Epode Skincare

Epode Skincare Epode Skincare is a compilation of formulas, both plant-based and clinical, that provide safe, non-toxic and non-accumulating solutions.

The brand was created to cater to the needs of skin of colour.

Look out for husks and shells in your scrubs. They are harsh and scratch the skin.
07/09/2021

Look out for husks and shells in your scrubs. They are harsh and scratch the skin.

As I’m building a range of products for Epode Skincare, I’m addressing those aspects of skincare that particularly impac...
22/07/2021

As I’m building a range of products for Epode Skincare, I’m addressing those aspects of skincare that particularly impact skin of colour. It’s important to note that in any industry, we are sold convenience and quick fixes. But for skin of colour, though dermatology has made inroads, there is still room for improvement in finding “faster” treatments. By faster, I mean results within days rather than months. In the meantime, in the words of Bruce Lee, “long-term consistency trumps short-term intensity.” Darker skin tones don’t take well to intense heat sources such as lasers, nor harsh chemicals, such as glycolic acid peels. Both of the above “quick treatments” turn out to be risky and unpredictable for darker skin tones and are highly dependent on the practitioner. If your esthetician or dermatologist is not educated on skin of colour, for example, and are used to treating white skin, they are likely to cause burns.
IPL(intense pulsed light), Fraxel lasers, skin tightening lasers at 1540 wavelength, like Palomar, can cause persistent greyish, black spots and even scars in skin types 4-6. These lasers are designed for very light skin. Throw melanin into the mix, and the outcome becomes a question mark. Why not chemical peels? Most chemicals applied to the face in-office are much higher concentrations than over the counter products. They need to be neutralized after a certain amount of time. With darker skin tones, what tends to happen is, they are left on the skin too long because there is no magic number of minutes, or they are not neutralized evenly. If your pores are more prominent by chance, as is the case with many brown beauties, the acid will burn the deeper layers of skin, making it almost impossible to treat the post-inflammatory pigmentation. So brown beauties, arm yourself with solid information before getting any intense treatment.

At a medical office, a pulse oximeter, that small plastic clamp they put on your index finger to measure oxygen levels i...
29/06/2021

At a medical office, a pulse oximeter, that small plastic clamp they put on your index finger to measure oxygen levels in your blood, could be giving a false reading.
Why does it matter? Because pulse oximeters often overestimate the oxygen saturation in dark-skinned individuals. If you’re healthy, your oxygen saturation (OS) is between 95% and 100%. If a pulse oximeter has overestimated your OS and you’re substantially below the norm, say at 80%, you would be in danger of death. The above isn’t new information, but it’s on our radar because the FDA warned about these discrepancies early this year.
What’s the takeaway for brown and black beauties? Oximeters are a crucial piece of equipment for COVID (or other lung and heart-related diseases). If you’re a dark brown beauty, pay attention to all other symptoms of low oxygen saturation, the oximeter is not accurate enough. To learn more about other signs of low oxygen saturation, read more from the sources below.
- Pulse Oximeter Accuracy and Limitations: FDA Safety Communication Feb 19, 2021
- FDA Warns Potential Inaccuracies with Pulse Oximeters - Medscape - Feb 19, 2021.
- Bickler PE, Feiner JR, Severinghaus JW. Effects of skin pigmentation on pulse oximeter accuracy at low saturation. Anesthesiology. 2005 Apr;102(4):715-9. doi: 10.1097/00000542-200504000-00004. PMID: 15791098.

To all the beautiful Dads out there, Happy Father’s day!!!! …but a special shout out to my hubby and partner in life.
21/06/2021

To all the beautiful Dads out there, Happy Father’s day!!!! …but a special shout out to my hubby and partner in life.

When our gut enters a microbial imbalance (research dysbiosis), our skin is often affected. Here is what it looks like t...
16/06/2021

When our gut enters a microbial imbalance (research dysbiosis), our skin is often affected. Here is what it looks like to nourish your microbiome:
- Eat 30+ grams of fibre per day?
- Make probiotic foods a part of your everyday diet
- Always fill half of your plate with fibrous vegetables
- Remove high fructose corn syrup from your diet.

It’s more easily said than done when we often choose skincare products based on scent, textures, skin fee vs trying to u...
08/06/2021

It’s more easily said than done when we often choose skincare products based on scent, textures, skin fee vs trying to understand if ingredients linger in the bloodstream. Governments do their best to regulate skincare, but it’s a job of gargantuan proportions. If you purchase a jar of skincare and gravitate more toward its scent, know that natural aromas are volatile and require additives, stabilizers, and specific temperatures to preserve. Creamy textures require lots of additives and fillers, some of which are toxic; lookup “microplastics” yikes! And when we add water, water-soluble actives, peptides and extracts to the mix, we have to formulate and preserve them, increasing the our exposure to ingredients that do more harm than good. Especially for people of colour, as our skin structure makes more susceptible to absorbing these harmful ingredients into our bloodstream.
Think of it this way, nature gave us three main skin remedies: first and foremost, the food we eat, then water, wax, oil and butter (such as sea butter). I still make balms with oils, butters and waxes, and they serve a purpose. The challenge for all of us is to swing the pendulum toward skincare that benefits our health or at least does no harm. I love to see all the fabulous skincare (and non-skincare) companies swinging that pendulum toward better health.
I’ll keep you updated on our progress. Epode Skincare is coming soon.

Let’s face it, nature does not care about smooth skin, it cares about efficient barriers to pathogens, and subsequently ...
06/06/2021

Let’s face it, nature does not care about smooth skin, it cares about efficient barriers to pathogens, and subsequently the survival of the species. But now that skin is a status symbol, we’ll have to take our skincare up a notch. Our super-efficient pigment pouches, designed to protect us, are triggered by so many things, that we must be very careful what we put on our skin!

If you’re brown-skinned like I am, and wonder why a spot lingers for a year, it’s because when our melanocytes spew pigment in reaction to an offender (be it an ingredient, a pollutant, or a cut), it is not a direct spew to the top layer of skin. Pigmented granules are left throughout all the various layers of skin. Therefore, addressing the pigmentation on the top layer won’t do the job. Again, this is because our pigment is spread unevenly throughout all three layers.

If your skincare is designed for very light skin tones, it won’t do enough to address the actual problem. Why, because the melanocytes of a Caucasian person, for example, spew a lighter-toned pigment and are not easily triggered in the first place. This is why there is such a push for skincare for skin of colour! We need better solutions, better testing, and better results.

Epode Skincare…coming soon!

29/05/2021

Who's anyone to tell me how to get my glow on? In the end, what matters is that my skin is nourished from the inside out, as well as from the outside in…and that I feel good about myself, with makeup or without it.

Happy Mother's Day to all out there who have the important role of caring for a precious human. It reminds us of our vul...
08/05/2021

Happy Mother's Day to all out there who have the important role of caring for a precious human. It reminds us of our vulnerabilities and strengths; it reminds us that we have grown from love, sacrifice, happiness and hardship and that the love between mother and child is the stuff of legends. It reminds me that it is now my turn to pay it forward. I'm sending an avalanche of love to my beautiful Mum in Costa Rica who I haven't hugged in over two years (she was scheduled to visit right when COVID hit). I want to thank her not only for my education and life but for teaching me how to love unconditionally so that I could eventually be Mum to my precious child, my little shadow, the wind beneath my wings. I am honoured every day to love and be loved by her. Have a wonderful day, Mums of the world. Wishing you much love and health. 😘

I jokingly call my family The United Nations. I am Afro-Costa Rican, my child is Chinese-Costa Rican and my husband is A...
07/05/2021

I jokingly call my family The United Nations. I am Afro-Costa Rican, my child is Chinese-Costa Rican and my husband is Anglo-Australian. This means that skincare in our Epode household requires attention to detail. My child being Asian, has a delicate skin barrier that goes into high alert at the slightest mosquito bite. My skin resists mosquito bites easily but goes into hyper inflammatory response with skincare not formulated for my skin. My hubby and the sun don’t play well together and he battles skin redness from just about anything. I created Epode Skincare because I wanted to know first hand that the products I use at home are effective and safe for my family's health. I wouldn't want to miss out on those cheeks! coming soon.

26/04/2021

One of the things that makes the most difference in healthy skin, is protecting your skin from too much sun exposure. Don’t get it twisted, folks, some sun exposure is needed to process your vitamin D. No sun? ...no use in taking those supplements. Come take a look at our formulas made with brown skin mind. Safe, non-toxic skincare. coming soon.

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