Good Read: Simple Skin Beauty Book

I like reading self-help books, they are usually interesting and fun to read, and I am always eager to learn a thing or two about something new, so thought id share in case any of you are looking for something to read up on during the holiday. I was happy to come across the 'Simple Skin Beauty' book by Ellen Marmur, MD ($15 USD), and it's available at bookstores everywhere. When it comes to my skin, I noticed that the best thing for me was to keep things basic. For me, less is more, and when it came to the sensitive skin on my face, I realized I didn't need a lot to maintain healthy skin. Back in high school I was always conscious to maintain clear skin and bought pretty much every cleanser in the drugstores, and they were just doing more damage, than good.

Even though it takes trial and error sometimes to really find out what works for you, why even play Russian roulette with your face when you can read about the skin, what ingredients work and what doesn't from the get-go to save you time and money. Moisturizers and cleansers are so expensive nowadays that I could kick myself in the butt for wasting so much money on those that didn't work for me.

I haven't finished the book yet, but it has a lot of really useful information and got awesome reviews on Amazon. And because the author is the Chief of Dermatology at a medical center in New York, it's comforting to know she has a lot of expertise about the skin.  She emphasizes that we need to learn more about our skin and what it needs as oppose to the creams that are shoved in our faces at the beauty counter or commercials; so we can make better decisions of the products we buy. Of course there are a few things we know already, such as sun tanning being bad for your skin, etc., but I like that she tells you WHY something is good or bad for your skin rather than just stating it. She answers top myth questions and breaks down tips and ingredients that are good and bad for you by skin type (dry, combo, oily, normal), making it easier to understand. She even covers skin disorders such as Rosacea and Psoriasis. And this book is filled with comparison graphs and illustrations.

Just to give you a bit of a preview of the tone of the book, this is an excerpt from the book regarding facial cleansers for dry skin (such as myself):
"Using warm water and a washcloth can be enough to clean your face. Dry skin lack excess oil on the stratum corneum, so the worst thing you can do is use a strong soap, you want less soap and more moisturizer. Try using a cleanser with extra gentle surfactant such as polysorbate 85 or 60 and make sure it has added emollients. Look for formulations such as creamy lotion or cleansing milk, or even a cleansing oil".

Definitely recommend! :)

Book: 5/5

Information: 5/5

Illustrations and Ease of Use (able to understand): 5/5