Microdermabrasion Vs Dermaplaning - Microdermabrasion 596x311Urban Body Laser Vancouver
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The Peak FM’s Casey-Jo on Microdermabrasion

If you’re a regular listener to The Peak FM like us, then Casey-Jo needs no introduction. Hosting the mid-day show, this adventurous Vancouverite knows a thing or two about music — and Microdermabrasion.

In fact, she’s been sharing all of her fabulous self care rituals to feeling healthy and beautiful from the inside out — with a little help from Urban Body Laser.

The Peak FM and Microdermabrasion

Recently, she shared her experience after receiving Microdermabrasion at our medical spa on The Peak FM’s blog. After her first appointment with our amazing medical esthetician Janelle, she realized just how much stress, lack of sleep, and the environment were affecting her skin.
If you’re unfamiliar with this procedure, we’ll quickly bring you up to speed. With celebrity fans like Gwenyth Paltrow, Gisele Bundchen, and Penelope Cruz, this virtually painless treatment gently rejuvenates the skin by non-invasive exfoliation. By removing the outermost layer of dead skin cells, Microdermabrasion leaves the skin feeling smoother and dare we say, younger. Our clients have found that Microdermabrasion effectively treats and minimizes a wide range of skin conditions including fine lines and wrinkles, discoloured and congested skin, and even ingrown hairs.
Using the state-of-the-art Pristine Precision Diamond Peel System, the densely packed diamonds gently remove top layers of the epidermis, stimulates collagen and elastin production, and improves blood flow for firmer, healthier looking skin. Best of all it’s easily customizable for all skin types and for the full range of body areas. To learn more, watch our video to see how it works.
Just a few days after her second Microdermabrasion appointment, Casey-Jo said that her makeup is smoother and more comfortable to wear, plus her pores were nowhere in sight. What else did she have to say? Find out by reading her latest blog post!

“Self care is one of the most important things, because if you’re no good to yourself, then you’re not good for anyone.” ~ Casey-Jo

Learn more about how Microdermabrasion can help your skin or book a free consultation.

Teen Acne
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9 Skincare Lessons from Urban Body Laser

After years of helping people with their skin, we can safely say we’ve seen just about everything. From dry to oily, young to mature, our medical estheticians have worked with hundreds of people from all corners of Greater Vancouver to help them achieve healthy, glowing, and flawless complexions.
Throughout the years, we’ve learned a thing (or nine) about how to the body’s largest organ. And lucky for you, we’re giving you the inside scoop by sharing our top 9 skincare lessons that will help your skin from the inside, out.
1. Cleanse. We’ve all had those mornings where we’ve woken up with raccoon eyes from last night’s mascara and our foundation strewn across the pillow (yuck!). We know life gets busy, but if there’s one thing you absolutely must do, it’s cleanse before you hit the sack. Here are a few of our faves:

2. Sunscreen. Don’t let Raincouver fool you; those grey clouds aren’t enough to fight off the sun’s harmful rays, causing premature aging and upping your chance of developing skin cancer. Applying sunscreen should be part of your all-day routine, no matter what time of year it is.

And not all sunscreens are created equal; as we’ve mentioned, you need to opt for Physical sunscreen, which protects your skin from the sun by deflecting or blocking the sun’s rays. It uses non-toxic, mineral-based ingredients like titanium dioxide (a naturally occurring mineral) and zinc to block the sun’s entire spectrum of UVA and UVB rays. This differs from the typical chemical forms you find at the drugstore, and are made up of more than 12 different chemicals, many of which have not been FDA approved. These are then absorbed into the skin and can interfere with the normal function of hormones like estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and thyroid.Our go-to physical sunscreen is anything in the Sunforgettable Collection by Colorescience. Pack in your purse and reapply any time of day for easy-peasy application.

3. Ditch the Drugstore. Here’s why: they’re filled with chemicals that will only harm your skin. Better to make life simple and go for the natural, holistic, and scientifically proven good stuff:  Colorescience and R3Derma.

4. Moisturize. Yes, that includes people with oily skin. No matter what skin type you have, moisturizer should always be in your arsenal. Here are our faves.

5. Wash Up. And not just your face. We’re talking about your brushes, pillowcases, and face cloths; anything that touches your face on the reg, as these materials can easily absorb and pass on bacteria that can clog pores.

6. Don’t Pick! Whether it’s pimples, whiteheads, or blackheads, keep your hands off and away from your face, as you’ll likely only do more damage. Suffering from scars? Our Foto-Facials will do wonders to remove discoloration.

7. Easy on the Exfoliation. Rule of thumb: you should be exfoliating gently and no more than twice a week. Your skin is sensitive, and while exfoliation is vital for removing dead skin cells and other pollutants, there’s no need to sand it down completely. These exfoliators and masks from Osmosis and Pro-Derm are gentle yet incredibly effective.

8. Ban the Tan. Baking in ultraviolet rays, whether it’s the tanning bed or on the beach, needs to stop immediately. Premature aging, wrinkles, fine-lines, pigmentation, cancer – you name it; it’s all caused by tanning.

9. Bar the Bar. Using a bar of drugstore soap to cleanse is one of the worst things you can do, as it strips our skin of natural oils and causes a PH imbalance, resulting in dry, oily or acneic skin. Do yourself a favour and try R3Derma Cleansers that deeply clean the skin and thoroughly remove dirt, make-up, and environmental toxins.

Now that you have our skincare secrets, feel free to contact us if you have any questions about our tips, recommendations, and products. We’re happy to help!

Pretty Eye
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Post-Summer Skincare Treatments

Summertime means sun, shorts, and sandals. But with that beach hair and bronzed skin also comes sun damage. While prevention is the first line of defense, no one (and no sunscreen) is perfect. We’ve listed our top treatments for after-sun care to keep your skin healthy and glowing.

Microdermabrasion:
Exposure to sun, chlorine and salt water can dry out your skin, causing it to peel and flake. The buildup of dead skin can make skin appear dull, blotchy and uneven. Exfoliation is crucial to help remove sun damage and rejuvenate the skin, leaving it softer and brighter.
Our microdermabrasion treatments gently rejuvenate the skin with non-invasive exfoliation. By removing the outermost layer of dead skin cells, microdermabrasion leaves the skin feeling smoother and dare we say, younger. We use the Pristine Precision Diamond Peel System because we love how the densely packed diamonds gently remove top layers of the epidermis, stimulating collagen and elastin production and improving blood flow. Microdermabrasion treatments are recommended for all skin types, including sensitive skin.

Photorejuvenation:
The main cause of sunspots is prolonged exposure to UV rays from the sun. While increased sun exposure can cause fair-skinned faces to freckle, darker complexions are also vulnerable to uneven pigmentation. In fact, many of us may have a veil of pigment on our skin that we don’t even know is there.

To counteract this, we highly recommend Photorejuventation. Whether on your face, hands, neck, chest or back, Photorejuvenation can make you look like you’ve turned back time. This treatment pulses light into the skin, heating it to target and remove the unwanted brown and red marks from the sun to deliver a more even skin tone and overall glow. It uses light (in a good way!) to repair and revive your skin in an effective and non-invasive system. These treatments are done in a timely matter and can even be done over your lunch hour.

Summer isn’t the only time to be worried about harmful UV rays, as we are exposed to the sun all year round. Therefore, sun protection is essential no matter what season you are in. Keep an eye out for our next blog, where we’ll be sharing our favourite after-sun skincare products that are perfect for recovering from the sunny season.
If you have any questions about summer skincare or any other services we offer, our medical estheticians are a helpful guide for finding the best products for your skin type, so contact us any time. We’re happy to help!

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Lights, Camera, Photorejuvenation!

January is a great month to get started on this non-invasive treatment because you need to spend limited time in the sun between appointments (which is easy to do on the west coast!). Photofacials, or photorejuvenation, uses light technology that minimizes brown spots, sun damage, fine wrinkles, and enlarged pores. It significantly improves redness caused by rosacea and acne scarring while simultaneously smoothing skin’s texture. Plus photorejuvenation significantly reduces signs of aging. In fact, a study conducted at Stanford University proved that BBL light therapy can change the structure of DNA and actually reverse the signs of aging!

That’s what makes this treatment so unique; it not only erases skin damage, but it also improves your skin tone and overall feel.

An individual treatment takes about 15 minutes and usually requires four to six treatments in three-week increments. When you arrive, our medical estheticians will apply a cool gel to the surface of your skin and then move the light therapy device across the treatment area. Most people compare it to a warming sensation, like a light snap of a rubber band. The best part is that you can pop in on your lunch break and then get back to your busy day immediately after the treatment.

Many patients who suffer from acne have turned to photofacials and experienced incredible results. From mild to severe, BBL phototherapy can significantly reduce the redness associated with moderate and cystic conditions.

Whether it’s age spots, sun damage, or rosacea, the Urban Body Laser team can assess and customize a program based on your needs. Contact our medical estheticians for a free consultation!

Urban Body Laser reviews and testimonials - Teen and Mom
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Treat Your Mom for Mother’s Day

Mother’s Day is just a couple of days away! Have you found a gift for her yet? You could do the usual flowers, jewelry, or scarf, but why not do something for her that she would probably never do for herself? This Mother’s Day, give her something that will make her feel beautiful from the inside out.

At Urban Body Laser, we offer a variety of services and products that will guarantee to impress your Mom. Here are a few of our most popular gifts for Mother’s Day.

Photofacial
Your Mom will instantly look and feel younger after she receives a photofacial. BBL Photorejuvenation reduces and eliminates the appearance of freckles, fine lines, wrinkles, or liver spots. Whether on the face, hands, neck, chest or back, this treatment can make her look like she’s turned back time. Book her a series of treatments for maximum results.
Microdermabrasion
This is another effective treatment that will rejuvenate the skin in a painless and non-invasive way. Often compared to the texture of a cat’s tongue, microdermabrasion gently removes the outermost layer of dead skin cells, cleaning your pores and leaving skin smooth and decongested. It’s a great one for Mom because it helps treat and minimize fine lines and wrinkles, discolored skin, and ingrown hairs. Celebrities like Gwenyth Paltrow swear by it!
Beauty Consultation
As women age, their skin’s needs change dramatically. It can be daunting trying to navigate through eye creams, serums, and anti-aging moisturizers. Treat mom with an Urban Body Laser gift certificate and we’ll give her a free skin and beauty consultation! Our medical estheticians can recommend the best products for her skin and from there she can use her gift certificate to purchase whatever products she wants. If she’s also looking to spruce up her make-up collection, we can show her the best shades and tones for her skin that will bring out her natural beauty.
If you’re wondering about more of our services and which ones will be best for your Mom, feel free to contact us any time!

How are you planning to celebrate Mother’s Day? Tweet us or post on our Facebook page, we would love to hear about it!

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Suffering from the “Mummy Tummy”? Post Pregnancy Skin Tightening

Only moms understand how frustrating it can be to finally reach your pre-pregnancy weight, yet still have a hard time buttoning up your jeans because of the loose skin caused from pregnancy. Even after months of diet and exercise, it continues to sit around your abdomen. For many women, this can cause insecurity and embarrassment when having to wear a bikini or tight-fitting clothing.

There are hundreds of articles that recommend everything from exfoliation to miracle creams that claim to magically firm up your midsection. Unfortunately, the only result you’ll see from these is an emptier wallet and further frustration.

The fact is that even after strict dieting and exercise, the loose skin around the tummy may never firm up. This is the exact scenario our client was experiencing when she came and visited us last year. After two kids and hard work in the gym she just couldn’t get rid of stubborn skin surrounding her abdomen.

When we meet clients like this, we offer our post pregnancy Skin Tightening services to effectively tighten the problem area. We use Broad Band Light (BBL), which is a mix of both infrared and visible light that penetrates the epidermis. BBL stimulates changes at the molecular level to bring visible changes to the dermis (the visible layer of skin).

To increase elasticity and firmness, the gene expressions in damaged skin cells caused by pregnancy are changed to resemble the genes in younger skin cells. With regular treatments, cells are reinvigorated over time. Just check out our client’s results!

Loose skin is a common side effect of pregnancy, but thankfully there are treatments we offer at Urban Body Laser that can get you back to your
regular self after just a few treatments.

To see if this treatment is right for you, contact us!