The Hemp Connection [Search results for EGCG] 

I don't have the skin issues common to PCOS, but I have lived most of my life in Arizona, much of it before we were educated about the importance of sunscreen. Being blue-eyed and fair-skinned, I'm more than a little paranoid about what that is eventually going to mean with regards to the condition of my skin.

One night I started researching what common natural ingredients I could use to help my skin be as healthy as I could be. My three favorites so far:

1. Fish oil. I know, you're sick of hearing about it! But healthy skin is dependent on healthy fats in the diet. Fish oil is great for skin health…I've noticed in the years since I've been taking it, some prominent scarring I got from a second degree sunburn on a Costa Rican vacation, has lessened.

2. Coconut oil. Coconut oil is a mild exfoliant, and it also encourages collagen growth. If you look at many of your skin care products they already contain coconut oil. Why not go to the source? I just use the virgin coconut oil most people buy for cooking. I've noticed that it has started to fade some of my sun spots in the 4 months I've been using it…here are before and after pics.

3. Camellia oil. This is also known as green tea seed oil, and that is exactly what it is. It is especially high in EGCG, the antioxidant green tea is famous for, and EGCG helps to prevent collagen breakdown. I will be writing more about this oil in a future blog post. I was provided a bottle of this oil to experiment with in both cooking and skin care. I figured with one item promoting collagen production and the other preventing its breakdown, I had a nice combination.

I notice that in the month that I've been using camellia oil, the wrinkles I've accumulated from years of laughing and assertively expressing myself (Ha! If you know me you're thinking that due to my personality I should look like a California raisin!) It's kind of fun to look in the mirror in the morning and see some of the new changes. It also seems to stimulate blood flow (which EGCG does in other parts of the body as well), as I get a nice rosy hue to my skin almost immediately on using it. These are before and after shots after just two weeks of using Camellia oil twice a day on my skin.

Speaking of coconut oil, my friend Denise recently rescued a Sharpei mix from the local animal shelter. Phillip Bruno was scheduled to be euthanized because his mange was so horribly out of control. After learning that coconut oil can be useful for mange as well, as it is a nontoxic oil that is absorbed by the skin and helps to suffocate the responsible mites that can make this disease very tough to eradicate, she decided to try coconut oil on PB as well. Here are pictures of him on his first day being rescued and a week after being treated with various medications and coconut oil. On day one his skin was so scabbed over he couldn't even open his eyes, now he's making eyes at the camera! (I told Denise if we're not careful it may work so well it will de-Sharpei him!)

By the way, PB is so popular he has his own Facebook fan page where you can watch his progress. He's a real charmer!
If you're interested in camellia oil, here is the link where you can find it online.
I'll post updates of both myself and PB as we have them!

Sadly, I need to use my blog to retract a post I put up a few months ago, because as information surfaced, the product I thought I had pretty thoroughly researched turned out not to be what I thought it was.

The product is green tea, or camellia oil, sold by Steven Frenzl of Bien Padre Foods.

I actually think the product itself is a good cooking oil, and I like some of the minor effects I've seen on my skin.

But Steve sent me a product information statement saying it contained vitamin A, which it turned out, it did not. He also told me it contained EGCG in higher amounts than green tea, and it turns out it has none.

More troublesome to me is that Steve has a very bad habit of recommending his oil for any and all kind of skin problem. He has diagnosed problems over the Internet and made recommendations. Some of his dietary recommendations for internal dosing encourage a consumption of oil that exceeds current recommendations for health, which I was very explicit about telling him. When he's gotten in over his head with his advice, he's referred them to me. Multiple times I told him this was not appropriate and it was practicing medicine without a license. I am not even a physician.

He did acknowledge to me that he was in some kind of trouble with the state health inspector. I told him I would no longer sell his product, and that I did not wish to have any kind of communication with him unless he could produce papers proving he was square with them.

He emailed me yesterday, without any such proof, but saying the following.

Nevertheless, despite the absence of the anti-cancer compound, there are still other significant health/wellness beneits I have discovered recently.

Last week I slipped while stepping into the shower and struck my shin hard on the side of the tub. Instant tear-producing pain and a welt that immediately swelled to the size and shape of a walnut. I quickly massaged oil into the injury and felt nearly immediate relief. The swelling disappeared within the hour--and I have yet to see a bruise. Normally, after an injury like that, I sport a bruise that lasts a month. I have applied the oil just once since the incident last week just as a precaution-- the effect of the oil on the injury is surprisingly long-term.

Another experience. Recently I have noticed dark bags under my eyes (nope, I can't be getting older) when I stare at that ugly mug in the mirror early every morning. So last month I started massaging a few drops of oil into the skin under each eye before bed each night. Now the sagging skin and dark color are both gone. Very cool.

I have told him if his product truly is this magical, he needs to back up these claims with clinical testing, and that science will support his observations.

I've also initiated proceedings for a formal complaint to the FDA.

That is likely to take awhile, so in the interest of protecting anyone from these business practices, I am using my blog to get the word out.

I am sorry I misled anyone. I've removed the original blog post and hope when Steve finds this, he'll learn that it's important to listen to people when they say no.

If Steve invests in the clinical testing and can show that his product really is a magical and powerful as he's claiming, you'll see it here first on the blog. Until then, beware.