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Q & A with Dr. Neal Schultz, host of DermTV
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Dr. Neal Schultz
Dr. Neal Schultz is a renowned dermatologist with over 30 years of experience. He is the host of the internets first daily skin care video show, DermTV. Dr. Schultz has answered some common skincare questions and some anwers might surprise you!
Gabrielle: What is/are the common misconception(s) about skin?
· You have to live with Acne there is nothing you can do about it: Today we have a very very strong and broad range of topical and internal treatments that can meaningfully improve and usually cure most cases of Acne. People should not be intimidated by this curable problem.
· If putting a little of this skin care product will be helpful, then putting more on will be more helpful: That is a very common mistake because people believe that if a little is good then more is better. But in fact when it comes to skin care products, with the exception of only two (sunscreen and antibiotic ointment), “less is more” for many reasons. First, the additional quantity of product is only messy and serves no purpose since only the thinnest layer that is in contact with the skin is what performs the function of the product. Second, the extra product can actually clog the pores; and third, the extra product can interfere with the function of any other products, which are being layered either underneath or on top of it.
· Sunscreen should be applied on top of moisturizer and make-up because for it to work it needs to be closer to the sun: It is just the opposite, for sunscreen to work it needs to be in direct contact with the skin whether it’s chemical sunscreens or chemical-free sunscreens. See DermTV episode #8 MOST COMMON MISTAKE WHEN APPLYING SUNSCREEN (MAY 20) and “Does Doubling Sunscreen SPF Double Protection” .
GC: There are men and women who walk around with absolutely flawless complexions. Does the appearance of skin always reflect on its true health?
DS: The appearance of skin often does reflect its true health because an even-colored, bright, lustrous complexion tells you a lot. The even color means that there is a significant LACK of sun damage because of the absence of brown spots and broken capillaries. A bright, lustrous complexion means that the cells of the skin are healthy and growing, maturing and falling off in their pre-programmed normal healthy fashion; therefore, they do not accumulate in tiny little mounds on the skin, which makes the skin look tired, dull , matte and even look worse with makeup.
GC: What is the true age that women should start being concerned with their skin (maturing wide)?
DS: The question is not at what age women should start being concerned with their skin because the only way to prematurely wrinkle and stain the skin is to expose it to the sun without sunscreen and the damage that results from the sun, while it can be construed as mature aging of the skin, really starts in childhood. There is no better way to treat problems than to prevent them and most of them can be prevented with an early start with sunscreen during childhood. Once we’re past the sunscreen issue, then in the twenties it is time to think about actively treating the skin with products that treat fine lines and wrinkles (which you cannot see yet but are already forming at an embryonic stage) because that will help prevent or at least delay their emergence in the forties and fifties. The products to use are products that contain glycolic and/or peptides because both can help build collagen, the absence of which in your 30's and later is a major cause of lines and wrinkles.
GC: Some people say chocolate doesn’t negatively effect your skin, and other say fruits and veggies do wonders for your skin. What’s up with that?
DS: The results of statistically valid studies of the allegedly “forbidden foods” which supposedly cause acne, such as chocolate, fried foods, nuts, caffeine, cola, pizza, etc. indicate that there is not a statistical relationship between these foods and acne breakouts. However, there are patients who repeatedly tell dermatologists that if they eat chocolate they breakout the next day, or if they eat pizza (or any of the other foods) they breakout the next day. Those people are describing a real cause and effect relationship for themselves, but for most people there is no relationship between those foods and breakouts. There is one exception, which is iodine and foods that are high in iodine such as shellfish (lobster, crabmeat, shrimp) and certain green vegetables like seaweed, spinach and kelp all of which have very high iodine contents can cause acne on a cumulative basis. That means that you have to eat them for a long time and accumulate a lot of iodine before you start to see the breakouts from them, as opposed to a food like chocolate which when it does cause breakouts causes them within a day or two.
In terms of fruits and vegetables that are allegedly good for you and do "wonders for your skin," I would maintain consistently that any foods that are high in antioxidants are good for your skin. Of cours, that would include certain fruits, vegetables and don’t forget about the red wine. These high antioxidant content foods are healthy for your skin and help protect against many forms of damage to the skin (including Ultraviolet damage) but I don’t know if they do “wonders” for your skin in the sense that there is no short-term visible pay-off from these foods causing more lustrous or younger-looking skin. Eating these foods for healthier and better looking skin is appropriate, but is indeed a bit of "an act of faith."
GC: Is it possible to see ‘immediate results’ from a product that claims to offer them?
DS: The only products from which it is possible to see “immediate results” are products that either camouflage defects (make-up) or some of the “plumpers” which work by drawing fluid into fine lines and wrinkles to make them swell and thereby temporarily disappear for a few hours. To see a meaningful result from most products other then acne products, it usually takes two to three weeks. See dermTV.com episode : How Long Does a Skincare Regimen Take to Work.
GC: What is the real cause of dark circles? Why do some children have them at such a young age?
DS: Dark circles below the eyes are caused by seven different things which can be broken down into three categories:
· Brown pigment which occurs either on the surface of the skin or under the surface of the skin as a result of injury to the skin – usually from the sun.
· Blue, Purple, and Red colors that are caused by enlarged blood vessels of different sizes and depths.
· Dark shadows that are caused by light hitting irregular surfaces on the skin below the eyes like wrinkles and bulges. In children the dark circles are always caused by (B) blue or purple discoloration from normal enlarged blood vessels under the skin and is particularly noticeable in kids because of their this skin.. In adults they are treated with lasers but usually not in children.
GC: What is a never-fail trick to a healthy complexion?
DS: There are no never fail tricks for a healthy complexion but I believe the best regimen consists of daily use of sunscreen, Vitamin C based topical antioxidant, and gentle chemical exfoliants like glycolic. These are the three key ingredients that are necessary for everybody to have both healthier skin and younger looking skin. See dermTV.com segment: The Three Essential Daily Skincare Products.
GC: There are now SPF 70 sunscreeens. Do the effects stop at a certain SPF?
DS: The relationship between SPF and sun protection is not linear. SPF 15 gives you 88% protection while SPF 30 gives you 95% protection; SPF 45 gives you 98% protection and SPF 60 and above gives you 99% protection. I don’t really know, as a clinical dermatologist, the difference in protection afforded to patients by 95% versus 99% (going from SPF 30 to SPF 60 or higher), but I do know that as the SPF increases so often does the viscosity. If the viscosity increases and the sunscreen feels thick, sticky, or tacky on the skin people are not willing to reapply them. For sunscreens to work they need to be reapplied frequently. So, in my opinion, optimal SPF is between 15 and 30 which gives you 88% to 95% protection and you should chose one in which you like the way it feels when it goes on so there will be no resistance to frequent reapplication. This issue is discussed in two dermTV.com episodes; “How to Choose the Right Sunscreen” from Thursday May 28th, 2009 and from Tuesday May 19th, 2009.
GC: Are the chemicals in self-tanners harmful to your skin?
DS: The chemicals in self-tanners are not harmful to your skin and there is no healthier way to get a tan than with self-tanners. For them to work at their best your skin needs to be exfoliated regularly before hand since self-tanners work on the basis of staining the dead cells on your skin and regular exfoliation creates the most even layer of those target dead cells on your skin.
GC: What do you think the future holds for the developments in skin care technology?
DS: The future for developments in skin care technology will consist of finding vehicles to enhance penetration of topical ingredients, finding the elusive key of how to reduce redness in the skin with creams and lotions, and "tweaking" and improving peptide technology to help fight fine lines and wrinkles.
Don't forget to drop by Dr. Schultz's website www.DermTV.com !
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