There are more bacterial cells living on our body than our own body cells.Most of them are beneficial to us but not all. Anti-biotics kill both the good and bad bacteria which only makes it worse!However if we use the natural ways, they only kill the bad ones. Bad bacteria grows on our skin when it’s natural pH is not balanced. Our skin should be slightly acidic to keep the bad bacteria from flaring up acne. We all have a protective thin layer of acid on our skin which is called acid mantle. As we grow up using soaps (which increase alkalinity) and harmful chemicals on our skin, it destroys the acid mantle. Click on the link for more info: Acne Can Be Caused by the Absence of Acid Mantle of Our Skin So here are some ways to balance the pH of our skin and rebuild the acid mantle.
Fun Fact: Healthy skin always have a pH of approximately 5.5 This explains why alkaline soaps and harsh cosmetics can damage our skin because their pH is always more than 7. (more…)
India has all types of people living in all kinds of places from a dusty dessert to tropical forests. And the secrets I am going to share with you all are coming from the era when princesses used to bathe in milk and rose petals which is about.. thousands of years ago.
Indian women mostly focus on their skin complexions, body shape and hair care.
We love to make our hair smell good, keep our skin fair and build curves in our body.
It is said that women in ancient India were praised of their lustrous, long hair and flawless complexion.
So let’s see what they did to achieve what I call the ‘natural glam’ haha
1) If you are on a journey to losing weight, you might want to try adding spice in your diet e.g. chillies. But don’t go overboard. Chillies speed up your metabolism and believe it or not, even models add chillies and other spices in their diet to maintain their weight. 2) Neem leaves were very popular to treat acne and other skin problems. The leaves were crushed to make a paste / face mask or neem oil was used as a cleanser
3) Turmeric was an important spice used to even out the skin complexion and get rid of hyperpigmentation. Make a paste of chick pea flour, turmeric and milk. Add the ingredients until it has consistency like any other face masks. Apply this paste all over your body and massage it in. Wash it out after 10-15 mins.
4) Use cold water as a toner. It closes the pores, improves blood circulation and cell stimulation.
5) As well as neem, onion juice was also believed to fight off acne. Mix some onion juice and honey in equal ratio. Apply it as a face mask and washit after 10-15 mins.
6) Another face mask for acne prone skin uses sandalwood and turmeric powder mixed with yoghurt. This mask has anti-septic properties. It makes your skin smooth, soft, acne-free and even toned. Mix the ingredients until your desired consistency forms and apply it. Wash it after 10-15 mins.
7) Ancient Indian women used Kajal (homemade natural eyeliner). It was made from castor oil, coconut oil, almond oil and black mustard seeds. This made your eyes brighter/whiter, it improved vision and stimulates the growth of eye lashes
8) The main ingredients used for hair care were Amla, Shikakai, Coconut Oil and Henna. There are actually thousands of herbs that were used for hair care but these are the main ones. And I always use coconut oil. I can swear by it. It really does help my hair grow really fast.
9) Ayurveda advises that do not put anything on your skin that you cannot eat. All their face masks are actually edible. Even if I use these natural stuff, I put make up on my skin like foundation. I wonder what it does to my skin 🙁 I will try to use them less often now.
10) Many people think that being beautiful will make us happy but it is really the other way around. You will be beautiful when you are happy from the inside. Try to walk past a crowd of people with a frown on your face or a beautiful smile and you will notice the difference.
The secret my Mum passed on to Me:
It is a face mask. My skin was really bad back then and so she advised me to apply this face mask which actually changed my skin A LOT. I kept ignoring her advice because I used to think it’s an old thing and it’s not gonna work but actually nothing worked better than this face mask.
It was Honey and Cinnamon mask. For more details on this click HERE.I truly want to stop using cosmetics and embrace these ancient secrets. And to be honest, the one that I have already embraced have worked WAY better than anything else. For example coconut oil for my hair, honey and cinnamon for skin and certain diets for body. I will try my best to adapt a Natural Healthy Lifestyle.
Are you willing to do that? Can you give up the cosmetics and embrace Natural ingredients that work like magic? I will certainly try my best 🙂
