“I’m tired of all this nonsense about beauty being only skin-deep. What do you want? An adorable pancreas?” — Jean Kerr, American author and playwright.

For me, beauty starts with my skin and..from the outside in, works its magic.  Beauty IS art, its ever-changing..and for me, while  its definitely in the eyes of the beholder, it all starts with ME.

When people say “You look good!”..I believe its because my skin looks glowing…at least on my face!  (although I’ve never asked..gee, why do you say that?  Just take the complement and run with it!)

But skin is the largest organ in our bodies by far…and the one that faces the world every day – imperfections, scales, dark circles and freckles and more…

And, now that I’m approaching menopause,  I can’t seem to drink enough water – 8 glasses a day is a real challenge.  So, I have a hard time believing  I’m hydrating my skin enough.

My big question is:  with skin being our largest organ,  do we reap the benefits of drinking water to reduce dryness on the outer layer?

There is alot of controversy on this point.  Many experts refute that drinking water will hydrate the outer layer, or epidermis of skin.   Basically the moisture level of skin is not determined by internal factors. Instead, it is external factors such as skin cleansing, the environment, the number of oil glands, and the functioning of these oil-producing glands that determines how dry the skin is or will become.

Since the water moves through the body system rather quickly, the best solution is to treat the skin from the outside with a suitable and dry skin moisturizer or dry skin lotion. This forms an effective barrier to water loss from the skin.

When choosing your moisturizer, it may take some trial and error to find the right one.   And, if you’re not getting the results you want, try a new one the next time:

1. Note the first five ingredients. Look for common active ingredients, such as lanolin, glycerin, or petrolatum.  Glycerin is less likely than lanolin to cause an allergic reaction, she says. Also, pick a moisturizer that’s made by a reputable company.

2. Go for added sunscreen. Protecting your skin from harmful sun damage is one of the best things you can do to keep your skin looking young, so buy a moisturizer with a sun protection factor of at least 30. You’ll have to do some searching, but more companies are offering face and body moisturizers with sunscreen

3. Make it skin-type appropriate. The skin on your face is thinner and more sensitive, so it’s a good idea to use a different moisturizer on your face than you do on your body. Of course, choose one that’s right for your skin type. If you know you have sensitive skin, it’s always a good idea to look for a moisturizer labeled hypoallergenic. If you have oily skin, go with a light, oil-free moisturizer. If you have dry skin, get something richer. And if you have combination skin, go with a lighter moisturizer for your whole face and dot drier areas with a heavier cream.

Keep in mind that you may need a lighter lotion in the summer, and a cream or ointment in the winter.

Consider using a moisturizer with retinol before bed. Retinol is vitamin A for your skin and it works by increasing the speed at which your skin cells turn over – similar to a lufra.  You can find it over the counter or by prescription, but use it carefully as it may cause a skin irritation, red skin, or dry skin.

To find out more, you’re invited to join our conversation with our skin health expert, Dr. Deborah Sarnoff, renowned dermatologist  and member of the Eucerin SkinFirst Council, about how to keep your skin healthy.   She’ll tell you why and how what you eat and drink, as well as exercise and stress all can have an impact.  You’re invited to join Kelley and Cassie on July 12th at 11:30 am here.

Join us and make your pledge to keep your skin looking great! Proceeds from your click here will benefit HealthyWomen.org.

Have you heard about Jenny Sanford’s new book “Staying True”?

Just recently, Jenny Sanford talks to the women on “The View”. Open communication can create opportunities for healing and understanding – even in the most difficult of situations. Jenny Sanford’s release of her new book highlights her journey in coming to terms with her husband’s affair with his mistress from Argentina. And, her ability not to be a “victim” turns out to be inspiring for many women.

Yet, many women have opinions about how Jenny Sanford got married in the first place as Mark wanted to get rid of the word “fidelity” in their vows.

What’s your opinion on this? Should she have married him despite his inability to say that he would be faithful in his marriage. As Jenny says, everyone has doubts about getting married:))

Better yet, what would you have done?

I asked one of our Real Women on Health! experts, Janis Spring, PhD, that same question as she is the author of the best-selling “After the Affair”. Janis said, “I haven’t read Jenny Sanford’s new book, but on the question, should you marry someone who wants to delete the idea of fidelity from your vows?”, I’d start with wanting to know the meaning of that partner’s objection. It may mean tons; it may mean little. After all, most people enter marriage swearing fidelity, but, often, end up having affairs. Other people question whether they can promise fidelity but stay true to their partner. I’d say, verbal promises and commitments provide no guarantee of fidelity but, while the wedding bells are still ringing, if one partner has serious doubts about the likelihood he’d/she’d stay faithful, I’d say the other partner who values fidelity should have as much discomfort with their willingness to tie the knot.”

Dr. Spring is a Diplomate in Clinical Psychology, a recipient of the Connecticut Psychological Association’s Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Practice of Psychology, and has served as a clinical supervisor in the Department of Psychology at Yale University. She received her B.A. from Brandeis University, magna cum laude, her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Connecticut, and her post-graduate training from Aaron Beck, M.D., at the Center for Cognitive Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania. In private practice for more than three decades, Dr. Spring is known for the richness and originality of her clinical skills and trains hundreds of therapists each year. She is a popular media guest on programs such as NPR, Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper 360, and the CBS Early Show, and she presents regularly at such public venues as The Smithsonian Institute, Harvard’s Continuing Education Conferences, Smith College School of Social Work, and Kripalu Institute. She and her husband live in Westport, Connecticut, and have four sons.

While everyone is talking about how you can make 2010 your best year ever, I invite you to restore yourself.

Why?

It’s hard to heed advice like “reinvent your life” when you’re exhausted from the holidays and anxious about yet another year ahead.  It’s overwhelming to feel that everything in your life could use a “change”. Consider restoration as a pathway to a state of health, soundness, or vigor.

As I choose restoration this year, I’ll share with you my one BIG tip to guide you on your own pathway to restoration:

B: Be open to making your first yoga class of the year (or your life!) the beginning of  restoration in your life.

Yoga can help you become open to restoration by helping you relax and gain clarity.  A regular practice has many health benefits that are proven – especially those that relate to stress management.

Need convincing?  If you’d like to know the health benefits of yoga, do some research beforehand.

I:  Invite a friend to a yoga class that you found particularly inspiring and beneficial in mind and/or body.   If the friend is resistant, let it go.  This is also part of yoga practice….acceptance.   There may be a better time later…or, perhaps someone else you can invite?

G:  Go to a yoga or mind/body event in the next two weeks to kick off 2010.   I’d like to invite you all (if you’re in the metro NYC area), to a restorative yoga class this Saturday, January 9th with Rita Trieger whom I met last year through Elements Yoga in Darien, Connecticut.

Rita Trieger is the founder and editor-in-chief of Fit Yoga magazine, as well as the author of Yoga Heals Your Back (Fairwinds, 2005), and Tranquil Mind, a meditation and yoga CD. A nationally known and sought after teacher, Rita incorporates many different traditions into her inspiring and challenging flow-style classes. She is also a certified Relax and Renew (restorative yoga) teacher as well as a Reiki practitioner. Rita lives, practices, and teaches yoga in New York City, and in Connecticut at Elements Yoga, Stamford Hospital’s Health and Fitness Institute and the Bennett Cancer Center. More recently, Rita has been hired as the stress management facilitator for the newly established Center for Integrative Medicine and Wellness, also at Stamford Hospital. Her dedicated students are truly a testament to her genuine, spirited style.

Check out Elements Yoga in Darien, CT for more information on new classes, workshops and retreats.  They have a really great retreat coming up in Jamaica in March 2010 you’ll want to find out about!

When I invited Lori and Sheryl to contribute to our Real Women on Health! community, I was struck by my naivite about talking to a loved one or friend who is coping with a cancer diagnosis.

But,  that’s no longer.

I was with  my dad when he was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia, a rare leukemia that is partially curable with Gleevec.  In last month since his diagnosis, I’ve struggled to find a way to talk to him about anything…without being overly concerned or too dismissive, too humorous and too serious.

I’m feeling like there’s no perfect way to talk to a loved one or friend and much guilt about my own apparent health…. at least for today.

So, it was with relief when Sheryl Kraft outreached to me to see how we could collaborate on an upcoming radio show on how to help a friend with cancer.  As a breast cancer survivor of many years and women’s health writer and advocate at HealthyWoman.org, Sheryl was enthusiastic about helping friends talk with their friends who might have just been diagnosed..or are in the throes of a long, active treatment cycle for any type of cancer.

Sheryl suggested we contact Lori Hope, Lung Cancer Survivor, and Author of “Help Me Live:  20 Things People with Cancer Want You to Know”.

Always the filmmaker, one of Lori’s first thoughts after being diagnosed with lung cancer was, “I should make a documentary about this.”   When her therapist urged her to deal with the disease first and worry about documenting her journey later, Lori dropped the idea. But soon after, when a well-meaning friend said something to Lori that made her extremely anxious, and when people continually asked her whether she had smoked, and regaled her with tragic stories about people who had died of lung cancer, she revised her thought somewhat: “Someone really ought to write a book about what people with cancer need others to know!”

About nine months later, Ten Speed Press publisher Kirsty Melville took Lori’s seminar on documentary production at Bay Area Video Coalition in San Francisco, and asked Lori whether she had ever considered writing a book. After several meetings, Help Me Live started to come to life.

Published by Celestial Arts, an imprint of Ten Speed Press, Help Me Live: 20 Things People with Cancer Want You to Know, tells intimate stories of words and actions that have made a tremendous difference to people with cancer. Designed to help caregivers, friends, and loved ones of cancer patients and survivors communicate more effectively and compassionately, Help Me Live does not prescribe behavior, but encourages compassion, respect, and listening.

Please join us on Thursday evening, November 19th at 8:30 pm EST for a 45 min conversation with Lori and Sheryl.  Come prepared to share your story, your own struggles and your own victories with us.

A recent New York Times article, “My Brain on Chemo, Alive and Alert”, held my feet to the fire to recognize the routines in my life I sometimes abhor.  Only good health affords us the priviledge of ignoring gratitude and bliss in favor of blurred images of how we spend our precious time here.

That’s why, when Marisa at HealthyWomen told me about Mary Beth Maida, a breast cancer survivor, and her book, “Beauty Pearls for Chemo Girls”, I knew I had to bring her story to you all.  Like Lisa Martinez says, “we are all survivors of breast cancer” since we know more women each year who are diagnosed with this condition, threatening to affect one in eight women over a lifetime.  That’s way too common but the good news is that more women are surviving today, based on earlier diagnosis and earlier, better treatments.

With that said, women’s health research shows and personal experience magnifies the fact that personal empowerment is absolutely key for women surviving breast cancer.   Enter Mary Beth and her partner Debbie Kiederer, a dynamic and passionate duo who have just launched Beauty Pearls for Chemo Girls – the first-ever community dedicated to women who want to look and feel their best while they deal with the side effects of cancer treatment.  They believe that every woman dealing with cancer deserves to look and feel as close to normal as her energy and her spirit will allow.

Marybeth Maida is a journalist and breast cancer survivor who has worked in television, film and web for more than 20 years. She is Chief Operating and Strategy Officer for Public News Service, an independent, state based network dedicated to producing news in the public interest; President of the Beauty Foundation for Women’s Cancer Care, and vice president of the Red Bank Borough Education Foundation. Marybeth lives in New Jersey with her husband and children.

Debbie Kiederer is a 25 year veteran of the retail cosmetics industry, a digital strategist, and Founder and Principal of ChalkDust Consulting. She is an executive board member of the Hunt Hill Farm Trust, Skitch Henderson’s Cultural Center; an advisory board member of the New Canaan YMCA Diving Parents’ Association; board member of the Beauty Foundation for Women’s Cancer Care, and a
member of Cosmetic Executive Woman (CEW) and the Metropolitan Executive and Professional
Registry. Debbie lives in New York with her husband and children.

Join us on September 26th at 9:30 am EST for our on-line health salon and radio show “Beauty Pearls for Chemo Girls” with Mary Beth and Debbie and bring your friends.   Support for our friends and our family members surviving breast cancer is what Real Women on Health! is all about!