Dr. Trevor Cates Oils For Skin Part 1

Oils for Skin Care Part 1 with Dr. Trevor Cates

Dr. Trevor Cates: Welcome to The Spa Dr. Podcast. I am Dr. Trevor Cates. Today I want to share with you part one of a two part series I’m doing on oils for skincare. I received a lot of questions about these, so I wanted to break it into a two part series. Today is part one, so please enjoy.

Let’s start off talking about what our skin does naturally and the oils on our skin. Our skin does produce its own oils including sebum. And the oils that are on our skin are important, for a number of reasons. The oils naturally produced in our skin, help maintain the barrier function of our skin and help minimize water loss. So this helps the skin be healthy and hydrated. And one of the things that is really important to remember about our skin is that it is one of the biggest functions of our largest organ, is to protect our bodies from the outside world. And so our skin has these built in mechanisms to help with that function. So some of the things that it does is it has this mild acidity that helps protect it from the environment around us. And also it has what’s called a skin microbiome. The skin microbiome is made up of micro organisms that live on and help protect the skin. And when that breaks down, that’s when we have problems with our skin. When that barrier function of the skin that protects breaks down and is not functioning properly, that’s when we have problems with our skin. So it’s really important to build that back up so that we can have that protection. And so what happens is there are a number of things that impact the natural oil production with our skin. Part of that is genetics and also some of it is lifestyle. The lifestyle choices we make. So with genetics, you probably know that people in your family, and some people will notice people around them and their families have oilier skin. Other people have just dryer skin. And our lifestyle will also play a role in that. How much physical activity you got. Of course, if you are perspiring that helps produce more sebum production, and those sorts of things. Also, where in the world you live in, and the level of humidity and the heat also can impact how much oil production your skin creates naturally. Your hygiene practices, if you are using a lot of drying types of cleansers and things that remove the oils, it actually could, even though your genetics are oilier skin, you actually can end up with dry skin because of hygiene practices. Of course you want to use the right hygiene practices that support the natural oil production while keeping it in the right balance.

Also, your diet plays a role in the production of oils in your skin. There are certain foods that tend to increase sebum production. Things like eating a lot of sugar or eating certain types of fats and oily foods. And also sometimes processed foods can also speed up the production of oils in your skin. And that is not always a bad thing, but we want to make sure it’s in check. So we are getting the right kinds of oils and fats in your diet is going to help with a healthy oil production in your skin too. So you are going to have that healthier glow without creating the problems that people associate with really oily skin. So people with oilier skin oftentimes age more gracefully because they have that natural hydration in their skin. Now I know they also oftentimes struggle with acne breakouts. So certainly we want to talk about skincare oils that will help with balancing that. If your skin does not produce enough oils, oftentimes it will appear dry. You could have flaky skin, you might notice your skin aging prematurely. So again, it’s all about balance. We want to help support our skin naturally. And if your skin is sensitive, your skin might not have that good barrier function. And so that could be playing into the natural oil production in your skin. So you want to make sure that you have that really great barrier function in the skin so that you are not overly reactive. So one of the things I want to talk about are some of the common misconceptions. And one of the common misconceptions is that using oils skincare is actually bad for oily skin because it will make them oilier and make them break out more. Well actually that is not really true. The right kinds of oils for your skin can be very beneficial. Even for oily skin, and they are actually good for all skin types. So people with oily skin oftentimes will think that their skin needs to be free of oil. So they will be using cleansers that actually strip the skin of those natural oils. And that actually can be very harmful, foamy cleansers that make your skin feel squeaky clean actually can be damaging. Not only does it remove all the beneficial oils, but it damages that natural pH, that natural mild acidity of the skin and can compromise that barrier function of the skin that helps protect it from the outside world. That barrier function of the skin is so crucial to keep the skin healthy and to keep it from breaking out, to keep it from having redness and irritations, so it is really important to take care of that rather than strip the oils of the skin, we want to use the right oils to create balance. Another myth that I hear is that sensitive skin types should not use oils, but it really depends on the type of oil. Of course, with sensitive skin, we want to make sure we’re protecting that barrier function of the skin and giving you all the nourishment and needs, including having some great plant-based oils. But the thing is that a lot of times that barrier function is broken down. So we need to help support the skin and certainly with sensitive skin types, they can be more prone to reacting to certain types of oils. For example, sensitive skin types might have a problem with essential oils. So it’s always a good idea if you have sensitive skin to do a skin patch test, you can do it on the corner of your jaw and the inside here on the jaw where the skin is very similar to your face. And that way you will know if you have a problem with a certain type of oil or any skin care product. Another misconception is that you have to use the same application of oils on all skin areas. So most people know that the skin on your face is different from the rest of your body. But the skin on various areas of your face is also different. So areas around your eyes are different than your cheeks around your nose. So depending upon how much oil production you have in different areas, you want to change the way that you use oils on the skin. And it really depends on the right kinds of oils. So when it comes to areas around the eyes for example, because those don’t tend to be as dry. Oftentimes I will have people mix a plant based oil with our step two serum, or something that can help with that area. So it really depends on getting the right oil. The truth is that all skin types need oils, the right kinds of oils, skincare with oils, act as emollients for the skin, helping hydrate balance and protect the skin. And they help with a protective layer. Oils with larger molecule size act more as a clusive where they sit on the surface of the skin and don’t absorb as readily, but they trap moisture in. Smaller molecular sizes of oils can penetrate the skin more easily. So it is good to use a combination of understanding oils when to use the right oils.

When I was a kid, I grew up on an organic farm and my family used all natural products. They were really into everything. I remember we used oils on our skin, like almond and apricot oils. And I remember the smells and enjoying the way that they felt on my skin. I also recall my dad would open up capsules of vitamin E. He would open them up and put them on his face. And I know it sounds crazy because it is so thick, but he would just put it on all over his face and he would say that he felt it was helping hydrate his skin and help him keep a more youthful appearance. And actually until the end of his life, in his late seventies, he really did have beautiful, youthful looking skin for his age. So now as an adult, I started probably about six, seven years ago, I started doing more research on skincare products and looked at oils and learning about the science behind natural ingredients, including oils. And I realized that so much of what I used as a child, all of those things including vitamin E that my dad used, that the true benefits of these and that they are rich in antioxidants and the hydration, the fatty acids that help protect, hydrate and nourish the skin. The key with facial oils is using the right ones. Not all oils are the same. This is really important to understand. It’s similar to food. As you probably heard me or other people say that there are some fats and oils for our diet that are good to eat and some that aren’t healthy like trans fats and processed oils, and those are not as good as some of the pure oils like extra Virgin olive oil and avocados or avocado oils and things like that. Well for the skin, it is similar where we want to use the right oils. There are some oils that are going to be bad for the skin and some that are actually going to be much healthier and hydrating. For example, when it comes to the skin, mineral oil is an example of what you will find in many skincare products. I really recommend avoiding it. The problem with mineral oil is it comes from petroleum, which by the way is also where gasoline comes from. So there are concerns about impurities in mineral oils, so that is one of the concerns and also a lot of people react to mineral oil. Manufacturers use it in skincare products because it is cheap and it has a long shelf life, but that’s not what I want for you as a manufacturer of natural skincare products. I certainly would never use any petroleum products because I know that there are other oils, the natural oils that are much more nourishing and beneficial for your skin. So why take the risk if there are so many great plant-based oils, and make sure when you are using plant-based oils, to use the pure unadulterated plant oils, because these are the ones that are really going to help provide fatty acids and support the skin barrier function. They are going to help support the skin flora, the good bacteria, the good microorganisms that live on the skin, and keeping that healthy balance. Plant-based oils in the right balance blend can hydrate, protect, nourish the skin without feeling heavy or sticky.

Plant-based oils are great for all skin types, for different reasons. They help dry, mature skin because of the hydration. They provide those essential fatty acids and how they hydrate the skin, but they are also great for sensitive and irritated skin because of how gentle and soothing they can be and supporting the barrier function of the skin. And this might surprise you, but for people that have oily skin, they are also great. Plant-based oils can be great for oily skin. So for those of you who know your skin type, and I am talking about The Spa Dr. skin types, Amber, Sage, Olivia, Emmett and Heath. I get a lot of questions about how oils can help improve each of these skin types. If you are not familiar with your skin type, you can go to theskinquiz.com and find out. With Amber skin types, the right kinds of oils can be so helpful for helping with even out your skin tone, for sage skin types, the right plant based oils can also help hydrate your skin, help smooth out some of the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and help with that dullness that a lot of sage skin types have. Olivia skin types, the right kinds of plant based oils can help balance the sebum production in the skin and with Emmett skin types, they can help soothe and reduce the irritation that a lot of Emmett skin types have. For me personally, my skin tends to be dry. I am 47, and my skin loves a good plant based oil blend and I tend to be more of the Emmett skin type. For those of you who know the skin types, and if you do not, then you can go to theskinquiz.com to find out what your skin type is. I love a really great plant-based oil blend, but I also understand the reactivity. So Emmett skin types tend to be more reactive and have problems with irritation and get sensitive skin. So it’s really important for me to use the right kinds of oils that are not going to be reactive. And also I understand the importance of supporting the skin barrier function both from the inside out and an outside in. And that is why I named The Spa Dr. Oil blend Glow Boost, because it helps give my skin an extra glow, even though my skin tends to be dry and I am 47, my skin is not getting any younger, it is getting older. I love having the Glow Boost which is a plant based oil blend, it is 100% oils and I keep a bottle in my purse, I apply it throughout the day, I put it on my face and I also put it on my hands, ends of my hair, because I love the way that these help hydrate and protect my skin.

If you skip plant-based oils, you are missing a really important hydration step. If you use too much of the wrong oils, you may notice your skin is too shiny and maybe it is even oilier than you like it. Maybe it feels sticky. But if you are an Olivia skin type or tend to be oily and your T zone, it is a matter of using oils properly. If you are an Olivia skin type, especially at the T zone where you get oilier skin, then you can focus on using the oils in areas where your skin is drier. Usually even Olivia skin types, oilier skin types, you still have certain areas of your skin that are dry. So you can focus on using more of the straight oils in those areas and then mix the oil with our step two antioxidant serum or something similar which is not as oily and you blend the two. So then you can use that in the other areas where your skin is oily. You don’t want to avoid oils entirely. You don’t want to strip your skin of those beneficial oils using a harsh cleanser or a foaming cleanser. You just want to make sure that you are using the right balance, that you are using a system for skin care that helps support the oil production in your skin without stripping it or without making it create more oil production.

There are different types of oils used in skincare. There are essential oils or plant based oils, both unrefined and refined. There are animal based oils, and there are completely synthetic oils and there are a combination of those and they are not all made the same. So let me go through each one of those and explain how each one is made. So essential oils are heavily concentrated oils. You will notice that these oils tend to be very fragrant and so they are oftentimes used in skincare products to help create a natural scent, but they also have therapeutic value and each essential oil has its own therapeutic value. For example, you may be very familiar with lavender essential oil. It is a very popular essential oil that is used to help people with relaxation. A lot of times people will put it in their bath at bedtime to help calm down, relax, and other ones like eucalyptus essential oil, which helps open up the airways and helps people with breathing and it will sometimes be used in diffusers. It is also used in skincare products. For example, a tea tree oil is one that a lot of times people that are breaking out with acne will tend to use to help with that or it’s also helpful sometimes with fungal infections. It is important with essential oils to use them properly and carefully. And most of them, especially tea tree oil, should not be used directly on the skin and instead diluted. The other type of oil that I mentioned are plant-based oils. Now, again, essential oils are plant-based oils, but I put essential oils separately because they are very, very concentrated and you only use a few drops or maybe even one drop in an application of skin care products or they are blended already into the other types of oils. With plant based oils, you will find that these come from plants. They are typically the kernel or the seed of the plant like apricot kernel oil or pomegranate seed oil. Those types are plant-based oils. Avocado, coconut, almond, there are many, many plant-based oils. These are the ones that are used in natural skincare products that I love. But here’s the thing, you want to make sure that to get the really beneficial effects of the nutrients in these oils that are naturally occurring, you want to get the unrefined, the pure extra-virgin kinds of these oils and you want to make sure that they are organic as much as possible. Essential oils are the same. You want those to be very pure. You want them to be organic. And with plant based oils, they will use refined versions to help manage and control the scent of the product and the consistency, the texture. Because in nature, one plant can be very different from another. It can make it difficult for manufacturers to create an experience for the customer that is consistent because they might get one batch that is different from another. Just like in nature, you will find that if you have five avocados that you have gotten from five different locations and you open them up, you will find that each one of them has a different consistency. It feels different, it smells different, the oils feel different. So that is what you find with natural plant-based oils is that one batch might be different from another. So a lot of times companies will refine them to help ensure that the customers experience the exact same smell and experience from one batch to the next. But for me personally, with The Spa Dr. I really find the benefits of unrefined oil have more of those therapeutic benefits, they are going to have more of the nutrients that naturally occur in the plant. So I really prefer the unrefined extra Virgin cold-pressed oils. And I also find that it is very important for essential oils to be pure organic, and I have always preferred organic for all of these. And you could certainly look for these in your products. And another type of oil that I mentioned is animal based. Now you might be kind of surprised to hear that there are animal based oils, but there are. An example of that would be emu oil and emu oil comes from emus. So if you are vegetarian or vegan or it just does not sound right to you to be using animal based oils, that is perfectly fine. We only use plant-based oils at The Spa Dr. and we do not use any animal based oils. I have found that there is some information and in the literature and the research that emu oil can be helpful with wound healing and repair. It can be beneficial and have therapeutic value. So I do not want to skip over that one because it is one that can have some therapeutic value. There is also a completely synthetic one that again, is more of the mineral oil, the petroleum based products. And so that is not one that I recommend because of the concern of impurities, people having reactions to them. So I am not a big fan of the completely synthetic. And lastly, there is the combination and it could be a combination of any of the ones that I just mentioned. And so for me, if I know that if it includes a synthetic oil, I like to avoid those. I do not recommend any of the synthetic. When it comes to the combination of plant-based oils and essential oils, I do think there are some therapeutic benefits to that. One thing you want to watch out for oils is that they can go bad. They can become rancid when they become oxidized, when they have been sitting around, if they’re past their expiration date or maybe they haven’t been stored properly, they were heated up when they were being stored. They were indirect sunlight for a long period of time. They can go off, especially the ones that plant-based oils that are unrefined, those extra Virgin oils they can go off and really all oils can get rancid. Usually you can tell by the odor and the consistency change of the products. Especially if you notice and you get the products fresh and that bottle has been sitting around and maybe you haven’t stored it properly, or you open it up or it is past expiration date and you open it up. You can sometimes smell. I have a really strong sense of smell, so I can always feel this sense that when it goes rancid, it is very strong smelling. And so if you notice that, and if you feel like the oils may be rancid, you probably do not want to use them if they have gone rancid, but you might want to check with other people and say, Hey, do you think this smells bad too? Do you have the same experience I do? Also sometimes the oils when they go off they will get stickier. You don’t want sticky oils. You want your oils that you are using on your face to have a nice smooth consistency. You want them to absorb easily. You don’t want them to be sticky and so that is one thing that you can notice. Notice the smell, the appearance, are there any changes. Check the expiration date and it is particularly important if you are using plant-based oils that are unrefined. You can know if a plant-based oil is good by its ingredients and also you can look at it and smell it. And I want to share with you some information about plant-based oils to look for that are are good ingredients, but really you want to make sure you are looking over the ingredients carefully and you don’t want anything added in there, any toxic ingredients added in with your oil, you want it to be pure and you can check the way it smells. You can look at the color and in fact the color can show that it is really rich in antioxidants when it has that deeper richer color. Oftentimes the color and the oil means that it is rich in antioxidants. You can also smell it and the odor, the fragrance of plant-based oils is typically kind of more of a nuttier kind of smell and there should be when it is a pure oil, it should have some sort of natural odor-free fragrance to it and it should be pleasant of course. The scents, the smell really varies from one batch to another of unrefined plant based oils. We use camelina oil in some of The Spa Dr. products, in the moisturizer. And one batch might smell different to the next because If we source the camelina oil from different places or even that particular batch that we received. Even if it is from the same location, it can smell different. It could be having to do with the farming practices. It could be from the season it was grown in, the temperature, all kinds of things play a role in the way that plants grow and then the end result of what is naturally occurring. The naturally occurring oils in those plants can really vary. But if you are getting your oils from a really reputable source, then they should do that work for you by making sure that it is pure, it is clean, and it is the experience that you want to have.

I hope you enjoy the information today. Stay tuned for next week’s episode where I will share part two of oils for skin and if you haven’t already taken the skin quiz, I encourage you to do so at theskinquiz.com. Find out what messages your skin is trying to tell you about your health and what you can do about it at theskinquiz.com. Also, I invite you to join us on social media. The Spa Dr. is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. You could join the conversation there and I will see you next time on The Spa Dr. podcast.