Dear Dr.Pickart,
What are your theories or description of the process of ciarette smoking aging your face?
I do feel guilty for smoking four cigarettes a day but would also be thankful to read your scientific explanation of what I am doing to the skin specifically since aging is not supposed to be cause by free radicals.Some U.K.Dr.just said it was from free radicals damaging collagen.What is your opinion as to why it gives that telltale look?

The main problem with smoking is the constriction of small blood vessels. This reduces the flow of oxygen and nutrients to the skin.

But the free radical theory of aging and wrinkles seems to be going out. The Scientific American (Oct. 2008) reviewed newer science on aging and concluded that free radicals and cell damage are not the cause of aging. It now looks like a lack of regenerative signals is the problem.

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

Thankyou for taking the time to respond,Dr.Pikart.It is the fact that you do this that will keep me returning to your company
along with the fact that your products seem to be working after only exactly one month.
Your serum reminds me of the movie"Death Becomes Her"!Ha,ha.
As per smoking,thankyou for not lecturing.I am practising and learning relaxation techniques and will probably run out and get some DHEA as per your suggestion for stress.
Ever so many thanks!

This is a little off topic but still on topic. I have a friend whose been a smoker and not really been health conscious at all, and last year his skin got really bad discoloured and he looked unhealthy. I tried telling him about eating healthier and protecting his skin and he would always argue that he didn't like the taste. Well one day I was out with his wife in town, and she saw a juicer which she purchased, and she began giving him vegetable/fruit juices every day which he quibbled about at first, but then started to look forward to, and I have to say, I really think they helped him out. She was juicing every vegetable going, and I know that he was completely unwilling to take supplements but have a real feeling that the vegetables etc he was drinking in these juices (although they are not what they used to be and probably contain half the ratio of vitamins/minerals they did 10 years ago), his skin took ages but it looks great now, and he had made no other real noticeable changes but that.

Hello SeanySean.
It is so strange that you mention this and I am just reading these things today as I have been going and getting carrot juice for the last week and a half.I kept hearing my mother asking why I didn't order a fresh juice in place of a latte?Well,because I wanted the buzz.But I feel I've got to give the body nutrients and not expect my face to look good while I continue bad habits.I am now down to two or three cigarettes.I actually want green juices because I want the minerals to get the hair back to normal.I am also thinking that the vegetables will have to be eaten and not just drunk in concentation like that.I suppose that the smoking affects the hair as well as the face and probably the eyes.I am trying to get some relaxation or meditation cd to help.And must care for my self.Thankyou.

Hey Glowing

Wow that is a great coincidence – but you know I think that the majority of people today don’t give themselves the nutrients their bodies really desire or need to be at their optimal health… so your not alone. The worrying thing is that its become the norm to have the Latte in this day and age and anything else is frowned upon….. that’s wonderful re the minimising the cigarettes, and I think your right, if you can get green vegetable juices, your hair will get back to normal in time. I do think eating vegetables is the ultimate, but many people find this initially too difficult and in that case, I think juicing sometimes is better than nothing. I actually dislike vegetable juices in place of vegetables, as I find that the juicing process takes the digestion system out a little (because it doesn’t need to produce the digestive enzymes for the juice in comparison with the food itself), but in the case of an absence of vegetables, I kind of think some is better than none at all.

There are some great cd’s out there. I particularly like those of brainsync…. which has plain music ones and guided imagery ones as well but there are many out there!

Sean