It’s bad enough that men make more money than women for doing the same job, but this is just ridiculous. According to skin researchers in Germany, women’s skin ages faster than men’s! Life is so unfair.

In their study, the researchers used pulses of laser light to measure the amount of collagen and elastin in the skin. Collagen is responsible for giving skin its strength and elasticity. As you get older your body produces less collagen so skin looks droopy and wrinkled. These researchers found that women lose collagen at faster rates than men. So if it seems like you have to work harder to keep your skin looking good than the men in your life, you’re right.

Mid Brain reports:

It turns out, more is not always better, at least not when it comes to laser hair removal.

In an article published in the Archives of Dermatology, scientists report that a treatment with a single type of laser was more effective than one with two kinds of lasers.  Twenty individuals were treated in various spots with a Nd:YAG laser, an alexandrite laser, or a combination of those.  They found that the most effective, least painful treatment was the alexandrite laser.  It had an 84.3% reduction in hair versus a 73.6% reduction of the combined laser.  The combination treatment also caused more burning (an unfortunate side effect of this procedure).

Does laser hair removal work?

According to this research, laser hair removal does work. It is believed to work by destroying the hair follicles. The other finding was that this treatment lasts.   After an 18-month follow-up, the hair removal treatment was still effective.  So, if you can get past the pain of the procedure, it does work.  And it’s certainly longer lasting than both shaving or waxing.

Have you had a hair removal laser treatment?  Did it work for you?  Leave a comment and let the rest of the Beauty Brains community know.

Mid Brain reports…

Scientists have recently developed a way to genetically modify certain flowers to produce higher levels of fragrant compounds.  This research may even lead to the development of flower-odor producing yeast lines which would eliminate the need for flower harvesting.  Depending on your feelings about GMOs (genetically modified organisms) this could be good or bad news.

What are GMOs?

GMOs are plants (or animals) that have been genetically manipulated to express some useful trait. In this research, scientists took petunia plants and inserted a gene from another flowering plant to get the petunias to produce more fragrant compounds.  It worked.  These new plants make 10 times the odor molecules as natural petunias.

GMO controversy

While the benefits of genetically modifying plants and animals seem great to some people, others are appalled by this manipulation of nature.  They worry scientists don’t know what will happen by tinkering with biology that has evolved over centuries.  Maybe a killer plant or animal that wipes out our natural ecosystems might inadvertently be created.  To supportive scientists this seems like a extremely low possibility.

GMO Cosmetics good and bad

To people with no problems with GMOs, this new research demonstrates a number of benefits.

1. Reduce the amount of synthetic chemicals in your cosmetic.
2. Reduce the amount of land required for plants to produce cosmetics
3. Reduce the cost of natural compounds

On the other hand, these GMOs do run the risk of infecting the natural ecosystem and changing things in unforeseen ways.  Is it worth the risk to the environment for more natural, less expensive cosmetics?  That’s not a question that this Beauty Brain can answer.

How do you feel about GMOs in your cosmetics?  Leave a comment and let the rest of the community know.

Mid Brain reports:

Researchers from the Singapore Institute of Medical Biology may hold the key to next generation wrinkle creams.

According to Cosmetics Design, these scientists have found out how to treat genetic mutations lead can cause premature skin ageing. The treatment involves increasing the levels of a protein known as PYCR1.  This reverses the gene mutation that causes a certain genetic disease that causes a wrinkly skin condition. They theorize that this could have impacts on anti-ageing formulations.

Mid Brain reports:

Strangers may find you less attractive than acquaintances because of “invisible” qualities that determine how physical beauty is perceived. This study reveals the science of attraction is more complex than we originally thought.