Body Care

Body Care and Body Basics

As body and beauty care makes a brilliant endeavour to help beauty conscious generation of men and women to look good and feel good about one self. It gives information on the major categories of cosmetic products with emphasis on intended uses, generalities of formulations and an update on what is new.

Body Odour

The most obnoxious part about summer, apart from the heat, is undoubtedly the many body odours that irritate our olfactory senses. But contrary to popular belief, it is possible to keep body odour down without much hassle. Body odour must be one of the greatest antisocial epidemics of our times. It seems you cannot go anywhere on the underground, on a bus, along a busy shopping mall or into a pub without noticing that unpleasantly distinctive, acrid, penetrating and pungent stale sweat smell produced by human bodies, usually male.

Every region of the human body has a different odour; sometimes the odour is so distinctive so as to allow immediate identification of its origin. For instance, scalp and feet odours are easily recognised. If you think perspiration causes body odour, you are not wrong. But body odour is not dueto perspiration alone. Perspiration itself is essentially odourless when first secreted; the offending odour develops from the action of bacteria on the perspiration. These bacteria are present on everyone's skin and are most active in warm, moist surroundings. Hence, body odour is most likely to develop in areas of the body from which perspiration cannot evaporate easily, such as underarms.

However, bacteria do not make all perspiration odourous. There are sweat glands all over the skin. There are two types of sweat glands, eccrine glands and apocrine glands, which secrete different kinds of perspiration. Eccrine sweat glands are found all over the body surface. Their primary function is to aid in regulating body temperature. Heat, high humidity or nervous tension stimulates them to produce large amounts of a clear, salty sweat that cools the body as it evaporates. Eccrine sweat usually does not cause an odour problem. Body odour is related primarily to the sweat secreted by the apocrine glands and bacteria. These glands are concentrated in the underarm area (axilla), around the nipples and in the genital area.

There are three important factors in creating odours in your body.

The patterns and type of secretory glands on the skin surface.

The positioning of the skin itself-the armpits, for example, make it very difficult for sweat to evaporate and so produce a characteristic odour.

The concentration of bacteria: The skin's surface provides nutrients for the growth of bacteria.The number of bacteria are variable in different parts of the body being maximum in parts like the scalp, axilla, genital areas and the feet.

Controlling Body Odour

Bathe at least twice a day.

Hair can trap sweat and millions of germs. Remove the hair in your underarms and private parts regularly.

Wear clean, washed clothes every day.

Avoid synthetic wear because cotton is definitely cooler than synthetic.

Also avoid tight fitting clothes, they make the problem of sweating worse.

Avoid hot drinks and hot crowded places.

Regularly cleanse your body with medicated cleansers if possible.

Use deodorants every day, or even twice a day, if required. Use deodorants made by reputed companies.

If you sweat excessively,then you should use an antiperspirant on alternate days.

If after doing all this, you still have body odour, then you should check for other factors. There could be certain metabolic or hormonal disorders, infectious diseases, some drugs or even some foods such as garlic and onions which could be causing excessivebody odour. You may need to see a dermatologist to determine the root cause.

As earlier mentioned, it is important to moisturize your skin after your bathe and cleanse your face. The next chapter will tell you how to make effective use of moisturizers in your skin care routine.

Hair Care for Men

Hair care for men is similar to the basic hair care outlined above, e.g.,use a shampoo suitable for your air type. Men may, however, need to shampoo more frequently, even daily. If you need to shampoo every day, use a shampoo meant for dry hair.

Men also need to use a conditioner at least twice a week, preferably after each shampoo. If you use a hair dressing agent, the current trend is to use an oil-free one, which most companies have.

Dandruff shampoos can be harsh on the hair--especially ifyour hair has been chemically processed. So use them only when needed.

Normal Hair

It is shiny yet not greasy and fairly easy to manage.

It flies about a little a day after the set but it soon settles down and looks good for about a week.

Oily Hair

Looks good for a day or two after shampooing but then quickly becomes lifeless.

Groups of hair cling together in unattractive strands and the head feels dirty.

It often has the problem of dandruff.

Dry Hair

It is difficult to control dry hair after shampooing. Looks dull and has ends that are dry and split. Even just before shampooing the ends look dry.

The head too feels dry and sometimes itchy. Dry hair breaks of very easily.

Sometimes there are dry flakes of skin around the hair line.

Combination Hair

It is the combination of both greasy and dry hair.

It is usually fairly long and the hair nearest the head is greasy while the ends are dry.

After shampooing, the hair looks good except for the ends.

Ends look difficult to set smoothly, split and lighter in color than the roots.

But by the time hair needs shampooing again, ends look quite good.

Puffy Eyes Treatment - Get rid of puffy eyes

Puffy eyes is a very common skin or beauty problems, it can be curable. Fluids get trapped in the tissues under the eyes. Usually the eyes are puffiest when you awake. Puffy eyes can also be a sign of sinus and allergy problems. The skin around the eyes is very thin and is full of blood vessels which make it very sensitive. In cases where puffy eyes are severe and persistent or are accompanied by pain, discomfort, blurry vision, or other conditions, an optometrist should be contacted about the problem.

Causes of puffy eyes

Puffy eyes can be caused by many factors. Here is the list of some causes:

• Heredity
• Fluid retention such as due to changes in weather or hormone levels
• Allergies or dermatitis, especially if puffiness is accompanied by redness and itching.
• Late Nights and Stress. Yes, stress can wreck havoc on the eyes too.
• lack of sufficient sleep.

This can be caused by different factors such as too much sodium in a diet causing water retention, tossing and turning and not getting enough sleep, excessive drinking of alcohol, and others as well.

Symptoms of puffy eyes

• Swelling around the eyes
• Swollen, puffy eyelids
• Itching eyes
• Eye redness
• Inability to close or open the eyes

How to get right puffy eyes and home remedies to treat puffy eyes

Take a metal spoon and run it under cold water. Place the metal on the puffy area for at least 60 seconds.

Apply hemorrhoid cream (look for brands that contain ingredients of yeast and shark's liver oil) to the puffy area. Insiders have known for years that in just the way it gets the swelling out of that other area, it works the same way for the face.

Thin cucumber slices used as compresses over closed eyes will relieve sore, puffy eyes.

A black tea bag soaked in cold water on each eye for ten minutes will reduce swelling caused by fluid retention. Gently press from inner to outer corners to hasten drainage.

Avoid salty foods, which cause the under eye area (and the rest of your body) to hold fluid.

Elevate your head when you sleep, to keep fluid from settling around your eyes.

The following list is only a few of the remedies and may not work for everyone.

• Wash face with ice cold water
• Limit sodium intake
• Drink plenty of water to clean out your system
• Place two slices of cool cucumber on the eyes for several minutes
• Moisten two tea bags in cold water, chill them in the refrigerator and place them over closed eyelids for several minutes
• For allergy related puffy eyes, find out the item causing the allergic reaction and minimize its use; doctors may also provide medication in the form of shots or prescription drugs
• Soothing Eye creams with aloe and Vitamin E can be applied to the eyes