Happy Earth Day! Happy Birthday!

Earth Day is Sunday April 22. I am honored that this day, which is my birthday, was chosen as the day to celebrate Earth’s natural environment. Since I was little I have been fascinated by nature and the miracles it brings.

Our family was fortunate enough to live near open space and my brother and I would spend weekends hiking through the local mountains, catching snakes (and letting them go), observing coyotes, rabbits, horny toads, quail, hawks and an occasional deer. We enjoyed the seasonal aspects of the plants, new grass, abundant flowers in the spring, new growth on trees, the drying and browning over the summer months, the further contracting in the fall and finally the cycle beginning to start over in winter (remember this was Southern California and our vegetation turns green in winter). I developed a deep respect for nature in general, and specifically for the complexity of the eco-systems and how humans make an impact through our daily activities.

In the early 1960’s Los Angeles had one of the highest smog issues in the country and you could see and feel the thick brown blanket laying over the valleys. This was just one of my many observations as to how we (humans) can negatively affect our environment.

Now, I personally try to lessen my impact on Nature. I recycle, compost my garden with a red worm compost bin, vote with my dollar and do not buy highly-packaged products (I buy larger packages instead of convenience sizes, or bags rather than plastic containers). I have a supply of reusable grocery bags, drive a 45 MPG diesel Jetta, and try on a daily basis to do the right thing for the environment.

That brings me back to living in the present moment. (As an aside, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery and today is a gift; that is why it is called the present”. – Bill Keane). Being in the present is a huge stress-reducer as we no longer worry about what has happened or what is going to happen but only focus on what is happening now. If we could avoid the “what if” syndrome and only worry about “what is”, we would save ourselves so much time, energy and stress (and you may or may not know, that I’m all about reducing stress whenever possible).

So on this Earth Day I would invite you to focus on the day, and on Nature. We have had beautiful weather around the country already this year, so take time to enjoy the gifts of the Earth: admire the flowers, the green grass, the songs of the birds or the warm sunshine. And maybe on this one day, try to really stay in tune with Earth, take an all-day hike, plant a tree or a pot of flowers, or just sit back, relax and be happy. I wish for all of you a very special and enjoyable Earth Day.

Yours in health,

Dr. Linda Miles, L. Ac., D.O.M.

Scarring Experiences

I am constantly amazed at the number of people who have scars that bother them. These can be from an accident, acne, hives, surgery or other causes, but it seems that everyone has a scar that they would like to “get rid of”. And while scars are the body’s way of dealing with some sort of trauma and are actually a good thing (our body has the ability to heal itself!), they can cause a great deal of emotional stress and negatively affect our self-image.

Allantoin and Panthenol are two of nature’s amazing ingredients that help reduce or eliminate the appearance of scars. Keratolytic in nature, they help to break down the scar tissue, but then they also have the opposite and complimentary function of encouraging normal cellular growth. These ingredients will take a lumpy bumpy scar (and yes keloids too) and make them blend in with the surrounding tissue. derma e® has blended these ingredients with Allicin (which is anti-bacterial) in our greaseless, pleasant to use Scar Gel. Using this product 2-3 times a day on a scar and surrounding tissue will visibly reduce the appearance of the scar. As with most natural remedies, they take time to work and you are looking at 2-3 months for a fresh scar and 5-6 months for an old scar, before they diminish. At 6 months the product has done all it can do.

derma e®’s Scar Gel also works on stretch marks (a special type of scar tissue) to eliminate the red or purple color. A great way to reduce acne scars is to use derma e®’s Microdermabrasion Scrub 2-3 times a week and then use the Scar Gel as directed. And one of the best uses of this gel is for burns! Cooking burns, sunburns, motorcycle or chemical burns all respond amazingly well to these powerful ingredients.

My daughter, Sonny, had gotten stuck on our Sea Doo for several hours (that’s a long story) without sunscreen and when she finally made it back to camp her thighs were bright red and already starting to blister. She applied the Scar Gel every ten minutes for a couple of hours and then reapplied it regularly until there was no more discomfort. She then applied a generous layer of Pycnogenol® Moisturizing Crème (for its anti-oxidant benefits) before she went to bed. I thought she would suffer severe pain, blistering and peeling for days, but the next morning there was only a slight redness remaining and no signs of the blisters! Even I was amazed!

I have had many people tell me Scar Gel is the best product they’ve used following laser treatments or electrolysis. And it is great for helping to heal tattoos without damaging the art, or for soothing the tattoo-removal process. We have many great stories about Scar Gel but one that I’m really fond of is of a father who wrote to tell us that his daughter had gone through the windshield in a car accident and had many lacerations with stitches on her face. He had used the Scar Gel religiously and you couldn’t find any trace of scaring on her face. That’s the kind of happy ending we all want.

Yours in health,

Dr. Linda Miles, L.Ac., D.O.M.

PS: Check out our website for more stories about how Scar Gel has helped others, including one about severe road rash of the face after a motorcycle accident.

To see Natural Home & Garden's review of Scar Gel, click here.

For more information on scars, click here.