Kiehl's Activated Sun Protector Sunscreen for Body SPF 50

Kiehl's has introduced a "Dermatologist Solutions" Activated Sun Protector Sunscreen for Body with Broad Spectrum SPF 50 ($23). It's an oil-free, paraben-free, silicone-free, lightweight fluid sunscreen with patented, photostabilized, sun-filtering technology to provide broad-spectrum UVA/UVB protection. Formulated to meet the new Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, Kiehl's chemists worked to pack the sunscreen with additional benefits - three antioxidants to help ward off free radicals on the skin's surface.

"We have always taken sunscreen seriously at Kiehl's. We take extra care to educate our customers on sunscreens, how to use them, what SPF numbers mean, and how to properly protect your skin, so we were pleased to see the FDA's sunscreen labeling reforms, which are intended to better educate consumers on how sunscreens combat sun damage," said Dr. Angelike Galdi, Kiehl's Head Chemist and AVP of Research & Innovation. "We took the opportunity to not only meet the standards, but exceed them by adding powerful antioxidants to further protect the skin from environmental aggressors."

Kiehl's Activated Sun Protector Sunscreen for the Body with SPF 50 offers broad-spectrum protection with filters that can absorb different wavelengths of ultraviolet rays to ensure protection against UVA and UVB exposure. Using a broad-spectrum sunscreen will help minimize skin tone irregularities and prevent premature skin aging.

Dr. Sherry Hsiung, a hyperpigmentation specialist skin cancer surgeon, and consulting dermatologist for Kiehl's said, "My patients often complain that sunscreen is too thick, tacky, and sticky, a misconception that leads to many people not applying sunscreen often enough or even at all. Kiehl's new Activated Sun Protector Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 offers men and women...a formula that is ultra-light and absorbs easily. It's non-comedogenic, meaning it won't clog pores and has even been proven to improve skin barrier function."

Kiehl's chemists used patented photstabilized technology to produce an effective and efficient sunscreen, which protects against harmful UVA rays that are responsible for the majority of UV radiation that reaches the earth. Because UVA rays are known to penetrate the skin deeply, they are responsible for skin cancer and premature aging. Kiehl's paired Avobenzone and Octocrylene at very specific levels to ensure optimal photostability. This factore helps the formula maintain its relative level of protection for a longer period than a non-photostabilized sunscreen can.

About 93% of the UVB rays are absorbed at SPF 15, and close to 95% at SPF 30. Many dermatologists feel that people are not applying sunscreens properly (in inadequate amounts and/or with inadequate frequency). As a result, UV radiation is still being absorbed by our skin, even when we think we are diligent with sunscreen usage. I've heard that the average sunscreen protects for only two hours.

The antioxidants in this new formula complement the sunscreen ingredients.

• Goji berry, a traditional Chinese medicine, is historically known to build the skin's own resistance and reduce free radical damage.
• Vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant known for its ability to help protect against skin-damaging free radicals, helps provide increased protection when combined with a sunscreen.
• Einkorn wheat, one of the earliest cultivated forms of wheat (in approximately 7500 BC), is known to stimulate the skin's natural antioxidant defenses (when tested in vitro).

I wanted to tell you about this new sunscreen because Kiehl's sent me a bottle. I love it! It's fragrance-free and lightweight, making it easy and pleasant to use every day. Even if I'm not planning to sit out in the sun, I know my arms and hands are exposed when I'm wearing short sleeves.

In a consumer study, 90% of Kiehl's testers found it easy to apply, 92% found it gentle on the skin, 88% reported smooth skin, and 90% found that it protected their skin. I'm similarly impressed. Someone asked me for a sunscreen recommendation recently. This new product has become one of my top recommendations. Not only is it really nice, the price is right.

Photo courtesy of Kiehl's

Kiehl's Super Fluid UV Defense SPF 50

Kiehl's has a new sunscreen that takes away any reasons you might have had for not wearing sunscreen on your face and neck. No more arguments that sunscreen is too white, thick, or pasty - or interferes with your makeup!

Super Fluid UV Defense SPF 50 ($32) is ultra-lightweight. Apply it, and it literally disappears into your skin. It's oil-free and fragrance-free, so it offers protection without any annoying or irritating "side effects." It's water-resistant too! How's that for perfect?

The superior photostabilized formula offers UVB and UVA protection with its active ingredients Avobenzone (Parsol 1789), Octisalate, and Octocrylene. You apply it after your moisturizer and before your foundation (assuming you wear foundation).

This nice "facial fluid" provides long-lasting, broad-spectrum sun protection to help prevent the dark spots, freckles, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and solar elastosis that result from sun exposure. Just shake well before applying to thoroughly mix the ingredients.

There are only a few high-powered sunscreens on the market that are as light and fabulous as this one, and they are more expensive. Kiehl's has come up with a winner!

You can purchase this wherever you buy Kiehl's - it's widely available. Saks has it in stock.

Photo courtesy of Kiehl's

Kiehl's Introduces Organic Açaí Skin Care Collection

WWD reported Friday that Kiehl's has harnessed the power of the antioxidant Brazilian Açaí berry in its first organic skin care collection. The four-product line, due at stores in mid-September, is Ecocert and Cradle-to-Cradle certified. This is more good news for gals who want their skin to live and breathe swaddled in pure ingredients.

WWD spoke with Chris Salgardo, president of Kiehl’s USA, who said, “Since our inception, we have always been known for our service and for creating efficacious products,” said Salgardo, noting that everyone asks for “green” products, but still demand high performance. “We heard that our customers wanted organics, that they wanted paraben-free, that they wanted natural — and they wanted to focus on the first signs of aging. We went to the lab to do all that. The result: our new Açaí line.”

Salgardo also said that Açaí was chosen as the focal ingredient because its “superior antioxidant properties” help combat environmental aggressors and stimulate the skin’s natural renewal process. Grown in Brazil, Açaí has served as a food source for hundreds of years. “Açaí is a powerful superberry, which means a fruit considered to have exceptionally high levels of nutrients, antioxidants, and potential health benefits when compared to other foods. It has high antioxidant levels to help reverse and prevent oxidizing free-radical damage to skin cells arising from environmental and lifestyle stress. It is among the highest in antioxidant capacity of any edible fruit, and it is a broad-spectrum antioxidant, especially effective against superoxides [yikes! toxins that can harm skin cells] and peroxyl free-radicals [implicated in the aging process], which produce oxidative damage on skin.”

In addition, WWD reported that in addition to Açaí, the ingredients include organic lavender and rosemary essential oils, organic orange fruit water, denatured botanical alcohol, and aloe vera juice, all intended to minimize fine lines and wrinkles and increase skin luminosity. I'll bet these products smell great!

The four products offered are: Açaí Damage-Minimizing Cleanser ($25), advertised to cleanse, while preserving the skin's natural moisture barrier; Damage-Protecting Toning Mist ($27), said to improve radiance and rejuvenation of the skin; Damage-Correcting Moisturizer ( $44) to repair oxidative damage to the skin and preserve hydration; and Damage-Repairing Serum ($46), intended to even skin texture and tighten. Although serums usually have the highest concentration of active ingredients, I think I'll try the cleanser.

Here's the rub for you post-40 beauty lovers. The line is targeted at customers who are in their early to mid-30s, who are noticing the first signs of aging. Remember my post about anti-aging being a growth industry? I'm not sure whether this is a clever marketing strategy (particularly given the cartoon advertisements they have prepared), or whether the company feels there are better, stronger products available for more "mature" women.

Nevertheless, if you love Kiehl's, as I do, and you want to give an organic product a whirl, you have another choice in the growing organic field. You can learn more about these new products and purchase them at Kiehl's Web site. If you register and sign in at Kiehl's, you can select three samples. I want a sample of the new Imperial Body Balm.

Photo courtesy of WWD Online, my daily source for beauty news.

Tonic for the Soul

Ever left work and felt overworked and unappreciated? Go home and take a bath. Warm water and your favorite beverage (wink!) should offer some temporary relief. Make sure to think about things you like, not the day's events. Like meditation, only better!

There are more than a few "relaxing" aromatherapy bath products available. Two of my favorites are Kiehl's Muscle Soak Foaming-Relaxing Bath ($18.50) and Clarins Relax Bath & Shower Concentrate ($27.50). They both smell good, with a bit of a "mineral" fragrance.

The Kiehl's product contains sea salts, aloe vera, and a natural humectant to keep your skin soft. It is not tested on animals, which makes it even better.

Clarins offers the pricier Relax Bath & Shower Concentrate ($27.50), which seems to have disappeared from some department stores, but is still available at Macy's and Dillard's - or Canadian or European Web sites. Filled with aromatic plant extracts, this bath additive really is relaxing. "Relax" is also available in a Relaxing Body Balm ($37.50), which is perfect if you can't find time for that bath. A bit like using Origins Piece of Mind.

Interesting that they are both blue? Soothing blue for the blues.

Photo courtesy of Kiehl's.