Do’s and Don’ts of Scar Prevention
October 6, 2014 Leave a Comment

Do’s and Don’ts of Scar Prevention

Scar tissue is a normal part of the skin’s healing process from any wound, including those caused by surgeries or accidents. Scars form because the collagen production works quickly after the skin has been wounded to mend the injury and protect the body from any further injury or infection. Since it goes through a more rapid healing process, the tissue does not have the exact same makeup of normal skin cells, which is why it looks different. (Read: Why Scar Tissue is Different from Normal Tissue.) Many variables influence the look of scars, including the size, depth and shape of the wound, as well as how much blood is able to visit the area during the healing process. Luckily, there are easy prevention methods to ensure that your injury or surgery does not end with a lifelong reminder in the form of a visible scar.

Do Get Stitches

Deep wounds, or cuts that can spread apart, heal faster and better when stitched by a professional doctor as soon as possible after the injury. Stitches minimize the wound area and make it easier for the body to heal the injury. This reduces the area of new skin forming, which minimizes the amount of scar tissue.

Do Protect the Wound

When you have a wound, you should keep it moist to prevent scabbing and allow the healing process to commence by applying a first aid cream like Neosporin. You should also keep it covered with a non-stick bandage to protect further injury and keep it from drying out. Once you see new skin forming, you can stop covering it with a bandage and begin applying your scar treatment.

Read: What Affects Wound Healing?

Do Massage the Scar

Gentle massage should start as soon as it’s tolerable, usually a couple of weeks after the skin has healed over. Massaging your scar breaks up the collagen and reduces the size of scar tissue forming; use the time when applying your scar treatment to massage the newly formed scar.

Read: How Do You Soften Scar Tissue?

Don’t be Impatient

When you wait for your injury or wound to heal, be patient. You should not pick at any scabs or use hydrogen peroxide. Although hydrogen peroxide provides beneficial first aid to the initial wound, subsequent use kills both good skin cells as well as bacteria making the wound more susceptible to infection. Instead, just allow the body to heal naturally. It takes 1-2 years for a scar to fully mature and there is no quick fix despite what you’ve heard.

Don’t Linger in the Sun

The damaging ultraviolet rays of the sun can interrupt the healing process, making it more likely that you will develop a scar. Additionally, UV rays discolor the scar tissue by stimulating pigment-producing cells. Skin is more vulnerable to discoloration when it is healing, so it is even more important to protect the area from the sun by covering it up with clothing or using sunscreen.

Have a question about your scar? Leave a comment and we’ll be happy to answer!

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The information on this site is provided as an information resource only, and is not to be used or relied on for any diagnostic or treatment purposes. Please speak to your doctor to treat any medical condition. Information on this site is not intended to be patient education, does not create any patient-physician relationship, and should not be used as a substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment.
Filed Under: Acne Scars, Breast Cancer Scars, Breast Surgery Scars, Burn Scars, C Section Scars, Dark Scars, Face Scars, Facelift Scars, Get Rid of Dark Spots, Get Rid of Scars, Mastectomy Scars, Melanoma Scars, New or Old Scars, Plastic Surgery Scars, Scar Healing Tips, Surgery Scars, Tummy Tuck Scars Tagged: , , ,
Do These Skin Lighteners Work?
September 15, 2014 Leave a Comment

Do These Skin Lighteners Work?

Many people try to find the perfect skin lightener to help fade unsightly scars, but are faced with a dilemma as they try to determine which products on the market actually work. Additionally, you have to be careful about using some of the products out there that are slightly effective, yet dangerous. Before you choose a scar treatment to reduce the look of your scars or dark spots, you should know more about the different ingredients. Some of the most common treatments for skin lightening, include lemon juice, hydroquinone, kojic acid, and vitamin C.

Lemon Juice on Acne Scars

Lemons are truly a versatile citrus fruit, with a variety of health, beauty and home cleaning uses. Lemons contain vitamin C, limonene, alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA), hesperidin, quercetin, naringenin, and other phytonutrients that are beneficial to skin health. Many studies have found beneficial uses of lemons, if consumed, such as aiding to reduce acne. However, lemon juice directly on your skin can cause photosensitivity, and since UV rays can darken your scar, it is not advisable to do so.

Read: How Does the Sun Affect Scars?

Hydroquinone

Hydroquinone has become a popular skin lightening cream, and is a popular ingredient in scar treatment products. Hydroquinone inhibits melatonin, which is the protein that provides your skin color, so it does lighten the skin. However, it can be toxic in high concentrations, including having carcinogenic properties and contains mercury. It has also been associated with ochronosis, a disfiguring skin condition that darkens the skin. It can also make your skin more sensitive to sunlight, which can increase your risk of sunburn. It is common to have allergic reactions to the chemical and due to this, some countries have banned hydroquinone. It is best to not use hydroquinone and rely upon other treatments to help heal your skin.

Read: The Dangers of Using Hydroquinone to Fade Scars and Hyperpigmentation.

Kojic Acid

Kojic acid comes from Japanese mushrooms and is also a byproduct of the fermentation process that produces sake. It can lighten skin, but it does not help diminish other aspects of scars. It can be dangerous to use because it can cause heightened skin sensitivity, cause hormone disruption, and lead to allergic reactions. It also can increase the risk of sun damage because it weakens the natural defenses against UV rays. Therefore, it is best to avoid kojic acid.

Read: Does Kojic Acid Work on Acne Scars?

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an antioxidant and important vitamin that promotes the body’s natural healing processes. Many people know to take vitamin C when fighting a cold or the flu, but it can also help your skin heal from injury and trauma, including reducing scars. The antioxidant properties of vitamin C fight the free radicals that cause cellular damage to the skin, which includes to the melatonin that affects your skin color. Therefore, it can help to lighten the skin and fade scars, especially when using a scar treatment that has a stable form of Vitamin C. It goes beyond just lightening the skin; it also promotes healthy collagen production, which can reduce the size and appearance of scars and keep your skin healthy.

When choosing a scar or skin lightening treatment, you should avoid the harsh skin lighteners such as kojic acid and hydroquinone, and stick with products that have licorice root and especially vitamin C.

Do you have a question about your scars or dark spots? Leave a comment and we’ll be happy to help.

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Filed Under: Age Spots, Dark Scars, Get Rid of Dark Spots, Get Rid of Scars, Hyperpigmentation, Melasma, Scar Healing Tips, Skin Spots, Sun Spots, Uneven Skin Tone Tagged: , , , , ,
Scar Healing Time
August 8, 2014 4 Comments

Scar Healing Time

If the trauma is minor, healing time for the wound should be quick, and scar formation minimal. If your scar is deeper, as is often the case with surgical scars, healing time will take longer. However long it takes, a scar goes through three stages of healing. The first phase of wound healing is a period of inflammation that may last anywhere from two to six days, depending on how severe the initial trauma. During this period, you’ll experience warmth, some redness, swelling, and pain.

When the initial trauma spot begins to subside and ceases inflammation, your skin begins to produce collagen to knit the edges of the wound or trauma area together. This is the period when scarring may develop. Most scars start to improve within 2 - 3 weeks, and will continue to improve for up to six months. Finally, your skin will continue to break down the excess collagen that created your initially raised and reddish scar, and turn it into a thin, flat scar that may be visible or almost invisible. This period take from six months to several years with the finalized appearance of your scar in about 1-2 years.

Read: How to Help Your Skin Heal Scars

It’s important to respond to a wound or trauma to your skin immediately, even before healing begins. If you’re a smoker, stop! It causes blood vessels to contract, decreasing healing oxygen to the body and skin. Avoid direct sunlight while your skin heals. This may seem impossible, but it is necessary! When your skin is fully knit together, begin exercising regularly. Exercise will increase oxygen to all of your body tissues, including the deep levels of your skin. Your scar will heal more quickly, and your body will be healthier, too.

If you haven’t been eating properly, now is the time to rethink your eating habits. A balanced diet is very important to proper scar healing. Try to get the most nutritional foods possible into your system, especially foods rich in Vitamin C. Be sure to include protein-rich foods for the collagen your skin needs to heal properly, and increase your Vitamin B and zinc levels, too. Eat plenty of foods rich in Vitamin A to enhance your skin’s ability to absorb moisture, and drink plenty of liquids.

Most importantly, stay out of the sun and apply a sunblock with SPF 30 to ensure total protection when you go outside. At the same time, begin applying a scar healing cream to your traumatized skin or scar, as soon as your skin has completely closed up. For instance, if you have a surgical scar, laceration or burn that required sutures, use InviCible Scars on the area as soon as the sutures are removed. If you’ve had a skin resurfacing, wait until there is no “rawness” before beginning to use Invincible. For scars or dark marks from acne, apply InviCible at least twice a day, directly on the affected areas, but not on active acne spots.

With proper exercise and nutrition, avoidance of the sun and application of InviCible Scars, your scar will heal beautifully, and more quickly than you might think.

Have a question about your scar? Leave a comment and we’ll be happy to answer.

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Filed Under: Acne Scars, Burn Scars, C Section Scars, Chemical Peels, Dark Scars, Face Scars, Get Rid of Scars, Hypertrophic Scars, New or Old Scars, Plastic Surgery Scars, Scar Healing Tips, Skin Resurfacing, Surgery Scars Tagged: ,
Acne Scars Not Healing?
August 4, 2014 2 Comments

Acne Scars Not Healing?

Are your acne scars not healing as well as you would like? Acne scars can sometimes be quite deep and require special attention. Acne occurs when the body’s sebaceous follicles plug up with bacteria and dead skin cells. Your body has a natural inflammatory response that often leads to skin injury and scarring. Fresh acne sscars eventually become less inflamed and begin to form flat, reddish lesions that doctors call maculae. Maculae may darken on the skin where the inflammation was. Unfortunately, some people do develop permanent acne scars at such sites. Your skin may appear to be indented or sunken. So, what to do?

Begin applying InviCible’s therapeutic scar cream to your acne scars as soon as inflammation and rawness subsides. InviCible’s ingredients were specifically chosen to help reduce acne scars and to promote the fading of acne dark spots. To further enhance and minimize your acne scar’s healing process, be sure to protect your acne or dark spots from the sun. This will darken the scars further than is absolutely necessary. If your acne is on your face or scalp, wear a hat to protect yourself from the sun. If your acne is on your back, don’t expose your back to the sun. It’s damaging, and could darken your scars further. Keep the area clean and dry.

If your acne scars are not healing, it may be because you are using the wrong scar treatment product to heal the area. Try a twice-daily application of InviCible, with Dual Vitamin C complex. Dual Vitamin C complex helps to normalize collagen production — a natural part of the healing process —improves acne scarring by making scars more flush with your healthy skin. If your acne scars tend to darken, apply InviCible to help decrease production of dark pigment. ProBiosyn-4™ is a group of ingredients with anti-inflammatory properties. They include Aloe Vera and Licorice extract, which help to limit acne flare-ups. Licorice extract is especially helpful in dispersing the abnormal dark pigmentation responsible for dark acne marks.

When scars do not appear to be healing, most likely there is an agent that’s irritating the area. If you’ve been keeping the area clean and dry, then the only other possibility is your scar treatment cream. Many scar treatment creams contain ingredients that successfully lighten scars in the short term, but irritate and aggravate scar tissue over the long term such as Kojic Acid and Hydroquinone.

Believe it or not, Vitamin E does not promote speedy healing! Instead, it can promote contact dermatitis. InviCible Scars is a therapeutic combination of safe ingredients that will allow your scar to heal, finally. InviCible’s safety profile is top notch and has even been awarded the National Parenting Center Seal of Approval and is one of only 300 products in compliance with the Compact for Safe Cosmetics. Daily application of safe and effective InviCible scar cream, in combination with avoidance of the sun, a healthy diet, daily exercise, will ensure a speedy reduction in scar tissue prominence and improved aesthetic appearance.

Have a question about your scar? Leave a comment and we’ll be happy to answer.

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Filed Under: Acne Scars, Acne Tips, Dark Scars, Face Scars, Get Rid of Dark Spots, Get Rid of Scars, New or Old Scars, Scar Healing Tips Tagged: , , ,
How to Fade Shingles Scars
May 21, 2014 92 Comments

How to Fade Shingles Scars

Shingles is an incredibly painful illness that results in a severe rash, characterized by the eruption of lesions across the skin. These initial lesions, which themselves last for a bare minimum of three to five days, leave behind crusting and scabs that can last for several weeks. If you’ve had chicken pox before, your risk of getting the shingles virus is greater. Often, even after the scabs left by shingles have begun to heal, the individual is left with red scarring. Since shingles is spread over such a wide area of the body, this scarring can be distressing to the individual who has them. Fortunately, there are things that you can do in order to help speed along the process of fading shingles scars and helping your skin return to a healthy appearance.

Read: Is a Red Scar a Permanent Scar?

The first step in fading shingles scars is to properly care for them during the healing process. Keeping skin properly moisturized is essential during this process, so you should be sure to use the proper moisturizers on the affected area. Choose products that contain EFAs, dimethicone silicone, and aloe in order to see the best results.

Immediately following an attack of shingles, it is difficult to tell just how much the skin will scar, or how extensive the scarring will be. This is why it is so important to begin treatment as early as possible – some individuals may scar much more extensively than expected with shingles, while other people who have seemingly more severe attacks may find that the eventual scarring is much less severe than it was initially assumed it would be.

Of course, if you treat your skin during the healing process (and ensure that it is not subjected to additional damage, such as by picking at healing skin) then you have a much stronger likelihood of a quicker and easier recovery. Otherwise, healing from shingles may take up to a year, and some shingles scarring may be permanent.

Shingles scars tend to be a deep red, or sometimes even purple in color. Often the scars lay more or less flat against the skin, though some people who have suffered through shingles will end up with raised scars, or even pitting. Though there is not much that you can do to diminish this particular effect of shingles scarring, you can fade the redness of these scars with the appropriate medicinal products. Should you get shingles on your face, be sure to wear a broad spectrum sunscreen of SPF 30+ to prevent permanent darkening of the scar and follow our guideline for how to conceal face scars.

There are plenty of at-home remedies that people will claim can fade shingles scars, but remember – the best topical treatments to fade scars, and the only ones that will not potentially cause further damage, are silicone and certain natural products such as Vitamin C and licorice root extract. Use products that contain these ingredients on the scar on a regular basis, and observe the scar over several weeks to see if the discoloration begins to diminish. While shingles can be painful, and can lead to unsightly scars on the skin, there are options for those who are looking to treat this problem. Never hesitate to begin treating your skin right away to prevent possible damage and scars.

Do you have a question about your scar? Leave us a comment and we’ll be happy to answer.

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Filed Under: Dark Scars, Face Scars, Get Rid of Scars, New or Old Scars, Scar Healing Tips Tagged: , , ,
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