Issue link: https://www.ascpskindeepdigital.com/i/393439
ascp and you: news notes Earlier this year, California introduced legislative bill AB1153, intended to redefi ne estheticians' scope of practice and to create a Master Esthetician licensing level. Utah, Virginia, Washington, and the District of Columbia all currently offer a Master Esthetician license in addition to their regular licensing. The legislation was proposed by the California Coalition for Advanced Skincare. Associated Skin Care Professionals (ASCP) was an active participant in earlier stages of the proposal. As AB1153 progressed through the legislature, however, it was revised in ways that ASCP felt no longer supported the original goal— most notably, it no longer gives master estheticians an expanded scope of practice, and no longer provides a pathway for currently licensed estheticians to obtain the higher certifi cation other than to complete an additional 600 hours of training. ASCP President Katie Armitage says, "While ASCP is not actively opposed to the revised bill, which includes some useful baby steps, we cannot enthusiastically support it and will no longer be involved. We feel strongly that currently licensed estheticians should have an opportunity to acquire the Master Esthetician credential without additional formal training hours, as long as they can prove they have the required knowledge by passing an advanced examination." Sunscreen Innovation Act Moves On Long-awaited legislation to streamline the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) process for approving new sunscreen ingredients has passed the US House of Representatives. The Sunscreen Innovation Act will require the FDA to approve or reject new ingredients within eight months after an application is received. It also allows faster approval of ingredients that have been on the market in other countries for fi ve years or more. See "The Sunscreen Waiting Game" (ASCP Skin Deep, July/August 2014, page 26) for more about the approval process for new sunscreens, and some of the new ingredients that may become available soon if the act becomes law. The relationship between stress and outbreaks of acne, psoriasis, rosacea, and other skin conditions is often linked anecdotally, but does research prove it? Richard Granstein, MD, FAAD, who is chairman of the Department of Dermatology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, thinks so. Granstein spoke on the topic of stress and its impact on infl ammatory skin conditions at the American Academy of Dermatology's summer meeting in August. "Nearly everyone has some form of stress in their life, so it's diffi cult to determine," Granstein said. "However, it's been known for a long time that the nervous system, which processes our stress, has an impact." Animal studies have demonstrated that stress can make infl ammatory skin conditions worse. In a Japanese study on mice genetically prone to a rash similar to atopic dermatitis, the mice developed the rash when stressed, while mice that were not stressed did not develop the rash. 1 In mice exposed to ultraviolet radiation, stressed mice developed skin cancers more quickly than unstressed mice. Granstein said experimental data support the idea that this is also the case in humans. When we are under stress, our nerve endings release an increased amount of neuropeptides and neurotransmitters, and these have an effect on many types of cells in the skin, including immune cells and endothelial cells. He recommended those suffering from infl ammatory skin conditions should try to reduce stress alongside their other treatment plan. The legislation was proposed by the California Coalition for Advanced revised in ways that ASCP felt no longer supported the original goal— most notably, it no longer gives master estheticians an expanded scope estheticians to obtain the higher certifi cation other than to complete an Stress and Infl ammatory Skin Conditions Create your free business website! www.ascpskincare.com 45 California's Master Esthetician Bill NOTE 1. H. Amano, et al., "Psychological Stress Can Trigger Atopic Dermatitis in NC/Nga Mice: An Inhibitory Effect of Corticotropin-Releasing Factor," Neuropsychopharmacology 33 (2008): 566–73.