We are continually fed a loop of advertising pitches for health, beauty
and anti-aging products claiming to have natural ingredients: lotions
with “soy protein,” hair conditioners with “grape seed and avocado
oils,” anti-winkle creams with “shiitake mushroom complex.”
This
begs the question: Why do we need to pay 3 to perhaps 50 times the
amount of money for these products when we can make comparable
treatments from ingredients that can be found in our own homes?
Talk
shows and beauty magazines often do blind comparisons of department
store and drugstore prod-ucts, (for instance, is the $70-per-ounce
Lancôme wrinkle cream any better than the $10 bottle of Oil of Olay?).
Time and time again it’s proven that the products have roughly the
same ingredients and results are often negligible. So why can’t we go
one step further and wean ourselves off drugstore products?
Home remedies A
few years ago, I ordered something online and I received a “free gift”
that claimed to be a $60 value. “This elegant exfoliater/moisturizing
treatment is used in luxury spas throughout the world,” the attached
card read.
The 5-ounce tub held a substance that had the
consistency of sugar blended with a fragrance and a light oil. It
didn’t take long for me to realize that this was exactly what it was:
granulated sugar, fragrance and oil. Mineral, olive, grape seed and
saffron oils are all light and easily absorbed into the skin. These are
often used as “carriers,” or the base that holds other ingredi-ents.
Once
my “$60 luxury spa treatment” was gone, I tried duplicating the recipe.
It took me about 2 minutes and maybe a dollar’s worth of sugar and
olive oil to create the exact same texture.
After reading an
article about the versatility of olive oil, I began experimenting. I
used it as an after-shower moisturizer, rubbing it on when my skin was
still wet, and then blotting it dry with a towel. The fra-grance is
barely noticeable once you’re dry.
I tried it as a hot-oil
treatment for my hair – heating about 3 ounces in the microwave. After
leaving it in for 5 to 10 minutes, I shampooed and conditioned as
usual. It worked every bit as well as the store-bought treatments – for
pennies on the dollar. Next I started experimenting with avocado
masks, tossing in grated lemon peel and even edamame, know-ing that
vitamin C (an antioxidant) and soy protein are excellent for the skin.
Technically
speaking, “Soy helps fight the effects of UV radiation on the skin by
acting as antioxidants that mop up free radicals,” says
womenfitness.com. “Soy contains isoflavones, which are especially
potent in this regard. Other components of soy have antioxi-dant
properties. Thus soy protein helps strengthen the skin by decreasing
the wear and tear of tissue proteins.”
Center of Skin Health
(centerofskinhealth.com) says, “Vitamin A and Vitamin B-complex will
clear your skin and keep it healthy. Antioxidants are proven to prevent
the effects of the sun on the skin, vitamin E and C and selenium, in
particular. Vitamin C prevents free radicals from turning into cancer
and slows aging. It also helps the skin generate collagen and promotes
renewal.”
Karen Dunlap of Karen’s Specialty Skincare
(KarenSSC.com) is a Lake Forest esthetician who spent years providing
beauty treatments for the stars at her facility near the Manhattan
Beach Studios.
“You don’t have to spend a fortune on beauty
products,” says Dunlap. “Once you understand how certain ingredients
work, you can solve many of your beauty needs and give yourself spa
pampering at home.”
Here are some of Karen Dunlap’s suggestions for at home treatments:
•
Baking soda is an inexpensive, gentle exfoliater. Put a little in the
palm of your hand and add a touch of water to scrub off dead skin cells.
•
“The inside peel of a papaya is loaded with en-zymes that are
fantastic for the skin,” says Dunlap. Once you’ve eaten the fruit,
turn it inside out and rub it on your face.
• Suffering from
breakouts? “Make a facial out of plain yogurt,” says Dunlap. “The
friendly bacteria neutralize the bad bacteria.”
• In skincare
terms, “calming” means counteracting inflammation. Skin inflammation
encompasses conditions from acne to psoriasis, rashes to aging.
“Oatmeal is very calming,” says Dunlap. “As is milk.” If you’re
suffering from dry, itchy winter skin, put some milk or oatmeal in your
bath. Be careful not to let the oatmeal clog the plumbing.
•
Saline is also great for inflammation. Put a little on a breakout to
calm the redness and swelling. “Milk of Magnesia is also great for
pimples,” says Dunlap. “The magnesium has a neutralizing effect.”
• Don’t forget the old stand-by: Witch Hazel is a natural astringent and excellent for breakouts.
Here
are more great suggestions from veteran esthetician Ana Serrato of
Corona, who notes, “There are countless natural, anti-aging beauty
treatments you can do at home.”
• Aloe Vera: Get a plant
and use as an antiseptic or for moisturizing. “Aloe Vera gels are made
mostly from alcohol and can be very drying,” says Serrato.
• Green tea bags (steeped, then cooled) reduce puffiness in the eyes. The antioxidants take down inflammation.
•
A honey and sugar scrub is an excellent exfoliater, especially for
those with oily skin that don’t want to use an oil-based carrier, like
olive oil. Honey is also a natural antiseptic.
• Flaxseed oil is rich in Omega 3s and essential fatty acids and is excellent for skin and hair.
For
a moisturizing avocado mask, mash 1 avocado and mix it with 2
tablespoons of honey (warm honey in the microwave for easier blending).
For oily skin prone to breakouts, take 1 cup of plain, natural yogurt
(not low- or nonfat) and 2 tablespoons honey. Have fun and
experiment at home. Foods that supply nourishment to your body often
have tremendous benefits when you use them ON your body as well!
Susan Belknapp is a senior writer for Churm Media.
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