Anti-ageing: Avoid Wrinkles and Sagging Skin with Phyto Soya Lotion

Every woman dreads the day when she wakes up, looks in the mirror and discovers that she is starting to look old. Wrinkles, sagging skin, and fine lines are all what women spend most of their lives avoiding only to eventually lose the battle. Despite this grim picture, there is good news. A new body lotion containing soya is designed naturally to tone and firm the parts of womens bodies that can suffer during the menopause.

Exposure to sunlight is, of course, a major factor in skin ageing and this can only be countered by covering up. The parts of our body that seldom see the sun tend to be much smoother and more wrinkle-free than our faces and hands. But a womans bodys failing ability to repair skin because of falling levels of oestrogen really seems to become apparent by around the age of 50. From this age onwards, there can be a general tendency for the skin to sag and dry out.

Phyto Soya Body Firming Lotion combines anti-ageing ingredients with the phyto-oestrogens (plant oestrogens which are similar in structure to the female hormone oestrogen) found in soya, in order to improve areas such as inner arms, thighs, chest and abdomen. These areas can be prone to dryness and a loss of skin density in middle-aged, menopausal and post-menopausal women.

Prior to and during the menopause, levels of the hormone oestrogen fall. This leads to a decrease in cell activity in skin and also a decrease in skin collagen which gives the skin its natural elasticity. The results are that wrinkles and fine lines appear on the skin, and the skin can lose its firmness and suppleness.

This process begins from about the age of 40. A daily application of the new soya body lotion can help counteract these changes effectively and naturally.

Phyto-oestrogens can decrease the size and depth of wrinkles by up to 50 per cent
The phyto-oestrogens found in soya are called isoflavones. Research has shown that applying these isoflavones to the skin can increase collagen production and thus improve skin texture and reduce skin ageing.1, 2

The fact that topical application of a phyto-oestrogen-based product can also improve the feel and appearance of the skin in menopausal women has been confirmed by further research, and it has also been shown to decrease the size and the depth of wrinkles.3, 4
The new body lotion is a development of a similar successful soya product, which was designed specifically for the face.

It was this product that was the subject of the clinical trial looking at wrinkles. In this study, 42 menopausal women aged 48 to 62 were divided into two groups. One group used Phyto Soya Age Minimising Cream on their faces for one month, while the other group used a cream containing retinol (natural vitamin A which helps to prevent skin ageing).4

The study focused on the womens crows feet face wrinkles. More than 50 per cent of those women using the soya lotion showed a 20 per cent decrease in size and depth of wrinkles; some women showed a decrease of nearly 50 per cent. No decreases at all were recorded in the comparison group.

Phyto Soya lotion packs even more punch with shea butter and phytosterols to soften and moisturise your skin
The body lotions extra ingredients include shea butter, a substance extracted from a nut called karite, that grows in Africa, and which has been used traditionally for centuries as a body care treatment, making the skin soft and supple. Elderly women in west Africa, who have regularly used this natural moisturiser, have been found to have almost flawless skin with hardly any sign of ageing.

Other key extra ingredients are tea phytosterols (fat-based compounds found in the tea plant) and vitamin E.

These phytosterols are anti-elastase, which means that they slow down the slackening of the skin tissues, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant (acting against the free radicals that can cause irreversible damage to skin cells). They also have an anti-dryness action, because they attach themselves to keratin, a protein that is an important constituent of skin, to ensure better water content and better nourishment of the skin.

Soya has been shown to help combat menopause symptoms, osteoporosis and cancer
Soya is rich in phyto-oestrogens. Phyto-oestrogens mimic oestrogens role in the body and clinical studies have confirmed their effectiveness against a range of menopausal symptoms.

They are known to decrease hot flushes, night sweats and sleeplessness; help prevent osteoporosis; help reduce cholesterol levels; and act as a preventative to hormonally related cancers such as breast and prostate cancer.5, 6

Research on soya was originally based on the fact that in Far Eastern societies, where there has been traditionally a high soya content in the diet, women have longer menstrual cycles than Western women and have a lower risk of developing breast cancer. Studies in Japan revealed that women experience few, if any, symptoms of menopause.

Isoflavones are present in legumes: soya beans, lentils and peas. Soya beans have the highest isoflavone content. Foods derived from soya such as tofu, miso and soya milk contain quantities of isoflavones that vary from one product to another, but are always lower than in the original plant. Products such as soya hot dogs and tofu yoghurt may only contain 10 per cent of the levels of isoflavones present in soya beans. However, this is not to say that these products are not of use.

What to take for best results
Phyto Soya Body Firming Lotion comes in a 200ml container. The body lotion is designed to be used all over the body on a daily basis; it is quite rich and this amount can last several months (although different people will, of course, use different amounts). For stockist details, call 020 8763 1414.

1. Br J Obset Gynaecol 1995;102(12): 985-9
2. Int J Dermatol 1996;35(9): 669-74
3. Arkopharma Laboratories, in vivo study on 42 menopausal women
4. Obstet Gynecol 1998;91: 6-11
5. NEJM 1995;333: 276-82
6. J Am Acad Dermatol 1998;39: 271-2