Wednesday 4 April 2012

Guest Post: Why Avene Thermal Water is not just water in a spray bottle, and other miracle skincare stories

We have a guest post today from the very lovely Musing about Beauty. Mariella lives in Belgium and I secretly hoped she would pick a European pharmacy favourite as her subject. She hasn't disappointed! I've got a cup of tea on hand and I'm about to settle down for an interesting read.

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I was thrilled when our lovely host invited me to guest post here, and my first question was: what shall I tell them about. «The world is your oyster, subject wise» she said. There, I had a learned a new English expression, yet I was still subject free. Until I remembered one of my pet peeves that regularly comes up in YouTube videos and beauty blog: people saying that Avène Thermal Water is just water in a spray bottle.

Actually, people will say that about pretty much any thermal water in spray bottle, and I don’t know about all the others, but if we’re speaking about Avene, they’re wrong. And I thought it would be good to explain why, given that I’m currently using that product myself at this very moment and it is my saviour in a time of very upset skin.

Avene_eau_thermale

So, what is «thermal water» exactly.

In order to be declared thermal, a spring water must be naturally mineralized and suitable for therapeutic use. It has a particular content in minerals and trace elements, as well as a particular temperature and flow, which all contribute to the healing properties. It must also have verified results on particular skin disorders.

The Avene Spring Water comes from very deep in the ground and is from very ancient rainfalls, yet there is still a huge quantity available (good for us). It undergoes no chemical treatment so its composition is not altered.

What is the Avene Spring Water good for?

Avène is a little thermal city in France, and each year, thousands of people go there to treat their skin issues. The Avene water is proven to reduce inflammation and irritation (itching), and to accelerate healing. It is particularly useful for:
- burn-related scarring
- follow-up to dermatological treatments
- psoriasis
- eczema and dermatitis
- ichtyosis (a hereditary condition of dry skin with lots of itching)

The Avène water has been used for over 200 years in skin healing treatments and has been declared of public benefit in 1874; it is well-known by dermatologists and cures at the Avène Thermal Stations are mostly prescribed by a doctor.

Ok, but what’s in it for me?

If you get Avene Thermal Water Spray just to set your makeup, clearly, you’re spending unnecessary money on something that you won’t find special.
However, if you suffer from dryness, sensitivity or eczema, you can definitely include this water in your daily skincare routine to help relieve your skin.
Simply spray the water on your face after your cleansing routine, and gently pat a towel to dry your skin (no rubbing, ladies, it’s irritating!), then follow with your skincare products (and if necessary, use the Avene products recommended for your skintype and condition: these also contain the Avene Spring Water)

Being seriously addicted to trying new beauty products, it is bound to happen that I, once in a while, would get a reaction to something new that I am trying. Every time that happens, I remove the culprit from my face and spray with Avene Thermal water - it always helps my skin calm down really quickly.

If the water is particularly hard where you live, you can use the Avene Water to rinse off your face after you’ve washed it with tap water: it will help your skin restore its balance. If you suffer from dryness a lot, you can even skip tap water altogether and cleanse your skin using micellar water then Avene Water, and you’re good to go!
I have actually been doing that myself lately, as my skin was seriously dehydrated after Winter and the tap water was really giving me a hard (no pun intended) time. It made such a difference over the course of 3-4 days, it is truly amazing!

It’s a kind of magic.

The composition of the Avene Thermal Water being well-known, scientists have recreated it artificially, which is actually pretty easy to do.
It turned out the copycat water just didn’t do the job.
It looks like, when it comes to thermal water, the real deal is more than the addition of its components. How interesting is that?

10 comments:

  1. Thanks for having me! If anyone has questions, I'll try my best to answer them.

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  2. If I may add something I think that a common mistake is to take for granted that all water sprays you can find are made of the same kind of water. In France and Europe at least, it is not true at all.
    You can find thermal water sprays (like Avène, La Roche Posay, Uriage and so on) and random spring watersprays(like Evian, les Plombières and so on).
    The first ones have real therapeutical virtues that have been testified by doctors whereas the second ones are mainly just repackaging drinkable sprig waters. I do not mean by anyway that they are not good they are just different products.
    To be sure to buy a thermal water in France, you have to go to a drugstore or chemist's. They are not avalaible in supermarkets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Excellent side note! (By the way, people, this lady is the friend I turn to when I have skin issues, she knows EVERYTHING!)
      It is indeed very important to pick a THERMAL spring water. I can't believe that I was offered Evian as a replacement for Avene in a pharmacy recently, as it's not the same thing AT ALL.

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  3. Great post ( I also use Avene thermal water) and Mariella is such a lovely lady :)

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  4. Fantastic post. I love my Avene Thermal Water spray (I recently saw a HUGE bottle for sale in a little pharmacy, so of course I had to have it!).

    By the way, you look lovely in that photo =)

    Nazia (naz85 on MUA!) xx

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  5. Excellent post thank you, I love the Avene range as I have sensitive skin and it always helps me out x

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  6. I used to use this grapefruit water spray from burt's bees, but as far as I know they don't make it any more. I'll have to see if I can find this. It sounds soothing in the same way. : ) Lovely post, as always!

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  7. Great post i was actually hesitant to pick a bottle up from my nearest Walgreens in Hollywood. I sprayed a bunch on my left hand only in order to compare to my right. And Honestly, my back of left hand skin was supple within 30 minuutes! Im thinking of picking of actually buying it sometime soon.

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