Customer Reviews

The New Science of Perfect Skin: Understanding Skin Care Myths and Miracles For Radiant Skin at Any Age

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was very excited when I discovered this book. Finally a book about skincare not written by a dermatologist or a plastic surgeon! Unfortunately by the end of reading the book I was just disappointed and slightly confused.

Understanding skincare product ingredients and product formulations can be a daunting task at time. I consider it a professional obligation to be up to date about ingredients and their effectiveness. New ingredients are hyped and promoted all the time in the cosmetic industry, but I always want to understand the science behind those ingredients. So when I found this book at my local library I thought it would be a guide for me to better understand the above mentioned concepts and ideas.

The overall theme of the book, which is the "new science" mentioned in the book's title, is the fact that scientists have found a way to reprogram and repair damaged DNA leading to "undoing intrinsic aging itself" in your skin - quite a promise! Of course, what products does Yarosh mainly recommend in order to undo damage to your DNA? His own line Remergent. I always find it suspect when an expert mainly recommends their own products for use. So this is the main selling point of this book, and the reason why you should read it instead of all the other books out there about skincare. Basically, the chapter about DNA repair is the only thing that sets this book apart. There are so many skincare books on the market that do a better job of explaining both the concepts of skincare and how to take care of your skin.

Chapter 2 titled "Cutting Through the Hype" does a great job of explaining how cosmetic companies formulate, market, hype, advertise, make ridiculous scientific claims about, and price their products. Yarosh does a very good job at explaining why you can't believe cosmetic advertising at all and how you can become an educated consumer by learning to understand cosmetic ingredients. BUT I don't agree with Yarosh's list of "overrated" ingredients since he puts antioxidants on that list.

Having said all of that there are a few other good parts to the book besides the discussion of cosmetic advertising and hype. Chapter 3 in the book deals with how to read a skincare product label and also discusses the "all natural ingredient" fallacy as well. It was also interesting to read in this book about the whole process of testing ingredients before they get into a skincare product.

Bottom Line: Skim this book. The chapter about DNA repair and the chapter about the future of skin care are pretty much the only things in this book that are new or different from all the other skincare books on the market. The confusing message about Vitamins C, A, and E in the book really bothered me.

Read my full review at [...]

I normally would never read a book like this, but I picked it up at the library looking for some information on how to deal with the major allergies to sunscreen of my daughter.

The good:

More science to back up claims than most books on skin care.
Points out a lot of the hype in skin care products.
Specific recommendations by brand, and not all of them are costly products.
Best description of how sunscreen actually works and how to use it that I have seen.
Excellent outline of ingredients and what they actually do in products.
Good description of skin cancer.

The bad:

Need a chapter on eczema and how to deal with it. Acne is covered but eczema is not.

Need photos of things like skin cancers so that we can get a visual image.

The ugly:

Hypes his own products more than I like, almost every suggested list has a Remergent product listed.

This book offers some good information on how to take care of your skin, from what you eat to what products to use.

I like that the author offers specific ingredients for which he believes there is scientific support for their effectiveness, and he also offers his thoughts on what ingredients are mere unproven hype.

I also like that he mentions specific products that he believes are effective, such as Neutrogena Make-Up Remover Cleansing Towlettes. Readers considering the book should also be aware that he has a brand of products he sells and those products are featured in the book as well.

There were some inconsistent comments in the book, like he starts one chapter by saying, "Cleansers and toners are the least glamorous products in the cosmetic cabinet but are the true workhorses of skin care." But then later in that same chapter, he says, "Whatever toners are called, and whatever their intended use, chances are very slim--unless you are using natural soaps and have hard water--that you need one." ???

Also, he notes at one point that you should steer clear of products that advertise they are "preservative free." I understand the point - those products can spoil more quickly - but if you're willing to pay attention to expiration dates, I think preservative-free products are still okay to use. It's really a matter of personal preference.

In any event, I thought the author offered some good advice on steps to take and products to use to achieve radiant skin.

This book does a great job of explaining the current state of skin care options. It is a good companion to The Skin Type Solution, which helps you figure out your skin type and design the best care regime for it, and Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me, which explains all the different ingredients used in skin care products and rates their effectiveness.
The New Science of Perfect Skin mostly agrees with the advice in the other two books. While the author recommends specific products, he does not explain how he chose them, making me suspect there may be many other equally effective choices out there. Although he offers a few drugstore recommendations, the vast majority of his recommendations are quite pricey. As skin-care products change so quickly, I think these recommendations will go out of date pretty quickly.

This volume cites some very good tonics for the skin. i.e.
o skin cleansing in the morning/evening, Vit C and E
o AHA/PHA exfoliation cream
o Retinol/ retinoic acid prescription
o Coppertone Endless Summer-Ultrashear
o Power Moisturizer/Charm Zone Wrinkle/ear cream
o Ren Frankincense and Boswellia Serata Revitalization Repair
o New Anti-inflammatory-Eucerin Redness Relief

This book would be a good reference for new skin products
using vitamins and herbal preparations. As such, the contents
have significant value to consumers.

I have my own skin care line and this book validates my ideas about skin care. Hugely informative...and although Yarosh is biased (his line is Remergent which is recommended) I felt like he was thorough, with solid research. A must read for anyone who wants to separate hype from effectiveness in cosmetic sales.

This book is the only one I have been able to find that gives any scientific background on skin care products at all (ironic in a multi-billion-$ market). For that, I'll give it three stars.

But it's not perfect. The author is of course biased by owning his own brand of products, sure to show up in any list of recommended products, but to be fair, accompanied by competitor's products.

The book does contain a bibliography, but the text never references the literature. This is a main problem with the book. Much of what it says sounds very reasonable, but we simply don't know where the author gets the different bits of information from.

Btw, I don't know how some of the other people reviewing this book can conclude it's about herbal extracts. The author specifically points out that such extracts don't make any sense in skin care products. They have varying compositions, and even if any active compound is present, the amount is very low, so you're better off with a product that contains the active compound in a defined amount.

Interesting information about what to consider in skin care and what specific products are available to enhance your skin. First got it from the library, then bought it for ongoing reference.

Overall this is a good book with a lot of comprehensive and solid information regarding skin care. It feels a little bit like a pitch for some of the author's skin care products, but it has a lot of valuable advice. Most of all, it will help you identify drug-store brands that are just as effective as more expensive skin care lines. Save yourself a lot of money trying out skin care products by buying this book first. My only other criticism is that it is a little out-of-date and that it's really only good compared to what else is out there. Someone needs to come along and write a truly scientific book on skin care that is unbiased. I also wish that it had a more comprehensive section on ACNE. This book is really good for addressing slowing aging of the skin and protecting oneself from the sun.

i am a medical student finished my undergrad and about to start my residency in dermatology so i wanted to read something about the latest aspects of skin and i was hoping to get a good insight on the cosmetics which the book claims
the sample chapter was pretty impressive so i bought the book but after i started reading the book there isnt much content there most of the time the writer is beating around the bush repeating the same things again and again
i dont think the book is worth the 15 dollars at all