Welcome back, class! Hopefully you’re all getting settled into your hectic back to school routines, and still finding some time to enjoy the fact that, although it’s October, it feels like July outside! (Enough with the heat wave already! Give a sister a break!) Today we’re going to talk about Step 2 of the 5 steps of skincare: Antioxidants. Now, we touched on this subject a few months ago, in great detail, so we won’t bore you with that again. (If you’d like the full run-down you can read our antioxidants blog here: http://facialbungalow.com/antioxidants-what-exactly-do-they-do/) But just so we’re all on the same page, we’ll run you through what antioxidants do and why they’re so important.
Antioxidants prevent free radical damage from occurring. The simplest way to explain it is this: Your cells reproduce EXACT replicas of themselves, meaning if they are damaged, they will produce more damaged cells. When oxidation happens in a cell, it causes free radicals. Free radicals damage or destroy the cells, and then the cell reproduces more damaged cells. When this process happens over and over, you end up with a face full of damaged cells. This is the process we call aging. Antioxidants do exactly what the name suggests, they prohibit the oxidation process from happening and damaging the cells in the first place.
It’s pretty clear that if anti-aging is a goal in your skincare, then antioxidants pretty much have to be a part of your routine. But with so many products on the market claiming to be antioxidants, it’s hard to know which ones really work, and which ones actually have a substantial amount of stabilized antioxidants in them. (Antioxidants can be very difficult to stabilize, and so often, even if a product claims to contain them, they are no longer stable or effective). So we’re gonna give you the skinny on 2 of our personal favorites here at Facial Bungalow.
1) TRS MinimEyes 
This product is the newest and greatest technology on the market today. By far the best investment for your skin. The technology contained in this little bottle of awesome is worthy of some Nobel prizes. The 2 main antioxidant ingredients in MinimEyes are Reservatrol, which comes from red wine (mmmmm. Red wine. I’m thirsty), and Ergothioneine, which is found in mushrooms and grapes. So, both ingredients come from natural sources, which we LOVE. The reservatrol helps improve elasticity, decreases sensitivity, and fights deeper set wrinkles. The Ergothioneine actually kills off free radicals, helps detoxify skin, and promotes protein production. (In layman’s terms this means that within days it will start to calm redness, repair damaged skin, and even out skin tone and clarity).
Besides those benefits, it is also packed full of other incredible breakthrough skincare ingredients. It has an algae that reactivates dormant stem cells, molecules from a Brazilian tree that increase skin hydration (plumps up the skin), enzymes from a Mediterranean plant that we can’t even pronounce that actually repairs the most common form of DNA damage within 2 hours of exposure so that the cells begin to behave and reproduce like healthy cells. It’s like an episode of CSI or Bones packed into a little bottle for your face. You can use it all over (suggested), or you can use it to spot treat areas of your skin where you see the most signs of aging. Check out this product in our store here:
2) TRS Moisture Boost 
I have to say, this product is one of my all-time personal favorites. This product is basically pure hyaluronic acid, combined with Red Tea. Red Tea from South Africa penetrates deep within the skin to provide protection against sun damage and pollution as it fights acne, aging, Rosacea and skin cancer. It offers 50 times the benefits of it’s often used counterpart, Green Tea. Hyaluronic acid is naturally occurring in your body. It acts like a sponge that holds water. Ever heard of Juvaderm or other fillers for fine lines? Those are basically injections of pure hyaluronic acid. As you get older, your body produces less and less of it. Its job is to stimulate new cell growth, and also to hold water. Hyaluronic acid is responsible for the plumpness of your skin. When it is applied topically, it will basically take anything put on top of it (your moisturizer, for example) and draw out the water, sucking it deep into your skin, plumping out fine lines, and increasing hydration. It’s amazing for dehydrated skin. I can’t get through the winter months without it. I use it morning and night, and sometimes, I will even just use it under my eyes, under moisturizer, if I’m feeling extra dehydrated. Almost like an eye cream. You can check it out in our store here: http://www.facialbungalow.com/back-to-skin-school-chapter-2-antioxidants/
Well folks, that’s all we’ve got for you for today! It’s fall, Glee is back, and we just can’t resist those adorable kids singing terrible pop music! Join us next time when we talk about moisturizers, and the difference between oil and water in your skin.
Ciao!
T&T