Ever wondered which daily skincare habits have the most impact on keeping your skin youthful and vibrant? Which ingredients should you be looking for in your anti-aging product, and what's the real deal with retinol? Tune in to find out!

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Show Notes:

Guest: Lynne Wadsworth, Holistic Health Practitioner and Wellness Cooking Instructor

• Background: Experience with yo-yo dieting, sugar addiction, autoimmune disorders, and migraines. Resides in Florida, originally from England.

Skincare and Anti-Aging

• Natural and Non-Toxic Skincare: Emphasizes using products without harmful additives.

• Brands Mentioned: Rodan and Fields, Nu Skin (preferences vary based on budget).

• Moisturizing and Botanical Products: Importance of moisturizing and using botanical-based products.

• Retinoids and Skin Care: Advises caution with retinoids; suggests hydrating ingredients to balance effects.

• Exfoliation: Recommends gentle exfoliators or masks at least once a week.

Invasive Procedures

• Experiences with Fillers and Botox: Describes them as expensive with temporary effects, not worth the expenditure.

• Internal Health Impacting Skin: Stresses the importance of a healthy diet and lifestyle for good skin.

Diet and Lifestyle

• Antioxidants: Essential for immune support and improving skin appearance.

• Vitamin C: A good quality vitamin C serum for the face is beneficial.

• Stress Management: Highlights the importance of managing stress for skin health.

• Dietary Impact: Avoiding processed foods and sugar to prevent skin aging.

Sun Protection

• Importance of Sunscreen: Recommends non-toxic, fragrance-free sunscreens.

• Recommended Brands: Mad Hippie, Badger Balm, Luminance Skincare, Earth Mama.

Stress Management Techniques

• Breathing Exercises: Simple and quick stress relief method.

• Imagery Meditation: Visualizing a peaceful setting for immediate stress reduction.

• Physical Exercise: As a preventative measure for overall health.

Lynne Wadsworth's Guide

• "You Can Thrive Through Menopause and Add Joy to Your Life": A guide focusing on navigating menopause.

Key Takeaways:

Holistic Approach to Skincare: Emphasis on natural, non-toxic products and internal health for better skin.

1. Lifestyle Impacts Skin Health: Diet, hydration, and stress management play a crucial role in maintaining healthy skin.

2. Cost vs. Benefit of Invasive Procedures: Invasive skin treatments like Botox and fillers are expensive and offer only temporary results.

3. Importance of Sun Protection: Choosing the right type of sunscreen is critical for skin health.

4. Stress Management Techniques: Simple methods like breathing exercises and meditation can significantly impact skin health and overall well-being.

Transcript:

Welcome back to Better Than A Pill. Today I'm so excited to have Lynne Wadsworth in as a

guest, and she is the owner and founder of holistic health and wellness. She's a certified holistic

health practitioner and wellness cooking instructor. One of Lynne's areas of expertise involves

working perimenopause and menopause, and she firmly believes life can begin at 40. Which I

love and, and personally, Lynne had been a yo-yo dieter and sugar addict for many years, and

she also suffered from autoimmune disorders and severe migraines. She's from England, but

currently resides in Florida. So welcome, Lynne.

Thank you so much, Carrie. I appreciate that.

You're welcome. I'm so excited to have you here today and to talk about anti-aging and skin

care.

And I know this is an area that you know a lot about. And so I'm so excited to, to pick your brain

and, and, and learn as well. Um, and you know, there's so much out there and I know. As a

sufferer of an autoimmune disorder myself, I was told to stop using, um, makeups that had

toxins in them. So I thought that might be a good starting point as to what we can do, like what

brands out there can we, can we get non toxic makeup and, and kind of go, you know, start at

this point.

Yeah, I, I don't have specific brands myself that I use because I'm very good about going for

facials because I have been through the cosmetic route and, you know, it really, it, it's really a

waste of money because it doesn't last. So, currently where I get my. facials I've been buying,

um, from them. It's a natural product.

So there are several natural products that you can buy. You really can go into Dr. Google and

search for the best natural products. So I myself stay away from anything that's Um, got like

retinae in and although it's great, I've, I've done that route myself and then I look like I've got

flaky skin all over.

So I have found the best thing is just moisturizing, um, a really good moisturizer and yes, you

can use anti aging. I've got a few I use, I love and Rodan and Fields is one of those that, um,

that I love to buy tends to be a little bit expensive. So I'm always looking for alternatives because

as we age, you know, we may not have the income that we once had.

So that's why I'm, I don't really give specifics on what to buy because of budgetary

requirements. Play a huge role in that, but don't just go by what they're advertising with all this,

um, Retinol and all the latest fads. You want to look just like you do with your food. You want to

look at the labels and you really want to see what's on the label.

Because you don't want things that have got additives. That is, as you say, toxins. So you know,

you're looking for the least toxic. And you know, if you search Amazon, they bring up both kinds.

So you really want to search. And actually in one of my own podcasts, back in a couple of those

episodes, I've had people that talk about their preferred beauty products.

So it's really a matter of. So, so like, for example, toners, we think of toners, well, the lady that

does my face, she actually buys some rose hip, it's not an astringent, but it's like a, a toner,

that's non toxic, and she uses that, so it's not that you have to go to expensive places, you can,

uh, you know, I've got other people that swear by Clarins, but I haven't gone and looked at the

labels, of Clarence either.

And that's what you've got to do is go within your own budget, look and see what. You can

purchase something that isn't toxic. And you tell by, just like with food ingredients, what you can't

pronounce, you don't want in your body. It's the same with make, with makeup and solutions like

that. Right. So it sounds like, um, first off you're doing the facials, which is good, um, from the

aspect of maintaining the skin.

And then, um, I can understand there's a wide array of non toxic makeup brands to choose

from. And, and so, yes, it's going to depend on how much you can afford and what you can, you

know, you know, what's, what's important and so forth, but just curiously, so what do you use?

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I've been using it, and this is very interesting to me.

Um, you know, we used to be taught, um, cleanse, tone and nourish. Um, so my lady that does

mine says that we don't even have to do the toning bit anymore. I actually got mine. I go to the

dermatologist, I grab as many of them as Cetaphil is a good one for cleansing, it's a gentle

foamer, we're looking for something that's gentle, um, and something that might be like

botanicals.

So the one I'm buying, as I say, is from her. And I really can't even remember what the product

name is, but you've got something like, if you pull them up, you've got some anti-aging

botanicals. by Osea, but they're very expensive. They're like way over 100 for just a moisturizer.

So I had been using, as I say, rhodanum fields, because that's one that I like that works well on

my skin.

Um, So you really want, especially as we're aging, to make sure that you're getting the

moisturizer. So what I use is a moisturizer, and then I use, um, it's like an oil that locks in the

moisture, because I was finding that I, my, my face was so dry all the time, which is very unusual

for me. So, a good place to go is, um, the EWG website, um, they, they have a lot of foods, um, I

think you can find beauty products there, so then I do moisturize with that moisturizer in the,

In the evenings, I'm very bad at cleaning my face. But again, it's just like Cetaphil and the same

routine. If I think about it, I do put the Retin A on that I've got, but as I say, it's really drying on my

skin. Now, if you've got oily skin, Check with a dermatologist, but it's not really the optimal result,

because again, you're looking at something that's toxic.

Rodan and Fields has been great for me, and that's the one I personally use, if I'm not using the

one from, from my beautician. Okay. Yeah. So definitely check with a dermatologist. Um, you've

mentioned the rodent fields and then the EWG, is that correct, EWG website? They um, have

quite a bit about what's toxic and what isn't.

They have things like the clean 15 and the dirty dozen. It's the environmental health watch. They

tell you environmentally, what's good for you, what isn't. And it is, um, I believe just bhw. org.

See if they have anything on there. Um, and then I really, if I, when I've been looking, because

I'm looking for another one at the moment, because I don't want to pay the price that I have to

pay for the one I've got, um, I always use boots number seven, which we now have the number

seven line here in the U.

S. And another one, a good one that I've used is the Nu Skin, NUSKIN. I love their products too,

and they're natural. Mm. Thank you. And so when, when, when, um, looking at ingredients, are

there any key ingredients to look for for anti aging skincare products. Again, I go back to, um,

can you pronounce it? How many ingredients does it have?

You're looking for things that are like, as I say, botanical in nature. I, Also think about things like

essential oils. So I sell doTERRA myself and I know that they're perfectly good and clean in

what they do. And that's what we're looking for. But some of the old ones had things like lead.

formaldehyde or something that's formaldehyde releasing compounds that you can't even

pronounce. I can never pronounce this, butylated compounds that you'll find in moisturizers,

perfumes, lipsticks, um, parabens.

Of course, we know that that's toxic. You hear about it more with hair products, but, but it can

also be in, in your makeups. So, as I say, you're really looking for something that's got in there

that it's, it's like botanical based. Um, because remember that you're absorbing 60 percent of

what you're putting on your face.

So that's why if it's got toxic ingredients, you want to stay away from it. But certainly there's

phthalates as well. They're in a lot of them and a lot of them disrupt air. natural hormone

balancing. So you really want to be careful of what's in there. And a lot of them I know are kind

of fill-ins, and that's why I say if you look at the bottom of the ingredients, you'll often find them in

there.

Um, polyethylene glycols are another one that you can find. In the makeups and yeah, thank

you for sharing that and you mentioned, um, essential oils and essential oil, a company was

called doTERRA and then there's Young Living as well. Um, both of them are 98 percent um,

certified. So their makeups and their moisturizers are all very botanical based, right?

Yeah. And, you know, also just going back to ret, retinoids. Can you explain the role of retinoids

when it comes to anti-aging? A lot of people use them because, well, they've been, they've been

told that, um, it can really help. And it's not that you don't, that you want to. Put them out of your

routine for some people, they may be helpful.

Um, there is lots of research that shows that they actually reduce signs of aging like wrinkles,

fine lines, blemishes. And if you get one that's... that's gentle, then it can exfoliate the dead cells

of your skin, um, help fade dark spots, but they can also be harsh on the skin, so you want to

make sure that you don't have what they call synthetic dyes or, or fragrances in there, or what

they call, pro retinol.

So you'll see some of them that come back with things like hyaluronic acid, which we see

everywhere. So you want to have something that's got 1 percent or less of retinol. And then you

want to find a retinol product that's got lots of nourishing and hydrating ingredients. to balance

out what the retinol is doing for you.

So you really, you know, check with the dermatologist, see what you can come up with to get, if

you're looking for something over the counter though, that's the rule of thumb, look for

something for 1 percent or less, because it's very harsh on the skin. Now there is one thing I

didn't mention that, um, I had read somewhere fairly recently that you shouldn't be buying an

exfoliator for your skin.

So I checked with my Aesthetician and she's like, oh no, you really should be exfoliating. So you

want a gentle exfoliator or even a mask that you can use at least one time a week. But again,

you are looking for a gentle one. The one I use for mine is, of course, Rodan and Fields, nice

and gentle. New Skin has one as well.

That's really nice and gentle, as does doTERRA Essential oils. So again, you're looking for

those more botanical. Type of things. So it's not throwing out the window what you can get at

Target or somewhere like that. That's a cheaper option. Just be careful looking at your

ingredients. Sure. No, that makes sense.

Thank you. Thank you for all of that. And I'm just curious, what's your opinion on some of the

invasive procedures like the Botox or fillers or laser treatments? Are they worth it? So I have to

tell you, I probably tried all of them when I hit my fifties, mid fifties, and I saw the wrinkles and

we've been on several cruises and I thought, well, you know, I just try it.

And I have to tell you, in all honesty, It really doesn't help that much. It's a very temporary thing.

And the more you do it, the worse your skin looks. So I have done, um, like fillers around here

and my skin is very sensitive. And I knew my husband would be very mad with me if I spent the

money for doing that.

And I was working in the corporate world and I thought, well, I'm just going to go do it. I'm just

not going to tell him. Well, I went and had it done, and I came home, my daughter was visiting

us, and she said, Mom, what on earth have you done to your face? So my face was all bloated

and swollen. I was bruised for days, so it wasn't like I could get by with it.

Now I had one done after that, more locally, but that didn't happen to me because I had worn

them, I'm very sensitive. But it only lasts for such a small period of time, that it's, I mean, it's

expensive. Botox, I think, runs, for the amount of units you want in, for your eyes, is like six,

seven hundred dollars.

If you're looking at fillers, you're looking at a good thousand dollars. Because I realize Groupon

has these wonderful savings. But again, you have to be very careful where you go. So my

opinion is that it's really not worth the expenditure because it's a temporary fix. And when you're

looking for good, healthy skin, it all comes from inwardly coming out.

And an example of that would be, I had a migraine last week. And when I have migraines, my

go-to food is French fries. any kind of car because it helps my head get better. The next

morning, I'm looking at my face and I'm thinking, Oh my gosh, I look so dragged out, my eyes

were baggy, they were all wrinkled, my skin just looked dry and yucky to me.

And then I realized I'd eaten garbage the day before. So you know, over the years as I've taken

care of my insides, it's helped with the outside appearance of my skin. So, you know, with any.

Anything that you're doing. I would always tell people that really you've got to take care of this.

This is your temple.

You need to take care of it. You need to have healthy nourishing foods. Hydration is a huge part

of it. And as you know, the fitness thing, it plays such a huge role. You can't discount the healthy

lifestyle parts for having those anti aging benefits that you want. Absolutely. And thank you so

much for, for expressing that.

So yeah, so basically we really do need to address all of our lifestyle habits for better skin now.

And you know, antioxidants right there, aren't they helpful for the skin, right? If we get those into

our diet, yeah, they are very, very helpful. Antioxidants are not only going to help you with your

immune support, they're going to help you with the outward appearance, appearance again with

the skin.

Yes, and I don't discount because for years we would hear put vitamin C on your face and, you

know, people would kind of went out as, oh, that's old school thinking, but a good quality vitamin

C, um, for your face, a serum is a great, cheaper way. Again, make sure you've got one that's

good, Thank you Healthy ingredient based vitamin C, but there was a girl that I worked with and

she was in her 60s.

She'd been using vitamin C for years and years and she had the nicest skin. You could not tell,

you know, she looked like she was maybe 50. So don't discount some of those old remedies

that your mom might have told you about. Yeah, thank you. And that makes sense and getting

back to basics and reminding people about that.

And, also speaking of light style of stress and sleep, all those things. Absolutely make a huge,

huge difference. If we can learn to manage our stress because stress throws out your hormones

as you know it increases your cortisol and this is not doing any, anything healthy for your body

and for your aging process.

So if you can learn to manage your stress, um, you're probably 50 percent of the way there. It's

a huge part of it. Yeah. And, and in terms of diet, getting rid of things that are processed and,

and, and yeah. Yeah. Processed. And the biggest one is sugar. Sugar will age your skin quicker

than anything. Mm.

Oh, goodness. That's so good to know. I mean, I mean, there's so many negative side effects of

sugar, but it's affecting the skin. Yes. Um, so what do you think about it? Sun protection and, and

anti aging in the skin. Well, sun protection is very, very important. Um, I live in Florida. So, well, I

try to stay out of the sun as much as possible.

I learned earlier on that it was not my friend when I was going there, laying out in the sun,

getting this lovely tan all over. But, again, you've got to be careful of what kind of sunscreen,

most of them that we put on, and even the ones that you get at the dermatologist, you have to

be very careful. So...

Start looking for things, again, that are fragrance free because the fragrances hold a lot of, um,

what we want. And you can find some that are zinc free, what they call cruelty free vegan ones.

They're broad spectrum, um, sunscreens. They're safe, and the one that comes to mind, and

you'd have to look it up online, is Mad Hippie, MAD HIPPIE.

So that's a good natural one. You know, you're looking at what you see over the counter, and it's

really hard because there are so many of them. Filled with ingredients. So you've got a

luminance, since skincare, um, see there's badger balm that I've used in the past, even things

like there's an earth mama organic one.

So again, you have to look carefully because there's rows of them, especially in the summer in

the stores. Again you're looking for one that's usually got on the front of it that 's non toxic. Sure.

Yeah. No, thank you. And just curious. So like when we're talking about stress, what is your

favorite way to manage stress?

So my favorite way is Um, and I had to do this when I was suffering with my migraines daily.

This was a huge holistic practice. So breathing is one of the easiest, quickest things if you're

feeling stressed. And the one that I love is by Dr. Andrew Weill, W I E H L, and you can look him

up on YouTube. He walks you through it, but you can just even breathe in real deeply, breathe

out.

deeply. There are so many different ones where you can breathe in, hold it, and whoosh it out. I

even, on my treadmill, I use an app, and on some of them, they're always reminding us, now

breathe, now breathe, because exercise is, is one of the next. Best things for stress relief. And I

know that sounds funny, but when I was going through my whole holistic thing with my

migraines, that was one of the big things.

Sure, you've got a migraine, you're not going to get out and walk probably, but it's a

preventative. And that's, that's what people, they want the quick fix, but most of what we talk

about is not a quick fix. It's a preventative, but if you're wanting a quick fix for stress, breathing,

and then what I used to do when I was in the corporate world, I would do an imagery meditation.

So my favorite place to be is at the beach. On the beach, just by myself, on a lounger, reading a

book, and I would imagine and visualize the waves, um, the sand, I would hear the seagulls, you

know, I would make it like I was there. 30 seconds is all you have to do that for, and it just gives

you enough of a break that it calms you really quickly.

Thank you so much for sharing that. And yes, I agree a hundred percent. And I love the

breathing exercises and of course exercise, but I love what you just shared about the imagery.

And my favorite place is the beach too.

Excellent. So thank you so much, Lynn. Thank you so much for coming on here and sharing

with us today. It was a pleasure to have you on as a guest. Thank you.

It has been an honor to be here. However, I can help women in their anti-aging process.

Excellent. And if you want to learn more about Lynn's work, I've included the links to her

websites and socials in this episode.

And she also has a guide. The guide is called You Can Thrive Through Menopause. And add joy

to your life. Is that correct?

Yeah. Thrive in menopause and add joy to your life.

Yes. So everybody check that out and remember we do episodes every week on Wednesday

and I look forward to you joining me then.