“What should I do to repair my skin from summer sun damage?”

Start by repairing: 

Repairing begins with ensuring you’re starting your journey with protection. holi (sun), our tinted mineral spf drops with a hint of color, or holi (soleil), our untinted mineral SPF are two great options. 

The next step is to internally build collagen by taking high quality, ingestible supplements. holi (mane), holi (radiance) and calm (beauty) are all must-haves. My skin looks dehydrated and dull without these three beauty multitaskers that repair, build collagen and literally reverse fine lines and wrinkles on the cellular level.

Topicals for your skin: 

Next are topicals. When you expose your skin to too much sun, you’re enlarging your pores, ruining the texture and depleting collagen. A high quality prescription strength retinol from the US or over the counter A313 from France are my go-to’s to turn over the skin, resurface and force your skin to make more collagen. I also love SkinCeuticals B5 Hydrating Gel for a moisture boost. 

Lactic acid is another favorite because of its ability to resurface and minimize pores without stripping the skin, unlike glycolic which can be harsh if you use it daily and can actually exacerbate pore problems. Lactic adds hydration back to the skin, it doesn’t dry it out. It’s also recommended for sensitive, and acne-prone skin. Start with our cleanser called acid (wash) and follow with holi (lift) and holi (bright). Both of the latter are formulated with aloe which will also soothe damaged skin and deeply hydrate it. 

holi (c)  - our vitamin C derivative flies under the radar. Most vitamin C’s are derived from L-ascorbic acid which is highly unstable, and causes irritation and breakouts. The older I get, the less my skin can tolerate L-ascorbic acid. Our vitamin C, which has a natural SPF of 8, should be used during the day, and will help to minimize pore size and sun damage when used with holi (water). 

holi (oil), a No. 1 seller, is formulated with the most precious of all essential oils - helichrysum. In my opinion, no other essential oil compares to this one in regard to its ability to reverse fine lines. 

Skin boosting treatments and procedures:

The next step is to think about which lasers and procedures you’d like to invest in. These are some of my favorites - but please don't have any of these procedures until your skin heals and is no longer red. If you do have any of them prematurely, you might cause more damage. 

If you’ve followed me a while you know that my two ultimate favorite procedures are a dermaplaning facial and Forma RF. I also use an at home RF (radiofrequency) device called the TriPollar. You have to be consistent. In my opinion, nothing builds collagen and helps with sagging quite like RF! An added bonus is that there’s zero pain. I see Khloe or Vanessa from Le Jolie Medi Spa. My next favorites are Profhilo to target sagging and IPL and Laser Genesis for pores, texture and redness. 

Vivace micro needling is a procedure that I started getting in 2019 before realizing that Morpheus was trying to take its place. I’ve never gotten Morpheus and nor am I a fan. I hate pain. I’m also not a fan of painful microneedling unless a dermapen is being used, which is less invasive. But Vivace is different. It uses radiofrequency energy (RF) combined with microneedling. https://drgregmueller.com’s nurses numb you for an hour and you feel nothing. I look amazing the next day. When I’ve tried painful traditional microneedling, I’ve found there’s too much downtime and no results. A PRP (platelet-rich plasma) vampire facial with a dermapen from https://www.modernaesthetica.com is also a favorite, and another treatment - Exosomes - can also heal and repair. 

What to avoid:

The most important thing to remember is that if you’re going to continue getting sun, don’t use actives like retinol and lactic acid until you’re ready to keep out of the sun. These two actives in particular will cause further irritation if you’re not properly using an SPF afterwards, even in winter months when the sun hits your face and hands while you’re driving. Another thing many people are also unaware of is that prolonged exposure to UV rays during flights can contribute to skin aging, particularly for cabin crew members. You can help counter this by applying a few drops of holi (soleil) or holi (sun)  to your face, neck, arms and hands and reapplying when necessary.

“I am looking to start a simple supplement routine, where do I begin? What are the must-haves?”

Firstly, there are what I like to call baseline supplements that nearly everyone can and should take unless they have a rare reaction. And then there are supplements based on functional blood work and age. 

Baseline Supplements:

For baseline I recommend a high quality marine collagen like holi (mane) for gut, hair, skin and nail health. I also recommend holi (radiance) which contains MSM. MSM is known as a beauty mineral. It detoxes the liver and is a precursor to glutathione which contributes to bright, beautiful skin. It also helps speed up injuries and is incredible for your joints. My mother can’t work out without taking holi (radiance). The second ingredient in holi (radiance) is French patented gluten-free ceramides. These also keep your hair and skin healthy, and work wonders for acne scars. 

calm (beauty) contains another baseline supplement which is magnesium. Nearly everyone on the planet should be taking magnesium. My favorite is from BiOptimizers. I recommend calm (beauty) for anyone in their late 20’s and older. We made the supplement in liquid form so that you didn’t have to take a bunch of capsules to get an efficacious dose. calm (beauty) also contains spermidine and taurine. Over time and as you age both of these begin to deplete in the body. Taurine is an amino acid with a multitude of benefits ranging from heart health, pain relief, anti-anxiety, immunity and anti-aging. Spermidine is a polyamine naturally found in foods like mushrooms and cheese. In studies it is reversing gray hair. 

Here are more of my favorite baseline supplements: 

I never travel without my Glutaryl Antioxidant Transdermal Glutathione spray from Auro Wellness. Glutathione is a master antioxidant but ingesting glutathione basically does nothing. Nayan’s spray is the only patented glutathione on the market that has the ability to enter the bloodstream. 

The Holistic Health Genius’s colloidal silver and fulvic acids are the best I’ve ever found. Any time I feel I might be getting sick, I immediately take them and instantly feel better. 

Supplements based on functional bloodwork:

We all need to get tested to find out if we have deficiencies. Most traditional, western doctors  (and I can’t stress this enough) don't do an in-depth blood panel so it’s worth finding a functional doctor who does. Parsley Health has very affordable options. Test your iron, your vitamin D levels, test to see if you carry an MTHFR gene, test your hormones, your thyroid and if you’re having gut issues, test for leaky gut and SIBO. 

Vitamin D: Most people are vitamin D deficient, so get your numbers checked first and if you do need a supplement, I like the vitamin D from Xymogen. 

Vitamin B: Sometimes I take a methylated complex vitamin B because I do have the MTHFR gene. It’s an internal skin sun protector. 

Hair, Skin and Diet problems: If your hair is falling out or are you over 35 with dry and brittle hair, then for sure check your iron, vitamin D levels and thyroid, which can all be contributing factors. A lot of women I know need iron and aren’t balancing their diet with enough meat or have extremely heavy periods. If you wake up with black and blue bruises on your legs it’s a major indicator that you’re anemic. 

*** THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR REGULATED BY THE FDA. WE ARE NOT DOCTORS, THEREFORE ALWAYS CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR FIRST AND MAKE SURE YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR RESEARCHING FURTHER IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS SUBJECT***