One area of skin care that is often not well thought out is cleansing. During this process the skin can either be nourished or further damaged. Unfortunately, the later is more often the case.

The outermost layer of the skin is called the stratum corneum. It is often described as a "brick and mortar" layer due the flat shape of the cells that are divided by lipids that provide the "waterproof" barrier that protects us from the environment. When skin is cleansed with soaps, these lipids are dissolved and the protective structure of skin is compromised.

Today, there are new approaches to skin cleansing that protect the stratum corneum from damage and in addition augment the skin's health trophically. The addition of small molecule nutrients in the form of amino acids and vitamins support skin health. Lipid replacement using omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids allow for the enhancement of the "mortar" structure of the stratum corneum.

Cleansing should be trophic and gentle. The pH of any product used on the skin is critical especially at cleansing time. Products should be selected that have a pH below 7.0 and that are either pre-foamed or cleansing lotions. Traditional soaps, with their high pH values damage skin. As we get older, the recovery time for skin to overcome the high pH of a cleanser changes from hours to days.

I developed two products for skin cleansing that may be worthy of consideration. They are:

Remedy 4-IN-1 Body Cleanser
Remedy 4-IN-1 Cleansing Lotion

These products deliver vital nutrients and yet are extremely gentle on delicate or damaged skin. They are both pH balanced for skin. The attached charts provide additional information about cleansing and hopefully will give you enough information to encourage you to consider the use these products.

Darlene McCord, Ph.D.