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How Hallmark Took Over Cable Television – The New Yorker

Posted: December 17, 2019 at 9:45 am

A few months ago, in a house near Vancouver, nine actors in festive aprons gathered around a kitchen island to shoot a montage for the Hallmark Channel movie Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy. The island was covered in cookie-making ingredients. The director, Sean McNamara, a veteran of Hallmark movies and Disney kids series, sat at monitors nearby. O.K.! he called out. Youre having fun, youre making cookies, its Christmas, and action!

The actors rolled dough and picked up cookie cutters. The montage would be dialogue-free, overlaid with music; to set the tone, McNamara cued up Jingle Bell Rock. The cast began to bob. Good, but we probably shouldnt be dancing! McNamara yelled. One actor, looking serious, lifted an icing bag. Remember, youre having fun, and theres funny stuff going on! McNamara said. The actors burst into smiles and laughter. Now the cake! McNamara said. Paul Greene, a former J.Crew model and the male lead, presented the group with a white fondant cake topped with pine trees. They shook powdered sugar on it. Cut! McNamara yelled. Brilliant!

The Hallmark Channel is a cable network owned and operated by the greeting-card company. This year, the channel and a sister network, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries, produced a hundred and three original movies; forty are about Christmas. Since 2011, from late October to January, Hallmark has broadcast Christmas movies nearly twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. (The Hallmark Movie Checklist app, which helps guide viewers to new films, has 1.5 million users.) During this years holiday season, the programming, called Countdown to Christmas, has made Hallmark the No. 1 cable network among women between the ages of twenty-five and fifty-four, and, in some prime-time slots, No. 1 in households and total viewers. Last year, seventy-two million people watched Countdown to Christmas. Fans talk of turning it on and leaving it on all season; it dominates TV screens in hospitals and nursing homes. Guys come up to me on the golf course and whisper, I love your Christmas movies! the actor Cameron Mathison (The Christmas Club, The Christmas Ornament) told me. Lifetime, the womens network long known for movies with titles like In Bed with a Killer and Your Husband Is Mine, now airs its own Hallmark-esque Christmas movies, in a block called Its a Wonderful Lifetime. Netflix, Ion, Freeform, and OWN have started making them, too.

Hallmark films tend to center on independent women with interesting jobs (novelists, chocolatiers) and appealing romantic prospects (princes, firemen). Programming is seasonal; as the year progresses, characters pair up amid winter wonderlands, Valentines Day chocolate-making contests, fireworks celebrations, pumpkin patches, and Christmas parties. The familiarity of the films is essential to their success. Hallmark screenplays have nine acts, each of which hits specific plot pointsa meet-cute in Act I, before the first commercial, an almost kiss in Act VII. The shots are lit with a distinctive warmth. Actors recur. The settings often recall Saturday Evening Post covers by Norman Rockwell, whose painting Shuffletons Barbershop inspired a Hallmark movie of the same name, and several productions have been filmed at ersatz pioneer villages. As Danica McKellar, a Hallmark regular once best known as Winnie Cooper, from The Wonder Years, told me, many actors bring nostalgia withus.

In Hallmark films, townspeople care for one another, run viable small businesses, and compete in gingerbread bake-offsAmerica as we might wish it were, and as some believe it once was. It has thrived in the Trump era. Last year, it was one of the only networks to gain viewers besides Fox News and MSNBC. It also depicts a purple America, without guns, MAGA hats, rage. Bill Abbott, the C.E.O. of Crown Media, Hallmarks entertainment company, told me that its your place to go to get away from politics, to get away from everything in your life that is problematic and negative, and to feel like there are people out there who are good human beings that could make you feel happy to be part of the human race.

Hallmarks America is also straight, often Christian, and, until recently, mostly white. Meghan Markle, whose biracial parentage made headlines after her engagement to Prince Harry, starred in two Hallmark movies; in the Fourth of July romance When Sparks Fly, from 2014, her character had white parents. In 2017, the African-American TV and film actor Holly Robinson Peete pitched a wholesome reality show about her family to Hallmark. Meet the Peetes aired for two seasons. There were six of usseven, including my momso that was a lot of diversity at once, she told me.

The Evergreen series, which began in 2017, now sees Peete playing the mayor of Evergreen, Vermont, a quaint town based on a line of Hallmark cards. The movies begin with a shot of the illustrations that inspired them, some featuring a vintage red pickup truck, which appears in the movies. A miniature of it is available as a Hallmark Christmas decoration, for $39.99. Many Hallmark films involve some form of lucrative integrationproduct placement. Balsam Hill synthetic Christmas trees appear frequently; in Holiday Hearts, from November, an eligible doctor (Paul Campbell) demonstrates the settings of a trees remote-controlled lights for a full minute. On the set of Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy, McNamara and his crew shot a scene that featured a foldaway Ninja Foodi oven. Its important to show nine cookies on the sheet, Sunta Izzicupo, the films executive producer, said. On the monitor, an actor approached the oven, said, No room? No problem, opened its door, and inserted a tray of nine cookies shaped like pickup trucks.

One theme of Tidings of Joy, written by Zac Hug, is whether Evergreen is too good to be true. (In some ways, its the quintessential Hallmark Christmas movie; in others, its a playfully self-aware critique of the genre.) In the film, Katie (Maggie Lawson), a savvy big-city journalist, makes a wish on a magical snow globe, bakes cookies, goes carolling and ice-skating, and watches the unveiling of a time capsule inside a fifteen-foot advent calendar. She also falls in love with Ben (Greene), the local librarian. The day after the cookie shoot, at a historic-house museum in Vancouver, McNamara sat at video monitors in a circa-1895 kitchen, near a hand-cranked wooden telephone. He was about to direct the films highest point of tensionthe almost breakup, usually at the end of Act VIIIwhich takes place at the Evergreen Library, where Ben has discovered Katies notes for what appears to be an expos of the town. Lawson and Greene were surrounded by wreaths, garlands, and Christmas knickknacks. Paper lanterns softened the lighting. Greene, reading Katies notes, said, Despite the warmth and honest connection these people feel, its hard not to wonder how much of Evergreen is an act. His tone hinted at anger.

Cut! McNamara said. Paul, you need to take down, like, twenty per cent of the edge. A key tenet of Hallmark screenplays, the veteran writer-director Ron Oliver told me, is that conflict can never seem like its gone so far that it cant be resolved. In the next take, Greene delivered the line in a tone of gentle disbelief. Brilliant! McNamara said.

In 1910, Joyce Clyde Hall, an entrepreneurial Nebraska teen-ager and the son of a Methodist minister, took a train to Kansas City, Missouri, bringing with him two boxes of postcards. Printed postcards had become a hot commodity, and Hall had a talent for sales. In 1914, he and his older brother Rollie formed a company called Hall Brothers, opened a shop, and began printing their own greeting cards and paper goods. The First World War was a turning point for the industry: servicemen and their loved ones enjoyed sending and receiving cards and became lifelong card buyers. And I saw something else in the custom, Hall wrote in his 1979 memoir, When You Care Enough: A way of giving less articulate people, and those who tend to disguise their feelings, a voice to express their love and affection. In 1916, Hall Brothers began printing cards that came with their own envelopes; in 1917, they invented modern wrapping paper.

The brothers began using the name Hallmark, after a goldsmiths stamp of quality, in 1928, and later paired it with a crown logo. By mid-century, Hallmark had pioneered a new card-display technique, similar to what we still see in drugstores; formed partnerships with Disney and Norman Rockwell; and built a huge headquarters, in Kansas City. In the process, the company became so intertwined with the idea of holiday celebration that the term Hallmark holiday entered the public vocabulary, connoting a holiday rooted as much in commercialism as in tradition.

In 1951, Joyce Hall wrote to his sales team, Dear Fellows: Were going to try our hand at television. Inspired by the mediums educational and entertainment possibilities, he wanted Hallmark to deliver edifying fare. That year, the company sponsored the first original opera written for television, Amahl and the Night Visitors; later, under the name Hallmark Hall of Fame, it sponsored TV productions of literary adaptations, Broadway plays, and, in time, original films. It became the most award-winning franchise in television history, with eighty-one Emmys.

Hallmark formed Crown Media in 1991, and ventured into cable. Later that decade, it bought an interest in the religious network Odyssey, which, in 2001, it took over fully, renaming it the Hallmark Channel. According to Bill Abbott, who ran Crowns advertising sales from 2000 to 2009, before becoming its C.E.O., the strategy at the outset wasnt to draw close to the brand. It didnt really have a filter. For a decade, the channel aired motley family entertainment, Hallmark Hall of Fame films, and original movies, made by an independent producer.

There were a few standouts. One was the eleven-film Love Comes Softly series, released from 2003 to 2011. Based on novels by the Canadian evangelical-Christian writer Janette Oke, the movies are lightly religious frontier dramas set out West. I watched several around 2009; inside the films covered wagons and behind their butter churns, I discovered, yellow-haired TV stars like Katherine Heigl and January Jones were living lives of noble forbearance. There were occasional speeches about the Lord, but there was also hardship and heart, la Little House on the Prairieif Pa hurt his leg, a handsome stranger would help plow the fields. Other films were set in a down-home romanticized present, among characters who proudly respect sentimental art. Some of them praise Norman Rockwell and Thomas Kinkade; in one film, a painter feels betrayed, but then grateful, when her art is used in an ad campaign. Art is about creativity and being a free spirit, she says in Act IX, just before the kiss. Its not restrictive or rigid, so why should I be? Her painting is of Santa Claus.

These series and films, along with The Christmas Card, a surprisingly effective love story between a soldier and a mill owners daughter, from 2006, helped inspire Abbott, when he became C.E.O., in 2009, to push Hallmark to embody the brand on TV. I love greeting cards and I love Hallmark stores, Abbott told me when I met him at Hallmarks Manhattan offices. To him, the stores give a sense of comfort, positivity, connections. You should turn on our channel and almost feel like youre walking into a Gold Crown store, he said. Abbott is fifty-seven, with thinning gray hair, a warm, confident demeanor, and an adenoidal vocal quality, like a man powering through a cold. He told me that he had been influenced, too, by the distinctive two-minute Hallmark-card commercials that had aired during the Hall of Fame broadcasts, starting in the sixties, which became famous for making viewers cry. In The Music Professor, from 1983, a girl races to arrive at a piano lesson before her teacher and hides a card between the pages of her sheet music. When he finds it, both struggle to contain their emotions.

Abbott and his executive team, including Michelle Vicary, Crown Medias executive vice-president of programming and network publicity, developed a strategy of leaning into Christmas. Vicary, who works at Crown Medias Los Angeles headquarters, began her career in music sales, working with bands including Nirvana, Hole, and Mudhoney, but shifted gears because of her passion for television, she told me. (She has been with Crown Media since its beginning.) In 2015, Crown started its own production company, taking control of development, costumes, locations, casting, and post-production. Abbott and Vicary read every script and watch every movie. The Christmas movies are generally shot in fifteen days, in minimal takes and with maximum efficiency, in affordable, often Canadian, locations; they use actualsexisting locations, not soundstages. Abbott and Vicary coached the development team to be brand ambassadors, who insure that each element of a production has a distinctive Hallmark feel, down to the decorative mise en scne. Vicary told me, Were not afraid to look at the dailies and call them up and say, Not enough Christmas.

In 2014, Hallmark aired Christmas Under Wraps, starring Candace Cameron Bure, who in childhood co-starred on Full House, alongside another Hallmark actor, Lori Loughlin. Bure plays a big-city doctor who finds love in Garland, Alaska, which, she correctly suspects, is home to Santas workshop. I guess when it comes down to it, a patient is a patient, she says, wide-eyed, icing Rudy the Reindeers leg. At the beginning, she is striving for a prestigious Boston surgical fellowship; by the end, she has everything she needs right there in Garland. The movie was a breakthrough, Abbott said. Soon afterward, the company ramped up production.

The Bure breakthrough was a bit like the plot of Christmas Under Wraps: Hallmark had discovered that it had everything it neededpositivity, reassurance, sentimentality, and cozy salesmanshipright there in Garland. At that point, the Hallmark Channel had a steady audience of older viewers, but it began bringing in younger ones by casting prominent actors who had starred in edgy teen fare of the two-thousandsJesse Metcalfe, Chad Michael Murrayand putting them in sweaters and Santa hats. There was something for middle-aged viewers, tooa divorced heroine wooed by a sensitive major-league baseball player, for example, who teaches her son to catch. The movies seasonal themes began to venture beyond Christmas, and holiday decoratingeven for Halloween or Valentines Dayprovided a way for characters to bond. (Since the seventies, Hallmark Cards has sold Christmas ornaments and holiday decorations.)

As the strategy started to succeed, Hallmark further expanded its fare, introducing a morning show (Home & Family, shot in a free-standing house on the Universal lot) and, in 2014, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries, the sister channel, whose titles include Murder, She Baked: A Peach Cobbler Mystery, and whose programming broadened, slightly, the companys tonal register. (In one film, Bure finds a human skull.) Often, at a mysterys climax, theres a moment of cathartic, justified violencefor example, a woman clonking a would-be murderer over the head with a piece of pottery. In regular Hallmark Channel films, violence is so seldom seen that even allusions to it can be shockingsuch as in From Friend to Fianc, from 2018, when a party scene at a paintball range features a shot of people wielding semiautomatic paintball guns. When I mentioned the off note to Abbott, he said, Thats a movie we did not write the script for. It had been produced independently, and guns werent its only problem. It got past all of us that the word suck is used in the movie, Abbott said. He grew animated. I was so mad at myself for not catching it. Its a word that has become frighteningly close to no longer being part of the four-letter-word category. Its aits just a negative, its demeaning. It shouldnt be on our channel. They edited it out.

Several well-known politically conservative actors in Hollywood have been in Hallmark filmsBure, Dean Cain, Jon Voightbut, Abbott said, Hallmark takes pains to be apolitical. The only thing we do promote is pet adoption, he said. We make no apologies about that. The Home & Family set has a dedicated pet-adoption area, and pet adoption is a plot point in many movies, including last years Road to Christmas, written by Zac Hug. It featured, as minor characters, two attractive young men who co-owned an animal shelter. Seeing this, I was briefly delighted: was this a gay couple, on Hallmark? The moment passedthey didnt act like a couple or attend a family Christmas gathering together. I mentioned to Abbott that I had thought I had seen a gay couple in a movie; I didnt say which. You did, he said. It was Road to Christmas. Hallmark wanted to reflect the broader population where it could, he went on. And we believe that if we do it authentically, without doing it just to do itwhich is the wrong reason to do it, by the waypeople will feel good about it, regardless of where they stand on the political spectrum. I couldnt tell that they were gay, I said. But thats whats great about it, Abbott said. Theyre not being called out and made to either look cool or weird.

Hallmarks sense of authenticity is rooted more firmly, perhaps, in the pioneer village. In 2014, it adapted Janette Okes 1983 novel When Calls the Heart into a series. Centered, at first, on a genteel schoolteacher, Elizabeth (Erin Krakow), a handsome Mountie (Daniel Lissing), and a local widow (Lori Loughlin) in a western-Canadian mining town circa 1910, it has a whiff of the piety of the Love Comes Softly series. When characters behave badly (covering up liability in a mine accident, putting on airs), they redeem themselves; pleasures are exceedingly gentle. The shows superfans, known as the Hearties, have an annual family reunion in Vancouver, and visit the set in tour buses. Some make social-media memes superimposing Bible passages over images from the show. When Calls the Heart has some three million viewers an episode, competing for No. 1, on Sunday nights, with The Walking Dead, about life in America after a zombie apocalypse. Until we get to Walking Dead numbers, Im not going to be happy, Abbott said.

At the beginning of the series, Abigail, Loughlins character, had lost her husband and son in a mining accident, but she perseveredopening a caf, adopting an orphan. By the time Abigail became the towns mayor, Loughlin was a cornerstone of Hallmarkas Abbott told me, a very good friend, somebody who I admire a great deal for her skill, and at the top of the list in terms of people who were accessible, were kind, were committed to her fans, and were humble.

On March 12th, Loughlin and her husband, along with Felicity Huffman and others, were indicted in a highly publicized college-admissions-fraud scheme, in which they allegedly paid five hundred thousand dollars to have their two daughters admitted under false pretenses. (Loughlin pleaded not guilty.) Two days later, Crown fired her; it pulled When Calls the Heart off the air, midseason, and edited her out of its remaining episodes.

When the show returned, Krakow, as Elizabeth, sat at a desk, writing in her diary. We never know how life will turn, she wrote. Its been a week since Abigail got word that her mother had taken ill back East. True to her nature, Abigail wasted no time in rushing off to care for her. The townspeople would pray for her and her family. In her absence, we must soldier on, and we will, Elizabeth continued. We are a community. We are strong. In one of Abigails final episodes, from February, she lovingly reassured Elizabeth, a new mother, about parenthood. If theres one thing I know, a good mother always figures out whats best for her child, she said.

In early November, Christmas Con brought together seventeen Hallmark-movie stars and several thousand regular Americans who wanted to meet them. The gathering, held at a modest convention center in Edison, New Jersey, had been organized by a small event company and sponsored by Hallmark, which had constructed a fully furnished living-room area, as if airlifted from the set of Home & Family, in the middle of the space. Guests in reindeer antlers and pro-Hallmark T-shirts drank mulled cider and posed inside a Christmas-ornament-shaped frame.

The mood was exuberant. When a group of Hallmark actors, including Chad Michael Murray, emerged from the greenroom to pose in front of a tree, thousands cheered, a sea of arms raising cameras aloft. Male stars from Hunks of Hallmark, an Instagram fan account, gamely posed as attendees asked them to: holding their hands, looking into their eyes. One couple, Jeff and Kathy Martin, from New Jersey, were beaming; the actor Nikki DeLoach had just praised Jeffs Green Bay Packers Christmas sweater. I asked Kathy why she loved Hallmark. The stress lifts right off! she told me, raising her arms in a gesture of unburdening. Later, Cheryl Longordo, a self-described Hallmark-watching junkie, told me that it took her mind off her job at a pharmaceutical company. She and her sister, who wore a chemotherapy turban, were there together. You need this, Longordo said, intensely. Its a lifeline.

Hallmark Channel fare has always struck a delicate balance between realism and something more idealized. A paradox of the channel is that the artificiality of its content, which offers predictable pleasuresthe almost kiss, interrupted by a ringing phone or a bleating goat; the ubiquitous baking contestsis often delivered alongside surprisingly realistic performances. Unlike modern rom-coms, Hallmark plotswhich almost always feature romance, even alongside the murder investigationsare driven not by arch concepts, high jinks, or panic about being single but by what Vicary described to me as a voyage of self-discovery. A long-standing trend of having Hallmark heroines tumbling off ladders into manly arms has been on the wane. As the writer Julie Sherman Wolfe told me, at Christmas Con, We dont want our strong female leads to be damsels in distress. Characters fall in love because they see goodness in the other person, Vicary saidoften because of a kind act that causes the other character to take a look at themselves. Like what human beings go through. When something touches you, you can effect change.

Some people dismiss Hallmark as presenting a fantasy, but, Ron Oliver said, its characters behave with greater maturity than many others onscreen. When youre writing something in Hallmark-land, you have to understand that people tend to act like adults do, he said. Protagonists are often motivated by their goals as much as by love. The actor Anna Van Hooft specializes in playing Hallmark villainsa bride-to-be who buys a wedding dress that was on hold for someone else, a murderer. Even the villains tend to have their eyes on their goalsbut not on the people around them, she said. For example, the marriage, but not the man.

In the heavier fare on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries and on Hallmark Drama, which began to air in 2017, violence and loss are explored within the same format that the Christmas movies use, with the same reliable happy-ever-afters. One film this year featured a subplot about medical debt. Another film, Two Turtle Doves, by Sarah Montana, is a warmhearted love story between a grieving neuroscientist (Nikki DeLoach) and a widowed estate lawyer (Michael Rady). Their romance involves turtle-dove Christmas ornamentsbut also straightforward discussions about loss. At Christmas Con, DeLoach told me, So many people have come up and told me it was a guide for learning to heal through grief. She was beaming.

Hallmarks project of uplift has begun to extend not just into real lives but into real towns, many of which could use it. (A recurring theme of Hallmark movies is saving beloved local businesses.) For a special called Project Christmas Joy, Hallmark donated homes to families in tornado-ravaged parts of Alabama; it also threw a Christmas event for the residents of David City, Nebraska, the small home town of JoyceC. Hall. Despite its historic charm, my own home town, in Connecticut, has at times struggled to thrive. Last autumn, while looking at Instagram, I saw a startling postof my childhood house and the seed company my family had owned, next door, blanketed in fake snow. Hallmark was filming a Christmas movie there. Six weeks later, I watched the heroine of Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane enter a snowman contest outside the house and fall in love with an antique dealer, whose store was in the seed-company building. Inside, the stairs squeaked just the way I remembered.

In July, the Hallmark Channel threw a party for five hundred people at Palazzo di Amore, a fifty-three-thousand-square-foot Mediterranean-style mansion atop a crest overlooking Los Angeles. It was the week known as the T.C.A.s, when networks present the Television Critics Association with upcoming-programming announcements and a glitzy good time. Upon arrival, Hallmarks marquee stars, including Lacey Chabert, Nikki DeLoach, Erin Krakow, and Andrew Walker, posed in front of a step-and-repeat wall near a fountain. Behind the house, guests mingled on a vast Italianate patio and inside a small side mansion. Cameron Mathison, in a pale-gray suit, waved at someone in jubilant semaphore across an infinity pool; two 90210 alums hugged; on a balcony, Mary-Margaret Humes and John Wesley Shipp, Dawsons parents on Dawsons Creek, took in the view. Shipp had just been cast in his first Hallmark role, and his first role as the father of a grown daughter, in The Ruby Herring Mysteries. Ive played a lot of dads, he said. I was a psycho dad in Teen Wolf. He looked around. I just saw Susan Lucci, who I did Fantasy Island with a hundred and fifty years ago.

Many of the actors I talked to compared working for Hallmark to the old studio system, by which they seemed to mean that it offered steady work, good pay, decent hours, and care. Martin Cummins, who plays the formerly villainous mine owner Henry Gowen on When Calls the HeartIve played a bad guy in a suit my whole careersaid that Hallmarks film scheduling was unusually humane. We only shoot a flat twelve, he saidtwelve hours a day. Lisa Durupt, a sidekick in eighteen movies, said, You become part of a family. Michael Rady told me, with enthusiasm, that Hallmark had changed his career. He has worked steadily, in prominent non-Hallmark projects, since his screen dbut, in 2005, in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. When I first started doing Hallmark, I was, like, Its a side hustle, he said. I wouldnt, like, lead with it. You knowyoure in L.A. Now, he said, Id be happy only working with themHallmarkforever. Rady is often asked by friends how to get involved, he said. He leaned forward and smiled. But Hallmark finds youyou dont find them.

At dinner, under a pinkening sky, on a stage with a gazebo dripping with purple flowers, Kristin Chenoweth, a new Hallmark star, sang Over the Rainbow. Abbott and Vicary delivered some celebratory remarks and announced upcoming movies, such as Sense, Sensibility, and Snowmen; afterward, several actors told me that theyd learned which movies theyd be starring in during Vicarys address. Projects were being green-lighted in a spirit of abundance. Ron Oliver told me that his latest film, Christmas at the Plaza, had originated when he posted a picture of himself at the Plaza Hotel, where he was staying with his husband, on Facebook. As a joke, I said, This is me researching my next movie, Christmas at the Plaza, Oliver said. That Monday morning, my exec called and said, If youre serious, were in. He wrote it in July, directed it in August, and it premired on Thanksgiving.

This year, Hallmark made headlines when it announced that it would produce two holiday movies with Hanukkah themes. In both, however, Christmas is the star. In Holiday Date, Brooke (Brittany Bristow) brings an actor, Joel (Matt Cohen), to Whispering Pines, her home town, for the holidays, to pose as her boyfrienda common phenomenon on Hallmark, and perhaps less so in real life. One afternoon in September, I visited the set, in a house outside Vancouver. The downstairs was festooned with pine sconces, ornaments, and bows. Tree on the move! a crew member said. Ive never done Hallmark, Cohen told me. For a decade, hed played scary roles, including Lucifer, on shows like Supernatural. I committed to the dark side and it paid the bills, he said. But this is who I really am. Im a goofball.

As Holiday Date unfolds, its revealed that Joel doesnt know how to decorate a tree, or hang Christmas lights: hes Jewish. The family is surprised but unfazed, Bristow explained. They incorporate latkes and a menorah into their festivities and teach Joel to deck the halls. Ive never celebrated Christmas, but I always wanted to, he says. In the movies trailer, Silent Night plays in the background.

That afternoon, I watched as a scene was filmed in which Joel, handsome in a Santa-red sweater, helps Brookes young niece, Tessa (Ava Grace Cooper), rehearse for a Christmas pageant. On the monitor, I could see three Christmas trees in the frame. Tessas self-absorbed parents, played by the recurring Hallmark bro Peter Benson and the Hallmark villain Anna Van Hooft, walked by, looking at their phones, and opened the front door, obscuring a tree but introducing a wreath. The living room was a riot of Yuletide splendor: trees and garlands. A fire roared in the fireplace, and a row of Christmas stockings hung on the mantel. Above them, a string of blue-and-white letters spelled out HAPPY HANUKKAH. Tessas pageant line was about family togetherness: Cause thats what Christmas is all about. Cohen beamed. Perfect, he said.

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How Hallmark Took Over Cable Television - The New Yorker

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Global Eczema Therapeutics Market 2020-2024| Evolving Opportunities with AbbVie Inc. and Bayer AG | Technavio – Business Wire

Posted: at 9:41 am

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Technavio has been monitoring the global eczema therapeutics market and the market is poised to grow by USD 3.60 billion during 2020-2024 at a CAGR of over 9% during the forecast period. Request Free Sample Pages

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Factors such as high prevalence of atopic dermatitis and increasing healthcare expenditure are anticipated to boost the growth of the market.

Exposure to skin irritants including soaps or cleaners and allergens such as pet dander, pollen, or peanuts can lead to eczema. It is also caused by infections, dry skin, and stress. Atopic dermatitis is one of the most prevalent forms of eczema which requires multiple visits to dermatologists and numerous medications for treatment. China, India, and Japan are the three major revenue contributors to the market as these regions of Asia constitute a huge patient pool and consequently exhibit a high demand for eczema therapeutics. Thus, the high prevalence of atopic dermatitis is expected to drive market growth during the forecast period.

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Major Five Eczema Therapeutics Market Companies:

AbbVie Inc.

AbbVie Inc. is headquartered in the US and operates the business under the segment, Pharmaceuticals. The company offers a Janus kinase 1 selective inhibitor, Upadacitinib to various end-users including hospitals and pharmacies.

Alliance Pharma Plc

Alliance Pharma Plc is headquartered in the UK and offers products through the following business units: International Star Brands and Local Brands. The company offers a range of products for different indications such as dry skin, eczema, and ichthyosis.

Bausch Health Companies Inc.

Bausch Health Companies Inc. is headquartered in Canada and operates under various business segments, namely Bausch + Lomb/International, Salix, Diversified Products, and Ortho Dermatologics. The company offers a second-line therapy, Elidel.

Bayer AG

Bayer AG is headquartered in Germany and offers products through the following business segments: Pharmaceuticals, Crop science, Consumer health, and Animal health. The company offers a range of dermatology products for skin care, eczema treatment, and sensitive skin.

Eli Lilly and Co.

Eli Lilly and Co. is headquartered in the US and offers products through the following business segments: Human pharmaceutical products and Animal health products. The company offers a small molecule Janus kinase inhibitor, Olumiant.

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Eczema Therapeutics Indication Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2020-2024)

Eczema Therapeutics Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2020-2024)

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About Technavio

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions.

With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavios report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavios comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Global Eczema Therapeutics Market 2020-2024| Evolving Opportunities with AbbVie Inc. and Bayer AG | Technavio - Business Wire

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I started my coffee body scrub business with 450 now its turned over 15m and Maisie Smith is a fan – The Sun

Posted: at 9:41 am

GROWING up, Tasha Harris loved making her own skincare out of tea tree oils and other things her mum had lying around the house - but never in a million years did she think she'd one day be running her own beauty business.

The 29-year-old businesswoman, from Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, first started making her own coffee scrubs out of leftover grinds, coconut oil and salt to treat her eczema in 2012.

Having experienced first-hand how well it worked on her own dry skin, Tasha began dolling it out to all her friends and family for free - and they were also blown away by the results.

After being inundated with requests for more of the scrub, Tasha - and her partner Lloyd - decided to turn it into a business and only spent 450 to start it up.

In their first three months, Grounded made an impressive 15,000 when they were approached by Dragon's Den producers - this amazing exposure took the business to a whole new level.

Tasha spoke to Fabulous Digital for our#BOSSINGIT seriesdevoted to ordinary women who have launched incredible businesses.

Describing her struggles with eczema growing up, Tasha said: "I used to get really bad eczema around my neck, my arms, and my mouth - but nothing would get rid of it."

As Tasha's school wouldn't let students carry lip balms or hand creams, she'd have sit and suffer with her itchy skin during lessons.

She added: "My doctors kept giving me steroid creams but it just made it more uncomfortable and horrible."

However, Tasha noticed that her skin would only ever improve when she was on holiday and had her first experience with coffee scrubs at a spa in Bali when she was 22.

"The only time my eczema would get better is if I went on holiday somewhere really hot with the nice salty sea," she said. "But it was always really, really bad."

Noticing coffee scrubs as an emerging trend abroad (and were already wildly popular in Australia), Tasha and Lloyd tried experimenting with their own at home using his family's leftover coffee grinds - but only ever intended for it to help with her own skin problems.

She recalled: "He went online and started researching ingredients and put in stuff that I'd already used on my skin - like coconut oil.

"But he also put in things that didn't feel nice, like olive oil which made it all greasy and horrible."

Whereas prescribed steroid creams often result in peeling, Tasha claims the scrubs nourish skin and leaves it soft and supple.

She explained: "With the coffee scrub, youve got coffee which helps blood circulation, then youve got salt which is anti-bacterial and then coconut oil which softens the skin and helps heal it.

"It also makes it really smooth so youre not itching it all the time."

After noticing a drastic difference in her own skin, Tasha - who was working at a local bank branch at the time - began giving her colleagues free samples of the scrub.

But it was only when she kept being asked for top ups that they started to take it more seriously.

Describing how she initially saw it as a hobby, Tasha said: "I was just going with the flow really but when people keep asking you for the stuff, you realise how good it is."

After being inundated with glowing customer reviews, the couple decided to take the plunge.

"We started the company with nothing," Tasha recalled. "We paid for the logo which was 350 and then we bought a box of bags for about 100. Everything else we needed to make the scrubs we already had in our kitchen."

In order to kickstart the business, Tasha created an Etsy shop where customers could shop the 13 coffee scrubs - which were still being made from her and Lloyd's kitchen table using leftover grinds.

Now that the company have their own in-house manufacturers, it costs them 1.50 to make a 200g pouch of coffee scrub - but when they were starting still out, it was originally 2.10.

On top of this, they also started travelling to shows across the country to promote Grounded and made themselves stand out from other brands by decorating their stalls with inflatable palm trees and vintage furniture borrowed from Lloyd's mum's store.

Ahead of each show, Tasha explained: "We'd spend 2,000 of our own savings on creating the product and then we'd put that straight back into the business.

"We made hundreds of coffee scrubs, put a bowl in the middle and got customers to test it out on their hands. We made 15,000 for three shows."

Unsurprisingly, the tropical (and wildly popular) stall caught the attention of a Dragon's Den producer who invited them in to interview for the programme - but their first reaction was to assume it was all just a big practical joke.

"We were just getting the stand ready with palm trees and stuff and then he went over to Lloyd and gave him his email," Tasha said. "They asked if we wanted to interview for the show next week but we thought it was just a lie though."

In 2015, the couple appeared on the hit BBC show and secured 30,000 funding from Sarah Willingham in exchange for a 15 per cent stake in the company.

After filming wrapped, Tasha got in touch with major retailers to get Grounded scrubs into stores - and three months before the show aired, Boots said they wanted to fast track the scrubs to hit shelves as soon as possible.

Delighted by the news, Tasha reached out to Sarah to get the funding and start making the 100k worth of product Boots has ordered - but was merely told "she couldn't do anything at all until after the show had aired".

In order to supply the enormous Boots order, the couple needed 20,000 and fast - luckily, they were able to borrow the money from Lloyd's mum's business.

As well securing the Boots deal, Tasha got the Grounded website up and running and the night the Dragon's Den episode aired in April 2016, they has 85,000 visitors to the site.

And it would be selling short to say the scrubs were an overnight success - in that first month, Grounded made a whopping 50,000 and Tasha and Lloyd were working all hours of the day to keep up with the orders on the website.

After being overwhelmed with orders, Tasha added: "We had to turn off our website and redirect it all to Boots because we didn't have any product left."

Over three years on, Grounded is now the UK's leading coffee-based beauty brands and they now count EastEnders' Maisie Smith among their thousands of fans.

Naturally, the packagaing has also had an Instagram-friendly rebrand.

Tasha said: "When we started off, everything was quite dark and dingy. In Dragons Den, everything was brown for grounded coffee.

"But we wanted to make it a bit brighter and fun so we introduced some colours and developed a new logo."

The company - which employs 30 people - now have their own manufacturers to make their products on site which cost hundreds of thousands of pounds - but it's worth it for Tasha knowing that all the scrubs are up to scratch.

Trying to keep up with beauty trends has been another challenge for Tasha - and the brand has brought out CBD face oils, charcoal toothpaste and anti-ageing eye creams over the years.

Although the brand now boasts 20 products across their hair, body and skincare ranges, it's their original coconut-scented scrub that continues to be a fan favourite.

In the past seven years, the brand has sold over half a million units of their best-selling coconut scrub - and now that microbeads are firmly out of fashion, Grounded shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.

Tasha's top tips for aspiring businesswomen

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For more inspiring Bossing It stories, Fabulous Digital spoke to the founder of Holly's Lollies who set up her 300k business from her kitchen table.

And we also spoke to Florence Ledwith - who moved back into her childhood bedroom to set up her dream shoe business and now makes 350k a year.

Plus Caroline Sims was too ashamed to let her boyfriend see her problem skin without make-up - now her skincare supplements are set to make 4m.

Go here to read the rest:
I started my coffee body scrub business with 450 now its turned over 15m and Maisie Smith is a fan - The Sun

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Common Itching Causes and Fixes, According to Dermatologists – Yahoo Lifestyle

Posted: at 9:41 am

It's an uncomfortable sensationa sudden tickle or prickle that begs for you to scratch. And sometimes, itchy skin is accompanied by rashes or patches that you'd rather not show the world. We spoke to three board-certified dermatologists about possible sources of itchy skinand what exactly you can and should do about it.

Related: How to Prevent Eczema Flares During the Winter

All of the professionals we interviewed agree: Dry skin is the leading cause of itchiness. Avoid this, particularly during winter or in areas with low humidity, by keeping your skin hydrated. "Avoid long, hot baths or showers," advises Dr. Dina Strachan, MD, Director of Aglow Dermatology in New York City. "Use a moisturizing cleanser. Apply moisturizer after bathing." Another dermatologist, Margaret E. Parsons, MD, FAAD, Dermatology Consultants of Sacramento, specifically recommends Eucerin, Cetaphil, and CeraVe, and for more sensitive skin, Vanicream and non-irritating emollients such as petroleum jelly (Vaseline), Aquaphor, and even coconut oil and shea butter. "There are some over-the-counter products that can relieve itch, including products with pramoxine or menthol," adds Bruce A. Brod, MD, FAAD Clinical Professor of Dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine.

There's atopic dermatitis, also known as eczema (dry, rashy skin), seborrheic dermatitis (patches mainly on the scalp and possibly ears and eyebrows), and contact dermatitis (triggered, as the name implies, when the skin comes in contact with an irritant or allergen, which can be anything from skin and haircare products to fabric to poison ivy). "I always review if there are any new clothes, soaps, hair products, foods, travel, or anything else new in someone's life when they have a skin issue," Dr. Parsons, who is also the Associate Clinical Professor at UC Davis, Department of Dermatology, tells us. "Often people say, 'It's all the same,' and we have to remember we can acquire sensitivities or allergies, or a product may have had ingredients changed."

She adds that it can take two months for some itches to calm down because of skin's "memory cells" and cautions people with sensitive skin to avoid fabric softeners and dryer sheets and reach for perfume- and dye-free laundry products. In clothing, opt for natural, non-irritating fibers: cotton, silk, linen, wool, and bamboo. To temporarily treat these issues, Dr. Parsons says you can take antihistamines, such as the more sedating diphenhydramine (Benadryl) or the prescription hydroxyzine, cetirizine (Zyrtec), loratadine (Claritin), fexofenadine (Allegra), or levocetirizine (Xyzal). "For more notable eczema, topical corticosteroid creams or ointments are often prescribed," she adds. "There are also some non-steroid prescription topicals for those with persistent skin concerns."

It's an unpleasant thought, but there's a chance your crawling skin is due to a crawling or flying creature. You're probably all too familiar with mosquito and spider bites from your youth or from time spent in the garden. Insect-related or otherwise, pay close attention to any sudden, severe itch and hives. "If someone has any trouble breathing or lip swelling, that of course would be of great concern and needs to be promptly evaluated, possibly at the emergency room if severe," Dr. Parsons advises.

Though not as likely as the aforementioned causes, itchy skin could also be a sign of an internal condition such as diabetes, thyroid disease, anemia, kidney or liver disease, or even cancer, say our pros. "With these medical conditions, there is usually other things going on with general health such as fatigue," Dr. Parsons explains. That's why anyone experiencing an itch that just won't quit should make an appointment with a board-certified dermatologist. "If the itch is due to a skin condition, then treating the underlying skin condition can help," Dr. Brod adds. "Itch is a complex issue and should be carefully evaluated by a medical professional."

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Common Itching Causes and Fixes, According to Dermatologists - Yahoo Lifestyle

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Kane Biotech Launches Consumer Product Test for an Innovative Shampoo Containing its Patented Anti-Biofilm Technology – GlobeNewswire

Posted: at 9:41 am

WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Dec. 16, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kane Biotech Inc. (TSX-V:KNE) (the Corporation or Kane Biotech), a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of technologies and products that prevent and remove microbial biofilms, today announced that it has launched a consumer product test to evaluate the efficacy of its new shampoo on dermatitis and dandruff.

Recent research has indicated that the persistence of microbial biofilm may be linked with aggravating the symptoms associated with atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis (also known as eczema) and dandruff. Kane Biotechs shampoo consists of coactiv+TM, a patented anti-biofilm formulation, and contains ingredients approved as safe for human use.

Kane Biotech will ship 300 samples to registered adult participants in Ontario and Manitoba with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis and/or severe dandruff. Individuals interested in participating in the consumer product test may register at https://kanebiotech.com/shampoo-consumer-test/. In addition, the Corporation plans to promote the consumer test with a Facebook advertising campaign in January 2020. Shipping of test samples is expected to commence in February 2020.

In the U.S., the anti-dandruff shampoo market alone is estimated at $3 billion per year, while some 31.6 million individuals have some form of eczema, stated Marc Edwards, CEO of Kane Biotech. We have anecdotal evidence that indicates our shampoo offers individuals suffering from these conditions an effective treatment option without requiring any harsh ingredients such as coal tar, ketoconazole or selenium sulfide. We are looking forward to the feedback we receive from this expanded group of consumers.

I highly encourage those looking for a solution to dry, flaking and itching scalps to participate in Kane Biotechs consumer product test, said David Kemp, a long-time Kane Biotech investor. As sufferers of these conditions, my family and I tried this shampoo, and nothing has worked better. Im delighted Kane is moving forward with this trial both as an investor and a consumer.

I want to thank the entire Kane team for bringing this project together. We already have a number of very exciting projects in both Animal Health (Oral Care, Skin Care and Supplements) and Human Health (Chronic Wound Care) on the go that require our attention, but they have once again demonstrated their nimbleness by taking on this additional program, said Mr. Edwards. I love this type of project where we take good science and, in short order, are able to get it into the hands of consumers. The very small investment of capital associated with this consumer testing could yield substantial dividends for Kane in the future.

About Kane Biotech

Kane Biotech is a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of technologies and products that prevent and remove microbial biofilms. The Corporation has a portfolio of biotechnologies, intellectual property (56 patents and patents pending, trade secrets and trademarks) and products developed by the Corporations own biofilm research expertise and acquired from leading research institutions. StrixNBTM, DispersinB, Aledex, bluestemTM, AloSeraTM, coactiv+TM and Kane are trademarks of Kane Biotech Inc. The Corporation is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "KNE".

For more information, please visitwww.kanebiotech.com, or contact:

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains certain statements regarding Kane Biotech Inc. that constitute forward-looking information under applicable securities law. These statements reflect managements current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied in making forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks relating to the Companys: (a) financial condition, including lack of significant revenues to date and reliance on equity and other financing; (b) business, including its early stage of development, government regulation, market acceptance for its products, rapid technological change and dependence on key personnel; (c) intellectual property including the ability of the Company to protect its intellectual property and dependence on its strategic partners; and (d) capital structure, including its lack of dividends on its common shares, volatility of the market price of its common shares and public company costs. Further information about these and other risks and uncertainties can be found in the disclosure documents filed by the Company with applicable securities regulatory authorities, available at http://www.sedar.com. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive.

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Kane Biotech Launches Consumer Product Test for an Innovative Shampoo Containing its Patented Anti-Biofilm Technology - GlobeNewswire

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LEO Pharma announces positive top-line results for tralokinumab from three Phase 3 studies in adult patients with moderate-to-severe AD – Business…

Posted: at 9:41 am

BALLERUP, Denmark--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LEO Pharma A/S, a global leader in medical dermatology, today announced that tralokinumab an investigational, fully human monoclonal antibody that specifically neutralizes the interleukin-13 (IL-13) cytokine met all primary and secondary endpoints in its three pivotal Phase 3 studies (ECZTRA 1-3) for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD) in adults. During the studies, the overall adverse event rate was comparable between tralokinumab and placebo.

IL-13 is a key driver of the type 2 inflammation that plays a major role in AD,1 which is the most common inflammatory skin disease in the developed world,2 affecting up to five percent of adults across the United States, Canada, Europe and Japan.3 AD can have a significant, negative impact on patients well-being, primarily due to distressing itch, sleep deprivation and social stigmatization due to visible lesions.4

In its moderate-to-severe form, AD can cause unbearable recurring symptoms for patients, said Dr Kim Kjoeller, Executive Vice President, Global Research & Development, LEO Pharma. Despite recent treatment advances, we consistently hear from healthcare professionals around the world that additional treatment options are needed to address the different signs and symptoms for each patient. We are encouraged by these study results, which show that tralokinumab could be an efficacious and well-tolerated long-term treatment solution for patients living with this debilitating chronic skin disease.

ECZTRA 1 and ECZTRA 2 (ECZema TRAlokinumab studies no. 1 and 2), are randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multinational, 52-week studies, which included 802 and 794 adult patients respectively, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of tralokinumab as monotherapy in adults with moderate-to-severe AD who are candidates for systemic therapy. ECZTRA 3 is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multinational 32-week study, which included 380 adult patients, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of tralokinumab in combination with topical corticosteroids (TCS) in patients with moderate-to-severe AD who are candidates for systemic therapy.

The primary endpoints in the three studies were an Investigator Global Assessment (IGA) score of clear (0) or almost clear (1) skin at week 16 and at least a 75 percent or greater change from baseline in their Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) score at week 16. A change from baseline to week 16 in SCORing of Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD), Pruritus Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) of at least 4, and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) were secondary endpoints.

LEO Pharma is planning to submit marketing authorization applications for tralokinumab for the treatment of adult patients with moderate-to-severe AD to regulatory agencies in 2020 and plans to submit the detailed results of these studies for presentation at scientific congresses and publication in peer-reviewed medical journals in 2020 as well. Further information about trials with tralokinumab can be accessed at https://clinicaltrials.gov.

#ENDS#

NOTES TO EDITORS

About atopic dermatitisAtopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic, relapsing skin disease, characterized by severe itch, dry skin, persistent immune-mediated inflammation, and skin barrier defects.5 AD is a result of skin barrier dysfunction and immune dysregulation, leading to chronic inflammation.6 Type-2 cytokines, such as IL-13 and IL-4, play a central role in the key aspects of AD pathophysiology.7 Due to the immune dysregulation, IL-13 is overexpressed in lesional and non-lesional skin.8,9

About tralokinumabTralokinumab is an investigational agent under clinical development, and its safety and efficacy have not been evaluated by any regulatory authority. Tralokinumab is a fully human, immunoglobulin (Ig)G4 monoclonal antibody (mAb) that works by neutralizing the IL-13 cytokine. IL-13 plays a key role in the pathophysiology of AD.10 By specifically binding to the IL-13 cytokine, tralokinumab prevents its interaction with the receptor and the subsequent downstream IL-13 signalling.11

About LEO PharmaLEO Pharma helps people achieve healthy skin. The company is a leader in medical dermatology with a robust R&D pipeline, a wide range of therapies and a pioneering spirit. Founded in 1908 and owned by the LEO Foundation, LEO Pharma has devoted decades of research and development to advance the science of dermatology, setting new standards of care for people with skin conditions. LEO Pharma is headquartered in Denmark with a global team of 6,000 people, serving 76 million patients in 130 countries. In 2018, the company generated net sales of DKK 10,410 million. For more information about LEO Pharma, visit http://www.leo-pharma.com.

References1 Bieber T. Interleukin-13: Targeting an underestimated cytokine in atopic dermatitis. Allergy 2019; doi:10.111/all.13954.2 Weidinger S et al. Atopic Dermatitis. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2018; 4(1):1.3 Barbarot S et al. Epidemiology of atopic dermatitis in adults: Results from an international survey. Allergy 2018;73:1284-1293.4 Weidinger S, Novak N. Atopic dermatitis. The Lancet. 2016; 387:1109-22.5 Weidinger S, Novak N. Atopic dermatitis. The Lancet. 2016; 387:1109-22.6 Boguniewicz M and Leung DY. Atopic dermatitis: a disease of altered skin barrier and immune dysregulation. Immunol Rev 2011 Jul;242(1):233-46. 7 Bieber T. Interleukin-13: Targeting an underestimated cytokine in atopic dermatitis. Allergy 2019; doi:10.111/all.13954.8 Tsoi LC et al. Atopic dermatitis is an IL-13 dominant disease with greater molecular heterogeneity compared to psoriasis. J Invest Dermatol 2019 (Accepted Manuscript) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jid.2018.12.018. 9 Tazawa T et al. Relative importance of IL-4 and IL-13 in lesional skin of atopic dermatitis. Arch Dermatol Res. 2004;295:459-464.10 Brandt, E.B., Sivaprasad, U. Th2 Cytokines and Atopic Dermatitis. J Clin Cell Immunol. 2011; 2(3): 1-25. doi:10.4172/2155-9899.1000110.11 Popovic B et al. Structural characterisation reveals mechanism of IL-13-neutralising monoclonal antibody tralokinumab as inhibition of binding to IL-13R1 and IL-13R2. J Mol Biol. 2017;429:208-219.

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Voice of the Year: Dr. Tara Zandvliet – Voice of San Diego

Posted: at 9:41 am

Dr. Tara Zandvliet didnt intend to be a Voice of the Year.

She had a quiet practice in South Park, where many vaccine-skeptical parents found her by word of mouth. If they could show her a family history of autoimmune disorder even psoriasis and eczema qualified she would write their child a medical exemption from vaccination.

By her estimation, Zandvliet has written roughly 1,000 exemptions. At $180 per exemption, she made nearly $200,000 in her small corner of the market. But the general public had no idea Zandvliet was Southern Californias vaccine exemption doctor of choice.

Then in March, her business attracted more attention than she ever wanted. A Voice of San Diego investigation revealed that Zandvliet had written nearly a third of all vaccine exemptions in San Diego Unified School District.

Legislators like Sen. Richard Pan and Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez swiftly reacted to crack down on what Pan called unscrupulous physicians looking to make a buck who were gravely endangering the community.

Pan and Gonzalez wanted public health officials to oversee vaccine exemptions, so that doctors like Zandvliet would no longer be able to write them for reasons that fall outside the generally recognized standard of care.

The anti-vaxx movement quickly rallied, staging rowdy protests in Sacramento.

Pan got shoved on the street by a man live-streaming the attack. A woman tossed a menstrual cup full of blood onto the floor of the state Senate. Gov. Newsom hesitated, suggesting he might not sign the new legislation.

After months of debate that echoed out across the entire state, Pan and Gonzalez were successful. They passed a bill that will make it easier for state officials to crack down on doctors writing bogus exemptions. Zandvliet has also been charged with gross negligence by the state Medical Board.

This is part of our Voice of the Year package, highlighting the people who played a major role in shaping civic discussion in 2019.

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Voice of the Year: Dr. Tara Zandvliet - Voice of San Diego

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Revisit on skin diseases: eczema (3) – The Nation Newspaper

Posted: at 9:41 am

Dr Joel Akande

Let me clarify a common misconception immediately now. To medical doctors, eczema is a distinct skin illness. This is different from what the general public considers as eczema. In the perception of the public, eczema covers practically all common skin diseases.

This should not be so. On the other hand, eczema and dermatitis are frequently used as if they mean the same thing. First, dermatosis. Dermatosis means any skin disease. Dermatitis means inflammation of the skin as measured by swelling, heat generation, pain and change in colour.

What is Eczema? Coming from the Greek word, ekzein, eczema means to boil out as a result of the evolution of the skin changes under eczema.

Eczema, therefore, has the following characteristics: rashes (macules for example), redness, crusting of skin, oedema or swelling, thickening of the skin due to repeated and frequent rubbing of or scratching of the skin and finally changes in the skin colour.

We should not forget that the disposition of the individual to develop eczema is equally important. The changes in colour and thickening occur at a later development or weeks after the initial changes as mentioned above. The first is acute and the second is called chronic eczema.

Types of Eczema: I will only mention here that eczema can be classified as endogenous (internal) or exogenous (internal). Of the internal, atopic eczema is perhaps the commonest. I will discuss a brief of this condition later as its seen in a lot of ways in children.

Seborrhoeic dermatitis seen frequently on the scalp of children and women is also common. Other conditions are discoid eczema, pompholyx and peeling skin syndrome. For exogenous eczema, hand dermatitis, irritant dermatitis, photo dermatitis, infective eczema, allergic contact dermatitis, exfoliative and perioral dermatitis are common examples.

I will now discuss a few of the common forms of eczema amongst our population.

Atopic eczema (dermatitis): This is a common illness and is said to account for about 20 per cent of skin disorders seen at skin clinics.

Children fed on cows milk rather than on breast milk are more likely to develop atopic eczema. Children fed on mixed breast and cows milk are also at risk.

Causes of atopic eczema: The human body reacts to intolerable agent internally but later shows up in the skin. Some diseases such as deficiency in some vitamins (biotin), cystic fibrosis may lead to eczema. Atopic eczema may also develop due to infections such as staphylococcus infection.

How does atopic eczema present? Children, infants and adults are affected. And it can show up as early as 2 weeks of life.

There are patches in both sides of the body especially on the joints of elbows, behind the knees, cheeks and forehead. Widespread dry skin involvement may occur. Itching and scratching, dryness of the skin, crusting are present.

The skin become thickened and may become infected. The face may be affected too. By age of 2-3 years, the eczema may or may not disappear only to reappear later in childhood and adulthood.

Treatment: Information and knowledge is power. Its important that adult victims and parents of children should get as much knowledge and information about the eczema as much as possible.

Atopic eczema requires intervention of specialist dermatologist. The medical doctor will endeavor to contain troublesome itching as well as ensuring the dry crusted skin remain moist.

Doctors are also likely to pay attention to curtailing inflammation and preventing occurrence of underlying causes.

Other common and important eczematous forms are contact dermatitis.

This indicates that there are agents that the sufferers have been in contact with that are ultimately responsible for the eczema now being suffered. Seborrhoeic dermatitis is common and will require a physicians attention.

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Revisit on skin diseases: eczema (3) - The Nation Newspaper

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Naturally Weatherproof Skin for Winter Dryness – One Green Planet

Posted: at 9:41 am

During the summer, our skin is challenged with overexposure sunburn, moisture sucking air conditioning, heat irritation.

Yet, when it comes to uncomfortable skin weather, winter takes the cake!

From snow-packed countryside to frost-nipped ocean fronts, cold weather brings winter dryness. Theres a whole laundry list of skin irritants to contend with including forced-air heating, low humidity, and harsh skin-damaging natural forces.

But, whats actually happening to your skin? Why are your hands and lips cracking? Is it possible to stop that crazy itch?

Pezibear/Pixabay

First off, harsh weather strips the skins natural protective barrier, creating gaps in the outer most layer, allowing water to escape (dehydration) and irritants to get in (sensitivity). When your skin feels like its under attack it has the same response that the rest of your body has inflammatory. Once inflammation kicks in it releases histamines causing that uncontrollable dry itchy feeling. On top of that, for those that also suffer from inflammatory skin diseases, especially those caused by an impaired barrier function cold weather has the nasty knack of exacerbating these conditions such as rosacea, eczema, ichthyosis, and psoriasis.

Alright, so you knowwhyyour skin is so uncomfortable, but what are the main culprits?

While the natural elements of the winter months such as the decrease of mercury and humidity levels may seem like the perfect place to start, its actually insideyour home. Forced-air heating such as a furnace, radiators, or stand-alone heaters continuously pump out dry heat causing your eyes, nasal passages, and skin to lose precious moisture.

Then you pair this with the dry outdoors and its a recipe for winter dryness!

chezbeate/Pixabay

We know why and how the winter wreaks havoc on our skin. When it comes to winter dryness, youll most likely be affected in three major areas: eyes, nose, and overall skin. Lets take a look at what we can do about preventing dryness and naturally treating these areas of your body. Luckily, there are just as many natural remedies for dry skin as there are causes!

Skitterphoto/Pixabay

Dry eyes are maybe one of the most debilitating winter side effects making you feel fatigued, leading to headaches, and causing discomfort and pain in one of the most sensitive parts of the body. The chilly temps and increased winds, plus the dry heat and low humidity indoors, can lead to aggravated dry eyes.

What does it feel like?

Depending on how dry your eyes are, symptoms can include stinging, burning, scratching, redness, sensitivity to light, eye fatigue, blurred vision, watery eyes, and even the development of mucus around your eyes.

What can you do about it?

While you can opt for over-the-counter artificial tears and even prescription eye drops, there are some precautionary aids that may help you avoid harsh chemicals.

First and foremost, opt for wearing sunglasses or clear glasses that wrap around your face for the winter. I know what youre thinking, dont they look ridiculous? Maybe they do, but if it alleviates those dry eyes, its definitely worth it! Double up on the shades with a brimmed hat. Both of these aids can slow tear evaporation while outside.

Engin_Akyurt/Pixabay

With the combination of low humidity outdoors and forced heat indoors, your nasal passages are truly put to the test to produce adequate moisture. Not only are dry nasal passages super uncomfortable all on their own, but the dryness can actually travel into your throat causing dry cough and irritation.

Whats it feel like?

Constant dryness of your nasal passage can cause mucus in the nose to dry out and thicken, the membranes inside the nose to become more fragile and the nasal lining to crack, which leads to irritation, bleeding, and invasion of germs [along with] nasal congestion or blockage, [prevention of] drainage from sinuses and difficulty breathing.

What can you do about it?

Much like dry eye treatment, you can opt for nasal sprays. With that said, if youre looking for a chemical-free, natural treatment, there are a few options!

To begin, you may need to alter your indoor environment by increasing the humidity in your home with a humidifier. The optimal humidity level to treat dry nasal passages is between 40 and 45 percent, yet humidity levels in a heated home in the winter can be well below 20 percent and often below 10 percent.

You can also perform nasal irrigation. While saline sprays are a recommended course of action, a more natural option is a neti pot. These devices change in design depending on which you choose, but they contain a mixture of warm water and saline, which is then forced through the nasal passages to clear out mucus. When it comes to dry nasal passages, neti pots can help clear dry mucus or crusts from the nose without trauma and temporarily reduce dryness. You can choose your design based on your comfort level such as this traditional Himalayan Chandra Neti Pot Complete Sinus Cleansing System Starter Kit or this more modern NeilMed NasaFlo Unbreakable Neti Pot.

cm_dasilva/Pixabay

While dry eyes and nasal passages are no fun to deal with, all over dry skin is a huge game-changer. Wind and forced-air heating are both huge players in the dry skin game, but you can blame those cold temps. When the temperature drops, that cold or dry air basically sucks away the oil that normally traps moisture in the skin, often leading to skin irritation and itchiness, as well as flare-ups of eczema, psoriasis or other chronic skin conditions.

In dermatological terms, this condition is called skin distress, and thats exactly what it feels like. The most common symptoms of severely dry skin include tightness, roughness, itching, flaking, scaling, peeling, fine lines and cracks, gray coloring, redness, and even bleeding.

What can you do about it?

When it comes to winter skincare, youll want to approach it from both preventative and treatment angles.

Preventative care includes avoiding hot water, opt for warm try to reduce your shower times, and avoid using soapy cleansers multiple times a day. After bathing, pat your skin dry with a towel then immediately slather on a substantial cream or lotion to trap water in the upper layers of the skin.

Selecting a winter moisturizer may be one of the most important parts of skincare treatment. First off, look for super moisturizing and healing ingredients including glycerin, ceramides, hyaluronic acid, dimethicone, grapeseed or almond oil, sheat butter, and lactic acid, such as this vegan and cruelty-free 5-ounce Earth Science Almond-Aloe Fragrance-Free Facial Moisturizer with Jojoba, Shea, and Hyaluronic Acid or this 4-ounceFarmstead Apothecary 100% Natural Anti-Aging Face Cream with Jojoba Oil and Lemon Lavender.

Make sure to use your selected moisturizer after you bathe, in the morning, and before bed.

Golden Milk Frappuccino/One Green Planet

Even though tackling your dry skin with topical moisturizers and natural remedies is a great first line of defense, you should also consider hydrating from the inside out. Keeping your body nourished and hydrated via plant-based foods is a great way to fight dry and cracked skin. What should you look for? Try to integrate lots of vitamins, particularly vitamin C and E as well as super hydrating agents including coconut water.

Beginner Green Smoothie/One Green Planet

We start with a smoothie. Nutrient-dense smoothies are a great way to infuse your body with a powerful dose of hydrating liquids and nourishing vitamins and minerals all at once. Theyre super easy to prepare ahead of time and freeze, pack to work, or even travel with. This Beginner Green Smoothie includes vitamin C and E rich ingredients foods spinach, apples, banana, and grapes, as well as stomach-soothing ginger and powerful antioxidant-rich green tea. To really boost the hydration on this one, turn some coconut water into frozen cubes and use those instead of regular ice.

Kiwi Avocado Juice/One Green Planet

So, you could go withjustavocados for their broad nutrient profile or maybejustkiwis for their high content of both vitamin C and E. Instead, why not combine both to make a super powerful dose of hydrating and nourishing juice? This Kiwi Avocado Juice is a wonderful tonic to have on hand in your fridge for the entirety of the winter. Along with kiwi and avocado, this recipe calls for antioxidant-rich lemon juice, fiber-filled flaxseed, and some ice cubes follow suit with the smoothie and swap these out for coconut water for the cubes for an extra boost of hydration!

Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Almonds/One Green Planet

Looking for something a bit more substantial in the hydration department? How about trying your hand at some almond-based recipes! This Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Almonds are the perfect easy treat to get your daily dose of vitamin E, protein, and healthy fats. Mixed in with these wonderful almonds, youll also get a dose of healthy fat-filled olive oil and antibacterial garlic. A great snack for boosting hydrating nutrients and filling your tummy!

We also highly recommend downloading ourFood Monster App, which is available foriPhone, and can also be found onInstagramandFacebook. The app has more than 15,000 plant-based, allergy-friendly recipes, and subscribers gain access to new recipes every day. Check it out!

For more Vegan Food, Health, Recipe, Animal, and Life content published daily, dont forget to subscribe to theOne Green Planet Newsletter!

Being publicly-funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Pleasesupport us!

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Naturally Weatherproof Skin for Winter Dryness - One Green Planet

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Arcutis Announces Top Line Results for Phase 2 Proof-of-Concept Clinical Trial Evaluating ARQ-151 as a Potential Topical Treatment for Atopic…

Posted: at 9:41 am

- Consistent evidence of symptomatic improvement across endpoints and favorable tolerability- Higher dose demonstrated trend towards significance on primary endpoint- Both doses statistically superior to vehicle on key secondary endpoints-Company plans to advance ARQ-151 development in atopic dermatitis, with Phase 2b initiation anticipated in 2H 2020

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / December 16, 2019 / Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc., a privately held late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing treatments for unmet needs in immune-mediated dermatological diseases and conditions, or immuno-dermatology, today announced top line results for a Phase 2 proof-of-concept study evaluating ARQ-151 as a potential topical treatment for atopic dermatitis (AD). ARQ-151 is a once daily topical cream formulation of roflumilast, a highly potent and selective Phosphodiesterase type 4 inhibitor (PDE4), which the Company is developing for plaque psoriasis and AD.

The ARQ-151-212 study was a Phase 2 multi-center, double blind, vehicle-controlled proof-of-concept study, in which 136 adolescents (ages 12 years and above) and adults with mild to moderate AD involving between 1.5% and 35% body surface area (BSA) were randomized to receive once daily topical applications for 4 weeks of: (1) ARQ-151 0.15% cream, or (2) ARQ-151 0.05% cream, or (3) vehicle. The study assessed the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK) and efficacy of the two dose levels of ARQ-151.

On the study's primary endpoint, the mean reduction in the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) Total Score after 4 weeks of once-daily treatment, neither dose reached statistical significance versus vehicle, although ARQ-151 0.15% showed a trend towards significance, with a mean improvement of 6.4 in patients treated with ARQ-151 0.15% compared to 4.8 in patients treated with vehicle (p = 0.097). On the secondary endpoint of mean percent change from baseline on EASI, ARQ-151 0.15% demonstrated a statistically significant improvement versus vehicle (72.3% versus 55.8%, p = 0.049). Efficacy was also observed at both doses as measured by EASI-75 (ARQ-151 0.05%: 59.1% versus vehicle: 31.1%, p = 0.009 and ARQ-151 0.05%: 52.3% versus vehicle: 31.1%, p = 0.045). On the Validated Investigator Global Assessment - Atopic Dermatitis (vIGA-AD), ARQ-151 0.15% also demonstrated a statistically significant improvement versus vehicle in the percentage of patients achieving clear or almost clear (ARQ-151 0.15%: 52.3% versus vehicle: 31.1%, p = 0.040).

In this study, both doses of ARQ-151 were well-tolerated. 95% of subjects on active treatment completed the full study. The incidence of treatment-related Treatment Emergent Adverse Events (TEAEs) and application site reactions were low (< 5%) and similar between active treatment and vehicle. TEAEs were mild to moderate in severity. Among subjects receiving ARQ-151, there was only one Serious Adverse Event (SAE), which was unrelated to treatment, and only one discontinuation due to a TEAE.

Frank Watanabe, Arcutis' Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We are very encouraged by the results from this small, proof-of-concept study. The consistent separation from vehicle on multiple endpoints, and the magnitude of improvement in atopic dermatitis demonstrated in this study further reinforce our belief that ARQ-151 has the potential to be an effective atopic dermatitis therapy. As important, both doses evaluated showed a very favorable tolerability profile, which is particularly important given the majority of atopic dermatitis patients are children. Based on the strength of these results, we plan to pursue further development of ARQ-151 in atopic dermatitis, with a Phase 2b study planned for the second half of 2020."

Story continues

About ARQ-151

ARQ-151 is a topical cream formulation containing roflumilast, a PDE4 inhibitor, that the Company is developing to treat plaque psoriasis, including intertriginous psoriasis, and atopic dermatitis. PDE4 is an intracellular enzyme that regulates the production of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines and cell proliferation. Roflumilast is a potent PDE4 inhibitor that was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for systemic treatment to reduce risk of exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in 2011, and has shown greater potency based on IC50 values (a non-clinical measure of a drug's potency) than other PDE4 inhibitors.

About Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is the most common type of eczema, occurring in approximately six percent of the U.S. population. AD is characterized by a defect in the skin barrier, which allows allergens and other irritants to enter the skin, leading to an immune reaction and inflammation. This reaction produces a red, itchy rash, most frequently occurring on the face, arms and legs, and the rash can cover significant areas of the body, in some cases half of the body or more. Disease onset is most common by 5 years of age, and the Company estimates that approximately 60% of patients suffering from AD are pediatric patients. The rash causes significant pruritus (itching), which can lead to skin damage caused by scratching or rubbing. Given that most of the patients are pediatric, the safety and tolerability of AD therapies is paramount.

About Arcutis - Bioscience, applied to the skin.

Arcutis is a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing treatments for unmet needs in immune-mediated dermatological diseases and conditions, or immuno-dermatology. Arcutis exploits recent innovations in inflammation and immunology to develop potential best-in-class therapies against validated biological targets, leveraging our deep development, formulation and commercialization expertise to bring to market novel dermatology treatments, while maximizing our probability of technical success and financial resources. Arcutis is currently developing three novel products (ARQ-151, ARQ-154 and ARQ-252) for multiple indications including psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis and eczema. For more information, please visit http://www.arcutis.com or follow Arcutis on LinkedIn.

Contact:

John W. SmitherChief Financial Officerjsmither@arcutis.com

Investors and Media:

Derek Cole720.785.4497derek.cole@IRadvisory.com

SOURCE: Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/570326/Arcutis-Announces-Top-Line-Results-for-Phase-2-Proof-of-Concept-Clinical-Trial-Evaluating-ARQ-151-as-a-Potential-Topical-Treatment-for-Atopic-Dermatitis

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Arcutis Announces Top Line Results for Phase 2 Proof-of-Concept Clinical Trial Evaluating ARQ-151 as a Potential Topical Treatment for Atopic...

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