It's that time of year. Your kids will paint their faces to look like ghosts and goblins and hit the trick-or-treating route.It's time to get pick your costume and get ready to go trick-or-treating, but you can't have a bunny and a cat without a little makeup. There are two kinds of face paint, oil-based and water-based. When you're talking about children's faces, water-based paint works best because it's easy to take off and gentler on the skin."If you're using oil-based paint, the concern with that is if you leave it on too long, it can be irritating. But in addition it can make, especially teenagers, more prone to breakouts because it is oil-based it can clog the pours and make them more prone to acne breakouts," said dermatologist Dr. Ranjani Katta.While acne breakouts are not a big concern for younger children, there are plenty of other ways that makeup can cause irritation."It's not so much that their skin hasn't developed, but we're concerned about is the young child. The infants and toddlers, that they might more easily get it into their eyes or into their mouths, and they're rubbing their face a lot more and don't realize what they're doing," said Katta.After the kids head out into the neighborhood to gather all that candy, it's time to go home and take off the makeup. The water-based allows you to take it off with just soap and water. But if your child begins to itch their face after you take it off, there are ways to take care of the problem."If it's from irritation from it being left on too long, usually you're okay using some over-the-counter hydro-cortisone cream. You wouldn't want to use that for more than a couple of days, and if it still goes on, you might want to see your dermatologist about it," said Katta.It's important to read the directions before applying the makeup because some products made overseas might not contain ingredients approved by the food and drug administration.

Prominent Cosmetic Dermatologist and Author Joins MySkinCareConnection.com

The HealthCentral Network, Inc. (www.HealthCentral.com) today announced that Dr. Hema Sundaram, an accomplished dermatologist, cosmetic surgeon and author, is joining the MySkinCareConnection.com community as a skincare and aesthetic medicine expert. Sundaram is the author of Face Value: The Truth About Beauty and A Guilt-Free Guide to Finding It [Rodale], which was honored by the National Press Club. She appears regularly on NBC television and XM radio programming and has been quoted in leading publications including The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe, Prevention Magazine, Good Housekeeping, Allure and Cosmopolitan.

A Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology, Sundaram will be writing twice weekly on a variety of issues, ranging from updates on the latest acne and anti-aging products on the market, to the latest cosmetic trends in pop culture.

New business spotlight on Desiree Itsell, Arbonne consultant

Pure. Safe. Beneficial. Those three words are what Arbonne Swiss skin care products are all about. And Desiree Itsell, an independent consultant for the Arbonne company, is excited to sell the products with her team of four people. “Our products don't have things like animal byproducts, minerals, chemical perfumes and dyes," Itsell said. The products are also all manufactured in the U.S., she said. The company offers different products for women, teens, men and even babies. Itsell said the products are especially good for people with sensitive skin. Arbonne has products that appeal to everyone, Itsell said. “Arbonne's tagline is from the cradle to the rocker," Itsell said. There is a teen line called f.y.i., for young individuals, anti-aging products, acne products and weight loss and nutrition products.

Treating Acne: Two Different Acid Peels Are Both Effective, Study ...

ScienceDaily (Feb. 7, 2008) — Chemical peels using either alpha-hydroxy acid or beta-hydroxy acid are both highly effective in treating mild to moderately severe facial acne, researchers at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine have found - the first study to compare the two different types of acid peels as therapies for the skin disorder.

Skincare Safety Concerns: Debating Anti-Bacterial Skin Care Products

Skincare-News.com tests whether fruity-scented anti-bacterial hand sanitizer is better than soap and water at protecting people from germs and bacteria.

Like many things, the fantastical claims of gel-based, anti-bacterial hand sanitizers seem too good to be true: namely, killing 99.9 percent of harmful germs and bacteria without water, anytime, anywhere.