Brad Pitt has Stopped Using Soap & Shampoo & So Have I

So, it's been in the news lately that Brad Pitt has Stopped Using Soap & Shampoo

My unwashed hair after 2 weeks.

Most articles and reports I've seen or heard have been silly gossip and ignorance, so don't bother looking for them.  But the fact is that we don't need all these chemical products we've been convinced to buy use, wash down the drain into our waterways and then dump the packaging into our landfills. Then buy more products to restore our skin & hair after the harm the cleansers did, wash down the drain into waterways, discard packaging into landfills, repeat. 

I've come to the conclusion that nearly every product in the skin & hair care aisle is there to treat a problem caused by some other product in the same aisle.  Not only do we not need them, they are bad for us.

Let Your Skin Function

As I've explained in my last post, your skin isn't dead leather & your sebum isn't dead grease. They are ecosystems for enzymes and other substances that play vital roles in skin function. Your sebum contains living cells that produce these substances. It protects and exfoliates. It inhibits DHT production which is a major factor in oily skin, acne and male pattern baldness.  It inhibits melatonin reducing hyperpigmentation, It produces retinoids & ceramides. All those things you pay big money for in moisturizers & creams. Ceramides & other lipids are also stripped away by cleansers.  Stripping your skin of all these things makes it hard for skin to function and causes the problems we then try to solve with more products.

I haven't used soap for anything but hand washing in about 2 years. Maybe 3. I didn't write it down. I am still constantly surprised by how soft my skin is and how much better it looks. And I get frequently comments on my lovely skin, which as a lifelong acne sufferer, always surprise me.  Sure, my skin is clear now, and it's not dry, flaky or wrinkled, but lovely? And comment worthy? That surprises me. (Reminder: No one looks as critically at your every flaw like you do! The don't even see those things you think are so horrible.) 

And before  you tell me how you have such oily skin this couldn't work for you, let me tell you, nobody has oilier skin and hair than I had. Nobody.  At least not back before my diet changes cleared my skin and made it just a bit on the oily side.

Now, not only do I not smell, I've had people ask me what perfume I was wearing.  And I don't wear perfume.  Perfumes give me headaches or make me nauseous. Sometimes both.  I use only a bit of oil and aloe vera for daily topical treatments. The only thing she could have been smelling was my hair conditioner I was using at that time, which couldn't possibly compete with a foul body odor if I had one. 

Which brings me to my next stage. No Shampoo.

My No Shampoo Story: Let Sebum be your Conditioner

Same hair in the best selfie I could do.
I'm so not photogenic

I'm still working this one out so will probably keep updating.  But here goes.  Background: I have fine thick tangly long hair that really shows the grease. For most of my post adolescent life, I not only washed my hair daily, I washed it in the morning so it would stay 'clean' throughout the day.  The night before didn't cut it. However, I had over the last few years--since my diet changes--been washing every other day, then every third day although it varied how 'dirty' it was that third day. I've off and on done the conditioner only method in which you wash with a cheap, no silicone hair conditioner.  A couple of months ago, I started the No-Poo method of washing with a teaspoon of baking soda in water then conditioning with a diluted Apple Cider Vinegar rinse. That method was fine at first, but doing it every three days left the ends dry and unmaneagable. Also, vinegar is a grease cutter (great in the kitchen & the grill). It loosens oil from the scalp, and maybe breaks it down and deposits the residue on my hair.  Whatever. The result was that the hair on the back of my head felt waxy and stiff.  I've never liked stiff hair. I could try putting it only on the ends, but I wanted to restore the PH of my scalp.  The only time my hair looked nice was in the week after I colored my hair and used the conditioner the color came with. I could go a whole week without washing at that time and my hair just fell into place. I didn't even need a hair brush in the first several days.

But those weeks without washing got me thinking of going water only.  I'd started bathing my dog with water only as he has skin problems too and I didn't want to impair his skin function.  It works pretty well for him. It removes the doggy odor and left his fur feeling clean & soft. Plus it's a lot faster, getting this horrible punishment over with quicker and eliminating the risk of not getting all the soap rinsed out causing itchier skin.  I wanted that too.

So, 4 weeks ago, I stopped using the baking soda and have only done water only.  I first went two weeks without washing. And let me tell you, it gets bad. Just put your hair up and get through it, because it miraculously gets better. For me it was bad for a couple of days near the end of the week. Really waxy & greasy. but about day 6 I woke up with lovely hair. By lovely, I mean it's shiny. It has body, something I've never had. It's not flyaway or frizzy. It seems thicker. And it doesn't tangle and I have always had horribly tangly hair.  I don't need conditioner, yet it's manageable all the time. I can get out of bed and just comb into place with my fingers. Now, it's not what I used to call clean, but since I'd been washing every three days and being a bit oily on that third day, I've adjusted that perception.

Now, here's my problem.  After 2 weeks including a week of lovely hair, I washed water only & had to go through the whole thing again with the really bad greasy period. Now, I did wash with very hot water as it's winter, my bathroom is cold and my tile tub surround just radiates cold at me. I can't stop myself from turning the temperature up in the shower.  I'm considering the conditioner only wash. Or washing in tepid water in the sink or kneeling outside the tub with the sprayer. I'm hoping to wash water only once a week or whenever needed to remove airborne soils & smells without going through the greasy period.

However, today it's time to color my hair again. So that's my experiment for the next two weeks. To see how my hair responds to that. The conditioner only will have to be a couple of weeks from now. The goal is to wash water only once a week or whenever needed to remove airborne soils & smells without going through the greasy period. I'll keep you informed.

Linoleic acid is a vital component in normal sebum that does what it is supposed to: Protect the skin.

Your skin isn't a dead leather outer wrapping and your sebum isn't a layer of dead grease. Both are composed of active living cells that perform many vital functions.  Soaps, cleansers and topicals prevent them from functioning. 

Linoleic acid is a vital component in normal sebum that does what it is supposed to: Protect the skin.  

 Skin and sebum in people (and other animals) prone to acne and other skin problems have been found to be deficient in linoleic Acid. Sebum deficient in linoleic acid is hard and sticky and clogs pores. It looks greasy and has fewer protective and anti-inflammatory properties.

Key points:

• Acne and other problem prone skin (in people and animals) are lacking in linoleic acid.
  Linoleic acid is a component in the ceramides that make skin strong and impermeable and thus less easily ruptured and less sensitive to irritations.
• This deficiency can be changed with topical application.
• Grape seed and Safflower oil are over 70% linoleic acid.
• Linoleic Acid inhibits the enzymes that convert Testosterone to DHT. Both types. So it can help with hirsutism, hairloss and acne.
• Linoleic Acid is anti-inflammatory and protects the skin from UV damage.
• Linoleic Acid inhibits melatonin and thus fades hyperpigmentation.
• Linoleic acid is anti-microbial, as in anti P. Acnes blamed for acne formation.
• Linoleic acid deficiency causes an increase in interluekin -1a which is a factor inflammatory response.
• Tretinoin (Retin A & the like) alters the lipid profile improving the linoleic acid composition.
• Linoleic Acid improves the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) and retinoid X receptor (RXR) situation that regulates sebum production and hyperkeritinization/differenciation (and is what accutane affects)
• Increase formation of Lamellar granules that produce the enzymes involved in normal exfoliation. They also form the armor that makes your skin strong. Acne prone skin has been found to contain fewer lamellar granules.
• Thyroid hormones affects your lipid profile. One way that perhaps both hypo and hyperthyroid conditions affect acne.
• We don't necessarily have a dietary or systemic deficiency in linoleic acid. Just in the sebum and thus a topical application is the best course of action. This tendency is genetic.

Examples of skin problems affected by a deficiency in linoleic acid include acne, eczema, psoriasis, keratosis pilares, hypersensitivity to allergens, and dry itchy sensitive skin of all types--aka dermatitis. This applies to all mammals, such as your itchy pet dog.

Slaves to Sugar: History of Sugar article in National Geographic

Sugar Cane was first domesticated in Papau New Guinea 10,000 years ago.  It spread slowly reaching the Asian mainland around 1,000 BC.  By 500 AD it was being processed into white powder in India.  The Arabs perfected the technology and it was brought back to Europe by the British and French Crusaders. But so little trickled into Europe it was only consumed by the nobility and classified as a spice. And this was one of the spices they sought when Columbus and other explorers set off in search of a route to the East.  Columbus brought cane with him and thus the cultivation of sugar cane in the Caribbean. And the clearing of rainforests and the decimation of the native inhabitants.  And the slave trade, because growing and refining sugar cane is brutal work.   Throughout the Caribbean millions died in the fields and pressing houses or while trying to escape.  The Portuguese turned Brazil into an early boom colony with more than 100,000 slaves churning out tons of sugar.

On top of all this evil, there's the damage it does to your health.  Almost any of the major health conditions rampant today can be traced to the consumption of added sugar.  Because as more and more cane was planted, the price of the product fell. As the price fell, demand increased. Eventually, it became a staple for the middle class, and finally the poor. 

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/08/sugar/cohen-text

How to Eat Well for Skin and Health while Indulging a Little

So Gynneth Paltrow has been advising people on how she eats well, but indulges on favorite foods.  

The things is, it isn't tricky.  And I don't understand why people make it so hard that they need Gwynneth's advice.

 What you do is eat mostly very well. And occasionally indulge a little. 

See? It's no so hard. Eat mostly real, whole nutritiously dense anti-inflammatory foods, as I've mentioned over and over in past posts such as the two below.  You do that. And a few Oreos won't hurt you. Although, I'll bet as you start eating better and trying quality foods, you won't like those Oreos so much anymore.  They don't compare to quality chococolate.

An Anti-Inflammatory Diet for Clear (and Wrinkle Free) Skin

What To Do for Clear Skin: The Basics

Make Yourself Some Treats That are Good for your Skin

No need to avoid all treats. There are hundreds of ways you can make perfectly healthy alternatives to commercial boxed snacks or sugary traditional homemade recipes.

Here's a few to get your started. 

Perfectly Healthy Banana Cookies

The basic recipe calls for 2 ingredients, a couple of overripe bananas and a cup of quick cooking oats, place by the spoonful on a greased cookie sheet and bake just like other drop cookies.  But it's easy change it up.  Other than the first time, I've never actually followed that recipe. And actually, since I placed a dark chocolate chip in the center of each cookie, I didn't follow it then.  Most of the time now, I mix the bananas with dried coconut instead of or in addition to the oats,  and add ginger and dried fruit.  Whatever you do, add a little bit of sea salt. This really is essential to flavor.

Make good dark chocolate healthier:

Coconut, Seed and Nut Dark Chocolate Bark

Melting good low sugar dark chocolate with coconut, nuts and seeds to increase nutrients and lower the glycemic impact.  (Fats and fiber slow the absorption of sugars, always have some when indulging in dessert.)  I sprinkle a single not quite solid layer of chocolate on the bottom of silicone cake pan and microwave on half power for a minute at a time until pretty well melted.  Then sprinkle on coconut and  sprouted sunflower seeds, another of my staples, and usually raw cacao nibs. And a slight sprinkling of coarse sea salt. And stir it all in with a spoon. Then pop into the fridge to chill.  When solid, break into pieces.  The cacao nibs increases the cacao content of my already dark chocolate treat. If you want a sweeter treat, you can add some dried fruit. Another tip is to leave a whole in the center before microwaving as the chocolate in the center is liable to burn before the rest melts.

Better than Pie Sauteed Fruit

Slice and saute apples, peaches, pears or other fruit in a little butter, just until slightly soft. Don't overcook to retain nutrients.  Sprinkle with cinnamon or whatever spice you like with that fruit.  I like Chinese 5 Spice Powder with the peaches.  Sprinkle with chopped nuts if you like.

Frozen Bananas Taste Just Like Banana Ice Cream

You save your over ripe bananas in the freezer, right?  If not, you should be.

If you cut bananas in chunks before freezing, you can easily drop a few in your blender with some berries for berry flavored ice cream, cocoa for chocolate, vanilla, cinnamon, dark chocolate....

Living A Long And Healthy Life

Avoiding Glycation, Methylation, Oxidation and Inflammation are the Keys to a Long and Healthy Life

The evidence is strong that glycation is closely involved in most if not all degenerative diseases and in aging. Dealing with this and the three other '-ations' -- methylation, oxidation and inflammation- should be a priority for anyone concerned with living a fulfilling life with minimal illness.

The methylation is about gene expression and epigenetics.  Your genes don't control everything happening in your body. Your genetic expression does. And that can be changed by your diet and lifestyle.

To put it simply, Glycation is caused by sugars drifting around in your blood stream.  Every time you consume more sugar than your cells can take in, damage occurs.

Again, to put it simply, Oxidation is caused by free radicals from smoke, exhaust, pollution, stress, too much sunlight, prolonged extreme physical exertion (anyone running any marathons?) common topicals and pharmeceuticals like benzoyl peroxide.

And chronic inflammation is caused by all the above, other inflammatory foods and abdominal fat.  In addition to added sugar, hydrogenated and trans fats are examples of other inflammatory foods to avoid.  This means avoiding nearly all commercially baked goods as they nearly always contain crisco, margarine and the like, or are fried in oils that become trans fats at frying temperatures, or just plain shouldn't be consumed, period.  Vegetable oil and shortening doesn't come from vegetables, btw.

Studies into How Isotretinoin Clears Acne Reveal Dietary Impact on Biological Pathways that Lead to Acne

In addition to the many ways diet and lifestyle affects your acne by affecting the function of the various organs involved in managing hormones and inflammation: liver, gut, adrenals, thyroid, brain, etc.  There are some pathways and systems involved.  Both of the below are recent studies looking into how isotretinoin tends to clear acne.  Because they've been prescribing it to children for a couple of decades without really know what it does.

mTORC1 Signaling:

Dietary intervention in acne: Attenuation of increased mTORC1 signaling promoted by Western diet -1

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the endocrine signaling of Western diet, a fundamental environmental factor involved in the pathogenesis of epidemic acne. Western nutrition is characterized by high calorie uptake, high glycemic load, high fat and meat intake, as well as increased consumption of insulin- and IGF-1-level elevating dairy proteins. Metabolic signals of Western diet are sensed by the nutrient-sensitive kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), which integrates signals of cellular energy, growth factors (insulin, IGF-1) and protein-derived signals, predominantly leucine, provided in high amounts by milk proteins and meat...

It is conceivable that isotretinoin may downregulate mTORC1 in sebocytes by upregulation of nuclear levels of FoxO1.

Fox01 Deficiency

The role of transcription factor FoxO1 in the pathogenesis of acne vulgaris and the mode of isotretinoin action. 2

QuoteNuclear FoxO1 deficiency is the result of increased growth factor signaling with activated phosphoinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) and Akt kinase during growth hormone signaling of puberty and increased insulin/IGF-1 signaling due to consumption of insulinotropic milk/dairy products as well as hyperglycemic carbohydrates of Western diet.

Sources:
1- http://www.landesbioscience.com/journals/dermatoendocrinology/article/19828/?show_full_text=true  The full text of this study is available here.

2 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20930691