Episode 375 - Is exfoliation just as important as using SPF?

Perry Romanowski (0:01)

Hi, I'm Perry and you're listening to The Beauty Brains.

Welcome to The Beauty Brains, a show where real cosmetic chemists answer your beauty product questions and give you an insider's look at the cosmetic industry. This is episode 375 I'm your host, Perry Romanowski, and with me today is Valerie George. Hello, Valerie.

Valerie George (0:32)

Hi, Perry.

Perry Romanowski (0:34)

Valerie, we've got a lot of great stuff on today's show, and we're covering questions like, are silicones like amodimethicone and dimethicone environmentally sound? Is it okay to use both rinse-off and leave-on conditioners at the same time? What do you think of the dermatologist's recommended brand, DefenAge? Are there any problems with spraying fragrance on your hair? And is exfoliation just as important as SPF for maintaining youthful skin? But first, some chit chat. Valerie, what do you have for me today?

Valerie George (1:10)

Well, the kittens are warming up to me. Specifically, one of them. The one that looks just like stache in the face, except he has a little bit of orange behind the ear. It might be a female.

Perry Romanowski (1:22)

Yeah.

Valerie George (1:23)

Oh, so adorable. And he just stares at me and stares at me. The other kittens are like, I'm scared all the time. Pretty Kitty is hissing at me, but now it's more of a formality. So Pretty Kitty knows I hold the cat food in my hand, and she's not going to really hiss at me because she knows I won't put up with that and I will walk away with the food. So the hissing is more, okay, I did it. Now give me my food.

Perry Romanowski (1:58)

Well, are you able to pick up the little kittens yet?

Valerie George (2:01)

Not yet, but I have a feeling like in a week, they are going to freaking love me. Until I abduct them.

Perry Romanowski (2:10)

Well, you know, it's probably better for them. You know, it's better for them to be wary of all humans, I would think, if you're an outdoor cat.

Valerie George (2:19)

However, there are animals around here that do kill the cats. There are cats that are just missing. Stache is only one of them. And the mailman told me that there is a fox, there is a hedgehog, there is a couple of nasty dogs down the street. And one time they found cats dead in the road that had been maimed by an animal. So I think in this case, it could be better if they were with me.

Perry Romanowski (2:43)

Well, yeah, well, even if they don't know it, you know, it would be better. You know what I did yesterday?

Valerie George (2:49)

What'd you do?

Perry Romanowski (2:50)

I caught little stripers and took him to the vet to get fixed. So now he's all fixed.

Valerie George (2:55)

Is he happy?

Perry Romanowski (2:56)

You know what?

He wasn't so happy when he got in the cage at first, but when I let him out, he was still friendly with me. So he didn't bolt out. So it was good. So I think we're still cool. I'm not sure how me and Dreamsicle are doing, however, because I was going to capture them both. But when I was setting up the traps, Dreamsicle walks up and he's rubbing my leg. So I just pick him up and I'm petting him and he's purring. And then I start putting him in the cage. And then he freaked out. He starts this clawing and hissing and squirming. And I had to just let him go. I felt terrible. Then he ran under a car, a park car. And now he's just hiding there for a while.

Valerie George (3:38)

You have permanently damaged your relationship with him.

Perry Romanowski (3:42)

I thought that. But then a half hour later, he was back on the porch purring and looking for food. So fortunately, they have pretty short memories. All right. Speaking of short memories, why don't we head out to Beauty News?

This article in Cosmetics Design about Shiseido and how they're emphasizing the increased importance of fragrance in skin care. Now, having worked in hair care for a long time, I do know how important it is for fragrance. In fact, I would put the same formula into consumer use tests. And if it had one fragrance that they like better than the other, the formula would always score better. Even for things that weren't related to fragrance. In fact, on some level with hair care, you could just make a nice fragrance, and you could have a mediocre product, and people will generally like the product. But I'm not sure if that's always the case with skin care. But according to this article, the Japanese brand Shiseido is showing growing significant of sense in skin care in enhancing emotional well-being. So that's the idea there. The idea is that fragrances have taken a priority with consumers, and the rise of wellness and self-care have positioned fragrances as part of the daily ritual offerings of emotional and psychological benefits, as well as stress relief and confidence boosting. Now, I thought this was a little weird because, isn't it? The advice mostly out there that you should avoid fragrances in your skin care stuff?