← Biohacking Beauty: The Anti-Aging Skincare Podcast
Biohacking Beauty: The Anti-Aging Skincare Podcast
Leah Vairo (FilterBaby): Is Your Tap Water Aging Your Skin? Chlorine, Hard Water & NAD⁺ Depletion
00:54:38
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- [00:06]
A
Welcome to Biohacking Beauty, the podcast where we bridge cutting edge science and practical biohacks to help you age younger from your skin to your cells. I'm Anastasia, co founder of Yango Skincare, and today we're diving into a topic that's hiding in plain sight, but has a massive impact on your skin water quality. We spend so much time and money on SK serums, treatments and routines, but what if the very water you're washing your face and showering in is actually accelerating aging? Chlorine, chloramine, heavy metals, even hard water minerals. These aren't just plumbing concerns. They're biohacking concerns. Joining me is Lea Veyro, chief brand officer at Filter Baby and a true leader in clean beauty and longevity space. Leah's passion for merging environmental wellness with skincare is reshaping how we think about skin health. We'll explore how toxins in tap water can disrupt your skin microbiome, deplete nad, weaken your skin barrier, and even make your products less effective. And most importantly, what you can do about it. If you ever wondered whether a shower filter is worth it or how filtered water actually support collagen and slow, visible signs of aging, you're about to get some answers. Hi, everyone and hi Leah. I'm just so excited to finally have you on this conversation. We had it, you know, behind the scenes, multiple phone calls because I was like, freaking out about my water. So I want to let the audience kind of know that ever since we moved to a new home, I went through hell without water. We have well, so we don't get city water. And the funniest thing I heard about the well water is the well water is free, but it's expensive because it's so true. When we bought the home, by the way, just so everyone knows, we had filtration system installed, like peroxide filtration system. And yeah, when we were buying water and buying water, buying the house and just looking, you know, like checking the faucets and everything, everything looked good. And then within a month of living in our new home, we had, like, yellow tint to the water. It smelled like rotten eggs, and it was just really, really horrible. Then from then on, I was like, really looking into what can be done and, and just. I'm gonna spare the details, but I tried everything to, like, filter the water. And in the process, I happen to test a lot of, like, filters and shower heads and everything is. We've like, the impact of the water on my skin was so major. Like, I'm somebody who knows how my skin feels and acts day in, day out within, within, like, the first month of living in our home with, like, not great water, there was so much destruction to my skin and how it looked. So I just really wanted to bring someone on who, like, dedicated their career to improving people's water and making them look and feel better. So thank you. Thank you for coming.
- [03:26]
B
Yes. Oh, my gosh. I know. That story you were telling me was just so crazy. Most people don't realize that, well, water is untreated, and there can be so many things that seep into the water through the ground. So you're getting hard chemicals like calcium and magnesium, potentially bacteria that smell you were smelling is actually sulfur, naturally occurring, but nobody wants to smell that in their water. And, yeah, this is. This is a major problem people face all around the country.
- [04:00]
A
Yeah. And listen, my husband was trying to make me feel better. He's like, remember when we went to, like, the springs in Colorado and there was sulfur? Like, people paid money for something. Like, we have. I'm like, no. Like, thank you for trying, but I do not feel like I'm in the spa right now. Like, that's exactly. That's not it. So I think we could start by just talking about how's the water we shower in or wash our face with, like, really impacting our skin, and what does our skin really absorb from that water?
- [04:36]
B
Yeah, so your skin is permeable. We're not a Tesla truck. We're not made of steel. We have skin that can absorb all different kinds of chemicals. And I think something that's really important to understand is the three pillars of the water infrastructure issue that really affect the skin. So, firstly, right. Going to talk about disinfectants like chlorine and chloramine. Those are used to make sure that there's no bacteria in the water and that we stay healthy. However, those are extremely drying to the skin, and they really break down the skin barrier over time. I mean, think about when you're swimming in a pool, right? Your skin definitely gets drier after you've been swimming in a pool and you're supposed to rinse it off. So actually, most of the time, there is more chlorine in the tap water than in pools.
- [05:25]
A
Oh, my God. No way.
- [05:28]
B
And 80% of people's homes in the US have chlorinated water. So there's another chemical called chloramine, and that's chlorine times ammonia. And about 40% of homes have chloramine. And it's becoming more and more common. And this is extremely drying to the skin and really, really does break down the skin barrier. All those things are very necessary to have in the water though. So that's one issue. Then you have the infrastructure issue. Most pipes in the US are over 70 years old. It wasn't until 1986 that they stopped using lead pipes. So many, many homes have lead pipes leading to their home, to their water supply. This is a problem for many reasons, for drinking, for children development. And this, the infrastructure issue goes beyond lead pipes. There are a lot of old corroding pipes. Pipes can be leaching microplastics. Microplastics is a big issue as well. So infrastructure, billion dollar problem to fix. And it's a very, very slow changing, moving project to fix.
- [06:36]
A
Yeah.
- [06:37]
B
Then you have unregulated chemicals. And unregulated chemicals come from manufacturing runoff into the water supply. This can really happen in well water like you're seeing, because that water is not treated. So chemicals can seep into the groundwater that goes into your well water, but it also goes into the treatment facilities. And at the treatment facilities, they're actually really behind on removing these unregulated chemicals because everything is regulated by the EPA and they're a very slow moving machine. They're a government organization. And so all of these three pillars combined once you know, you know too much and you know that you need to protect yourself in your home. And we actually show on our social media the, at the filter baby, this really interesting chlorine absorption test where we dip our hand in a cup of water and then test it for chlorine. And you can see before and after that our skin is actually absorbing the chlorine. So we know our skin does absorb chemicals. I don't know exactly how much we're absorbing, but we know that this is something that is happening especially because we know that there's drug delivery systems, patches that deliver the drugs through our skin. So we know this is happening.
- [07:49]
A
No, absolutely. And also it's kind of like a cycle. When you are exposed to water that has already disrupted the skin microbiome and the skin barrier that makes it more permeable. So, you know, the problem is kind of like gets only worse when treated. And I can, I can tell that from within like a month of moving to this new home and having the issues with water. My skin just was so itchy. So I knew right away that that's the skin microbiome. Like when you have itchy redness, like skin that's red, that's like the signs of the skin Barrier disruption. And the skin barrier is the foundation of health. Like, if you don't have your skin barrier intact, you can then actually let in a lot more toxins that naturally your skin's, your protective barrier protects you from. And another thing is really the trans epidermal water loss. So it's even in the metric, a metric for skincare products, like a good hydrating product will result in lower transepidermal water loss as an effect of like improved skin barrier function. So you can imagine that I felt like I was so dry, just so dry, so itchy, so red and so fast. Like, you know, like the results of it was pretty, pretty immediate. And somebody who has like the best skin care, in my humble opinion, at my disposal, it would, it would not mitigate the effects of water. And that's why this conversation was so important for me to have, because somebody might have like the best skin care and other practices. You know, maybe they're, they're getting great supplements for their skin from the inside out, you know. Yeah, all the things we talk about in this podcast, you know, having their fish oil, their omega 3s, you know, to keep their skin plump and juicy from the inside out because it's not all external. But then they might still be dealing with something that is not in their control, like, unless they looked into their water. So one thing that I think everybody is used to hearing, hard water. You know, there is a hard water in this city, in this city, everywhere. I've lived in the United states in like 10 different cities, and, and every time I move to the new city, people tell me the water here is so hard. And I'm like, oh my God, it's hard everywhere. So what does it really mean? Like, what is this expression?
- [10:08]
B
Okay, so hard water means that there is a presence of calcium and magnesium in the water, different minerals in the water, and these are naturally occurring. And just like I was saying before, groundwater can, you know, or water seeps through the ground and it attracts all different kinds of minerals and different things in the water. And calcium and magnesium are the main ones that cause hard water. And it's very common. And it actually can create buildup on the skin and on the hair. So magnesium calcium in the water. You can actually see this buildup around your faucet. You can see it on your aerator. You, you can see that like kind of greenish white crust that's magnesium and calcium. And over time, when you're washing your face with hard water, it can actually build up on the skin and it actually stops your Soaps from lathering up really well. So things wash off less easy. And this causes breakouts, clogged pores. This can really affect the hair. It can create hair loss, hair damage. It. Hair can start falling out if you have too much buildup. So this is a real issue that many people are facing.
- [11:24]
A
And, you know, that's crazy you're talking about this now. My hair was also falling out a lot more since I moved into our new home. And it's just like I feel bad saying it because we love our new home and it was. And thankfully we have solved the issue now because we just, you know, we looked into so many different filtration systems and because of the type of the well we had, we ended up like investing in reverse osmosis. And everything is getting better now. But not everybody, you know, has the means to do it. And not. Not everybody has the same amount of problems we had without water. But yeah, we were like the. I think the worst case scenario, even though it's a new home, it's only three years old since built, so hopefully the pipe perhaps not a issue, you know. Yeah, and. And it's.
- [12:11]
B
Yeah, it sounds like your issue doesn't stem from the infrastructure. It's more from the well water.
- [12:18]
A
Yeah, yeah. Which, you know, it's interesting. Like I said, I have been experienced like, like a lot more hair shedding than ever. And even like, I'm. My baby is one year and nine months now. And I was told that, okay, you have a lot of hair loss at like four months, then sometimes it can be like, recurring, like around one year when. One year postpartum. But I'm not, not in either of those, like, timelines that we're supposed to. And I'm like, losing sometimes, like, I don't know, a lot of hair, like chunks of hair, which I think it's. That's what it is. I think I built some kind of like a buildup and I did. So the hair salons in the area, they're actually offering the service of like, removing the buildup from well water. So it's like probably what you were saying. And I do know that, like we asked now, like, neighbors, how's their water? And what we gathered, it's just, it's a little bit of like, also luck. Like, some people don't have that much issues. And I guess there's. I don't know. Even though it's the same area, their well is better. I don't know if it's in a different depth or what happened to our. Well, I don't know.
- [13:23]
B
Some people are less sensitive as well.
- [13:26]
A
Oh, I definitely have very sensitive skin. So. Yeah, I'm like the litmus test of everything. My skin is super reactive. Yeah, yeah, we talked about it. Yeah. Well, I kind of like, because I. I'm so used to it, I can't imagine not having that. Like, I know right away when I put a product or something's off, like, my skin will tell me right away. And I'm okay with this, like this good conversation. You know, we have like open conversation.
- [13:57]
B
Yes, you are tuned in.
- [14:02]
A
I actually touched a little bit about the kind of like the connection between the skin barrier and the importance of like skin barrier and water quality and microbiome. But since you're such an expert, I wanted to hear like, if there any information that you want to share about, like, how does the water that we shower in affect our skin microbiome.
- [14:24]
B
Yeah. So I would say the skin barrier and the skin microbiome are a team and they're working together to fight off free radicals. But when you're continuously washing your face and your hair and your body in tap water that could contain contaminants, these are breaking down the skin barrier. So your skin barrier is now weakened and the microbiome is not as strong to fight off the bad guys. So basically it can throw off the page of your skin. Something really interesting that we do is we do in vitro testing on tap water versus our filtered water. And we actually found that There is a 13% increase in hydration when you're washing with filtered water. And there's a 69% increase in wound healing. So think about this. If you're dealing with acne, eczema rosacea, and your skin barrier is constantly being targeted and broken down, your skin is not going to heal fast enough or fast. And when you're washing with filtered water, you're actually allowing your skin to heal faster because it's not continuously being attacked. So, yeah, it's very interesting to see these in vitro studies.
- [15:42]
A
No, absolutely. And with Amitai doing jujitsu all the time and he always gets like scratches all over the body and on the face. And so, like, I don't want to risk it, you know, like, it can get contaminated and can he can get an infection and yeah, honestly, having the peace of mind that you have like filtered water and you're not introducing bad bacteria, you don't like, overload your skin microbiome. Because our poor microbiome, like, we've already created this artificial world where we, you know, this. They're bombarded with so many toxins. Like, like, since giving birth, I've, like, detoxed my life and, and being pregnant. And now when I sometimes step out of my home into the world, I am like, amazed by, like. Like I'm terrified of going to the malls these days because, like, I don't know, there's just so much dust, perfume, and like, I feel like it's all affecting, not just perfumes affecting your brain, but even like your skin, like this artificial fragrance. And again, like the dust and everything, like, I don't want to expose myself to it. So. Yeah.
- [16:48]
B
Oh my gosh. I notice it the most because, okay, I'm using filtered water at every touch point in my home and I live between here and Vancouver, Canada. I have all of my amazing filters in my Vancouver home as well. When I stay at hotels and I don't have my filters right away, I notice my skin, it starts burning. It starts feeling very dry, very itchy. And it's almost like you become more aware of these contaminants when you have such a clean lifestyle.
- [17:18]
A
Yeah, no, I totally agree. Yeah, I mean, listen, I think this is like something to. I don't know if you have the product for traveling with, but like now I'm like terrified of traveling and exposing my skin to the, you know, hard water and. Yeah, you just like, you have like actually with air filtration. My friend gave me a tip like three years ago. Every time she moves into like the hotel room, she checks in. She then calls the maintenance and she asks them to replace the HEPA filter. And she tells them something like, oh, I'm asthmatic. I like, I just, I can. Oh, wow, I can smell that. And they come in and they replace the air filter. And she's done it like every single time she's traveled. And I'm amazed because they do do that. And then you don't have to, like, you know, trust the, Like, I don't trust that they on time with their filters, like, air filter changing. Like, I don't want to leave it up to chance, but, you know, if they had shower filters, I could ask for them to change that as well. But they don't. Like, oh my God.
- [18:22]
B
You know what's really amazing is that we actually did a partnership with the proper hotel in Santa Monica, and they have the filters on the showers, in the bathroom sink. They also have air purifier. They're really thinking about wellness in that hotel. And I think more and more hotels are going to Start adopting this because people really want this. This is a, this is a. Not just a trend.
- [18:47]
A
Yeah, no, I. Yeah, you told me that. And I'm like so amazing. Like whenever I'm going to Santa Monica, that's the only hotel I'm gonna stay in just because of this added benefit. And, and we also know like, couple of hotels that in know they carry our products because they are already like in that wellness mindset. And you know, and I agree with you that this is being picked up and I hope to see this more and more. And I also heard that there was like some hotels that are planned to have like, okay, maybe they can't do like all of the rooms, but they're going to have like wellness suites. And I think once they have the wellness suites and they see how many people are opting to pay a little bit more but leave for the time of their stay in like more wellness oriented space, you know, with the air filtration, water filtration, and you know, whatever else they have there. I know like some hotel has like a chili pad on their bed, like, you know, better mattress to promote sleep. And the one thing I love about where we're going because a lot of things happening in the world but this mindfulness about wellness and like investing in your sleep and like figuring out your sleep, your air filtration, your water filtration, like eliminating toxins and endocrine disruptors from your lifestyle, like that's a trend I can get behind. So I'm like, I'm really happy to hear about proper hotel doing it in such a big scale and like, really setting, you know, the tone for others. And I hope more and more going to like, follow suit.
- [20:16]
C
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- [22:01]
A
What are some of the biggest mistakes people make when choosing water filters for skin health? Because that's another thing. In my quest of filter, you know, solving the issues in our home, I literally tested so many shower filters because, I mean, honestly, when you look at marketing and branding, the claims are kind of the same. So as a consumer, how can you like decipher it? How, how can you choose?
- [22:26]
B
It's a very good question. So there is very little transparency in the space and we're really striving to create that transparency. The truth is that most shower filters don't work. Most of these, like 12 step really popular products on Amazon, it's basically working for about one shower. So.
- [22:48]
A
Oh my God.
- [22:49]
B
Yes.
- [22:50]
A
You see, one shower.
- [22:52]
B
Yes. It's basically not doing much at all. So I think the thing to look for when it comes to filters is efficacy. You know, one thing that I think is really important is to really look in behind the brand and see who's developing the brand and make sure it's not just a dropship product. Because technically anyone could create a filter brand, grab any filter off the shelf from a manufacturer, put it into a pretty shell and sell it. But you really need to understand who's developing this product. Is the filter actually working? Are they doing lab studies? Are they, are they continuously innovating? And something that we take really seriously is efficacy. And our filters, the thing that makes us so different is that we're layering different filter technology and we're also using the highest quality, most advanced filtration technologies that we can find. For example, in our faucet filter, we're using ultra filtration membrane from Japan and this is really not seen in any other faucet filters. And we're layering it with activated carbon. So you're getting that activated carbon removal of like chlor chlorine VOCS chemicals and then you're getting with the ultra filtration membrane removal up up to 0.01 size microns. So that is extremely, extremely small. If you don't know what a micron is, one strand of human hair is 70 microns. So this is removing 77,000 times smaller than a single hair. So you really want to look at efficacy filtration material and who's behind the.
- [24:31]
A
Brand and how do people do that? Like, because like you said, I agree with you. And then like I'm retiring myself. When we bring guests on our podcast, we're very selective. I just want to let everybody know that this podcast is not sponsored. You know, we don't have any paid partnership. It's just really of like I wanted to educate because I know your wealth of knowledge and I know actually we met at the Don't Die summit. And one of the things I'm really grateful for, for this summit by Brian Johnson is that we got to reconnect with some old friends like Jack from Everyday do's. And you know, we go way back and we made some new friends like you guys. And I think he is pretty diligent at looking at the data, like when he was selecting exhibitors, which I'm grateful for. And then, you know, with our conversations because I had so many questions and I was, you know, like, you really do have data to show for yourself, but an average consumer might not have an access to you, you know, and like again, like when they're looking at pricing all of the similar claims, just is there something that they can do where it's like couple of steps, I don't know that you want to share. Like here when you look at the brand, look for X, Y, Z that they should have or ask this and that question that the brand before you invest, you know, because I think, I think people these days, unfortunately, like everybody's attention span is so short and with the like the kind of, the culture of consumerism, people kind of like sometimes don't really invest in like the time of, you know, really doing the proper research or they don't know how to do the proper research. So is there anything that you could recommend for them?
- [26:16]
B
Yeah. So I would say when you go on the website, try to look at the about page and see if there's any kind of founder story so you can kind of understand who's building the brand. Most dropship companies don't have a founder story. They're more like, you know, they just have an about that's very generic.
- [26:35]
A
That makes sense. That's such a good tip.
- [26:37]
B
Yeah. I would also look at the filtration materials that they're using and if it's like a 12 step filter with just a bunch of beads, those really just don't work very well, so understanding filtration material, things like calcium sulfite can actually be a skin irritant. It's actually a chemical that reacts with the water and pulls the chlorine out. This is very, very cheap to use. It is really good at removing chlorine. But it can also deposit other chemicals in the water and actually make the water a little bit harder. So it can actually irritate skin. So just understanding filtration materials. Looking for, looking at reviews, looking at before and after checking out their social media, making sure the social media matches what you're seeing on, on their website. And usually in the comments you can learn a lot. I always say conversion happens in the comments. So I think yeah, those are probably my biggest tips.
- [27:39]
A
No, those are great. Those are really, really great. And I agree with you about the comment section. I am personally less trusting reviews these days because unfortunately they're like farms of reviews. And actually it's a huge turn off for me when I go to someone's website and I'm about to buy a product and then I see let's say they have like 15 SKUs and every single SKU somehow has 289 reviews. Yeah, like that doesn't make sense. This is not how it works. So now website just you know like I'm okay with having 13 reviews or 15 reviews. It's not going to be this high number. But they are all authentic reviews. And you can also look at the apps and a lot of the apps that the brands choose to use like Yapo or some others, they, they actually have like verified buyer and that's only happens if it's a person that purchased and then left review and that's how you get this verified buyer. But if it's just the website, anybody can write this review. So if it doesn't. Yeah. And if it's not like a third party app then there is like again speaking of transparency, you know there's very little transparency when you go and read reviews unfortunately because we do have some great reviews and they're like, they're authentic. But of course we could have a thousand and thirteen good reviews if we just decided to write them all ourselves. Which you know with ChatGPT you can do in a day and True. Yeah. But the comment section, I agree like all the time and I'm like just so also like thankful to everyone that is listening now. There have been so many amazing comments on our podcast platforms here on the Apple podcast, on Spotify, on YouTube. Those really make our day. So thank you so much to everyone who is taking a moment and leaving them, this is a shout out to you. Thank you. We see them all. We appreciate them. Thank you. Really, really, thank you. So speaking of the founder story of Filter Baby and the passion, can you just give our listeners maybe just a short glimpse into it so they don't have to go into about. Yeah, Paige, how, How, like, how did it come about?
- [29:49]
B
So I'll kind of give you my perspective and the founder's perspective, because I'm the Chief Brand Officer and I've been building this company with the founder since about six months after she developed the product. So kind of what really sparked my passion for this is that when I moved from Canada to la, I had so many struggles with my skin and my hair. I used to dye my hair a lot lighter and I would notice my hair would be really dry. It would be going really brassy. I would be at the hair salon all the time just trying to fix it and do treatments. I would be buying all kinds of, like, products that help remove hard water and my skin. My skin was struggling so bad it was dry, but it was having cystic acne at the same time. And I was spending, I'm not even joking, thousands of dollars on skincare products.
- [30:38]
A
Oh, I believe it. Yeah. When you have this just like your face, like it's your business card, you know, it's the first thing you're gonna spend money on. Like if you. If something that makes you feel very self conscious.
- [30:50]
B
Yes. And, you know, I knew that the water was an issue, but at the time, this was, you know, 10, seven years ago, I can't remember when I moved here. This was. I. No one was talking about water filtration for skin, but I knew it was the water. So it was something that I was continuously struggling with. And I think at the time I bought like a Amazon shower filter, but really it wasn't doing much. And when I met the founder of Filter Baby, she had this prototype, she sent it to me. She had worked for two years on creating the filter inside. And what I love about her also is that she's a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner by trade. She really thinks holistically about the 360 approach to skincare. And she had seen over 10,000 patients with many, many skin issues. And so she sent me the product. I hook it up to my sink. This is now the prototype. It looks totally different. We have completely redesigned it to what you guys see today. But the prototype did $500,000 in sales within six months of launching. So I knew There was a product market fit. I personally knew that I needed this product. The first time I washed my face with the Filter Baby Filter, my skin didn't burn. And I called her right away. I was like, oh, my gosh. Like, every time I wash my face, my face burns. And I thought that was just the way that because my skin has acne, it has issues. I just thought that it was getting irritated, but my skin is not burning when I'm washing my face with this. And, like, sign me up. Let's do this. Let's create the branding. Let's redesign the product. Like, let's get this product out there, because people need this.
- [32:27]
A
Yeah.
- [32:27]
B
And something else that really, like, invigorated me was that right away we started getting a ton of clients that are buying our product, emailing us, saying, thank you so much for making this product, sending us our before and after photos. So we have hundreds and hundreds of before and after photos of people's skin, dealing with dermatitis, dealing with acne, and even my personal before and afters, which we should show in the podcast behind me. They're insane.
- [32:57]
A
And.
- [32:57]
B
And I think also working with my business partner, who's a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, she's really helped me in many ways because skin is a 360 approach. It's all about.
- [33:08]
A
Absolutely.
- [33:09]
B
Diets, the skincare products you're using, and using filtered water. So that's kind of the story of how Filtered Baby came to be.
- [33:19]
A
I love that. And I couldn't agree more, that the skin is 360 approach. And that literally the reason we have this podcast, because we don't talk in this podcast, like, selectively, only about our ingredients or that we brought to market or products. It's because that's only part of the picture. Like, your topicals play a big role, but not everything. Like, you also have to look into, like you said, sleep. And we have, like, so much education on improving your sleep hormones, especially as we women get older. Like, it's such a big shift and it shows in the skin and there are proactive ways you can deal with it, and the list goes on. So that's also why you have been invited, because it's such a. I agree. Like, filtered water, filtered air, nutrition, it's all part of the same, you know, approach to skin health. You can't have just one thing. There's, you know, nothing is like a panacea that's going to really cure it all and, you know, be one solution for everything. Yeah. And also, I'm so grateful to Chinese medicine doctors because personally when I got pregnant I hired a doula who is Chinese medicine doctor and just the way she like was helping me throughout my pregnancy, like I had thanks to her a really healthy pregnancy. But there were so, so many things she was doing like physically, like different kind of body work energetically. And also she like kept giving me different herbs and sometimes they didn't taste great and I was like, I don't know if I can do it consistently. But she was like just do it for a few weeks, you'll see the difference. And it really like was, it's so impressive really the impact Chinese medicine can do for someone's well being. And I mean it's like really ancient. So there is so much ancient wisdom there. And I think we as a society we like, you know, we're starting to kind of like rediscover some of this, you know, some of this ancient wisdom, be it now nutrition, be it in the way we like care for ourselves. So I love that there is this aspect to Filter baby, that it's not just all about modern and lab driven. You know, there is also that, that holistic like thinking behind it. I really love that.
- [35:26]
B
Yeah. And you know what, we're, we're all women behind this company. We're all very focused on nourishing our bodies and we put that nourishment into building this brand. And, and I think like also with the idea of Chinese medicine behind it, something that I think is this is kind of a little off topic but something I learned through working with her is about the female cycle and making sure that you're keeping your body warm and you're eating warm foods and I think really dialing into your cycle as a woman actually also really helps with your skin.
- [36:03]
A
Absolutely. Honestly the like I think three years ago we made the first post about like the monthly cycle and if it affect on the skin because as your hormone hormones shift, you know, like during your ovulation you're going to have your just golden error for your skin because your estrogen is up and everything is better. But then you know on luteal phase you started to become more sensitive physically because the sensitivities, you know increase because of the criminal shifts and also like prostaglandins are up and you're more photosensitive as well. And it's like it blew people's mind because like no one is talking about it. But I mean we're starting to have more and more education about like cycle sinking and working with your cycle for like nutrition, you know, like what type of food to eat and what type of week. Not everybody is doing it, but like there is more talk about it also like that it's best to lift weights during your alerting phase. You know, like, that's also more and more becomes common knowledge. But like you said, there is so much more to it and it affects our, you know, bodies in so many ways. And I love that you learned that from her. And it's just like it's, it's changed my life once I really learned about the cycle. And like I said before, again, this is off topic, but you know, it's a good time. We're all women and you know, like, I had very painful periods before. And yeah, when I started like syncing with my cycle and just really working with my biology, like, I realized that I didn't have to suffer. Like, there are different things that I. Like there are things that I could have been doing differently and I started doing differently and there is like direct impact. And that's like really what biohacking is to me. You know, like Dave Asprey kind of coined the term, which is like changing your biology in your environment, like changing your environment so it reflects on your biology. And this is like, it's, it's pretty empowering to know that there are so many things in our control. You know, there are certain things that are out of our control. There are some genetic mutations that just happen in our body and that's really out of our control. We can, you know, strive to do the best and create the best environment, but things happen. But there's so much in our control. Like, and filtrating your water, looking into your water quality is definitely one of them. Especially as you were saying that somebody might be already doing it and getting this 12 step filtration, I don't know, from Amazon and thinking that their water has been handled like that water is not the issue. And I guess this brings my next question. If somebody listened to this now and they're like, I really don't know. I don't know if my water is good. Like, what kind of testing do you recommend for them to take for their water to just see, maybe not just chlorine, but what, what other things there might be or not be. Do you, do you have any that you recommend?
- [38:48]
B
You know, honestly the sad thing is is that you actually don't even need to test your water. Because knowing what I know about the three pillars of issues with tap water, disinfectants, infrastructure and unregulated Chemicals, you can guarantee that your water has some sort of disruptant in it and actually go on the EWG website. And this is the Environmental Working Group, it's a nonprofit. And there's a tap water score. You can put your zip code in and you can find out all the different types of chemicals that are in your water that are above the legal limit. So I would start there. I would start going on the tap water database on the EWG website and checking out your zip code. But to be honest, a water filter is a no brainer, no matter where you are, because everybody is. Water quality is actually a global issue. Everybody's dealing with this issue. Yes, you can go and spend, you know, money on these tests, but it's expensive, it takes time, and to be honest, there's a guarantee that you should be filtering your water.
- [39:56]
A
Yeah, no, no, that makes sense. That makes sense. I know that for us, we did do extensive testing of the water because we wanted to figure out what's exactly causing this smell and scent and I mean, in the color and everything.
- [40:10]
B
What'd you find?
- [40:11]
A
And, and there was like one $30 test that, because we interviewed like four different filtration system for the whole house.
- [40:19]
B
Okay.
- [40:19]
A
And there was like a thirty dollar test that basically just told us like the common things like, oh, the bacteria and the chlorine and whatever. And there was like a $900 test, which I don't think everybody needs to take, but we went at that length. And, and like, sometimes it's better not to know because we had so many things that are like a health risk in our water. And it's like we're showering this water. Right. We're like brushing our teeth in this water.
- [40:46]
B
And like, honestly, baby in the water, I mean, it's very concerning.
- [40:50]
A
Yeah. And honestly, since like moving to this home and like figuring out within a month that something's off with the water because it didn't kind of start right away. And we did have a lot of maintenance and, and like filtration, but I was literally like showering and washing my face at some point with like the bottled water because I was like, I just cannot, you know, I cannot risk this.
- [41:11]
B
So stressful.
- [41:13]
A
Yeah. So definitely having that peace of mind, you know, especially as you said, for the baby as well. It was a huge concern. Yeah. At some point we like, moved to Airbnb when the installation was happening because I was like, I just like, I. I don't want to, like, you know, think about it.
- [41:28]
B
I mean, like, your health, I mean, there's there's carcinogens in the water, there's cancer causing ingredients in the water. There's. California just passed a law protecting the water companies that until they catch up from removing these cancer causing ingredients like chromium 6. And I think that's crazy. I mean, just knowing that they're passing laws protecting themselves from getting sued because people are causing, getting cancer. I mean, that's just goes to show you what's in your water. So you really have to be mindful and you have to take it into your own hands. And I think I always say knowledge is power. Like when you know, you know too much. But knowledge is power and you can take steps to protect yourself. And there are filters and systems that you can put in that really do protect yourself.
- [42:15]
A
Yeah, no, I totally agree. Before we go into like a rapid fire round of questions, I just wanted to safely have like any data to share about, like, if switching to filtered water can actually slow visible skin aging over time. Because I know you guys made like a faucet specifically for washing your face, which is my favorite. And even though we have now reverse osmosis in the whole house, I'm still using your filter. So I'm like, I'm not going to risk it. Whatever there might be, whatever else might be stuck in those pipes from like years prior, I want this filter to filter everything. I want like a crystal clear water that goes on my face and my teeth anyway. So anything like that you can share specifically for signs of aging?
- [43:01]
B
Yes. Okay. So we conducted in vitro lab studies. One of the major things that we found was that when we tested tap water versus our filtered water, with filtered water, the skin had a 20% increase in keratinocyte cells. And these are the regenerative cells of the skin. So if you think about washing your face every single day with unfiltered water, water that's full of chlorine contaminants, breaking down the skin barrier over time, that is going to cause oxidative stress and it's going to definitely speed up aging. If you're taking care, if you're washing with filtered water, if you're consistently changing your filters every three months, like we recommend, your skin is going to increase cell production by 20%. It's going to have a 69% increase in wound healing and a 13.13% increase in moisture. So all of those things are really going to help the longevity of the skin. So even if you're not facing skin issues like acne, eczema, rosacea, but you Want to preserve the collagen and the elastin and the longevity of your skin using filtered water is just a no brainer.
- [44:15]
A
Yeah, no, I totally agree and I can definitely attest to that. Like, we talk about, like, skin barrier is a foundation of health. And obviously moisture is such a. Like, the dehydration of the skin just makes you look older. And you can be in your 20s and. And look a lot older just because of how dehydrated your skin is. So if you can mitigate that, that's already gonna make look everything much better. It's definitely a big component of, like, looking younger. Okay, well, thank you for, like, sharing how the filter water helps to support the collagen. And the last thing you know, like, it's all what we want, right? Like, you know.
- [44:57]
C
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- [46:24]
A
I think we can go into the rapid fire questions. So what's happening on cellular level when you wash your face with unfiltered tap water?
- [46:33]
B
Okay. Your skin has a lipid barrier that acts as a shield, keeping moisture in and irritants out. Chemicals like chlorine react with natural oils and proteins that can cause oxidative stress. Our in vitro study data shows that clean contaminant free water supports better cell proliferation and wound healing.
- [46:54]
A
Yeah, yeah. This really makes sense. And that's. This is like, such a motivation for me, you know, to just make sure that, I don't know, I travel with your faucet filter.
- [47:04]
B
Yeah.
- [47:05]
A
Okay. Can water quality impact NAD levels or oxidative stress in the skin. I know we talked a little bit about oxidative stress, but maybe you can touch on nad.
- [47:15]
B
Yes. So absolutely. Your skin uses NAD in every cell process. And when the oxidative stress is high from washing with unfiltered water, you're using more nad. So basically, chronic exposure to contaminates can accelerate NAD depletion. And we want to absolutely preserve our NAD plus. So we want to wash with filtered water.
- [47:41]
A
Absolutely. No, I agree. Okay. Why is filtering your water arguably more important than buying another serum?
- [47:49]
B
Oh, my gosh. This is hugely important because if you are using multiple skincare products, layering them on, but you're using unfiltered tap water to wash your face, the base of your skin is not going to be as optimal as it could be. Using filtered water will only make your products work better. And I guarantee you, I promise you, you will actually be spending less money on skincare products because you won't be fighting this fight that your skin barrier is breaking down every day.
- [48:22]
A
Yeah, absolutely. And I would also argue that you're helping your water filtration helps to improve the canvas and then the skin care product will work better. Like sometimes maybe you invest in it in this great skin care and you don't see the results because that's not, you know, the issue lays of what we talked about, like disrupted skin barrier, skin microbiome buildup of, you know, all these minerals on your skin, which might sound okay, but it's not okay because of the way it reacts with your skin and kind of like clogs your pores. Okay. If someone's stuck in NAD topicals, peptides and advanced actives, but still, still using tap water, are they wasting their time?
- [49:04]
B
I don't want to say you're wasting your time because skin is such a 360 approach. And if you don't have access to filtered water in the moment. Absolutely. Continue using your amazing skincare products. They are going to be helping your skin. But using filtered water is only going to amplify the results of those products because you're going to be starting with a cleaner canvas that can absorb the product better.
- [49:26]
A
Yeah, yeah. What filtration criteria actually matter for skin health? Such as, like, NSF certifications, micron size, flow rate.
- [49:37]
B
Yes. Okay. I would say efficacy is one of the most important things. I would really look into lab data that the companies are sharing. NSF is important, but it's not the end all, be all. Most filters on the market have NSF certification. And what that really means, like, most people don't even know what NSF means. NSF certification is basically all to do with chlorine removal, and the standard is actually 75% removal. So you want to look for companies that are going above and beyond the standards and you also want to look at their lab data.
- [50:18]
A
Yeah, no, I agree. Absolutely. Okay, what's the ideal longevity stack? Filtered water plus any topicals, plus which other actives that or practices that you recommend for skin health.
- [50:30]
B
Okay, so my stack right now is filtered water. I'm using your amazing NAD plus products. I am loving them. And I do a lot of red light therapy, which I think is absolutely phenomenal for stimulating the mitochondria of the skin, healing the skin. When it comes to actives. Currently I am being very simple with my skin care. And honestly, my skin has never looked better. I feel like the NAD products are just so good at rejuvenating my skin. I do mix in niacinamide here and there. I think that's really good for people that struggle with acne. But then I think the most important thing are facials and treatments. So I think keeping it simple at home and then doing really innovative treatments. I've also incorporated NAD injections into my lifestyle. So, yeah, I think topically, keeping it simple, using filtered water, using amazing skincare products, but not too many, and keeping with facials.
- [51:33]
A
I love it. I love that you have like, you know, you, you put it as part of your routine. You have like routinely facials. You have like this maintenance facials that you have. I love red light therapy. You know, obviously, I think again, it's all about like healthy habits. It doesn't take that much time, doesn't take an effort. You can stack like you can have. Now what's really emerging, like becoming more and more popular is like red light therapy naps. So you can go for like this 10, 15 minute nap. You can have the red light therapy on it. You can put like maybe some headphones with some binaural beats. Like you can stack this nap. So it's not just you sitting in front of like red light and, you know, I don't know, doing work. Like, you can actually make this 10, 15 minutes really count in multiple levels.
- [52:19]
B
Yeah. And actually, oh, I have one other couple other things to say. Well, first of all, LED meditation sessions are amazing, but also I think focusing on sleep and diet have been huge, huge game changers because I really, really believe in the 360 approach to skin. And I think sleep is like the most important the most underrated thing that you can do for your health. And I feel like we really learned that at the Don't Die summit. I think if there was one takeaway, it was that you gotta have a really good sleep routine. So that's been really good for my longevity stock.
- [52:57]
A
No, absolutely. Well, thank you so much for making the time for giving us the time for sharing all that knowledge. I hope people have like actionable takeaways and they, you know, they can go and implement lots of advice and checking on their water and hopefully, you know, some of you guys already have it in check and, you know, you can have a peace of mind and kind of like feel good about the, you know, the input your, the impact that's making on your skincare routine. So, yeah. Thank you so much. Thank you for coming. Thank you.
- [53:29]
B
Thank you so much for having me. This is great conversation foreign.
- [53:37]
A
That was such an eye opening conversation with Leon. What really stood out to me is how foundational water is for skin longevity. It's not just about hydration, it's about what's not in your water. Chemicals like chlorine can strip your barrier, disrupt your microbiome and drain the very nad your cells need for repair. But the good news, with the right filtration, you are not just protecting your skin, you are giving a true upgrade to your whole longevity approach. And now I want to hear from you. Have you noticed a difference in your skin when you travel or when you switch to filtered water? Drop us a review on Apple podcasts with your experience or send us your biggest water plus skin question and we'll tackle it in a future episode. Thanks for tuning in to Biohacking Beauty Anastasia. And remember, your skin isn't just a service to treat, it's a system you can biohack.