Sunscreen in the snow?

Ah yes, the winter months are upon us yet again. By now most of us have packed the summer clothes and gear away till next season; but there's one important thing you need even in the winter time: SUNSCREEN.

Seems odd, doesn't it? We all tend to associate heat with how strong the sun's UVA & UVB (ultra violet A & ultraviolet B) rays are. On a very sunny, hot summer day we know to lather ourselves with sunscreen... But what about a day out on the slopes?

Tubing years ago I remember the attendant for the lift having a horrendous sunburn on his face. At the time it didn't make any sense to me and wondered how that could even happen. But it's more prevalent than you would think.

In the winter time, the sun's UVB rays are less potent, that much is certain, but the UVA rays are just as dangerous as in summer months. Also, you can receive these harmful rays from above and below you: the sun beams down from above you and reflects off the snow below you.

Sunscreen should be used year round, each day. I would doubt many of us can say that we do... I know I can't.

Wearing a sunscreen that protects against both UVA & UVB rays can help prevent cancer and skin aging. Also, wearing sun glasses can help prevent cataracts.





Important sun care tips for the winter:

--Use a sunscreen that protects against UVA & UVB rays. I like Coppertone products.

--Use a sunscreen with at least 30 SPF

--Reapply every few hours

--Your lips need care too, especially in the dry cold air. Wear a lip balm that contains at least 15 SPF. I like Burt's Bees lip products.

--Wear sun glasses


As always, treat sunburns appropriately and watch for any discolorations and/or changes in diameter and shape of any pre-existing moles & freckles. If you notice such changes, mention it to your doctor.

So now that you've got your sunscreen, get outside & have fun!

--Crystal




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Pouf; The Ultimate Exfoliant

I'm sure we have all hear of a "Pouf" before, right? A Bath pouf is a common household addition to a wash cloth and with good reason!

The mesh pouf available at your local Walmart, Walgreens, etc. is cheap and effective when it comes to exfoliation. Many women just exfoliate their faces using scrubs or little exfoliating pads, while they should also be exfoliating the rest of their bodies.

Exfoliating scrubs dead dead, excess oil and dirt off the skin so that new, fresh skin cells can emerge. It also unplugs pores, so bye-bye acne! By exfoliating, you lessen acne, and fine lines...not to mention being squeaky clean! Exfoliating will allow your skin to be soft and supple and oh-so healthy.

My Suggestions: For Dry Skin... Exfoliate lightly every other day. Apply a heavy moisturizer (body creams are heavier than body lotions) after you get out of the shower and the next morning after exfoliating. For skin that tends to be oily... Exfoliate gently every day. Apply a light moisturizer (such as Aloe) after you get out of the shower each day. For Combination Skin... Exfoliate very lightly each day, followed by a light to heavy moisturizer depending on how oily/dry your skin is.

Take Care,

Crystal

Hot Apple Cider; the health benefits.

When you first heat up Apple Cider, do you immediately think of it's benefits to you? Nope, I sure don't...until recently.

My entire family caught a viral form of bronchitis, which then turned into bacterial brochitis which then turned into pneumonia in 2/4 people who were sick. And how is it that I didn't contract this, as I kiss two out of four of those people about 50 times a day (my husband & daughter)?

One of the reasons I think is my avid drinking of Hot Apple Cider, and here is why.

With this viral form of bronchitis, I believe that my husband brought it home from work some how, it's the cold season and everyone has something it seems. This virus was passed through his nose or mouth and festered in his lungs. After a few days, it grew into a Bacterial infection, Bronchitis. Bronchitis is not a good thing, and can lead to pneumonia, like it did with my husband. Pneumonia is a result of the bronchitis worsening and infecting more of the lungs. Pneumonia or any bacterial infection will NOT just go away, antibiotics are needed, and strong ones when you have Pneumonia.

Now lets analyze Hot Apple Cider... Hot Apple Cider has a few elements here: 1) It is Hot 2) Apples are high in vitamins C, A, K and E and 3)Cinnamon has antibacterial and anti-oxidant properties. It is my opinion that if I had even had the virus in my mouth, the heat of the Apple Cider would have killed it, the vitamins from the Apples boosted my immune system and the cinnamon kept it away with its antibacterial and anti-oxidant properties. Very beneficial to the immune system it seems!

In conclusion, Hot Apple Cider proves to have quite a few health benefits, especially during cold season!

My suggestions: Drink 1-2 cups of Hot Apple Cider WITH cinnamon (either ground or stick) once a day. Beneficial to space the cups by about 8-12 hours to effectively kill an lurking viruses.

Take care,

Crystal

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Welcome to Nurse Mom!

Welcome to my newest blog, Nurse Mom! I'm sure we've all had to nurse our families back to health at some point, always being Nurse Mom, the super trooper! I know I certainly have! With my Nurse Mom blog I'm going to give others insights on how to stay healthy, my own research on certain foods, medications and products and learn something along the way!

Although I am not a health professional, I'm in the stages of becoming one. My goal in life is to become a Certified Nurse Midwife, but I have a long road ahead of me! None the less, I'm extremely interested in health, medicine & emerging science and hope I can share some of this information with you!

Nurse Mom was thought of after my entire household became very sick (2 with bacterial bronchitis & 2 with pneumonia!) and began racking my brain as to how it was possible that I was not sick. I then began my analysis of Hot Apple Cider, which will be my next post!

Until then, hug your family & stay warm!

--Crystal