Dermatologist Talks: Skincare Science

The hippocampus plays a crucial role in memories, imagination as well as the process of dreaming. Ever wonder why we dream? Are human minds designed to replicate reality in the imaginary world of dreams? What scientists now consider essential to healthy brain functioning- dreams offer creative solutions to problems, help consolidate memories and overall healthy brain circuitry. Dream states can be...

In our Anniversary Podcast Special, we celebrate beauty with a game. I created Butterfly Brain Games as a companion to this podcast where we entertain alternative ideas about what is beautiful. In this game, I hope you find the answers to the question that Inspired it all. What is the science of beauty? Beauty a philosophy, hidden in the art of expression. A story that we write about ourselves, wi...

My fascination with the realm of the imagination as a dermatologist began with my observations of body dysmorphophobia. In this case, sufferers experience horror and self-loathing in a purely imaginary way – yet it is so real it manifests with concrete reactions like continual body-modification attempts with plastic surgery and persistent depression or even suicide. Body dysmorphobia is a classic...

In this episode, Dr. Teo Wan Lin, board-certified dermatologist, shares about oxidative stress and acne, and the effects of antioxidant skincare.  We have all heard about damaging free radicals that generate in response to environmental stress, causing sun damaged, aging skin.  Did you know that free radicals can also worsen acne? Acne-prone skin often associates with excessive oil produ...

Acne marks or scars are a common concern. This podcast episode goes in depth into the types of acne, how exactly acne scars form, and different types of scars that can develop. Join in the discussion on how best to prevent and treat acne scars in this masterclass brought to you by Eucerin International.  Want more of our podcast? Episode Recaps and Notes: https://www.scienceofbeauty.net/; Ins...

In my research paper "On Thoughts Emotions Facial Expressions and Aging" I proposed the pathways by which our mental and emotional world directly shapes our aging faces. The last few podcasts have focused on how the brain influences our facial aesthetics, and how our own psychological traits influence how we perceive aesthetics in others. Today’s podcast goes into the realm of our imagination, at...

The skin barrier is best thought of as a protective wall between the internal environment of the body and the external. A healthy skin barrier enables all your organ cells to function optimally. This means carrying out all various day to day functions of keeping one healthy. Extreme environmental changes, such as high or low temperatures, extremes of humidity, allergens present i.e dust, pollen, p...

Hyperpigmentation is often associated with aging. However, there are actually many different types of pigmentation that dermatologists encounter. While not all forms of hyperpigmentation are the same, there are a few common pathways that effective treatment options can target. Melanocytes are the cells that produce pigment, known as melanin. These 3 ingredients work effectively and holistically to...

Everyone wants to have radiant, glowing skin. As one of the most popular active ingredients used in chemical peels at the dermatologist’s office and also incorporated in skincare, glycolic acid truly deserves its reputation as a star exfoliator. How does it work? Do we need to exfoliate our skin at all? This week’s podcast is a masterclass on glycolic acid, the star ingredient of the brand new Gly...

This week's podcast episode is a masterclass sponsored by L'Oreal Paris, the beauty giant behind the latest Full Resist Anti-Hair Fall range. Backed by evidence-based ingredients researched by hair scientists, this range of hair care specifically targets ongoing cell processes involved in hair loss. I discuss Aminexil ® , the star patented ingredient by L'Oreal Paris that has been proven to help p...

The world has been witness to the diabolical events unfolding in Ukraine over the past few weeks. The internal horror we each feel to the atrocities committed is testament to the fact that human beings have an innate sense of what is right and wrong. Goodness and morality are closely tied to beauty. There is a universal perception of evil as ugliness of the soul. If beauty is an emotion, ugliness...

Possessing “inner beauty” isn’t just the consolation prize for those less than genetically blessed with physical beauty. Science tells us that our perception of beauty is deeply rooted in our psychological makeup, which colors the way we view beauty.  Inner beauty is a term colloquially used to describe goodness and kindness, altruistic virtues that make life on earth better and more pea...

Beauty is a topic of fascination throughout millennia. Gustav Fechner, the pioneer of modern psychology proposed a set of metrics which could be used to statistically define the experience of beauty. Known as psychophysics, he examined the relationship between the material and the mental world, known as “die geistige Welt” in German, which translates literally to the spiritual universe. In contemp...

Self-care is more than just a buzzword. At the heart of a skincare routine is an emphasis on wellbeing. Practising your skincare ritual daily is self-care in action. Behind this is the science of the brain-skin connection, an area increasingly studied by dermatologists. From the impact of psychological stress on skin disorders, to how your thoughts and emotions can imprint on your face over time,...

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic thrust home based self-care regimens into the spotlight from 2020. The home facial devices trend looks set to stay. In-office technologies such as radiofrequency, microdermabrasion and microcurrent incorporated in home facial care devices has enabled at-home DIY facial treatments to be possibly as effective as salon or clinic treatments. This podcast episode gives lis...

Hyaluronic acid is a well-known skincare active. While most people are aware of its function in moisturizing the skin, what is equally important but lesser-known is that it participates in very meaningful cell-to-cell interactions, which is known as cell talk.  The key here is that not all forms of hyaluronic acid is able to perform this function of enhancing the cellular processes that are b...

The flower is a universal symbol of beauty, not just in terms of its visual representation, but also because of its association with scent and perfume.  While flowers may paint an otherworldly picture of heavenly beauty, our appreciation of flowers actually tells of mankind’s innate desire for subtlety in beauty. One that doesn’t just value physical form of shape, pattern and texture, but als...

This week’s podcast focuses on the aging skin exposome, a fairly recent concept in dermatology research which explains the physiological processes that result in skin aging. The skin exposome encompasses external environmental factors as well as internal, biological responses which also includes the use of cosmeceutical interventions. The SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic serum represents the gold standar...

Hollywood movies have caricatured the hearts and intents of personalities with faces designed to elicit an emotional response from the viewer.  An individual's facial expression tells us much about what they are thinking, and we pride ourselves on reading characters. Perhaps, also with the stereotypes imprinted in our minds by filmmakers. An inherent flaw in such a concept outside of reel life is...

An urban lifestyle replete with its glorification of dazzling city lights and late nights has influenced many to take sleep for granted. While the effects of sleep deprivation on our health and immune system are well established, emerging research now suggests that sleep deprivation can have a direct impact on how attractive you look. This has to do with sleep deprivation accelerating the aging pr...

Have you ever thought about how the phrase “to see someone in a harsh light” originated? Turns out, the physical phenomena of light perception quite literally can change how one feels about another. Yup, we are not talking about filters here! On the topic of natural vs artificial lighting, Dr. Teo Wan Lin discusses how lighting directly impacts perception, from photography, art to even in our soci...

This is part of the beauty podcast series on neuroaesthetics based on Dr. Teo Wan Lin’s white paper on the brain-skin connection “On thoughts, emotions, facial expressions and aging” published in the Feb 2021 issue of the International Journal of Dermatology¹. This podcast episode takes us quite literally behind the scenes of beauty— where Dr. Teo dissects the evidence behind the science of percep...

Society’s god-like objectification of beauty may inherently be a flawed concept. This weekend’s podcast focuses on Dr. Teo Wan Lin’s research in the field of neuroaesthetics, a sequel to the previous podcast on the role of evolutionary psychology in beauty standards. She posits that the experience of beauty is actually a neuroendocrine process involving our senses and brain processing, rather than...

In this weekend's podcast, Dr. Teo Wan Lin shares her research exploring the concept of psychology affecting human faces and perception- via facial expressions influenced by thought and emotion.  Evolutionary psychology shows that our own mental biases of beauty are also affected by perceptions independent of physical markers of beauty. Aging is a physiological process seemingly encoded in al...

This week's podcast is on how to choose the right chemical peel for your home skincare regimen. Chemical peels contain AHAs and/or BHAs, which can help to accelerate the skin cell renewal process. This is very important for photoaging and can also be part of the treatment of mild to moderate comedonal acne. The differences between various types of chemical peel ingredients are explored, in additio...