We have been lucky enough to have a Q&A with Nicole Sommers of Gents LLC who answered a few questions about men’s skincare. She told me that men get it wrong 20,000 times!! Nicole Sommers is:

“I am a licensed esthetician specializing exclusively in natural men’s  shaving/skincare and founder of Gents. Gents is an online store  offering natural and organic men’s products. I contribute to a number  of men’s forums online, educating them on the benefits of using  natural shaving/skincare products.”

Here is my questions I asked and her answers.   All products can be purchased at Gentsllc.com

1)How does a guy stop getting rashes, or what looks like burn marks when he shaves?

Create a barrier by putting a moisturizing cream or gel between the razor and your skin. Don’t apply too much pressure with the razor and avoid using an aftershave with alcohol. Nearly 80% of men say shaving irritates their skin, however, razor burn is actually often “product” burn. Many of the products that are designed for men are poorly formulated and contain far too many irritating ingredients. An aloe-based aftershave gel like Lev8 will ice you down in seconds after shaving, especially if you experience razor burn.

2) As someone gets older, how does recommend to a guy that using skincare is a good idea and natural even better?

Men tend to see their face through their beard, so you can open up the conversation about shaving and then segue into skincare. A man’s face is his business card and this is important at the workplace where he wants to stay on top of the competition. Also, 79% of women prefer men to be well-groomed. The average man does not want to be spending a vast amount of time on his skincare and any way to speed up the process is a very good thing. Multi-tasking products like Osea’s Ocean Cleanser can save time by cleaning the skin and exfoliating as well.

Men need to be concerned about harmful ingredients just like women do. This is especially true since irritated skin may get much worse if chemical additives in male skin care products further irritate and inflame skin damaged by shaving. Your skin is your largest organ. It eats too! Think of why a nicotine patch works – it’s going right into your bloodstream. Most mass market, as well as prestige products, tend to use harsh inexpensive chemicals which not only lack effectiveness, but are also potentially harmful as many of these chemicals accumulate in your body and remain there throughout decades of use. Think of it this way, by the time you reach the age of 60, your body would have absorbed 30 pounds worth of whatever ingredients you have put on your skin! And healthy skin is a fundamental part of looking great.

3) How does one stop from getting acne when he is in his 40’s?

The onset of adult acne is usually triggered by a combination of factors like stress, dietary habits and hormonal changes. For the majority of people suffering from adult acne, the root cause seems to be hormones, just as is the case with acne related with the onset of puberty. Male hormones, called androgens, cause the sebaceous glands in the second layer of the skin, the dermis, to enlarge and increase the sebum production. This leads to acne formation by clogging the hair follicle and inducing a bacterial attack on skin tissue. Sometimes these sebaceous glands continue producing a higher amount of sebum well into adulthood and thus acne infection can start or continue even at a later age. The average age of acne patients has now increased from 20 to 26 years old! Osea Ocean Mudd and Osea Corrective Complex control oil production and can help to control acne.

4) For ethnic skin, how does one stop from getting bumps and ingrown hairs from shaving?

Over 70% of African-American men suffer from ingrown hairs. This is because African-Americans have tighter hair curl patterns. Hair bumps occur when your hair, whether it is on your face or neck, begins to curl and dig into the hair follicle adjacent to the hair. When this occurs, irritation and inflammation occurs. Then, a razor bump or ingrown hair is born. Shaving often causes an ingrown hair problem to occur and that is why it is also referred to as razor bumps. Therefore, the best prevention technique is not to shave. Although this is a very logical approach, it is not very practical because not all men want facial hair. Many individuals have found that shaving with an electric razor reduces the occurrence of hairs that are ingrown or razor bumps. This is likely due to the fact that electric razors do not shave as close as a wet blade. With blades, the shave is much closer and there is a greater chance of the cut and sharpened end of the hair to re-enter the hair follicle. Also, make sure that you set your electric razor’s setting to high in order to avoid close shaving. The alternative is to practice proper shaving techniques consistently and to follow certain shaving tips. I offer shaving tips on both Gents Facebook fan page and on Twitter (@GentsSkinCare).

I have to thank Nicole for her taking the time to answer my questions, I do hope you learn something from her answers, I sure did!

If you got any questions for Nicole do become a fan on Facebook.. she got tons of answers for you!!

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