Friday, April 22, 2011

Happy Earth Day!

Take this day to appreciate mother nature and everything she has given us. Appreciate her, enjoy her, and take care of her. Not just today, but every day. Every day should be Earth day.



Here are some easy tips on how to reduce your carbon footprint:
  • Reduce, REUSE, REUSE, REUSE, REUSE, REUSE and recycle! This especially goes for non-biodegradables such as plastic and Styrofoam but also for everything else. I make some homemade Jams, so I keep the store bought containers and reuse them. Then recycle. (That's not really raspberry jam, it's home-made carrot jam. Go ahead and judge, I think carrot jam is delicious!)
  • Carpool.
  • Turn off things when not in use. This goes for the lights, electronic appliances and the water faucet!
  • Plant trees, flowers, herbs. It's not just good for the environment, it's personally rewarding too.
  • Insulate your home (saves on the bills too!)

Monday, April 11, 2011

Power of Pomegranate Oil for Skin


Pomegranate oil is a precious, light and gentle emollient with healing anti-oxidant properties.
This nutritious oil is incredibly rich in fatty acids such as linolenic and punicic acid (very rare) and full of powerful anti-oxidants that fight free radical damage.

Pomegranate oil was used for centuries in ancient Persia and Greece as a skin protectant. Several recent scientific studies (see reference list at bottom) validate its ability to:
  • Promote regeneration & strengthening of skin
  • Add luster
  • Stimulate keratinocyte proliferation
  • Improve elasticity
  • Protects against sun and other environmental damage with both anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.
  • Protect against skin cancer.
While Pomegranate juice has been getting some press lately (see below ad for Pom Wonderful), the oil is actually more concentrated in antioxidants and essential fatty acids. Not only is it great for skin, it has been demonstrated time and time again (see many references below) to also slow obesity and several types of cancer when regularly ingested.

There is no doubt that pomegranate oil is simply one of nature’s best and most precious gifts. hydrOtion's Simply Pomegranate Antioxidant Face Creme has incredibly high concentrations of this powerful oil, without being diluted by other oils and fillers. This is our lightest and perhaps most powerful natural creme yet. It soaks into skin, leaving it nourished, healthy and smooth.

We love pomegranate oil so much, we've incorporated it in several other hydrOtion products such as the Smoothing Night Creme, Firming Day Creme, Ultimate Eye Creme and Super Vitamin Lip Conditioner.

Now for a little fun:




Scientific References:
  • Vroegrijk IO, van Diepen JA, van den Berg S, Westbroek I, Keizer H, Gambelli L, Hontecillas R, Bassaganya-Riera J, Zondag GC, Romijn JA, Havekes LM, Voshol
    PJ. Pomegranate seed oil, a rich source of punicic acid, prevents diet-induced obesity and insulin resistance in mice. Food Chem Toxicol. 2011 Mar 30. [Epub
    ahead of print]
  • Elfalleh W, Ying M, Nasri N, Sheng-Hua H, Guasmi F, Ferchichi A. Fatty acids from Tunisian and Chinese pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) seeds. Int J Food Sci
    Nutr. 2011 May;62(3):200-6. Epub 2010 Dec 1.
  • Caligiani A, Bonzanini F, Palla G, Cirlini M, Bruni R. Characterization of a potential nutraceutical ingredient: pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) seed oil
    unsaponifiable fraction. Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2010 Sep;65(3):277-83.
  • Bouroshaki MT, Sadeghnia HR, Banihasan M, Yavari S. Protective effect of pomegranate seed oil on hexachlorobutadiene-induced nephrotoxicity in rat
    kidneys. Ren Fail. 2010 Jun;32(5):612-7.
  • Mirmiran P, Fazeli MR, Asghari G, Shafiee A, Azizi F. Effect of pomegranate seed oil on hyperlipidaemic subjects: a double-blind placebo-controlled clinical
    trial. Br J Nutr. 2010 Aug;104(3):402-6. Epub 2010 Mar 25.
  • Grossmann ME, Mizuno NK, Schuster T, Cleary MP. Punicic acid is an omega-5 fatty acid capable of inhibiting breast cancer proliferation. Int J Oncol. 2010
    Feb;36(2):421-6.
  • Khan GN, Gorin MA, Rosenthal D, Pan Q, Bao LW, Wu ZF, Newman RA, Pawlus AD, Yang P, Lansky EP, Merajver SD. Pomegranate fruit extract impairs invasion and
    motility in human breast cancer. Integr Cancer Ther. 2009 Sep;8(3):242-53.
  • Boussetta T, Raad H, Lettéron P, Gougerot-Pocidalo MA, Marie JC, Driss F, El-Benna J. Punicic acid a conjugated linolenic acid inhibits TNFalpha-induced
    neutrophil hyperactivation and protects from experimental colon inflammation in rats. PLoS One. 2009 Jul 31;4(7):e6458.
    PMCID: PMC2714468.
  • Baumann L, Woolery-Lloyd H, Friedman A. "Natural" ingredients in cosmetic dermatology. J Drugs Dermatol. 2009 Jun;8(6 Suppl):s5-9. 
  • Afaq F, Zaid MA, Khan N, Dreher M, Mukhtar H. Protective effect of pomegranate-derived products on UVB-mediated damage in human reconstituted skin.
    Exp Dermatol. 2009 Jun;18(6):553-61. Epub 2009 Mar 6.
  • Baumann LS. Less-known botanical cosmeceuticals. Dermatol Ther. 2007 Sep-Oct;20(5):330-42. Review.  
  • Lansky EP, Newman RA. Punica granatum (pomegranate) and its potential for prevention and treatment of inflammation and cancer. J Ethnopharmacol. 2007 Jan
    19;109(2):177-206. Epub 2006 Sep 10. Review.
  • Aslam MN, Lansky EP, Varani J. Pomegranate as a cosmeceutical source: pomegranate fractions promote proliferation and procollagen synthesis and inhibit
    matrix metalloproteinase-1 production in human skin cells. J Ethnopharmacol. 2006 Feb 20;103(3):311-8.
  • Mehta R, Lansky EP. Breast cancer chemopreventive properties of pomegranate (Punica granatum) fruit extracts in a mouse mammary organ culture. Eur J Cancer
    Prev. 2004 Aug;13(4):345-8.
  • Lansky EP, Jiang W, Mo H, Bravo L, Froom P, Yu W, Harris NM, Neeman I, Campbell MJ. Possible synergistic prostate cancer suppression by anatomically
    discrete pomegranate fractions. Invest New Drugs. 2005 Jan;23(1):11-20.
  • Kohno H, Suzuki R, Yasui Y, Hosokawa M, Miyashita K, Tanaka T. Pomegranate seed oil rich in conjugated linolenic acid suppresses chemically induced colon
    carcinogenesis in rats. Cancer Sci. 2004 Jun;95(6):481-6.
  • Hora JJ, Maydew ER, Lansky EP, Dwivedi C. Chemopreventive effects of pomegranate seed oil on skin tumor development in CD1 mice. J Med Food. 2003
    Fall;6(3):157-61.
  • Schubert SY, Lansky EP, Neeman I. Antioxidant and eicosanoid enzyme inhibition properties of pomegranate seed oil and fermented juice flavonoids. J
    Ethnopharmacol. 1999 Jul;66(1):11-7.