Vedaway Herbal and Ayurvedic Body Care Products.

FAIR SKIN CRAZE

2012-02-03T06:43:00.000-08:00

Everyone wants to be fair at least in India! Fair skin, fair & lovely, fair & young, fair & beautiful, fair forever, fair & handsome etc. etc. seems only white color skin or light skin has become symbol of beauty. And the markets are flooded with fairness or whitening products, associated with them are many advertisements bombarding us 24x7 with products for 'improving skin complexion'.

Cosmetics loaded with chemical bleaches are often used to achieve these temporary results, however this can be harmful. The trend is to become fair in one sitting of beauty treatment, products that will give instant glowing skin, radiance whitening and brightening. Regular use of these products may seem to be beneficial, but the moment you stop using these products, your skin becomes sensitive, shows signs of aging, and reverse effects such as darkening, sensitivity to sun, uneven skin tone, age spots etc.

One dangerous trend is, our city streets, markets, malls, are filled with so many beauty parlors, saloons, spa etc, some big some small, and the numbers are increasing. Many of which do not have trained staff, professional skin care experts or beautician. A license is needed to run a beauty parlor or saloon, but there is no license required to become a beautician and practice beauty treatments. Anybody can do a facial, or with little training can practice beauty treatments. One must be very careful as to who is judging your skin and how qualified he or she is. Recommendation from untrained beauticians
can be very harmful in long run.

To change the skin complexion given to us by nature and genes at birth is not possible. However the skin color can be improved or brightened by some efforts - daily care and protection. Herbal preparations & formulas can be of some help with regular use at least for 3 months. These formulas just help to remove tan & clear the skin by deep cleaning and toning. Helps remove uneven skin tone and nourishing and brightening the skin. But most important is protection. One cannot expect fair & bright skin going out in sun and exposing the skin to harsh sun, ultra violet rays, heat & pollution. A sun block is must. (Carrying an umbrella is also a smart option).

Beauty Through Herbs

2012-01-20T05:56:00.000-08:00

It is said that Nature is a great cosmetologist and chemist. All the ingredients required to beautify and maintain the skin, hair and health are available in the treasury of medicinal herbs provided by mother nature. Our ancestors had the art of using these medicinal herbs to enhance beauty. They had beautifully co-related 'health & beauty. But today we are moving away from these natural medicinal system and are willingly going under surgeon's knife or spend thousands on trying to achieve beauty through injections and interventions.

Skin is the mirror of health and reflection of good health means healthy skin. Skin becomes soft and shiny due to secretions of sebaceous glands, sweat glands maintain the body temperature and expel toxins. A mixture of both forms a protective covering called acid mantle. Balance of both is required for natural skin, if sebaceous glands secretes in excess the skin becomes more oily and pimple or acne prone and over stimulated sweat glands makes the skin rough. With excessive use of soap this balance is disturbed. Our skin today has to
face the environment, heat, dust, pollution, germs, stress etc so it is very important that we take care of the skin as part of our daily routine to maintain the health of face and to enhance beauty of the skin.

Traditionally face packs and masks are used to maintain facial skin, and Ubtan, oil massage, steam bath for the body. These treatments are classified in 3 categories in Ayurveda:

Doshaghna: the one which removes Dosha such as itching, inflammation, and other skin irritations.

Vishaghna: the one which removes poisons, toxins and

Varnya: the one that gives luster, glow and firm healthy skin.

Herbs like Aloevera, Orange peel (or any citurs peel ), Papaya has cleansing properties.

Amba Haldi( curcumma amanda), Neem, Basil, liquorice (Glycerrhiz glabra), Bavachi (Psoralea Corylifolia) are antiseptic

Ashvagandha, Ginseng, Nagarmotha (CyperusRotundus), Basil, liquorice are nutritive
Kachur sugandhi, Nagarmotha, Bavachi, Ambahaldi, Anantmu (Hemidesmus Indicus)l etc increases blood circulation

Sandalwood, vertivert, rose, lodhra, aloevera, red sandalwood, anantmul etc are also anti inflammatory

Ginseng, papaya, liquorice, manjishtha, rose, lodhra, anantmul are rejuvenating

Arjun, Harda, Triphala, manjishtha, neem (Azadirachta indica) are astrigent in nature

aloevera, rose, vertiveria geranium are moisturising

Amba haldi, cucumber, lemon, kachur sugandhi, aloevera, redsandalwood, tomatoes, anantmul are bleaching

Manjishtha (Rubia cordifolia), papaya, aloevera, ginseng, Nagarmotha etc are wrinkle control also.

Ayurveda & Cosmetics

2011-12-26T06:04:00.000-08:00

Apart from the medicinal properties, Ayurveda also has many benefits in skin, hair and body care. Plant extracts and natural substances have been formulated into cosmetic products, according to the Ayurvedic system, not only for the daily care of the skin and hair, but also for the treatment of many problems. One of the major benefits is that biologically active ingredients are easily absorbed into the deeper layers of the skin and influence it at the cellular level.

The plant extracts and natural substances have always been part of cosmetic products since ages. However, pure Ayurvedic cosmetics are without any chemical and can be used not only for the daily care of the skin and hair, but also for the treatment of many problems. Since biologically active ingredients are easily absorbed into the deeper layers of the skin and scalp they effectively influence and treat at cellular level. As discussed above, human body responds extremely well to natural substances, while it has an in-built resistance to synthetic ones. Though natural herbs have a mild effect, yet have powerful and specific healing properties. Similarly, Ayurveda uses natural fragrances of flower and herb extracts which helps calm the nerves and provide relaxation. There are thousands of products available in market and also over Internet claiming to be 'Ayurvedic Cosmetics' by their manufacturer but the fact is that majority of them contains harmful chemicals. Though there is no specific reference about Cosmetology in the Ayurveda, yet these products must follow on the basic principles of Ayurveda. These principles are:

- Ingredients used in Ayurvedic Cosmetics must be obtained naturally from vegetable sources like plants, fruits and herbs.

- Ayurvedic Cosmetics should contain herbs, extracts or essential oils only obtained through recognized traditional ayurvedic plants.

- No animal ingredients, mineral oils, pesticides, chemicals, or testing on animals is allowed.

- Artificial preservatives, fragrances or colors should not be used. Also, alcohol should not be included in manufacturing cosmetics.

HIDDEN DANGER IN YOUR HERBAL COSMETICS

2011-12-16T07:02:00.000-08:00

Many consumers don't realize the hidden dangers lurking in their so called 'herbal products'. As the labels do not specify exactly what ingredients has gone into the products. A cream or shampoo cannot be made of just herbs or herbal extracts, and in absence of requirement of any safety tests of cosmetic products, many different untested chemicals and low cost synthetic compounds derived from petroleum goes into the product making it as dangerous and chemical cocktail of allergies.

Phthalates, or phthalate esters, are a top hazard in fragrance mixtures. And these fragrances are mixed with essential oils to give natural look and added to the herbal products for long lasting fragrances. These are a group of chemical compounds that are mainly added to plastics to increase their flexibility. Phthalates can be absorbed through the skin or inhaled causing a wide range of health and reproductive problems.

In contrast, natural fragrance ingredients such as essentialoils are obtained entirely from plants. When properly prepared, they have not been associated with significant adverse reactions. However, the natural ingredients are more expensive than synthetic chemicals, resulting in fewer skin care product manufacturers using them.

Similarly use synthetic preservatives such as Parabens (propylparaben, ethylparaben and butyparaben), While they are broad spectrum preservatives, it has striking similarity to the hormone oestrogen. Parabens could be mistaken for oestrogen by the body and disrupt the endocrine system causing depression or cancer.

A shampoo without Sulphates (sodium laurel sulphare or sodium laureth sulphate - foaming agents made from sulfuric acid, monododecyle ester and sodium) is arguably been called one of the most dangerous ingredients in products today. Used up to 15% in essential cosmetics like bath gels, shampoos, is corrosive by nature. It can dry out skin by stripping the protective lipids from the surface of the skin, weakening the body's natural moisture regulation mechanisms. Eats away at the follicle causing hair loss.