Newsletter

I was cleaning our family room the other day and I found an old stash of diapers, wipes and creams from a couple of years ago when our boys were still wearing diapers.
That made me think that the ‘Baby Bum’ deserves a newsletter!
It’s been a while since we had to use it on one of our boys but that cream has been our best friend for years. When our first child was born we realized soon that diaper rash is very common. The choice of products you have on the pharmacy shelf is overwhelming but soon you’ll start liking one product better than others. We tried a variety of them: from the cheap ones to the very expensive ones and from the traditional ones to the more natural ones. Most of the products are extremely greasy, indeed the majority of the diaper rash preparations classify as ointments with very little or no water at all in the formulation. These are messy, sometimes even hard to wash off your hands after the application and of course, they stain (this may not be a problem if you use disposable diapers but some people prefer to use washable cloth diapers).
What personally bothers me the most is how difficult it is to spread these preparations: I remember once having to warm up the can to soften the ointment and make it more “spreadable”. That episode was my turning point: I knew I was able to come up with something better. It took a few tries but finally, I achieve what I wanted.
Zinc is the main ingredient in diaper rash preparation and I have mentioned its benefits so many times that I don’t want to repeat myself. If you look at our website I have linked a very interesting study that shows its perks in the treatment of this particular dermatitis. Zinc doesn’t dissolve in water but does very well in oil therefore the majority of the formulations are petroleum based.
I’ll leave to you the reading about the safety of petrolatum on the skin but I will mention something else. Vaseline (or petroleum jelly) seals the moisture into the skin allowing faster healing, the same concept as zinc with the exception that zinc has antiseptic properties that vaseline hasn’t. By applying only petrolatum you might have a chance to seal into the skin also bacteria and fungi if the area hasn’t been properly cleaned and disinfected.
Bacterial and fungal infections unfortunately are possible complications of diaper rash and of course, nobody wants to increase the chances of complications. To avoid that from happening our formulation has aloe vera extract added to it: aloe not only has anti-inflammatory properties and it’s one of the best moisturizers on earth but also has antimicrobial properties and can inhibit the growth of bacterial and fungi (once again on our website under the product description you can find interesting studies to support the benefits of aloe).
Try it, you won’t be disappointed!

Ciao,
Rocco

Summer had decided to stick with us a little longer this year and I have tried to enjoy every little bit of sunshine we had so far!


I had a pretty big crash a few weeks ago and I had to cut my biking season shorter than usual…I came up short on a fast and long jump and the moment the bike touched the ground snapped in half throwing me head-first to the ground. For about 10 minutes I had no idea where I was or what I was doing there. Everything came back to my mind fairly quickly though, and I walk away from that with a very sore body, few scratches, and not even a headache (I change my helmets often and I take good care of them).


That happened on a Friday and the day after I had promised my older son we were riding dirt bikes together. I hate breaking my promises to my kids and I put all myself into making that happen!
I was very sore after the crash but I socked myself with ‘Rally Rub’ right before going to bed.


I have to say: THAT GEL IS AMAZING!


I wasn’t a brand new man the morning after, let’s be honest but I had very minimal swelling where I hit the ground with different body parts and we ended up going riding the day after (mom had to help me load the bikes in the truck as I didn't have lots of strength…)!


We stand behind our products because we know they work! We always deliver lots of samples to friends and local athletes in exchange for feedback.


I will attach some comments we collected lately on the ‘Rally Rub’ and the ‘After Riding Rub’ and I would also like to mention that we updated our website: I reviewed the descriptions of our products and I have attached a few interesting studies that support the evidence and the benefit of the active ingredients I used in my formulations.

Cheers,
Rocco

The After Riding Rub and the Rally Rub are finally available!

Our rubs contain 3 active ingredients to aid faster recovery after a minor injury or an intense workout/activity.

HOW?

Horse Chestnut: it contains Aescin that reduces vascular permeability in inflamed tissues, thereby inhibits edema formation and counteracts the release of pro-inflammatory mediators.

Witch Hazel: not only soothes the skin but in a recent study was found that the chemicals contained in the plant are able to inhibit the formation of some important inflammation mediators. It also has antioxidant activity against super-oxide (a highly reactive form of oxygen), which is released by several enzymes during the inflammatory process.

Last but not least: menthol. It’s a counter-irritant and produces analgesia by activating and then desensitizing epidermal nociceptors (these are sensor on your skin important to translate the pain feeling to your spinal cord and then the brain). It basically creates a mild irritation on the skin for the purpose of relieving pain in muscles and joints.

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS

When exercising you create micro-tears in your muscle that your body must repair and rebuild even stronger. The inflammation process that follows an intense workout or a minor injury has several steps: at first the blood flow increases in the area to supply what your body needs to start the healing process, then the capillaries start “leaking” thanks to the inflammatory mediators therefore swelling happens and at this point the bloodstream slows down to allow chemical mediators and inflammatory cells to collect and respond to the stimulus.
Our rubs help the recovery time  increasing the blood flow in order to supply nutrients and oxygen to the tissue that are healing.

This is probably why the R.I.C.E. method is now becoming obsolete: the idea of resting, icing, compression and elevation can actually slow down the healing process. The M.E.A.T. approach instead relies on a slow progression of range-of-motion and titration of exercise in order to naturally reduce the swelling and help guide the tissues to heal in their proper configuration.

WHAT ABOUT ANTI-INFLAMMATORY?

There is a bit of a controversy about the use of anti-inflammatory: inflammation is a physiological response that start the healing process so why stopping it or slowing it down? As we previously mention the inflammation process has few stages: it first supplies the blood to the damaged areas but after slows it down. It’s important to reduce swelling in order to maintain the blood supply and allow the body to heal.

Ciao!

Enrico

Trails are dry and fast, weather is hot and dipping in the water is now mandatory after each ride!


Crankworx is back after 2 years break! The bike park is busy but hey, it’s Crankworx, who cares! To me this time of the year means only one thing: Party Laps! I get a chance to see some friends from overseas and the long lift lines are just an opportunity to chat and hear a bunch of stories!


We recently escape the crowd of the ‘Sea to Sky’ and spent a weekend enjoying the interior. We visited the Mecca of freeride mountain biking (Kamloops) and rode at Sun Peaks Resort.
It is known to everybody that the terrain dictates how you ride and the perfect hills of the Thompson-Nicola region have been shaped for massive jumps and incredible speed! Quite intimidating at first but the smile at the end of the day is guaranteed.

Moving on…we are happy to announce that we are going to lunch 2 new products: the ‘After Riding Rub’ and the ‘Rally Rub’ will be available soon!
Production is scheduled to start this week!
This 2 products are specifically designed to speed up your recovery time after an injury or a good workout. They both contain horse chestnut, witch hazel and menthol.
The idea behind using this combination is simple: increase the blood flow, reduce inflammation and give a quick relief.
In the next news letter we are going to discuss in details the benefit of each single ingredient and why I choose to use them together.

Stay tuned!
Rocco

“I use SkinFix all the the time especially on Sofia. She has some eczema and it seems to clear it up in a couple of days if I stay on top of it. Same with the diaper rash. It’s nice cream not too thick!” James

We spent the month of June in Italy we saw our family and met all the new members, traveled around and collected lots of feedback and ideas about our products.
The weather was beautiful for the whole time we where there but extremely hot (we reached 38 degrees Celsius one day), very unusual for the season. In such a hot weather the idea of wearing Moto gears to rip around the track or going for a bike ride doesn’t even cross your mind unless…E-bikes! These are very popular in Europe and every friend we have at home has one. So we tried.
The climbs are long and spectacular and you can choose the amount of sweat you want to produce just by selecting how much help you want from the motor.
With the excuse of having an e-bike, what is supposed to be a “quick evening ride” often turns into a 50 km ride!
The ‘Saddle Sore Cream’ has been extremely helpful, trust me! After the first ride (luckily was an easy 30 km) I borrowed a pair of padded underwear to help with the seat time, but despite that I’ve used an entire 50 g of cream and I’m glad I did! Not only relives the redness but also helps soothing the skin and relief painful areas.
A local bike shop in Varazze where we were stayed hooked us up with bikes since day 1 and taking to the owner I found out he was leaving for Finland for a 5 days bike tour with his handmade bamboo bike! Right away I thought that was the perfect test for my ‘Saddle Sore Cream’. The feedback was above my expectation!
When I saw Christian back from his trip he commented: ‘It works, I have to be honest it works very well. I am that kind of person that does maybe 500-600km per year then decides to do 1000 km in a week. I often get sores but this time nothing!’
We also gave him some tester for our new ‘After Riding Gel’ but we are going to discuss this another time.
A very special thanks to everyone that helped us during the trip! Now on to the next adventure!


Here some links if you are curious about bamboo bike: https://www.bamcicli.it

https://www.varazzemtb.com


And let us know if you are planning a bike trip in Italy so we can connect you with our homies!


Ciao, Rocco!

Last month news letter left me thinking that I didn’t properly cover all the points about the Saddle Sore Cream.
Chafing is mainly caused by friction but moisture and irritating fabrics play an important role as well. Indeed other causes of chafing include:
- Being overweight.
- Nursing. Breastfeeding mothers can develop chafed nipples.
- Diapers.
- Walking around in a skirt, especially in hot or humid weather. Without pants to protect your legs from rubbing, many people develop inner-thigh chafing when wearing a skirt.
- Ill-fitting clothes. You can chafe if your sleeves, bra strap, or waistband repeatedly rub on your skin in an irritating way.
The best way to fight chafing is to use barrier creams like the ‘Saddle Sore Cream’.
Let’s now move on to the next benefit: it helps you heal faster!
There are studies showing that zinc oxide speeds up wound closure. The ‘Saddle Sore Cream’ can be applied directly to the skin.
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Zinc oxide not only can heal open wounds, reducing the likelihood of scarring, but if a scar has already formed, zinc can significantly reduce its appearance. The ‘Saddle Sore Cream’ can aid burns, cuts, scrapes, incisions, rashes, surface staph infections, and many other occurrences. It keeps bacteria from entering an open lesion, and it also fights the bacteria, and therefore infections, that may already exist.

I always have one with me when I go riding and it is now for me a bicycle essential.

"It worked well, and one thing I really noticed is how much it stayed in all the cracks… at first when I went to grab some, I was like shit there is not much in there I'm gonna finish the can after 5 uses. And as you use it, the can didn't go down at all, so there is quite a good amount in there. "Quentin

"I found out about your products through the clinic I work at. I purchased a saddle sore cream for my husband and he found it to be great. " Shelby

This product needs no introduction. It was created in response of riders need: chafing.
Back in summer 2020 after the first lock-down everyone started riding a bike, we couldn’t go anywhere and the only option not to go insane was to enjoy our beautiful backyard. Mountain biking became extremely popular and the new riders experienced the discomfort of spending hours on the seat. Working as a pharmacist in Whistler I answer many questions about chafing but I was never able to find the right product to recommend my patients: I wanted a natural product effective in preventing and treating chafing and safe to be used daily.
The Saddle Sore Cream is the ultimate formulation!
The Zinc Oxide forms a barrier on the skin that stops trans epidermal water loss and skin breakdown. The cream provides a shield against irritant and create the ideal environment from damaged skin to restore itself. This speeds up healing process, allowing you to get back on your bike faster and prevents lesions to get infected.
Coconut oil has the natural ability to penetrate the skin quickly and efficiently, which can boost hydration, improve skin elasticity, fight itch and reduce the chances of infection.
Aloe vera helps moisturize, soothe and hydrate irritate skin. Its anti-inflammatory properties can reduce pain, swelling, and soreness of wounds or injuries.
Chafing is by definition a rash-like inflammation that is caused by friction. Prolonged rubbing on the skin makes your skin sting or burn, and you develop a mild, red rash. In severe cases, chafing will include swelling, bleeding, or crusting. The saddle on your bike is not the only cause of it. Last year I bought a pair of knee braces for when I ride my dirt bike. Knee braces are expensive, they offer different type of protection and they must be comfortable enough so you can wear them all day. After intense research I bought my set. For some reason when I first start using them, I developed a rash on the inside of my leg above the knee, probably caused by squeezing the bike between my legs. Few applications of the ‘Saddle Sore Cream’ and the irritation disappeared. I now apply the cream on the area of the rash before wearing them and I never had any issue since then.

We have given the cream to lots of people (mostly female riders) and all the feedback we have received are positive! It is extremely effective! Here some of the comments.


“What I like about it is that it absorbs quickly and is not greasy. Also has a pleasant smell. Feels like it protects my skin.” Claire

“I did use it on a burn on my leg from a motorcycle exhaust and it helped lots.” Matt

“It works great on my ass! And I think it helped with my wound on the neck…I’d definitely recommend to my friends, actually I already did!” Lenka

Ciao!

Enrico

Spring has sprung and so has the seasonal allergy. Antihistamines are flying off the shelf and I often see patients complaining about skin rashes along with allergy symptoms.

The exact cause of eczema is unknown but genes and environmental triggers are playing an important role.

The epidermis is the outer layer of your skin and contains the stratum corneum: the dead cell layers responsible for the barrier function of the skin. This particular layer of the skin is made up of very resilient and specialized skin cells and it contains the protein filaggrin. This protein is a key component of the stratum corneum and contributes to its physical strength, hydration status, skin pH, and buffering capacity among other physiochemical properties.

Filaggrin deficiency leads to a “leaky” barrier. When an irritant or an allergen from outside or inside the body “switches on” the immune system, it produces inflammation, or a flare-up, on the surface of the skin. This inflammation causes the skin to be itchy, red, scaly and inflamed.

If the skin barrier is not repaired, then the immune system will constantly produce more antibodies in response to allergens that continue to get past the barrier.

There is no cure for eczema but there are plenty of treatments!

First of all you should moisturize at least twice daily; take a bath in lukewarm water and dry your skin by patting with a towel then apply creams or ointments to seal the moisture in.

Our SkinFix is a barrier cream. Because of the zinc oxide it creates a physical barrier that protect the skin from the outside allergens, seals the water in and prevents infections.

In some cases you might have to use ‘over the counter medication’ like hydrocortisone or see a doctor for prescription drugs but if you’ll have a good skin care routine all of this can be prevented!


Ciao!

Enrico