Month: March 2019

March 13, 2019 at 06:30PM by CWC You know those girls who post gorgeous #shelfies of their perfectly color coded skin-care products that support their 10-step beauty routines? Yeah, that’s not me. Props to them for having the patience for all those steps, but personally my skin-care routine has always been pretty simple (cleanse, tone, moisturize, with eye cream thrown on when I’m feelin’ fancy/when I remember). With my I’d-rather-be-sleeping-than-masking mindset, I’ve generally written off most skin-care trends as unnecessary additions to my streamlined regimen. But when multiple vials of hyaluronic acid appeared on my roommate’s side of our shared medicine cabinet, I’ll admit I was intrigued. She already has so. many. products, why did she clear out space for several versions of this particular serum? I did some research on the stuff, and I started to understand her obsession. Hyaluronic acid can hold 1,000 times its weight in water—so it’s arguably one of the most hydrating ingredients out there. All that hydration helps to plump up the skin, so it’s also heralded as a powerful anti-aging ingredient. Hyaluronic acid can hold 1,000 times its weight in water—so it’s arguably one of the most hydrating ingredients out there. Seemed pretty legit, so I decided to try out jane iredale’s new BeautyPrep Hyaluronic Serum, which has awesome (pronounceable) ingredients like hydrolyzed collagen, spirulina extract, witch hazel and two percent hyaluronic acid in its plant-heavy formula. When I chatted with the folks at jane iredale, they said the paraben- and phthalate-free serum should make my skin feel more

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March 13, 2019 at 02:02PM by CWC Sometimes nothing seems to help with headaches. You can chug all the water you want and sniff your entire collection of essential oils—and trust me, I have!—but that throbbing pain lingers. One of the best natural remedies for banishing a day-ruining headache is probably already hanging out in your refrigerator. Using ginger for headaches should come as no surprise—the root has been shown to help fight off bacterial infections, get rid of bad breath, and help cure upset stomachs— but the application is unusual. “Ginger’s anti-inflammatory properties can actually be more potent than a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID),” says Serena Goldstein, ND, a naturopathic doctor and hormone expert based in New York City. And there’s some research that backs this up: A small 2017 study found that powdered ginger worked as effectively as ibuprofen to manage pain and swelling in patients who had been treated for impacted molars. “And just like many migraine medications act by leaving more serotonin—our ‘happy hormone’—in our body, ginger does this as well.” To try the remedy at home, Dr. Goldstein recommends rubbing a paste made from fresh ginger root between your eyebrows or on your forehead. You can also get some relief by drinking it. “Boil fresh ginger root in hot water to make a tea for faster absorption or put ginger powder in a shot glass with a few ounces of water,” says Dr. Goldstein. “Most serotonin is made in the gut. And because ginger can help decrease nausea, gas,

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