The Number One Health Problem

Have you ever felt like this guy? Do you have an eye twitch that just will not go away? Time magazine's June 6, 1983 cover story called stress "The Epidemic of the Eighties" and referred to it as our leading health problem; there can be little doubt that the situation has progressively worsened since then. Numerous surveys confirm that adult Americans perceive they are under much more stress than a decade or two ago. A 1996 Prevention magazine survey found that almost 75% feel they have "great stress" one day a week with one out of three indicating they feel this way more than twice a week. In the same 1983 survey only 55% said they felt under great stress on a weekly basis. It has been estimated that 75 - 90 percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stress related problems. Job Stress is far and away the leading source of stress for adults but stress levels have also escalated in children, teenagers, college students and the elderly for other reasons, including: increased crime, violence and other threats to personal safety; pernicious peer pressures that lead to substance abuse and other unhealthy life style habits; social isolation and loneliness; the erosion of family and religious values and ties; the loss of other strong sources of social support that are powerful stress busters, according to the American Institution of Stress.

So why is stress now different and more dangerous? The American Institution of Stress goes on to explain that "Contemporary stress tends to be more pervasive, persistent and insidious because it stems primarily from psychological than physical threats. It is associated with ingrained and immediate reactions over which we have no control that were originally designed to be beneficial such as:

*heart rate and blood pressure soar to increase the flow of blood to the brain to improve decision making,
*blood sugar rises to furnish more fuel for energy as the result of the breakdown of glycogen, fat and protein stores,
*blood is shunted away from the gut, where it is not immediately needed for purposes of digestion, to the large muscles of the arms and legs to provide more strength in combat, or greater speed in getting away from a scene of potential peril,
*clotting occurs more quickly to prevent blood loss from lacerations or internal hemorrhage.

These and myriad other immediate and automatic responses have been exquisitely honed over the lengthy course of human evolution as life saving measures to facilitate primitive man's ability to deal with physical challenges. However, the nature of stress for modern man is not an occasional confrontation with a saber-toothed tiger or a hostile warrior but rather a host of emotional threats like getting stuck in traffic and fights with customers, co-workers, or family members, that often occur several times a day. Unfortunately, our bodies still react with these same, archaic fight or flight responses that are now not only not useful but potentially damaging and deadly. Repeatedly invoked, it is not hard to see how they can contribute to hypertension, strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, ulcers, neck or low back pain and other "Diseases of Civilization". "

Many of these effects are due to increased sympathetic nervous system activity and an outpouring of adrenaline, cortisol and other stress-related hormones. Certain types of chronic and more insidious stress due to loneliness, poverty, bereavement, depression and frustration due to discrimination are associated with impaired immune system resistance to viral linked disorders ranging from the common cold and herpes to AIDS and cancer. Stress can have effects on other hormones, brain neurotransmitters, additional small chemical messengers elsewhere, prostaglandins, as well as crucial enzyme systems, and metabolic activities that are still unknown. Research in these areas may help to explain how stress can contribute to depression, anxiety and its diverse effects on the gastrointestinal tract, skin and other organs.

With the new season of SkinDeep quickly approaching, I've been busy planning out new articles that touch base with every day life. My main agenda here is good skin care health, tips and hints, but mental wellness and over all happiness plays an active roll in our daily lives as well as the effect it has on our skin. Through out the new season, I will be discussing the effects of stress on our bodies and emotional well being, and discussing my own affliction of adrenal fatigue caused from over work and to much stress. The upcoming articles will also feature tips on how to distress your life and how to teach yourself how to "Rise Above It".

I cannot express how important it is to take a little rest and relaxation time for yourself, and how serious it is to now allow toxic people in your life effect the way you feel and function. Keep posted!

Here are some things to consider about how much stress is present in your daily life: Are you depressed? Have you gained weight ( especially in the tummy zone) and you can't get it off no matter what? Do you have digestive track problems, do you feel anxious all of the time? Are you irritable and have trouble sleeping? Does it seem like you get over one illness only to get another? Are you exhausted no matter how much rest you have gotten? You will definitely want the future information coming to SkinDeep.

We will discuss my own Adrenal Fatigue, ways of managing stress and even talk about some amazing vitamins you find at your local drug store that really make a difference in how you feel, function and cope with stress. Until then, take a relaxing hot bath with a Pioneer Soap Works bath bomb and take it easy. :)

Sincerely,
Miss Rachel
Pioneer Soap Works

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Differences between Essential Oils & Absolultes, Natural Fragrance Oils and Fragrance Oils made from Chemicals.

Over the years, customers ask if this fragrance or that fragrance is an essential oil. One that struck me funny was a fellow soap maker in California had told me of a competitive soap maker at their market selling strawberry scented soap and claiming it very verbally to contain strawberry essential oil. My fellow soap maker called me up and told me how that bugged him and I totally understood why. I did say ,"Perhaps, it's a Natural Fragrance oil, made from essential oils, like some of my fragrances are." He said, "This may be true, but do you tell people it's a strawberry essential oil, or that it's a natural fragrance oil you've blended from essential oils?"

I personally would not have said that it was a strawberry essential oil because  there is no such thing as  a strawberry essential oil, but a fragrance oil made from essential oils to mimic the scent of strawberry. In the aroma chemistry world, it takes 17 chemical compounds to create a synthetic fragrance oil that smells like strawberry. I am unsure on how many essential oils and ratios of such it would take to create a natural strawberry scent because I haven't  yet accomplished that one. I have one fragrance sitting at my shop that I've been whiffing and letting customers sniff for about two years that smells wonderful, made of  17 - 21 ( must look my notes to be sure) various essential oils and absolutes. Some say it smells like candy, others say mulberry and I just do not know, but it never ceases to amaze me how taking natural essential oils and absolutes can create fragrances that mimic the scent of another. This is what makes working with fragrances so fun and challenging. :)

So what is the difference between Essential Oils and Absolutes, Natural Fragrance Oils and Fragrance Oils made from Chemicals. I know so many are interested , because of the amounts of questions I get about various fragrances, especially ones I carry in my own product line. Before I begin , if you ever have any question on whether or not any of our products have a fragrance oil or an essential oil, our website www.pioneersoapwork.com discusses the difference between our natural soaps ( unscented or scented with essential oils) and our natural boutique soap collection ( natural soap scented with fragrance oil). Simply look at our labels and it will clearly state if our product contains essential oil or fragrance. Even if it's a natural fragrance created from essential oils, it will still say fragrance in the list of the ingredients, if you want to know if it's a natural or certified natural fragrance   just ask.

We have very limited space on our labels, other wise I'd fit all of this information on there. lolMany people use fragrance for aroma therapy purposes whether it be from essential oils or fragrance oils. Fragrance is one of the most amazing things in the world in the sence that scent of one thing can trigger memories, make you feel happy, relaxed, uplifted , even aroused.

It works on both physical and nonphysical levels, holistically, addressing the physical body, mind and soul by linking physical, mental, and emotional levels of concern. It actually works best when it is used by the mind and body simultaneously. Aromatherapy works subtly, through the senses as you absorb impressions. It targets different neuro-chemicals in the brain, to lift up, stimulate, sedate or create euphoria.
However the most well known way aromatherapy works is through smell, because of the influence of aroma on the brain, especially the limbic system, the part of the brain that controls our moods, emotions, memory and learning, through the olfactory system.

Something that you may not know is that aromatherapy isn’t always all about using your sense of smell as a means of improving your body, mind or your soul.
When you practice the art of aromatherapy, one thing to keep in mind is the importance of smell when it comes to essential oils.

Nowadays beside essential oils, absolutes are becoming a part of aromatherapy cause its scent can awaken our feeling and emotion just like essential oils, and this is where natural perfumery and aroma chemistry come into play in our bath and body products as well as our home franchising. Now, as I have mentioned before, we have some wonderful natural scented derived from essential oils and absolutes and some fabulous synthetic fragrance oils that are Phthalate free, much safer than your common fragrances that cause irritation to your allergies, migraines etc. but are still synthetic and not made by us. They are well loved by most  of our customers, but others perfer the straight essential oils we use in our herbal soap line ( Lavender, frankincense & Myrrh, Lemongrass, Peppermint,  etc.)

All of this talk about absolutes, what exactly is an absolute?
Absolute is a concentrated semi-solid material obtained by solvent extraction.
Absolutes are actually quite similar to essential oils in the fact that they are extracted from plants. There is a difference between absolutes and essential oils in terms of the method that is commonly implement during the extraction process.

Essential oil is an aromatic liquid compound which extracted from parts of the plants - leaves, wood, barks, seed, flower and even peel. And mostly they are extracted using steam distillation process.
But not all oils are using steam distillation process. Some of the low concentrate oils like Jasmine, Neroli, Oak moss, Tuberose and Rose are extracted by solvent.

Solvent extraction is very gentle. It is a procedure by which aromatic compounds are drawn out of the plant material using volatile solvents such as petroleum, ether, benzene, resulting in a concentrate called “essence concrete”. The solvents are separated from the concrete and the remaining solvent mixed with alcohol and heated to undergo a filtering process in which the waxes and alcohol are removed. But some of waxes cannot be removed. This final end product is called absolute.

Another difference between absolutes and essential oils is: Absolutes sometimes tend to carry a more true to nature fragrance than Essential Oils. This is because they contain many of the non-volatile constituents of the plant such as tannins and pigments that are not made available by distillation means. Rose Absolute is a great example of this, displaying its vivid colour and exquisite fragrance.

This is one major reason why absolutes have been used mostly in fragrance and perfume industries. They can be and have been used successfully in the area of aromatherapy, but you need to be extremely careful when using these absolutes for that purpose. It’s important to keep in mind that any of these absolutes can trigger an allergic reaction for some people who come into contact with it. While essential oils are pure oils, when in steam distillation process, there is no contact with any contaminants, so essential oils can be used for therapeutic purposes.

When creating fragrances from Absolutes and Essential Oils ( and even aroma chemicals), many fragrance manufacturers dilute the pure fragrance down with a solvent ( which often times contain phthalates). Fragrances I create are not diluted and takes very little and if  dilution is needed it is diluted with a light natural carrier oil such as sweet almond oil , jojoba oil or coconut oil because most of our fragrances are ment to be used on the skin. If  I do not blend it from essential oils and absolutes then it is certified natural fragrance oil that is phthalate free and the same method of diluting pure fragrance is used with a carrier oil, according to the fragrance manufacturers  I have chosen to use for this method.

So what is a Certified Natural Fragrance Oil and A fragrance oil made from aroma chemicals?Many of the fragrance oils I buy I purchase because they smell wonderful, they are phthalate free and are Certified Natural.  A Certified Natural Fragrance Oil  is a blend that contain only Pure Essential Oils and Pure Resins ( absolutes), and the companies I have chosen to work with offer a Certificate of Compliance to prove the fragrance is natural from essential oils etc. As an example, one of my favorite natural fragrance oils called Iced Oatmeal Cookies ( to be launched this spring ) is made from Cardamom Seed Oil, Cinnamon Leaf Extract,  Nutmeg Kernel Oil,  and Soybean Oil. The natural Almond and Honey Fragrance We all love so much is as follows Lemon Essential Oil, Lavender Essential Oil, Ginger Essential Oil, Cinnamomum cassia leaf oil and sweet almond oil. Whiffed separately one could not imagine the combined blend ever smelling like Almond and a twist of sweet honey, but combined together in the correct ratio of each oil and what once was single note accords combine to create an amazing new fragrance all natural. :)

Aroma Chemicals are a whole different world. They are just as they are called Aroma Chemicals. Skin safe , yet they are synthetic chemicals used to make scents. One in particular fragrance  Sandalwood, is composed of over 100 different aroma chemicals AND absolutes to give an interpretation of sandalwood, common in many perfumes. Sandalwood Essential Oil can be used in perfume, but with an average cost of 75.00 per half ounce depending on the origin it is more cost efficient to the consumer who enjoys the scent of sandal wood to have a synthetic fragrance than the essential oil. Where as most essential oils are safe for the skin, they can cause irritation and rash if one is allergic to the particular oil or if they are used  incorrectly, the same holds true for fragrance oils.

Where as one customer was allergic to lavender essential oil and it gave her a horrible rash, she was content to use a skin safe phthalate free lavender fragrance.Many times fragrance oils get a "bum" wrap because they are all assumed to be made from chemicals when many are actually natural fragrance oils created from natural essentials, absolutes, resins etc. If one is completely against chemicals, I'd stear clear of fragrance oils  or consult your perfumer to find out which ones are created naturally. If one is allergic to various plants and essential oils react to your skin, I always suggest going completely fragrance free to be safe or try a skin safe fragrance, doing a patch test first before placing the product all over your body.

 I hope this clarifies any questions there have been about the differences between natural fragrances and essential oils and aroma chemistry. Don't be fooled into thinking if it smells like cotton candy that it's not a natural blend, there isn't a cotton candy essential oil, but you can certainly blend various essential oils, resins and absolutes to create almost any fragrance you desire.I hope you will experience the fun of blending fragrances in our bath bar. We will have a complete list of pure essential oils and a separate list of natural fragrance oils as well as another separate list of fragrance oils so you may choose what is best for you and your lifestyle. We're happy to answer any question you have to the best of our knowledge.

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Appreciating Yourself Lesson 4: Take Care of Your Body

"If you exercise, eat right, and get enough sleep, it will help your physical health. It will help your emotional health
as well. You can improve your mood with physical activity, healthy eating, and getting enough sleep. Enough sleep
will also improve your memory and help keep you healthy. Most women need about 8 hours of sleep a night.
You can learn more about physical activity and healthy eating in “My Bright Future: Physical Activity and Healthy
Eating Tools for Adult Women.” You can download a free copy at www.hrsa.gov/womenshealth.
You don’t have to make a lot of big changes to exercise more, eat better, or get more sleep. In fact, you will do
better if you try to reach your goals in small steps.

• Healthy eating habits: Decide on just one thing you would like to do to eat healthier. Keep
doing it until it becomes a habit. Then try to form another good eating habit. (If you aren’t
sure what healthy eating means, here is one definition: Healthy eating means consuming a
variety of nutrient-dense foods and beverages within and among the basic food groups, while
choosing foods that limit your intake of saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars,
salt, and alcohol.)


• Physical activity: Add a few minutes of walking or some other form of exercise to your day.
Keep doing it until you have reached your goal. (One goal is to aim for at least 30 minutes of
walking or other moderate physical activity on most days of the week.)


• Set an earlier bedtime: Make your bedtime 10 minutes earlier. Keep doing it until you’ve
reached your goal.


• Develop good sleep habits: Write down your sleep habits for a week and look for ways
to improve them. Once you’ve found the right bedtime, try to go to bed at about the same
time every night. Try not to eat, drink alcohol or caffeinated beverages, or exercise right
before bed.

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Appreciating Yourself Lesson 3: Set your own goals and self-expectations

"Many women let others tell them what they should be doing and how. To be emotionally well, you need to judge
yourself by your own standards and no one else’s.

• Define beauty for yourself: Images of thin, glamorous women are everywhere. However, most women
do not look that way. True beauty comes from inside and shines outward. Focus on the things about
yourself that you think are beautiful.

• Define your own values: Many women believe they need to live up to the expectations of our culture.
However, the only values you need to live up to are your own. Take a look at your beliefs and values.
Remember how you add value to the world.


• Focus on your strengths: We all have strengths and weaknesses, but many of us focus more on our
weaknesses. Try this trick to change your way of thinking: Each time you think about one of your
weaknesses, follow that with a thought about one of your strengths."

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Appreciating yourself Lesson 2: Building Self Confidence

"Feeling self-confident helps you believe that you can try new things. Even if things go wrong, self-confidence helps you know that you can try to make them better. You can increase your self-confidence by setting goals that make sense, thinking positively, and being prepared. Here are some tips to increase your self-confidence: • Stop comparing: Your abilities and talents are unique and special. Everyone has different goals in life and ways of thinking about what success means. Decide what success means for you. Try not to worry about what success means for your neighbor. • Remember your good deeds: Think about the times when you have made a difference in someone else’s life. Give yourself credit for the good things you do for others every day. • Forgive yourself and learn from your mistakes: Everyone makes mistakes from time to time. Learn from what went wrong, but don’t dwell on it."

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Appreciating yourself Lesson 1 : Building Self Respect

Build your self-respect "Self-respect is an important part of emotional wellness. Every woman wants to be respected. Have you ever thought about whether you are respecting yourself? This means taking care of yourself in four different ways: Physically: Being active, eating healthy foods, getting enough sleep, and practicing good hygiene. Mentally: Challenging your mind, including learning about yourself and your family history. Spiritually: Taking time to explore your beliefs about the meaning and purpose of life. Taking time to think about how you want to guide your life by the principles that are important to you. Emotionally: Thinking good thoughts about yourself and others. Every woman can appreciate herself more." Every day that I have focused on at least 30 minutes of exercise, I have felt better physically as well as mentally. I have more energy and I feel happier. In the last week of this new course to change lifestyle health and habits I have not had the urge to go back to bed or have thought about death in any way. I have felt so good inside and out, I have thought more about the future and starting dreaming of future plans again. Eating well, sleeping well, working out has made a big difference in how I feel emotionally. This has been the best emotional week of my life in over a year. :) I am reading and studying again. I have been so tired in the past few months that I've found it hard to focus or care about focusing on anything other than sleep and seclusion. This week I have learned about the difference in teas, ie, Rooibos, Oolong, Black, White etc. I've taste tested a many new varieties , read about the health benefits and am even learning about creating my own personal blends. I am ready to get out of my slump and move forward to new plans for the future. The tea bar in the new store will be awesome. I will share my love for tea and flavors as well as my love for bubble baths and fragrances with the world. These things make me happy, they make me feel good by helping me relax and meditate. Perhaps the store should be called "My Favorite Things". :) In the last several months I have shut out the world, family, friends , business and I have even shut God out of my life to a degree in the sense that I have felt so destroyed emotionally that I have had a lack of faith. Where I would normally feel take everything to the Lord in prayer and leave my worries at his feet, I have just tried to sleep them away. This week, I have felt so good emotionally and physically that it has even boosted my spirits and I have done a better job in seeking God for his answers rather than wallowing in my worries and burdening myself with to much weight. A song was on my mind through out the week, "Shackled by a heavy burden, neath a load of sin and shame, then the hand of Jesus touched me, and now I am now no longer the same. He touched me, Oh he touched me, and oh what Joy has flood my soul. Something happened and now I know, he touched me , and made me whole." In praying and staying closer to the Lord and giving him my worries , I feel better spiritually , I feel as if I have received a big hug from God. Thinking good thoughts is hard to do when someone has hurt you, but I think this makes us stronger people if we can find at least one nice thing to think about someone, even when they are mean... and maybe we can still like them. People are people, I am one of them, I make mistakes as well as everyone else. I never want anyone to hold anything against me when I have been human. I have been trying very hard to focus on forgiveness this week . I am not at peace with a couple of things, they need to be approached. I feel like sometimes to feel that peace and forgiveness you will also need closure in confronting the person who has hurt you. Whether you get an apology or not, at least you made an effort. I am not ready to confront my "demon" right now, but I am working on overcoming that angry side to be more loving and ready to do so. However, on the path of thinking good thoughts, aside from the one or two things that have really helped to bring me down.... I Am having happy thoughts daily, not focusing on the depressing parts as much. I am seeing plans for the future and I am getting excited about them. I am happy to have a wonderful family complete with love, smiles, happy & healthy children, a loving man that supports my efforts and encourages me. I have the perfect support group. :) I am ready to be well.

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