Skincare After 60: What Works, What Doesn’t

Founder, Stills Health Clinic

Co-Founder of Vitali Regenerative Skin Care
- Discover how menopausal changes in collagen, hydration, and skin elasticity affect the way skin looks and feels after 60, and why skincare needs often change with age.
- Understand how Debbie Barber uses GHK-Cu peptides, bakuchiol, lactic acid, moisturizers, and squalane as part of a simple routine designed to support aging skin.
- Learn why sunscreen, exercise, sleep, nutrition, gut health, and stress management still matter alongside topical skincare when supporting healthier-looking skin over time.
Full Transcript
There's so many things that happen. And GHKCU goes in and provides that collagen. It provides elastin, which helps your skin, you know, bounce back, be spongy and bounce-back.
it helps hydrate. Almost every, it's like the perfect, if you had a prescription for what do you do with menopausal skin? I hate to use that word. GH KCU is a perfect answer.
So that is why we started the business. I wanted to share it. This is Dr. Talks. Hello, hello, welcome back to Mastering the Menopause Transition Summit 4.0. I'm still your host, Dr.
Sharon Stills, and I am excited to be here today. And I have one of our sponsors with us and we are very grateful for our sponsor because without them, we would not be.
So we're sending sponsor love to you. This is Debbie Barber and she is the face, the genius, everything behind Vitali Skincare. She told me how good my skin looked before we came live and I was like, that's because I'm using your products.
It does look good. This near and dear one to me and part of why I love hosting summits because we all get to learn and grow together. Me too, you know, I may be your leader, but I'm learning along with you often and get exposed to amazing products.
And I am pretty addicted to the Vitali skincare line. This morning I was like, Is my cream finished? Do I not have another one? The moisturizer, right.
I just stock up now so that when I run out, I have a back stock so I don't have to go into panic mode. So Debbie Barbara is, like I said, the brains, beauty behind Vitali Regenerative Skin Care Company.
I'm, instead of reading her bio, I am just going to let her introduce, because she is so part of, there are so many reasons why I do this summit and why am so passionate about changing the conversation around menopause.
And we're going to talk skincare health because that's really important and we are going talk GHKCU which is like why I love the product so much because it's got the special peptide in it.
But how you created this company and if you'll share your age like to me is the epitome of what I'm, you're living it in action and so not only are you going learn about skincare today ladies, but you're going to be inspired just by who Debbie is.
Oh, that's so nice. I am 69 and I retired in 62. In the corporate world, 37 years in marketing and fundraising and retired to help with my grandchildren, which was a wonderful two years, three years.
And because I was so inspired by what I saw with GHKCU, this beautiful blue peptide, I wanted to share it. And I've shared with you Dr. Faree, who's been on here with us, because she had exposed me to several peptides that had helped me in my 60s, with body fat, just building muscle, inflammation, muscle aches, things like that.
And so I one day said, can you please tell me what I can do for crepey skin? I thought, you know, she has peptides for everything. And she said you can use what, I use GHKCU.
I'll get it from the compound pharmacy. And long story short, I started at the compound pharmacy, but it was a foam. And it wasn't the greatest experience, But it worked.
I saw something different in this peptide. So within six months, we started Vitali Skincare. We're in like 18 countries now. and have just this wonderful, you know, group of customers and really friends that love the peptide because they also had basically spent so much money on things that did not work.
And I had a trash can full of them, or that's where they went. So this peptides and then the products that we combined with it truly gives your skin something that it needs.
It's naturally occurring. That's what I love about it. You know, it's a bioregulator peptide where it can go in and use Suzanne Furee's words, Dr. Feree, It goes in, and tells your skin cells to act younger.
And that's how it works. And, you know, since we're talking about, the focus is menopause, it could not be a more perfect product because during menopus, we lose 30% of our collagen.
You use like, 1% a year up until pre-menopaus, then that five years during Menopas, 30 percent of your collagen and then 1 percent post-Menopos. And that is what keeps your skin firm.
That's what holds your skintogether. You know, what helps hydrate. The estrogen helps the hydration of your scan. There's so many things that happen. And GHKCU goes in and provides that collagen.
It provides elastin, which helps your skincare, you know bounce back, be spongy and bounceback. it helps hydrated. almost every, it's like the perfect, you know, if you had a prescription for what do you do with menopausal skin, I hate to use that word, GHKCU is a perfect answer.
So that, that is why we started the business. I wanted to share it. And so you were, how old when you started this? 64. I had retired for two fun years with the grandkids.
And then 64, we started back. So this is our fifth year. and I love it because I, I loved sharing it and telling people and having I have so many stories.
In fact, one this morning, this just to share with you, scarring is one of the things when we, as we age, We do not heal as fast, I'm sure we've all seen that.
I see my granddaughters and they can get a big scrape and it just heals right up. And I am nursing something much longer now that I have my serum, that goes on.
But I had a customer tell me that, I had told her about the product and she used it. She had a breast lift 15 years ago. And she said her right breast healed normally.
I mean, she had scar and I'll tell you in a minute with GHK, you can really minimize scarring. But the left side, She said it stayed thick. and red, different than the other side.
And she said she used the serum for three weeks. She said it is totally no redness. It's flattened out and it looks like the others. I said, well, keep using it.
it'll probably look better than other one. That'd be a great way to test it and that's after 15 years. One of the things that a lot of people have questions about scarring If you use it at the time, like with a procedure, you know, so many procedures, even Moh's surgery.
My husband had this huge scar from Moh surgery, looked like Frankenstein. And I was really worried about this one, but we took the before. And he was very good about using, you know, even he even started when he still had the stitches, but he used the serum, the 3% serum twice a day, put the Bacuchel oil after and the before and afters are amazing.
You can barely tell he had this surgery. So I know I went on and on because I'm excited about what this does. That is why I came out of retirement and I am 69. I m going strong.
I love it. So I have some questions. Yes. Because one of the questions I get a lot from patients is, should I use Estriol on my face to get rid of wrinkles?
And I'm, I always say, like I know Estriol can help, but I also say no, because like we've got you on the right estrogen, and if you put it on your face, it's going to absorb.
So I say always no use Vitali, use the GHK-CU, But I am curious like what your thoughts are on Estriel for the face. Okay, that is a good question. I am on Estriol and I use it a gel that I rub into my arms.
It's just, you know, I used it twice a day. and she uses it after the serum. So I would say if you would want, if someone wants to use it, that's how to us it.
But she does not use in place of the serum, the GHK. She uses as the moisturizer on top of serum Okay, so the GHK is going to have better effects on your skin than just Esterel.
Is that accurate? That has been my experience because I have done both and but I will I'm just sharing what she says she does sometimes is put the Estereal on top of the serum at night.
So was your skin always so gorgeous? No, the skin has improved. I've used this five years and I use it twice a day. And I used it before I go out in the sun because I know that I mean, it's not, let me say it is not a sunscreen, but it protects against the UV.
I mean, the UV damage, it protects your DNA. So there is a protection, but it does not protect you from burning. But since I've been using it, and I use the pacucho oil and the squalane oil, I used the lactic acid to remove the dead skin cells.
And these, It's very simple what I do. I don't do a lot of elaborate things. i have micro-needling maybe twice a year. and I love that because I use the serum.
I take my serum and apply it, you know, while it's still fresh to do that. So my skin has improved. My skin looks better than it did in my 50s. It looks fantastic.
Do you wear sunscreen? Absolutely. Okay. Absolutely, but you haven't made a sunscreen. No, we're working on it. We're working on it. Sunscreens are so toxic, most of them.
They are. I'm putting in a request, I need a natural. So I have a long request I could probably sell out and I want it to be perfect and we're getting there but it's not perfect but I will let everyone know when we have that but you do need to wear that.
Absolutely. I know I say this, your hands. You really need to wear sunscreen on your hand. And I have it in my supplement basket, we call it. When I'm doing my supplements, I put it on my hands because I'll have on foundation or tinted sunscreen or whatever.
But the hands, you can forget. It's so easy to run out the door. That really ages you. And we're going to do a webinar, a much deeper dive after the summit is over, because we've done webinars before.
Debbie will show before and after pictures. And they're like mic drops. So just keep your eyes open for emails inviting you to a webinar with me and Debbie where you will actually show.
That was fun. I really enjoyed that one. She's worth a thousand words and the heart pictures are amazing. I have another question. The GHKCU, is it at all helpful for like itchiness, a rash, eczema, psoriasis?
It's an anti-inflammatory, so it provides that kind of help. I've seen it on redness. Vivian, the person who wrote me this morning said I couldn't believe the rediness was gone.
So it can help, It can tone down and calm down eczema, but it's not the, you know, that's a bigger issue. Eczeme is a much bigger issues with the gut.
There's so many things. But yeah, and of course, right, we wanted, this skin is often a representation of what. Absolutely. I'm just curious though, as like I am thinking of a patient who were working on her gut and her liver, but she's got like a rash going on.
And I was like, should I have her put the GHKCU on it? I think she could test it. Because it is a healer. It goes in and truly tries to heal what's wrong.
That's how it works. Okay, now you've mentioned a few things and it's funny, I had a… I was telling you before we came live, a couple of weeks ago I have a diamond glow facial which I thought was going to be very benign and very natural and my body thought different and was so red and so itchy and miserable.
I even had to cancel patients one day. But two things. So one, the facial is the esthetician was like, you have to use, am I botched, bachulol? How do you say it?
Bachuli oil? Oh, okay. Yeah. The oil that you had in your product. I'm probably saying it wrong. Oh. Bacuchol. I'm not going to say it wrong. And I was like, well, I use the best, so I am sure it's in there.
I went home and I said, yep, it is in. Can you talk about that and why that's important and you put it in your products? Yes, instead of a retinol, retinoid, we decided to go with a natural alternative.
Bakuchel is from a plant. and it is much more gentle, and yet it still promotes cellular turnover, which is wonderful after the kind of treatment you have, you want to really help speed that turnover.
So we decided, because there's plenty of retinol out there, that we would, this was a newer, it's been around for a thousand years in Indian medicine, et cetera, great healer, but just in the last few years, is really being recognized for skincare.
And I tried it and I fell in love with it because I have so many customers and actually friends who cannot use retinol. You know, it's too irritating.
Their skin can't handle it. So this is a more gentler way to do the same thing. And it would be perfect for you to use after your Diamond Glow. It has some vitamin E in it also.
I'm never getting a Diamond glow again. And you have a new product that I want to learn about, a lactic acid product. So why did you create this product?
What does this do? Where does it go? Absolutely. And I've got it memorized. I do my serum first, and I my eyes, then I to my hydration, the moisturizer.
Then I just keep the body stuff and put it on my hands. Isn't it wonderful? The body cream is just, people that, so many people buy two at a time. I just think, what are you doing with this bodycream?
It is wonderful. So the serum, What is so wonderful, the Serum goes in and restores your skin cells. It goes and it works. You need something to help break the bonds of the older skin cell and help move them out.
So we love lactic acid. It's something I've studied from the very beginning. In fact, I used lytic acid as an exfoliator before I even knew about GHKCU.
And as I studied what we would do to really support the work on the GH KCU, decided that our cleanser would be a cleansor with latic acid and that's our gentle exfoliating cleanser, which we've had that for two or three years.
Use it only once a day and it does help bring up the cells, the dead cells and the damaged cells. But I really wanted a stronger product that people could leave on.
So we just released the mini size and we will, by July, we'll have the full size. It's a resurfacing, it's the resurfusing 10% lactic acid. And it, you just put it on and you can feel it.
It'll tingle a little bit and leave it own overnight. I prefer no other products with it just let it go in and break the bonds of those dead skin cells, move everything up.
And in the morning you wash it off and your skin is certainly in my case and customers who've been testing it it feels so soft and so clean and good. And that helps the GHK work better.
So that's why that is our next product. How often, because I've got it sitting on my counter, how often? Twice a week. Twice the week at night. And your skin will become more, could be more sensitive to sun.
Just be aware and wear your sunscreen. And is that for like three days after you use it? That you're more sensitive to the sun? You don't feel anything.
It's just, I'm telling you this because it's the right thing to do when you do this kind of cleansing. If you think of sort of like a peel, but it a real mild one.
So just keep the sunscreen on. I would tell you to that anyway. And so I Don't think I have the cleanser. I'm like, oh you don't have a cleans or I'll get you a Cleanser Sarah subscriber, I saw your subscribers.
So I will be sure you have cleansers Like I want to look like you So, did I miss any of the products? There's the cleanser, and then, so maybe you could just take us through, like, what you do, yeah.
I would love to show and talk a little bit about the serum, because you can find other serums. You can even find a GHK in Sephora, but you will not find one that is this color blue.
Can you see that? I hope you… Yes. Yes, Luke, because we have two and 3% like we, have a significant amount of GHK for the balance. And most that you find, I can't waste it.
Most that, you, find are a half a percent, maybe 1%. So when you use Vitali, You're using enough to really, do something to make changes in your skin, to help with fine lines.
That's one of the places that's really sweet is crepey skin. Can you use that serum, like women get crepes skin on their arms? That, that, my before and after, it's my favorite picture is my crepys skin, because I play tennis and I do not like showing the crepy skin and what you do, you, use the, serum and then you used the lactic acid.
Like that would be a place that you would use it. You put it and leave it overnight. just the lactic and it will help you know the damaged skin cells come up then you put the serum and then your hydration or your bakuchi oil.
So it's again there's only seven or eight seven products. It's simple, I like it simple. You know, the next product will be a stem cell product but we and we've been working on this for almost two years hopefully this fall but I'm just so careful that What we do is really important and works with what we're already doing.
You know, we are not just trying to come up with a product. What about, like, what do you think of mud masks? You notice I did a mud mask when I was Nat and Edam.
Do you know Nat? I went to her retreat and we did mudmasks from like the mud in the natural water. We took it out of the water and put it on. That's the last one I've done.
Is there, are they not good? No, I think it's good. I actually, think, it can help remove impurities and be good for your skin. It's just not something, these products and that really is all I use.
I feel like I think it needs to be because I want to show what you can do with these products, if that makes sense, other than sunscreen. Yeah. Cause I noticed you don't have like a mud mask or anything.
No. So you. You don' even really need it. I don t think you do. It just isn't one of the top things that come to mind. I mean, I know what I'm working on and it's really repairing with something as natural, not that mud is not natural.
As natural to your body as possible. And one other thing that's so important, Dr. Stills, is that we have formulated with really good ingredients. There's not a lot of We use a lot of natural oils.
We have shea butter. The body cream has rosemary oil, which is good for circulation, so it helps with cellulite, the appearance of celluite. I mean, we have the squalene oil which it's most like your own sebum.
And we have that in an individual, you can buy just the squalene oil, which is just, the most wonderful primer to put on before foundation or sunscreen.
I mean, I use it, and I have it on now, every day. And it protects your skin, it keeps it hydrated in a different way. And one of the things we wanted to do with Vitali is not only have these wonderful peptides, and we have four different peptide we're working with, but we want to formulate them with something that would boost and help, not harm.
Because I see products that may have one really strong active ingredient, But then when I read the other ingredients, I put it down, like I don't want put all that other stuff on my skin.
So that's really important to us. for important to me and I know my audience were very all about. Yeah. Cause you know, your skin is your largest organ and absolutely.
And you I prescribe glutathione through, you rub in through the skin. So we are, I think we often don't think about it, but we're absorbed. What we put on our skin, is just like what we swallowing.
Absolutely. You are so right. That's so important. So your products to look like you, that's like the book, you need to use them morning and night is just once a day enough.
You can use them once a day. I think when you start it, there's something you're trying to work on, like fine lines or, you know, just crepiness, for example.
If you wanted to working on crepiness, You're going to have better or faster results, let me say, if you use it twice a days. It's not that you are not going have benefit using it just once day, and I don't use every product twice day I use the serum twice days, I just, I love it.
I loved how it feels on my skin. And I feel protected against free radicals. So I use the serum twice a day on, my hands and my face and in my brains.
Like I think I'm using too much. Sometimes I'll put the eye cream on only at night because I get the, serum, you know, all over. If I am brushing out the door, serum and then my oil and tinted moisturizer and go.
So the body cream. Yes. What's the best, like I'm using that on my hands. It's great for your hands, but it's wonderful for you arms and legs. I mean, I have one by the bathtub and it is wonderful after your skin is, you know, your pores are open.
It feels wonderful to just rub it on your arms and legs and knees. It really, you will feel, if you use it at night after a shower, bath, You will, feel the difference in the morning.
I mean, will touch your skin and it will different. So it's going to feel softer. And again, it has shea butter and rosemary oil as well as the GHK-CU.
You're working on those skin cells, making them younger. You're replacing, we lose. 60% of our GHK from age 20 to 60. I thought about doing a whole podcast of all the losses because you lose the estrogen, you know, collagen.
But one of the things that had helped you look the way you did in your 30s and 40s is you have GH KCU. It is naturally occurring. topically, you can replace it for your skin using products like Vitali.
People also inject it. You can inject. So if you did inject, it like I feel like it wouldn't have the same effect. It's more concentrated putting it you want to on your skin.
People inject it, I have injected it. It burns. I will tell you one reason it's not one of my favorites is it burns when you inject. You feel it but people use it and it enhances skin that way.
But you can do it topically as well. Yeah, I think I'm a fan for the, there's enough things we have to inject. In and out the truth. I feel like when we're addressing skin, just putting it on your skin to me locally makes the most sense.
Yes, it does. So, oh my goodness. Like I've asked a lot of questions that I want to know the answer to. Because I am perfecting my vitality. Every time I talk to you, learn something else.
And I just think it's so, so. As long as you use it, like you're 69. Yes. And you are going to use this every day, twice a day. Are you going look like that at 79? I hope so.
I hope so. If I take care of other things, you know, I've got to eat right and take of my gut, that's something that Suzanne has always taught me. You've gotta take car of your gut.
And there's things like exercise, exercises you just absolutely for your skin. I mean, it's for you whole health, but your scan. Sleep, those things are all part of it.
But this is definitely helping me fight the aging all the way. Yeah, and I can't wait to watch Me too now, but I can't. I think your skin, I do think you're skin looks smoother than when I first met you.
And I'm really, said that when first saw you, you know, with your background there. My fake beach. Your fake Beach. Yes. And of course, yes, I'm glad you said that because everything is always multifactorial.
So when we talk about the benefits of hormones, or we talked about skincare, whatever it is we're talking about, it's always, even if I am not saying it, like yes.
It's the whole gestalt of what you do, the eating right, sleeping, exercise, movement, stress reduction, relationships. All these all of that is a part of it.
Yes, but You know, there's nothing is there any like I know the ghk is making our skin look beautiful Is there, any other like medicinal benefits that you get from putting it on your skin?
From putting, it, on, your, skin, well it goes into your i mean it Goes into the cells and it helps seriously goes Into the dna and helps turn on and off and set your DNA to healthier.
It works on so many other issues that I have to believe applying it to your skin can be only good. I know unless you are allergic to copper or have some issue with copper, I can't think of one reason you would not use this product.
That would be almost the only reason. I just hope you have like a copper overload. Yes. Which often can be from a zinc deficiency. Correct. It's worth figuring out how to get rid of the copper overload so you can use the product.
Exactly. I've only had one person in five years and I'm not even sure it's because of a product, but they did the mineral test and they were high in copper and that's in 5 years, I only have one.
Yeah, and you know, you can't necessarily, like, hair mineral analysis can be very misleading, because if their hair is high in copper, well, it could just be high because they're excreting it.
It doesn't mean they are… Oh, absolutely. So I look in like serum. I looked at ceruloplasmin, which is the transport. And look at serum copper. You can look into red blood cell copper So if you are concerned, I don't think there's any need to be concerned.
But those doctors should be… I check those on patients all the time. So any last words of wisdom? I just think, well, I would, if you're in your 30s, i would be so happy to know there's a product that can help me prepare for my 40s and 50s in 60s.
I didn't get this product till I was in my 60's. And of course all my daughters are using, and I have four daughters and they are all using it and using on their hands as well.
They hear me say that all the time, but I think, you know, get started. Start using it because especially 30s, 40s. And then I have patients, I had patients all of the way to 90. I mean, people care about their skin, the health of your skin.
So I guess that's my last word. Words is it can work, it will work. I have it working with a lot of people. We will help you use it. You know, I take questions from people every day.
Yeah, and I think it's good to feel good about your skin, right? Absolutely. Confidence. Yeah. It's a confidence thing. And of course, your internal health is super important, but like I said before, you're skin is reflecting your gut, it is your lymph flow, It is reflect your liver, so these things are all dancing in connection with each other.
And there's nothing wrong with being superficial and wanting to like yourself. When you look in the mirror and so even sometimes if you are battling something chronic, you know, just having your skin look a little better is like, oh, it gives you a boost and there is nothing with that.
We deserve to feel good on the inside and the outside. Absolutely. I totally agree with it. So I know you have a special offer. Yes. Listening. So if you can tell them where to go, if they want to try the products, which I have.
They can go to Vitalyskincare.com and when they purchase, they can use Dr. Stills and they will receive a 20% discount site-wide on any of our products.
Thank you, thank you. And that's V as in Victor, I, T as Tom, A-L-I, skincare.com. And it's very generous of you and very kind. And I just want the ladies to try it, because they're going to get addicted.
It makes me, you know, it just is like a source of joy, right? I love it. We have a hair routine now, and I loved how my skin is changing. So I'm very grateful.
Like I said before, We always do a webinar at some point after the summit. So stay tuned for that because then you can ask questions and get them answered live.
And we're going to show before and after fixtures, which are like, you know, if you're like maybe questioning, are we telling the truth here? Which we are.
We wouldn't be talking about it if it wasn't, but if you like to see it with your own eyes, you will see with it your eyes. And I'm sure if they go to your website you probably have pictures.
We have some. I have a lot more information on all the products. And then on a side note, just use Debbie's story as an inspiration to follow your dreams, follow you passions, understand it's never too late.
Like it is never to late to take hormones, it never is too to start anew, to do something different, take a risk, leap and watch the net appear to all the things like we are We are a force and just because that number 65 comes and we've been programmed that this is when we need to retire, like, no, I mean, if you want to, more power to you if that's what you wanna do, but if don't and you have some kind of Dream or passion like don't let your age get in the way.
It's never too late. So I I can attest to that. Yes, and you can look great doing it, too Well, thank you Thank you so much, Dr. Stee. It's so fun to be with you and everyone for being here.
Again, it's vitalyskincare.com. Okay, we'll be back with another talk, so stay tuned. Bye. Thank for tuning into Dr Talks. We hope today's episode has enlightened and inspired you on your path to optimal health.
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