Beyond Skin Care; the truth about taking care of your skin.

Morally, we feel we can’t sell a line of skincare products under the impression that using CannaSmack alone will give anyone ‘perfect skin, always’. There are many other contributing factors to skincare including intrinsic maintenance (what we nourish our body with), our hormonal balance/imbalances, environmental contributors, mental health, and minor avoidable ‘bad habits, which we’ve outlined below. — Be sure to make it to the end of this blog post for a few additional tips we have about extrinsic maintenance.

Diet

• Whole Foods > Processed Foods
  • Whole Foods: Plants that are unprocessed and unrefined, (or as little as possible), before being consumed. Whole grain, legumes, fruits, vegetables.
  • Processed & Modified: If it has been processed and packaged, your food has been modified. Healthy foods can be processed foods.
    • Beware: Labels are tricky. Convenience often equates to large amounts of hidden sodium, fats, and sugar.
• Water (H2O)
  • Hydration plays a role in healthy skin.
  • The exact amount you should drink varies per person.
  • Most importantly, be sure to consume pure, clean water daily. Liquids such as soda, tea, or soup do not count as water intake.
• Vitamin A / Beta-Carotene
  • Beta-Carotene converts to vitamin A.
  • Significant values of Beta-Carotene are found in many foods, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, dark leafy greens (kale, spinach), romaine lettuce, squash, cantaloupe, red and yellow peppers, apricots.
  • Vitamin A is essential for the retention and production of collagen and elastin.
  • Many people living with diabetes or a thyroid condition, can’t convert beta-carotene to vitamin A.
• Antioxidants
  • Significant values are found in many foods such as blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, plums, artichokes, beans (black, red, pinto), prunes, pecans.
  • Skin cells are damaged by free radicals, (like the kind formed from sun exposure).
    • Antioxidants work synergistically with naturally present phytochemicals to protect the cell, so there is less chance for damage.
    • Eating fruits and vegetables rich in antioxidants guards against premature aging.
• Essential Fatty Acids
  • Responsible for healthy cell membranes.
    • Cell membranes act as barriers to protect, and create passageways for nutrients and waste to cross in and out of the cell.
    • Cell membranes hold water, so the stronger the barrier is, the better your cells can hold moisture, resulting in plumper, younger-looking skin.
    • Best-known essential fatty acids are Omega-3 and Omega-6.
      • Must be in balance for good health (and good skin).
      • Many people lack omega-3s.
  • Significant values are found in foods such as hemp seeds/hemp hearts, salmon, walnuts, canola oil, and flaxseed.
    • Hemp seeds have a perfect 3:1 ratio of omega-3 (alpha-linolenic) to omega-6 (linoleic) essential fatty acids (EFAs).
• Green Tea
  • Anti-inflammatory benefits
    • The high content of catechins in green tea reduces irritation, redness, and swelling.
  • Whether taken orally or applied to the skin, green tea can reduce the risk of damage from ultraviolet light (such as the burning rays of the sun), and thus can reduce the risk of skin cancer.
• Selenium
  • Experts say selenium plays a key role in the health of skin cells.
  • Some studies show that even skin damaged by the sun may suffer fewer consequences if selenium levels are high.
  • Significant values are found in foods such as Whole-Wheat Bread, Muffins, and Cereals,  Turkey, Tuna, and Brazil Nuts

Hormones

• All humans have hormonal cycles!
• All humans have the same hormones in their bodies.
  • The balance of their hormones is what varies.  
• Skin condition changes in response to hormones.  
  • Sebaceous glands have receptors that are influenced by sex hormones.
  • These glands are affected most dramatically by androgens.
• It’s important to understand and be aware of your body’s hormonal cycle, so you can prepare for it.
• Puberty
  • Starting around the age of puberty, sebaceous glands increase in size and begin to secrete sebum.
  • Androgens increase the production of sebum during puberty.
    • Androgens bind to the receptors on the sebaceous glands, producing more sebum and leading to noticeably oilier skin; may progress to developing acne.
  • Most sebum is secreted between 15-35 years of age.

Cleanliness

Some of these may seem a bit obvious, but find empathy in reminding yourself that we are all raised differently, and thus have different understandings of how to take care of ourselves; gentle reminders can often make the biggest impact.

• Change pillowcase & sheets.
• Always use a clean washcloth.
• Wash hands often.
  • Microscopic parasites affect our overall health. We are likely to come in contact with them in the restroom, garden, when caring for our pets, etc.  
• Switch to as many natural home cleaners and clothing detergents as possible.

Mental Health

A significant contributing factor to one’s skin health lies in the realm of mental health. Typically, doctors prescribe SSRI’s and suggest cognitive therapy for people struggling with these mental health conditions. Being a brand within the cannabis sector, we highly encourage you to thoroughly research CBD’s ability to improve one’s mental health in the same manner that a typical SSRI does. Please always consult a doctor first before making decisions about new medicines or supplements.

• Stress & Anxiety
  • Stress causes the body to make hormones like cortisol, which tells glands in your skin to make more oil.
    • Oily skin is prone to acne and other skin problems.
  • Stress can aggravate skin conditions such as psoriasis, rosacea, and eczema.
  • Stress can also cause hives and other types of skin rashes and trigger a flare-up of fever blisters.
  • It’s not uncommon for stress, anxiety, and depression to interfere with daily self-care routines, (including skincare.) We don’t recommend skipping or skimping on your ‘you’ time.
  • Having skin problems alone can be a source of stress. Some people manifest anxiety because of how their skin looks, which only contributes to the cycle.
• Dermatillomania
  • This is a mental illness related to OCD.
  • Characterized by repeated picking at one’s own skin which results in skin lesions and causes significant disruption in one’s life.
  • We feel it’s important to make clear that some people feel urges to ‘uncontrollably’ pick at their skin, causing it to bleed and ultimately damage the skin.
    • If used consistently, a good skincare routine may help give these people more confidence in their skin’s appearance, but their urges to pick can not be controlled by skincare products.

Habits

• Refrain from touching your face.
• Avoid picking at your skin with your fingers.
• Engage in daily exercise.
• Get adequate sleep
• Allow your body to rest, when you’re tired.
• Avoid direct exposure to sunlight for prolonged periods of time without skin protection. Especially during the hottest times of the day.
• Avoid hard-alcoholic beverages.
  • Alcohol creates inflammation throughout the body and skin.
  • Additionally, alcohol dehydrates the skin, enlarges pores, contributes to sagging, fine lines, lack of resilience, and overall dullness.
  • Causes small blood vessels in the skin to widen, eventually leading to broken capillaries on the face.
• Smoking
  • Can lead to bags under the eyes, prevents you from getting a good night’s sleep- premature aging and wrinkles (and smoke)
  • Nicotine causes vasoconstriction.
    • Narrowing of the blood vessels can limit oxygen-rich blood flow to the tiny vessels in the face or other parts of the body.
    • Can leave skin dry and discolored.
  • Cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide.
    • Carbon Monoxide displaces the oxygen in your skin.
    • Smoking cigarettes also depletes many nutrients from the body, including vitamin C, which helps protect and repair skin damage.

In addition to these self-care tips, we have a few additional tips about skincare.

• Be Consistent!
  • We recommend doing your skincare routine twice a day (am/pm) for the best results.
  • Be sure to do wash your face after working out / expelling toxins/ sweating.
• Stick to One Product Line at a Time.
  • Helps you more accurately gauge the effectiveness
  • Some brands aren’t as particular about the sourcing of ingredients and formulation as others *cough, cough*;  a bad product mixed with a good product can still present undesirable/negative effects.
• Extraction Tips
  • When performing a necessary extraction, use a sterile (swab with rubbing alcohol) stainless steel extraction tool.
  • Disinfect extraction tool after extracting a pimple, every time.
  • Blackheads can be removed back to back.
  • Extremely important to cleanse the face post-extraction.
  • Blackhead: trapped dirt and oil
    • When using fingers, bacteria transfer from hands to skin, back into the pores, which may lead to infection.
    • The extraction tool allows blackhead removal without breaking the skin
  • Pimple: infected follicle
    • When you pick a pimple with fingers, it bursts, infecting other pores.
    • The extraction tool allows for a controlled extraction, preventing infection of other pores.  
• Document Your Skin
  • Even if only for your eyes, it’s important to take well-lit photos of your skin at its worst and on its journey to its best.
  • Helps gauge effectiveness of overall self-care routine and biological cycles.
• Accept the Transition Phase
  • When switching to natural skincare products, some people may experience a detox and rebalancing phase, where the skin will appear to get ‘worse’ before it gets better.
  • Be patient and consistent with the routine. This adjustment period typically lasts only about 3-4 weeks.
• Use Products Wisely
  • Some products are meant to draw impurities out of your skin.
    • CannaSmack Charcoal Masque pulls dirt and toxins out of the skin.
      • Use this a week or so before you plan to attend a special event or take important photos, knowing that it will draw impurities to the surface.
  • Some products are meant to put nutrients into the skin.
    • CannaSmack Hemp Infuser Oil
    • CannaSmack Honey Serum
• Avoid
  • Soap-Based Cleansers
    • Traditional cleansers strip our skin of all oils, good and bad, leaving it unbalanced and causing our sebaceous glands to go into overdrive producing more and more sebum (oil) in a sad attempt to balance and protect itself, viciously perpetuating a cycle of artificially dry acne prone skin.

No Shame Game.

Considering CannaSmack sells such a wonderful line of skincare products, you’ll hear us talking about and praising healthy skin regularly.

We want to make sure it’s clear that we understand so many factors contribute to one’s skin health, and never want our #CannaSmackSquad to feel judged, or less than on their ‘bad-skin days’. Life isn’t a perfect picture. We love seeing selfies no matter what stage of your skincare journey that you’re at. And yes, we’d love to see more of you when you are fighting hormonal or stress-related breakouts; consider using this as an opportunity to shed light on skin health and self-care tips. We hope this resource encourages our #CannaSmackSquad to take control of their skin’s health and help others feel more confident with their reflection as well.

We absolutely love to show you off! Thanks for creating awesome content and tagging us in your posts.

 @CannaSmack #CannaSmack #CannaSmackSquad