FDA Approves LATISSE To Increase Eyelash Length

Allergan, the makers of Botox, announced that the FDA has approved LATISSE (bimatoprost ophthalmic solution) 0.03% as a treatment to increase eyelashes in length, thickness, and darkness.
Bimatoprost, the active ingredient in LATISSE™,was first approved in 2001 as a medical product to lower intraocular pressure in people with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.
Available only through a doctor, LATISSE™ is a once-daily prescription treatment applied to the base of the upper eyelashes with a sterile, single-use-per-eye disposable applicator.
According to LATISSE™, users can expect to experience longer, fuller and darker eyelashes in as little as eight weeks, with full results in 16 weeks, BUT in order to maintain long, thick, dark eyelashes, you have to continue using LATISSE. If you discontinue using it, eyelashes will gradually return to where they were prior to treatment over a period of weeks to months (average eyelash hair cycle).
COST: For a year's worth of long, thick, dark lashes, expect to pay almost $1,500 a year -- or $120 a month.
SIDE EFFECTS:

• Eye redness (3.6%)
• Itchy eyes (3.6%)
• Skin hyperpigmentation (2.9%)

WARNINGS:

• Allergan warns against applying LATISSE to the lower eyelid because it may cause darkening of the eyelid skin which may be reversible.
• LATISSE™ use may also cause increased brown pigmentation of the colored part of the eye which is likely to be permanent.
• It is possible for hair growth to occur in other areas of your skin that LATISSE™ frequently touches.
• It is also possible for a difference in eyelash length, thickness, fullness, pigmentation, number of eyelash hairs, and/or direction of eyelash growth to occur between eyes.
• These differences, should they occur, will usually go away if you stop using LATISSE™.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY:
It was a media frenzy last year when the FDA had U.S. Marshals seize over 12,000 tubes worth $2 million of Jan Marini's Age Intervention Eyelash, which contained bimatoprost that caused swelling of the eyes in some users -- including us! -- although Jan Marini Skin Research denied that the product contained bimatoprost.
The jury is still out for us, but we will keep you posted if we use it or discover any new information. Do you think you would be interested in using LATISSE on your eyelashes?

Herbal Skin Care for Healthy Skin

Herbal Skin Care for Healthy Skin - Fall, Winter 2010 Tips

The whole idea behind herbal skin care is to keep damaging substances away from the skin and using products that can potentially save the skin; adding moisture when it is needed, preventing premature aging and generally pampering it every once in a while. For a lot of people, the whole herbal skin care idea is just a lot of “mumbo jumbo” but the cold reality is that you could be incorporating herbal skin care into your daily skin regime without even knowing it.

Photo/Cindy Andrie
How many times have you used a product that contains aloe vera? This is a herbal remedy for many things and can be used to soothe burns, grazes and sun burn and also is a product contained within many of the commercial skin care products. There have even been reports that it can turn back time so to speak and is used in many anti-aging products.
As well as aloe vera, lavender is often used in many beauty products and this is good for calming the body and mind. The soothing properties can be used on sun burn but is also a really good thing to use to calm down inflamed or sore skin and also to tone the skin, bringing about reports of anti-aging properties.
One of the last things within herbal skin care that must be talked about is green tea. This has been studied over many years for the weight loss properties that it apparently has but has also been used in skin care studies for various reasons. One of the benefits that green tea has been showed to have on the skin is to offer protection from skin cancer by reducing the amount of damage that the sun has on the skin. There have also been studies to see the anti-aging properties of green tea and although this has not yet been scientifically proven, it would appear that it does have some effects on the signs of aging.