ViewedPages.com » Beauty » Why Use Facial Massage?

Why Use Facial Massage?

by: IanRichards
Total views: 14 | Word Count: 987

If you think you do not need to start a course of facial massage, think about this. When you go into the bathroom first thing in the morning, are you scared? Who is that pale creature with lines and a certain puffiness that is staring back? Don't panic, all is not lost, help is at hand, your hands actually as you can kick start your system with a facial massage. Firstly, apart from your normal lines, the big crease have probably come from you pillow and will soon disappear. As for the rest, well it is quite natural and it is just the way the body works. At night, while you sleep, the body goes into tick over mode, the heart rate drops leading to a slowing down of the blood circulation. This has a twofold effect, first there is less oxygen getting to the skin and secondly, the lymph glands are not removing as many toxins from the skin, hence the pale. puffy look. There are other factors at work as well. Pollution, lack of exercise, shallow breathing and poor nutrition can all slow down the circulation, leading to a build up of toxins.

Implementing a good facial massage routine will really help the blood circulation to the face, bringing it oxygenated blood and taking away the nasty toxins which will then give you the glow of healthy looking skin. Did you know that around half of the lymph glands are situated in the neck area? Getting all that great blood surging around the face will help your lymph glands to wash away the toxins and improve your immune system at the same time.

Skin is made up of three layers, the epidermis at the top, the dermis and hypodermis and its main functions, apart from keeping all your blood and organs in are protection against infection by micro-organisms and injury, regulating the body's temperature and the nicest, receiving sensations. The epidermis is our protector, its only other function is to allow water evaporation. They cells are constantly being renewed as the old ones fall off. The dermis is the really active part, it contains collagen, elastin, capillaries (small blood vessels), nerve endings and the tops of the sweat and sebaceous glands. This layer secretes, circulates, feels and helps to regulate the bodys' temperature. The final layer is made up of fatty tissue where the bases of the hair follicles, sweat and sebaceous glands live. The water content is also quite high in this layer. Although the structure is the same all over the body, it has variations depending on the location and its function there. Think of the soles of your feet, no hair or sweat glands and much thicker. The face has a number of important functions; it monitors temperature and atmospheric conditions, is connected to a lot of different muscles for non-verbal communications and is quite sensitive to the touch for pleasure.

As the skin ages, it is affected in many different ways. Firstly, at the cell level, the life span shortens, from around 100 days when you are a child to only 48 days as an adult. The different layers start to change with the elastin in the dermis gradually disappearing, disrupting the collagen and flattening the skin Slowly the hypodermis loses a lot of its water content and the fatty tissue reduces. This gives a lack of tone and elasticity to the skin. The action of the facial muscles begin to crease the skin, how we smile, scowl, frown and all our other facial expressions that we use every day will create the face map. On top of that smoking. diet, stress, pollution and sunbathing will add to the aging process.

The bodys' reaction to squeezing and pressing is to get red which means that the blood is flowing into the area. When this happens, it starts to bring more oxygenated blood which is really beneficial to your skin. This, in a more gentler way, is what happens when you have a facial massage. The act of massage will promote the blood flow with the added bonus of stimulating the lymphatic system to drain away the toxins which leads to a healthier looking skin.

The key to a successful facial massage is the pressure, it is important that you do not press too hard but use a gentle pressure. Your massage will be enhanced when you use the acupoint centres. These are the areas related to acupuncture, that great and ancient healing therapy of the East that uses needles to stimulate the energy meridians of the body. Instead of needles you only need to stimulate these points with gentle massage to get the Qi, (energy) flowing as well as the blood.

To compliment your acupoint facial massage, essential oils can be used to help repair and nourish the skin. These should not be used neat but mixed with vegetable based carrier oils that will also be beneficial to the skin. There are a wide range of these, such as grape seed, olive, wheat germ and almond, and you can find the right one to compliment your personal skin type. You do not need to add a lot of essential oils to them, ten drops at the most, and you can combine different essential oils for a variety of different skin conditions. Although these are perfectly safe, they are not advised to be used by pregnant women, particularly in the early stages of development.

In order to be able to massage the correct areas, you will need a diagram of the face explaining the different points. A good example is Facelift At Your Fingertips by Pierre Jean Cousin which not only has excellent illustrations but also has a lot of information in the use of essential oils. Incorporating a good acupoint facial massage into your usual beauty routine will repay your effort tenfold. Now all you have to worry about is the jealous looks of your girl friends.

About the Author

The author, Ian Richards would like to give you some extra great articles regarding women's issues The above articles will help you make a sound decision regarding facial massage.

Why Use Facial Massage?

About the Author

More Articles from: Beauty