoin to soothe and hydrate, as well as antioxidants, this product is excellent for dry or irritated, chapped, or sun-exposed skin. When used in conjunction with Hydra Louffa Body & Bath Wash, it is an effective and nourishing body treatment for very dry skin.

• Hydra Louffa – Newly improved formulation with caviar lime, lemon balm, wild cherry bark, along with a microbiome-friendly blend with green tea and coconut. A non-granular body gel designed to cleanse the skin and exfoliate dead skin cells. It is an excellent exfoliation formulation for dry skin, reactive skin and skin suffering from folliculitis. Used daily at home or in conjunction with DMK Body Treatments.

• Travel SPF 30 Sunscreen

1-888-326-6348  https://www.dannemking.com/

So much has been written about acne over the years, but the trauma and angst, particularly with boys growing into manhood with raging hormones is still very much a part of teenage acne today. Skin care professionals recognize that it is their duty to help clients with all sorts of skin conditions and acne is just one of those few.

Most facials end at the clavicle or bottom of the throat. The approach to “facials” used in the last four decades was bothersome. Traditionally, a facial seemed to be a cleanse, massage, mask, or machine mask (galvanic masks were very popular in the 1930s). A toner usually followed this and, finally, a nurturing cream was applied.

The variety of exotic creams applied in salons of that era – all the way to the 1960s – can be seen in many old films, like “Mrs. Skeffington” starring Bette Davis.
In fact, during those days, creams were not considered moisturizers. This came later in 1962, when a New York advertising firm coined the term moisturizer to sell beauty creams.
The many exotic creams that were used in salons by Pierre, André, or Ilona of Hungary were either lifting creams, whitening freckle creams, or wrinkle smoothing creams, all endowed with special ingredients known only to Pierre, André, or Ilona, usually passed down from a European grandmother.
But this idea of a facial was inconclusive and insufficient. It is important to look at everything on the client – from head to toe – even if they book for just a face treatment.
Looking at the body as a whole, professionals can find indications of the client’s real age via areas that are not subject to constant environmental attack or solar radiation. Often, other body areas are 10 or even 20 years younger in appearance. This can give an indication of how much work and time it will take to revise the defense systems of the face, backs of the hands, and neck that are constantly exposed.
Using this whole-body approach to skin care garnered laughs from seasoned European facialists back in the 1970s. But, today, this approach is accepted as logical.
Looking at other areas of a client’s skin, professionals can take notes and verbally mention things such as hyperpigmented hands, cellulite on thighs, and so forth. Besides getting a clear picture of the client’s physiology, doing so makes them aware that these areas can be treated. Many women do not think much can be done for aging hands, but drawing attention to these areas can begin to open a client’s mind for future appointments.
A professional, personal diagnostic approach to skin care is a more effective tool for adding body services to a menu than solo promotion and advertisement. When a therapist shows personal attention to areas of the body the client is concerned about – but seldom takes any steps to alleviate – a relationship begins in which the client is viewed as a whole and not just as a face.

Lymph System
The Dr. Vodder method of lymph drainage is a venerable approach to detoxification and pain management that has been offered in many hospitals and rehabilitation centers in Europe for many decades now.
A Scandinavian student of Dr. Emil Vodder proved that through applying an enzyme mask from the areola up to the forehead and focusing on the lymph axions, homeostasis takes place almost immediately in very sallow and toxic skin.
This, of course, can be achieved manually with an actual “Dr. Vodder Lymph Drainage,” but such a vast area is tedious and time consuming for the modern age professional. In this case, a 45-minute enzyme treatment can do the work. Using a stronger enzyme treatment on the body – especially on crepe and dimpled skin on the inner and outer thighs – after a thermogenic-based body sculpting wrap simulates the Dr. Vodder Method in those areas.

Body Sculpting
Body sculpting works with thermogenesis or pseudo heat. Toxic adipose fat cells can harden and clump together under the epidermis while normal adipose cells stay smooth and organized. Together, they give a dimpled orange peel look to the area.
The plastic body wrapping has no porosity, so the hot cream underneath keeps bouncing the pseudo heat in the transepidermal cream back and forth between the plastic and the skin. Having nowhere else to go, the heat gradually hydrolyzes the hardened toxic fat cells until they change to a more liquid state with the same configuration as the normal, smooth adipose fat cells, resulting in a more uniform, tighter skin appearance.
Using cryotherapy for puffy, swollen, water-filled cellulite pushes liquid away from the site, reducing the puffy look in this type of cellulite. Often, a combination of both cryotherapy and thermotherapy can change all categories of cellulite.
The body is one continuous, complex cell structure supported by a copious fascia, the largest organ of the body. What is going on below is an indication of what is going on up top – starting with the feet and all the sensory mechanisms associated with the feet. This may have been the genesis of reflexology by the ancient practitioners, as they noted that feet were relieved of constrictor and heavy cuticles, which also showed up in faces deeply lined with stress wrinkles and grooves where muscles were immobilized by constant pain.

Three Cleavage Treatments
Some clients may struggle with three cleavage lines in the decollate. This is due to a prolapse of the tissue from the clavicle down to the under-breast area and atrophied pectoris major muscles. In addition, these same clients often experience a “V”-shaped area of hyperpigmentation and defined melasmas that create an aged look.
No matter how many surgeries, fillers, and Botox injections this type of client may have received, a rattled decollate and spotty, chicken-skinned backs of hands are a dead giveaway of aging skin. Skin that has been compromised by environmental attack and weakened muscles is tugged at constantly by gravity. Is it possible to reverse these conditions? Yes. It takes time and compliance on behalf of the client with their homecare regimen.
It is also simple to extend treatments as far down as about a centimeter above the areola after applying treatment products to the face. This includes pre-exfoliation or full-blown resurfacing protocol in the case of using either acidic or alkaline removal systems. Getting off dead cuticle buildup opens the door, but is not the final treatment. Controlled injury to the skin to promote more collagen in such a vast area can backfire and lead to even more irritation, hyperpigmentation, and even chronic inflammation.
This is where body enzymes really shine. Hyperpigmented skin cells can gently, but firmly, be removed. With the extra circulation following this method, new oxygen from the lungs is rushed to the mitochondria of the skin cells.
A daily infusion of ingredients skin cells recognize – such as proteins, essential amino acids, and, of course, a full complement of antioxidants – can prevent further damage. In turn, skin will become more creamy, bouncy, and turgid.
For breast and buttock elevation, the pectoris muscles can be strengthened again with body enzymes that utilize thermogenic technology. The principle is rather like isometric exercises popular back in the era of fitness icon Jack LeLaine. This method forces the muscle to contract in on itself from entrance and exit points. Microcurrent can be used here as well to kickstart the muscle mass. After 30 minutes, more and more motor neurons are fired across the muscle in a synchronous motion, thus building up the muscle fibers.
The same procedure can be applied to the gluteus maximus and both areas will get a measurable lift that can be maintained over extended periods of time. Although results are notable after the first treatment, it usually takes four treatments for about once a week each month to get a discernable effect.

Bacne
Many men – particularly weight lifters on anabolic steroids – and teenagers suffer from acne on the back and chest areas. This can be full blown acne vulgaris or simple folliculitis that suddenly appears on the shoulders or upper arms. For women, this usually occurs after menopause.
With lowered estrogen, vellus, invisible hairs become more predominant and sebaceous glands become impacted and micro-encapsulated forming bumps.
An alkaline removal system desquamating all old and congested proteins in the skin, including superfluous hair, followed by getting the pH of the skin back to normal and a body enzyme, can restore all the functions of the skin.

Alkaline Removal System
Alkaline wash products are like playing the piano on the pH scale in that carefully maneuvering up and down the scales can produce harmonious results. Going down the scale to less than four acidifies the area being treated. Dead cells become brittle and break away from the underlying tissue, which is preferred in cases where dead cell removal is required.
But, going up the scale to a higher pH does the opposite. It softens everything within moments and desquamates dead cells, superfluous hair, the tissue that forms over pustules, and milia on acne clients. Often, pre-deposited fats loaded with P. acnes bacteria flood out of the skin
An alkaline wash must be timed exactly and controlled, which requires special training. Alkaline and acids can both burn the skin.
Alkaline is ideal for scar revision treatments and hyperpigmentation, as well as acne vulgaris.
Male bacne can be treated similarly but extra tools and treatments may be needed, including cuneiform scar revision. Compliance from the client is essential. Some men have hair on their chest. Alkaline procedures on the chest will temporarily remove that hair. The hair will grow back, although softer and a little weaker, but this is a small sacrifice to make for healthy chest skin that is not riddled with red and purple pustules, papules, or sebaceous cysts.

In summary, treating the body as an extension of the face can not only provide the client with even more confidence in their lifestyle, but can also increase profits by 50 percent
or more.
Of course, these advanced methods of resurfacing and rebuilding skin take in-depth training. Highly active products and precise protocols could do harm if performed by untrained hands.

DMK founder, Danné Montague-King, is a pioneer in his industry. He has seen the depths of depression associated with poorly functioning skin. In fact, his everlasting passion was born from his dissatisfaction with his own acne as a teenager. From not understanding the condition completely, to failed attempts from top United States dermatologists to cure his acne, Montague-King had to take things into his own hands and, desperate for a cure, became his own guinea pig. A string of breakthroughs, trials, tribulations, and many travels would follow, until he found his first true breakthrough in the 1960s, involving vitamin C therapy. That sparked what would be decades of developing successful treatments and products that would combine to form the iconic brand that is DMK – sold throughout 30 countries.

From sleeping on harsh cotton pillows to environmental exposure, the skin experiences daily assault that can impact the development of fine lines and wrinkles – sometimes prematurely. Still, all hope is not lost. Understanding these biological processes of the skin and knowing the best treatment options for defending the skin against these attacks can make all the difference.

When clients look in the mirror and see melasma and other forms of hyperpigmentation, lines radiating out from the corners of their eyes, a descending jaw line, and cheeks that are starting to look like they fell asleep on a chenille bedspread, they are not looking at their true biological age – that can be seen on the tissue surrounding the areola of the breast or the hind end. They are simply looking at skin trying to defend itself against solar damage and environmental surroundings.

BIOLOGICAL BREAKDOWN

From babyhood on, skin is smooth – naturally moist via the secretions from the sudoriferous and sebaceous glands – and the natural probiotic acid mantle is intact around the clock.

Live cells ascend to the epidermis every two weeks, while epidermal dead cells naturally exfoliate.

As time marches on, cell turnover takes longer and, as a defense mechanism, not all the dead cells exfoliate. In fact, more and more build up, kind of like armor plating, in an attempt to shield the new baby cells from environmental attack.

This can be thought of as “the redundant corneum,” meaning that people need a natural corneum but when they have more than is necessary for protection, skin starts to appear as dry and cracks with frequent facial movement, making fine lines appear.

Inside the skin, the matrix – that gel-like substance that gives skin that young, turgidity and bounce – starts to get thinner. The peripheral capillaries start to become congested at the bottom loop and less oxygen from the lungs makes it to the mitochondria – the battery pack in the eukaryotic cells that keeps the cell alive with the energy of ATP. They, then, start to malfunction and eventually die. The cell dies and fewer new, baby cells make it to an epidermis, while the dead ones just keep piling up!

At this point, the moisture-giving secretive glands become congested and smaller. The acid mantle is compromised, with a knock-on effect on the rest of the primary cell’s organelles, including the Golgi apparatus, where the “paint” that becomes melanin originates. Irregular pigmentation appears on the surface as melasma or age spots.

When this rapid aging process is viewed in the mirror, a subliminal stress signal is sent to the hypothalamus gland – the master gland. This signal is passed to the pituitary gland, which relays the message to the adrenal glands, which get all excited and babble the stress story to the testosterone, estrogen, and even the cortisol levels, which releases the adrenocorticotropic hormone into the blood stream. The entire endocrine system goes out of whack, homeostasis in the intercellular fluids in the sub-dermis become unbalanced, and a person intrinsically and extrinsically shows rapid signs of aging – long before they should be looking older! Thus, one must remember, it is the skin on backsides and breasts which shows true biological age – except in the unlikely case that a person runs around nude in the sun daily.

Extrinsically, people add to the damage by sleeping on cotton pillows that grab the skin in one or two places all night long, or by pulling on certain areas of the face, such as pressing their hands up on the cheek with the fingers on the temples while concentrating, eating hunched over one’s plate, or just thinking for long periods of time. Think of all the time people spend with their hands on their faces!

SKIN SABOTAGERS

Sleeping on satin pillows may be a good idea to reduce stress on the face at night. They help keep skin smooth without the grab of cotton. Other factors that impact skin negatively include poor and non-compliant skin care and trying too many miracle products loaded with peptides, probiotics, retinols, mass doses of vitamins, and exotic, organic botanicals from the south of France.

While most of these raw materials or ingredients are biologically active and play a role in human tissue chemistry, they are often crammed together in products as buzz words or trends to sell products – with no thought of synergism, very small percentages, and plenty of inactive ingredients that make up the bulk of the product.

The epidermis becomes confused with these irregular assaults and puts up even more defense mechanisms while desperately looking for the chemistry it recognizes and needs to survive.

Further, to make matters worse, many still ignore proper sun care, despite the fact that the ozone layer is getting thinner, allowing more carcinogenic, radiant sun waves to come through. Too often, people think of sunscreen only after they have left the house on a cloudy day and the weather has turned sunny by noon. A great number of people assume that they need to apply sunscreen only at the beach or by the pool.

However, solar radiation leaks through clouds, bounces off windows of buildings, and bleeds through car windows. Many people notice one side of their face ages faster than the other. This is one reason why.

IDEAL TREATMENTS

So, what is the solution? What efforts can clients take to improve the health of skin that is attacked from so many angles?

Any type of non-inflammatory or invasive treatment will do at least something to eliminate the redundant cuticle buildup on the epidermis. This, however, is only step one, not the entire show, as many purveyors of peels would have consumers and professionals believe.

For decades, people have been peel crazy touting the blue peel, the green peel, TCA peels, Jessner peels, all-natural, organic peels, and of microdermabrasion.

These methods do remove dead cuticle at some level – often while being unnecessarily time-consuming – and make the professional appear expertly. Yet, peeling is just opening the door –cleaning away the debris in front of the door to get to the real work of helping the newer cells stay alive a little bit longer, with the essential amino acids and co-enzymes they need bringing fresher oxygen to the cells where it can be taken up by the mitochondria and converted to energy (ATP). This creates reverse osmosis, which can clean out cell debris and establish homeostasis within the intercellular matrix, allowing the tissue to do what it does best (with the right topical help) – rebuild itself without the constant focus of defending itself.

Skin is more like an egg, rather than an onion with many layers which can just be peeled off and – voila – new skin! No, there are basically two main layers: the epidermis, and its myriad of complex mechanisms and support systems, and everything else underneath, with cellular structures always shifting and changing configuration.

While by law professionals can only work on the epidermis and must avoid any products that could be systemic and arouse inflammation or deep infections, they can, using various modalities and transepidermal technology, influence the dermis, subcutaneous, and even the often ignored facia by utilizing the connective junctures in tissue, stimulating the ganglia to either be more active, kick starting languid circulatory systems, or put them into sleep mode, calming down couperose conditions that lead to chronic erythema.

They can also influence the immune response guards of the skin, the Langerhans cells and its long dendrites, with a macrophage (mouth) at the end of those tentacles that enable it to reach out, snatch, and destroy any invader of the skin that does not belong there.

The phrase “often ignored fascia” is used because it is never recognized as what it is. It is the largest organ in the body – much larger than the skin – and it was not deemed an organ by the medical community until very recently.

In the early days of surgery in the United Kingdom, surgeons, keen to open, expose, actually see, and catalog human organs, totally ignored the fascia, seeing it as a, dry, dusty unimportant covering of every organ of the body.

The fact is it lines the entire epidermis, has ganglia throughout, and allows skin to slide smoothly back and forth, powered by elastin fibers that act like rubber bands, snapping tissue back in place when the face stops moving. Microcurrent and LED have an influence on the fascia and its ganglia, as do radio frequency and pulsing electromagnetic waves.

Professionals are also able to help the epidermis manufacture collagen types one and three, topically. The other types, including collagen matting, must be addressed orally with at least 1,000 international units (IU) of vitamin C, high quality sea buckhorn, evening primrose oils, and gugglesterones.

Highly active sea buckthorn and evening primrose oils help to keep the intercellular matrix bouncy, thick, and viscous. It gets thinner with age, losing turgidity and bounce, which results in crepe-looking skin, which can be disheartening. Not all of that crepe is caused by loss of elastin
and collagen.

Two things stimulate collagen topically, despite the plethora of claims that accompany hundreds of ingredients: ascorbic acid and retinoids.

Ascorbic Acid

Combining both stable and unstable kinds of ascorbic acid is best for maximum product shelf life and bioactivity. The word unstable, to a chemist, is not a bad word – only to psychiatrists. Unstable co-enzymes are often the most powerful, but denature quickly when exposed to oxygen. Stabilized versions are modified to increase shelf life, thus sacrificing a bit of their original power. Using the strongest vitamin C that is unstable and surrounding it – like a corral fencing in a stallion – with the unstable types, ensures a longer-lasting, powerful co-enzyme.

The fibroblast cell is like a factory that produces two products: elastin and collagen. At the front door of the factory are the workers: the amino acid brothers, lysine, proline, and glycine. If the boss takes a day off, these guys will fall asleep on the job and no new collagen will be made for the person whose skin is sagging, with the old collagen fibers fraying and drying out with age and stress.

But, suddenly, the boss unexpectedly returns and yells, “get up you lazy bums; get to work!”
The brothers jump up, assemble the other chemicals needed, and place them onto the conveyor belt (a peptide). Tropocollagen is then formed (baby collagen) and, as it whizzes through the factory, other components are added.

Eventually, at the factory’s back door, the package is thrust out into the matrix, where it becomes strong, teenage-grade collagen and it swims up to support and elevate the old worn-down fibers, which will eventually be absorbed by the body.

This is a good representation of how skin firming takes place and why ascorbic acid or vitamin C – the boss of the factory – is vital to topical treatment.

Retinoids

Retinoids are also essential in skin re-building. Very complex and often misunderstood, retinoids, like a two-edged sword, can both destroy or help skin build itself by creating new fibroblast cells – the factories that produce collagen and elastin. The right combinations of retinoids can be safely keratolytic – they are a noninvasive, removal system.

The wrong combinations can be inflammatory, lead to hyperpigmentation problems, and even become toxic in the cells.

The pH Scale

Finding harmony on the pH scale is another must for the professional. Products are only tools; concepts are the real templates of true science. Good tools, however, are necessary in order to implement judgement calls when diagnosing skin conditions.

It may be necessary to lower the pH of the skin with various acids below pH 3.8 to harden the redundant corneum, allowing dead cells to become brittle and pop off the epidermis, without a lot of defense-triggering trauma. A little temporary erythema is acceptable at this point, but should not become reactionary over 24 hours. This door opening approach with acids, which hardens tissues, is best when dealing with solar damaged skin, greasy skin with thick cuticle buildup, or normal skin just beginning to show signs of aging.

Acne-prone skin with a lot of near-invisible, vellus hair, accompanied by pustules (papules of cyst-like acne), are served better by going up the pH scale with a very alkaline solution, around pH 12.
Anything under 12 can promote bad organisms, such as gram positive and negative bacteria. pH 12 immediately desquamates all protein-based things, including redundant skin cells, sebaceous glands impacted by congested hair follicles, hypotrophic scar tissue, cuneiform scar tissue, and, in the case of rosacea, the intrepid microscopic demodex mites living in the follicle and breeding! Everything is gone within four minutes.

Some severe cases need more time, but timing is essential to this treatment, as well as keeping the solution moist. Dried alkaline can burn as easily as very low pH acids, so special training is in order here. When the desired effects are achieved, the skin must be neutralized and immediately restored to a normal pH to avoid unnecessary reactions.

There are other door openers that are useful for people who are reactionary to rapid and intense pH factors.

Topical Treatments

Old fashioned enzymes, such as papain, pancreatin, and bromelain, are good at chomping up dead cells on heated skin. Using these three enzymes, with as little filler as possible to maximize their macrophage action, may be effective. But, contraindications, such as swollen eyes and lips and itching nostrils, can and do occur unless special training is adhered to.

Solutions containing gluconic acid, with other ingredients as precursors, are good at dissolving the glue holding dead cells together on the epidermis. Seemingly innocuous and mild, these solutions can be very powerful and, with overuse, can lead to inflamed and irritated skin – especially on the forehead, nasal labial folds, and nose. Hygroscopic alpha hydroxy acid can pull available moisture from the skin up into the corneum, which resemble tiny dried out sponges. The sponges can over-fill, blow up like balloons, and pop, with the fragments detaching from the underlying newer cells.

In conclusion, topical treatments can work if approached using a “remove, rebuild, protect, and maintain (client compliance at home)” perspective. Life-altering results can be achieved that go far beyond medical aesthetics and, yet, work very well with fillers, Botox, and cosmetic or reconstructive surgery.

Using combinations like this requires turning to nature and sticking to the basics. Professionals can only work with what is already there.

Undermining topical treatments as being less important and efficacious than medical procedures is wrong and, indeed, a dying concept, as more advanced education is being promoted in the United States and around the world.

Ultimately, a face lift just removes excess tissue. It does not give a client new skin, new pigmentation, or cellular homeostasis. Best results can only be achieved when professionals work hand in hand with their clients.

DMK founder, Danné Montague-King, is a pioneer in his industry. He has seen the depths of depression associated with poorly functioning skin. In fact, his everlasting passion was born from his dissatisfaction with his own acne as a teenager. From not understanding the condition completely, to failed attempts from top United States dermatologists to cure his acne, Montague-King had to take things into his own hands and, desperate for a cure, became his own guinea pig. A string of breakthroughs, trials, tribulations, and many travels would follow, until he found his first true breakthrough in the 1960s, involving vitamin C therapy. That is all it took to spark what would be decades of developing successful treatments and products that would combine to form the iconic brand that is DMK – sold throughout 30 countries.

What does the term “peel” actually mean? Find out which exfoliation treatments can be considered peels and learn the pros and cons of using medical versus alpha hydroxy acid peels,
alkaline treatments, scrubs, and more!

The word “peel” has been a primary catch phrase in the skin care industry for over 50 years. The suggestion has always been to peel off a layer of skin to “fix” the skin.

People are not, however, onions that can be peeled to solve skin problems! Another misnomer is “depth of peel.”
Anyone who has viewed a section of human skin under a microscope would know that humans basically have two layers. The epidermis and all its complexities and everything else underneath, which is always shifting and changing in configuration. There have been green peels, blue peels, bio peels, fruit sugar peels, volcanic rock peels, corn meal peels, and salt peels, each touting miracle benefits. Often, they are accompanied by before and after photographs that are too good to be true. In the quest for perfect skin, clients are regularly deceived.

What does the word peel really mean? It is important to start by having a look at what is being “peeled.” When clients look in the mirror at all the things that annoy them, such as hyperpigmentation, fine lines and wrinkles, loss of elasticity in tissue, and uneven skin tones, clients are looking at defense mechanisms of the skin. A person’s real age and skin condition are best reflected by the smoother, firmer, and less pigmented tissue on the buttocks and breasts.

Clothing offers protection from solar and other environmental damage, keeping those areas from accelerated aging and excess melanosome activity, while the face, hands, and decollate are exposed. The body desperately tries to defend the epidermis by building up redundant cuticle as an armor against free radicals. This dead cell barrier gets thicker and thicker over time, slowing down the duo-flow of sebaceous and sudoriferous secretions that make up the acid mantle (nature’s natural moisturizer); the skin appears dry and lined.

Then, this defensive skin signals trauma to the melanocyte and melanin does what it is meant to do; it rushes to the surface to protect against irritation, but in a spotty and uneven manner. Underneath, the subdermis slows down proliferation of new cell activity, Langerhans cells become weak, and even more invasion can attack the tissue with inflammation, bacterial assault, and even virus or mites. The rosacea-signaling demodex parasites start laying their eggs and putting pressure on the peripheral capillaries, resulting in couperose conditions.

All this defense activity has to be removed, but removal, or peeling, is only step one.

MECHANICAL AND CHEMICAL EXFOLIATION

Let’s start with the big guns – the old and dated medical peels and CO2 laser. Most TCA medical peels and CO2 were either phenol-acid based (95 percent) or trichloroacetic acid combined with the very caustic Croatian oil, as well as a few other tweaks, such as blue food coloring and lipids.

The procedures usually involve taping for three days after application, and applications of thymol iodide for several more days, resulting in a huge, swollen brown crust that is removed with Crisco, or other grease, and warm water cloths. Tighter skin becomes swollen with edema during the healing process. Also, the patient is left with no or very little pigmentation for life, a line of demarcation under the jaw, and a slightly plastic look for years afterward.

The modality is burning the epidermis, and while some may argue that new collagen and stems are instigated in the process, these are defense mechanisms designed to heal a breach from a huge attack. This action throws off the natural, regulated rhythm of cell proliferation for a decade. The real story manifests a few years later when the elasticity and the texture of the skin starts to break down.

The CO2 laser does something similar, with a little more control. The difference is that laser vaporizes the epidermis.

ALPHA HYDROXY ACID PEELS

So much has been misunderstood about these very good tools in the hands of professionals. Since the days of the “acid reign” back in the late 1980s – when companies all over the globe were rushing acid into the hands of anyone who would buy – the industry has finally slowed down and learned to respect this medium and use it as a professional tool, when needed.

Basically, alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) are hygroscopic in nature. Thus, they were misconstrued in the beginning as a moisturizing peel. This acid works by drawing moisture into a dead cell, swelling it up until it bursts into fragments, detaching from the newer epidermis underneath. By virtue of the low pH level, they also initially harden keratin, which helps with underlying epidermal detachment and bond breaking. Overuse eventually dehydrates the skin, but professionals can combat transepidermal water loss (TEWL) with hydration-based treatments and products after the application.

Beta hydroxy acids (BHAs) are not really a sister product, as many assume. They can go down into pores and are very good for acneic treatments. Salicylic acid is at the top of this category, and combinations that are sensibly blended do work very well.

ACIDS VERSUS ALKALINE

When it comes to mechanical exfoliants, including microdermabrasion, some professionals find that four minutes of an alkaline treatment can remove more dead cells than two days of microdermabrasion. However, other professionals prefer this method. 

Acids, which have a pH level under four, harden protein structures, such as dead cells. Pathologists have been preserving human specimens in laboratories in acid formaldehyde for decades. In skin care, these hardened cells become brittle and break away from the skin. Phenol acid, an old-fashioned ingredient, was very efficient in this function and had the unique property of inhibiting melanin and being very antiseptic, at low percentages. Unfortunately, this is now forbidden in the European Union, along with a good deal of many other effective ingredients, making it difficult for international companies. Chemical exfoliation is mainly about pH, with the exception of the added hygroscopic nature of AHAs.

Alkalines, which are on the other end of the spectrum and have a pH level of 12, desquamate everything that is either protein or lipid in formation, including dead cells, pustules, pimples, papules, and the tops of cysts. They also soften and erode hair follicles involved in folliculitis and the copious, villus hair involved in acne cases. As a major door opener, by desquamating nearly everything, alkaline-based treatments are highly effective in scar removal and defined pigmentation such as melasma or chloasma. However, one must not consider alkalizing as a peel and it is not recommended, nor should be addressed, as a primary treatment by itself.

Like very low acids, alkaline tools must be monitored and watched with trained eyes. Timing and keeping a moist base are essential, as well as restoring the skin to a normal PH level immediately after 

treatment.

SCRUBS AND OTHER MECHANICAL
REMOVAL SYSTEMS

Hard granule scrubs often consist of microbeads made of jojoba and other oils, volcanic granules, and salts. Some microspheres dissolve with body heat after 35 seconds of gentle rotary scrubbing in the nose, forehead, and cheek areas. This essentially starts to break up excess corneum. However, prolonged scrubbing is irritating to the epidermis.

Using hot towels is the key to any scrubbing exfoliation. Additionally, pre-dissolving the dried out hard lipids trapped (sometimes for months) at the fulcrum-shaped bottom of a clogged pore increases treatment success.

Pores do not really open and close when confronted with hot and cold water. Thermal heat can pre-soften the old lipids in the pore and arouse respiration (which becomes perspiration) and the fats are flushed out, proving they are not blocked by the excess cuticle barrier. Think of taking a stick of cold butter out of the fridge and putting it on a hot stove. It changes its shape and becomes fluid and moveable. The scrub or pre-exfoliant gets rid of the dead cell build-up, blocking the pore. As a result, there is a clean evacuation that may not even need extracting.

Artificial scrubbing granules or mineral types, such as volcanic microsphere, are not water soluble, so they are not considered environmentally-friendly. Mineral makeup molecules are 3 million microns in size, much smaller than the opening of a pore. Imagine throwing a rock into the mouth of a cave. Eventually the cave will fill up and the opening will be blocked. Non-water-soluble granules can clog drains, leading to bacteria breeding.

When choosing a method of exfoliation, professionals must be careful about what they consider to be a peel. At the end of the day, all forms of treatment – from medical peels to alkaline treatments – are not the same; they all have their strengths and weaknesses. It is up to the professional to become educated on the benefits and downfalls of each and be careful in the selection process.

DMK founder, Danné Montague-King, is a pioneer in his industry. He has seen the depths of depression associated with poorly functioning skin. In fact, his everlasting passion was born from his dissatisfaction with his own acne as a teenager. Not understanding the condition completely, and after failed attempts from top United States dermatologists to cure his acne, Montague-King took things into his own hands and desperate for a cure, became his own guinea pig. A string of breakthroughs, trials, and tribulations, and many travels would follow, until he found his first true breakthrough in the 1960s involving vitamin C therapy. That’s all it took to spark what would be decades of developing successful treatments and products that would combine to form the iconic brand that is DMK – sold throughout 30 countries.