I'm off to Las Vegas next Thursday for four days and am wondering about what to do about all my vitamins and skin care products for those days! I'll need an extra suitcase to take it all with me!! What do you all do when travelling? Should I just skip the vitamins until I get back and take basic skin care stuff?

Kathy C--I have a few of those BIG 7-day pill organizers, and I just load them up. There are different kinds, and I think you can get them in drugstores. Or maybe a health food store somewhere. That's where I got mine. Last time I traveled I went to my parent's house for 10 days at Christmas, and while I still had to carry a few stray bottles of stuff that wouldn't fit into the pill organizers, I didn't have to do the extra bag thing. I've done that before, though. A whole extra big bag just for my nostrums.

Kathy C -
What I do when I travel is transfer my skincare products to sample-sized bottles (1/2 oz.) that I purchased from: http://www.candleandsoapstuff.com

The bottle mouths are large enough that it's easy to fill them, but they're small enough that you can easily control how much comes out of them, too. Then I just slap a label on them & I'm good to go.

For my vitamins, I've found it easiest to put them in small (2X3) ziploc bags & label them. So many of my vitamins look identical - and they're not taken at the same time of day - so I need to separate them into dosage times. I label them breakfast, lunch, dinner, & bedtime - so I don't have to sort them for a specific day - I can take any of them that correspond to the correct time of day. Then I toss them all into a ziploc sandwich (or snack, depending on the length of the trip) bag.

I went to FL for 2 weeks in Oct./Nov. and I had no problem fitting all of my items into my carry-on bag.

I use those big pill weekly organizer things too for supplements when I travel, but sometimes they open up in the suitcase, and then you have a hard time getting everything back in order. So now I tape each "flap" down to avoid that problem.

Thanks for your suggestions! I think I'll try the ziplock bags for the vitamins and the skin care won't be as much of a problem. Thanks everyone!

KathyC

This is an older post but I just saw it so I'll post anyway. Hope you had a great time in Vegas... except for that darn sunburn.

I agree with GracieBelle and put travel sized amounts into small sample containers (those little 1/4 oz jars from skin bio ). I try and only bring enough for the week or whatever. I also put them in ziplock snack bags... leaks are a real bummer. I do the same trick with my supplements and the large, week sized pill holders, only I rubberband it together. I've too had my pills all in with my clothes whe I get where I'm going.

One thing I should have learned a few times over by now is to always pack the important stuff in your carry on! Since I hate lugging bags through airports etc I usually talk myself into packing everything in my bag. I've ended up at my destination several !! times with no luggage This just happend on my last trip.. my plane got in late and I had to meet early in the morning with lots of people (for business trip). So how do you deal with that!?! I just had to go to the meeting as is off the plane from the day before. I was able to get some basics like a toothbrush, but sheesh! never again... always pack what you'll need in carry on!!

Hi! I travel alot because of my job (about 3-4 times a week). My skin condition isn't normal (native causes) and this travelling could affect it even more. I don't think you need all your skin care oils and creams along with you. You just need the essential. I use, for instance, products from Gerovital Plant. It is enough for me when I travel. At home, I do have much more skin care products, but the essentials for me are Gerovital Plant. You could give it a try.

Best regards,
Jess.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Skin Biology,

Dear Jesssica:

Your post has been edited and the links to selling Gerovital products have been removed because our Skin Biology Client Forum is a science based forum managed by a science based company and we do not allow posting of products that are commonly viewed as scams.

Please read below on the findings of the Federal Trade Commission as well as the FDA:

A. Glenn Braswell's Dietary Supplement Enterprise Targeted
FTC Challenges False and Unsubstantiated Claims

The Federal Trade Commission has filed a complaint in federal district court against A. Glenn Braswell and four of his corporations challenging allegedly false and unsubstantiated advertising claims for numerous dietary supplements marketed under the Gero Vita and Theraceuticals brand names. The complaint also names as a defendant corporate officer Ron Tepper. The complaint challenges claims that five dietary supplements treat or cure respiratory disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, obesity, and erectile dysfunction. The FTC is seeking permanent injunctive relief, consumer redress, and a permanent ban against Braswell's participation in any business engaged in the advertising or sale of health-related products.

The Braswell enterprise, which operates out of Marina Del Rey, California, is comprised of numerous affiliated companies, including JOL Management Co., G.B. Data Systems, Inc., Gero Vita International, Inc., and Theraceuticals, Inc., all named as defendants in the complaint. According to the FTC, Braswell's operation is one of the largest U.S. direct marketers of health-related products. The FTC's complaint alleges sales totaling approximately $800 million since 1998.

"These defendants built their businesses on false and outrageous claims aimed at older consumers and those with chronic illnesses," said Howard Beales, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "Today's action demonstrates the Commission's continuing commitment to attacking fraud in the dietary supplement market."

Braswell is already under a 1983 federal court settlement resolving charges that he and several of his corporations violated the FTC Act and the FTC's Mail Order Rule in connection with the advertising and sale of various health-related products.

The FTC's complaint alleges that Braswell and the other defendants market numerous dietary supplement products through false and unsubstantiated claims. According to the FTC, the defendants' multi-page direct mail advertisements deceptively tout their products as "scientific breakthroughs" that can treat or cure a host of serious illnesses and medical conditions. The products identified in the FTC's complaint are: *Lung Support Formula,* claimed to cure or ameliorate nearly all respiratory problems, including asthma, emphysema and smoking damage; * Antibetic Pancreas Tonic,* claimed to treat or cure Type I and Type II diabetes, and to lower blood sugar levels by repairing the pancreatic cells that produce insulin; * G.H.3 and Theraceuticals GH3 Romanian Youth Formula, * claimed, among other things, to reverse and prevent Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, and to increase lifespan; *Chitoplex*, a chitosan-based product purported to cause weight loss and reverse obesity without diet or exercise; and *Testerex*, claimed to treat erectile dysfunction in 62% to 95% of men.

In addition, the FTC complaint challenges the defendants' use of deceptive advertising formats and expert endorsements to market its products. Specifically, the complaint alleges that the defendants deceptively portrayed their "/New Life Nutrition Magazine/" as an independent health magazine, when in fact it was advertising written by the defendants for the purpose of selling their products. The complaint further alleges that the defendants claimed that an independent organization, the "Council on Natural Nutrition," conferred its "Golden Nutrition Awards" on the defendants' Arthro 7, ChitoPlex and G.H.3 products, when in fact, the defendants had established the "Counsel on Natural Nutrition." In addition, the complaint alleges that the defendants' representation that Dr. Ronald Lawrence, Director of the Council on Natural Nutrition, endorsed the defendants' products based on his independent, objective evaluation of the products, when in fact, Dr. Lawrence was a paid endorser of the defendants' products and was a member of defendant G.B. Data Systems' Board of Directors.

The Commission vote to authorize staff to file the complaint was 5-0. The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District California, Western Division, on May 27, 2003.

Re: Gerovital H3
Anti-aging hoax
By George Nava True II

See: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010507/msgs/62330.html

For decades, thousands of people looking for "the fountain of youth" flocked to the spa-like clinic of Dr. Ana Aslan in Bucharest, Romania. They came to the spa not only to rest and relax but to get their supply of Gerovital H3 (GH3), a drug popularized by Aslan in the 1950s.

Although Aslan is no longer with us, her legacy remains. Gerovital is still the main attraction of several spas in Romania and the promises are plenty. Regular shots of the drug, we’re told, will reverse aging and prevent a wide range of diseases. For elderly tourists in search of a cure-all, Gerovital guarantees smooth skin, improved memory, increased vitality, relief from depression and freedom from arthritis, headaches and heart disease.

These claims have been swallowed by the rich and the famous. Among Aslan’s many clients were John F. Kennedy, Marlene Dietrich, Kirk Douglas, and Salvador Dali. Sylvester Stallone also reportedly takes GH3 shots to remain sexy.

In the Philippines, not a few gerontologists prescribe Gerovital for their patients. Some of them believe the drug will bring back youthful vitality and treat impotence.

Old Story

But it’s unlikely that Gerovital will deliver what it promises. The reason is simple: Gerovital’s active ingredient is procaine or novocaine, a numbing agent similar to cocaine. Procaine is an excellent anesthetic widely used by dentists but it has no anti-aging effect.

"GH3 is a 2% procaine hydrochloride solution to which minute amounts of the following have been added as‘stabilizers’ or ‘buffers’: Benzoic acid, potassium metabisulfite and disodium phosphate. The procaine (which is the same novocaine anesthetic that you get when you go to the dentist) is supposed to be the active ingredient. Procaine, however, is rapidly hydrolized (decomposed) once it enters the bloodstream, even after buffering or stabilizing agents are added, and there is no evidence - or even any good reason to suspect - that these additives can sustain the activity of procaine long enough to produce the claimed benefits," according to Dr. Sheldon Saul Hendler in The Doctors’ Vitamin and Mineral Encyclopedia.

The Gerovital scam began in the 1930s when German physician Ferdinand Huneke experimented with procaine injections in hundreds of patients. Huneke claimed the drug treated various diseases and relieved severe pain. But more reliable investigators found nothing special about it and denounced Huneke as a quack.

Gerovital Returns

In the 1950s, Aslan followed Huneke’s trail and promoted Gerovital for a variety of conditions associated with aging. Her perseverance paid off. Although Aslan died in 1988, Gerovital remains as popular as ever. It has been promoted by the Romanian National Tourist Office and is available in some European countries. While the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) never approved the drug, Aslan’s supporters lobbied hard to make it available in one US state, Nevada. Legislators there openly accepted Gerovital because of the tourists it would attract and the reveneues it would generate.

"Over the past two decades the US FDA has taken several actions against companies marketing Gerovital but the drug always resurfaces. Despite lavish health claims, its main ingredient has been shown only to have mild antidepressant effects. In some brands tested by the FDA, even that ingredient was missing," said the editors of Consumer Reports, a monthly magazine published by the Consumers Union of the United States.

Unconvincing Evidence

"Gerovital proponents claim that scientifc studies have proven its value. But the nearly 300 reports of Dr. Aslan and others concerning the effects of Gerovital on their patients were reviewed and evaluated by the National Institute on Aging. This review was highly critical of the methods used by the Gerovital proponents and concluded that the evidence for anti-aging effects was unconvincing," added nutritionist Kurt Butler in A Consumer’s Guide to Alternative Medicine.

Fortunately, the dangers of Gerovital are more to your pocket than your health. But the contaminants found in some products can cause serious side effects like low blood pressure, breathing difficulties, and convulsions. For this reason, it’s best to avoid the drug rather than take chances. While nothing can stop the aging process, there are many ways of staying young and active. Gerovital is not one of them.


-Skin Biology