Edible Skincare - Wonders Food Can Do For Your Skin

There are more and more beauty products and skincare flooding the market, and they are becoming more and more expensive too. With the discovery of one after another, harmful chemical ingredients in some of these products, we do start to wonder if we should really slap these things on to our skin.

But before there were industrialisation and capitalism, what did our ancestors do to take care of their skin? Cleopatra was known to bathe in milk to keep her skin supple, whilst the ancient Chinese used natural extracts from certain flowers to give that red tint to their lips and cheeks.

So why shouldn't we go back to nature, and get help from the most basic nutrient provider - food? Here are some tips and tricks some of us and our users have tried and love them.

Eyes

1. Cucumber Eye Mask
2. Lavender Tea Bag To Soothe Puffy Eyes
3. Potato Eye Mask
4. Tea Bag Eye Mask

Facial

1. Adzuki Bean And Rice Flour Paste Scrub
2. Brown Rice Flour And Lemon Juice Mask
3. Coarse Sea Salt And Honey Scrub Mask
4. Corn Flour for Oily Skin
5. Egg White Face Mask to Tighten Pores
6. Honey Avocado and Oatmeal Nourishing Exfoliating Mask
7. Lemon and Honey Yoghurt Mask

Hair & Body

1. Lemon Skin and Hair Softener in Hard Water Area
2. Yoghurt Bath And Soak Spa

Eyes

Cucumber Eye Mask

This must be one of the most widely used methods for eye nourishment. Place a thin slice of cold cucumber over each eye and relax for 15-20 minutes and it helps calm them down and help reduce dark circles.

Lili

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Potato Eye Mask

Every time you cook potatoes, save a few thin slices aside to use as eye mask. Lightly wet your eye area and lie back. Place the slices on your lower eyelids or just cover your eyes with them, and relax for 10-15 minutes. It helps reduce puffiness and dark circles. Cheap and safe!

Fen

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Tea Bag Eye Mask

The next time you make tea, don't just bin the tea bags. Lightly squeeze out the remaining tea and place the tea bag in a little container in the refrigerator. Cushion it over tired eyes can it can help reviving them. Also works well on bruised eyes.

Terry

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Facial

Adzuki Bean And Rice Flour Paste Scrub

This is a tip given by a nice lady who came to shop in the health food store I used to work in. She bought adzuki bean not for cooking, but to grind it fine and use it to exfoliate her skin. Because she finds ground walnut shells a little too harsh on her skin, and adzuki bean's softer nature does the job just nice.

We like to mix the ground adzuki bean (soak them before you do so) with some rice flour and a little water into a pasty scrub. You can also just lather it up with some of your favourite cleanser.

Anonymous

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Brown Rice Flour And Lemon Juice Mask

When I was little I used to help my grandmother rinse the rice, and often found my hands feeling really smooth and soft after that. I have also heard that some face powders use rice as an ingredient. So I have tried this and find it really works.

Mix 1-2 tablespoons brown rice flour with neat juice from 1 lemon into a paste. Do not filter out any pulp. Apply on to face like you would any other counter bought mask, and leave it on for about 10 to 15 minutes.

The beauty about it is, it does not give your face a tightly pulled feeling when it's on, and I sometimes leave it on while doing other domestic chores. Feel soft and supple afterwards.

Full of vitamin C, it is great for oily skin - both revitalising and deep cleansing, and is a natural whitening mask. Doesn't cost a bomb either!

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Egg White Face Mask to Tighten Pores

Mix 1 egg white with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and whisk till the mixture is foamy. Use a clean small paint brush, apply the egg white foam onto face and neck. Apply a few layers until the mixture is finished, then relax for about 10-15 minutes or till the mask has dried up. It will feel very tight on your face. Rinse off completely and you'll see the difference immediately. Cheap and great facial, also helps to use up leftover egg white from recipes such as coconut jam that call for just the egg yolks.

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Corn Flour for Oily Skin

Simply dab some corn flour on skin like talcum powder or loose powder, then gently wipe off excess powder with a dry brush or tissue.

Terry

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Honey Avocado and Oatmeal Nourishing Exfoliating Mask

Blend half an avocado (just the flesh, obviously) into paste. Add in 3 tablespoons full of raw, coarse oatmeal and 2 tablespoons clear honey. Mix it into a thick paste so that it does not drip. If it is too thin and runny, add in a little more oatmeal.

Take about 1-2 tablespoons to apply onto slightly damp face. Massage in a gentle, circular motion, especially on the T-zone. Once your face is warmed up, stop and leave it on for about 10 minutes. You can carry on with other things or just lie down and relax. When mask is cool, rinse it with warm water, again with a gentle massage.

This mask is very rich and nourishing, and is really great on dry winter skin. If you wish to use it more frequently, you can massage it only once. It is however, not suitable for oily skin or acne-prone skin.

The amount here should be enough for 3 uses, so keep the remaining mask in an airtight container and store in the fridge, for up to about 10 days.

Jenny

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Lemon and Honey Yoghurt Mask

1 tablespoon set plain yoghurt (even expired yoghurt is good, as long as it does not smell)
1 tablespoon set honey
Neat juice from half a lemon

Dilute the set honey with the lemon juice, then add in the yoghurt and mix it into a smooth paste.

Apply generously on to face and leave it for as long as you desire (it does not dry up), then rinse.

Lemon helps to even up skin tone, but if you do not like fair skin then you should leave it out. Both yoghurt and honey are really moisturising so the mask leaves your face feeling really comfortable after use. But if you have oily or greasy skin then this will not be the mask for you.

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Hair & Body

Lemon Skin and Hair Softener in Hard Water Area

If you live in a hard water area, you will find your skin and hair really coarse, and powdery. Imagine the residue from the high calcium water sits on your skin and hair like those horrible limescale. A girl who worked in a healthfood shop (she has long, black hair that isn't coarse at all) told me to use lemon in my shower and hair wash.

Just mix neat juice from half a lemon (sieved away pulps) into a pail of warm water, and use it as the final rinse. You can also do the same for rinsing your hair, but instead of half a lemon, use 1 lemon.

This will neutralise the alkalinity in hard water, and leave your hair and skin soft.

Belle

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Yoghurt Bath And Soak Spa

Once a friend brought over numerous tubs of expired plain yoghurt from her shop and wonder what we could do with them. We took turns to spread ourselves with the yoghurt, from head to toe; and lie in the bathtub for 20 minutes with a scented candle lit up and hot cocoa on one side. Then rinsed thoroughly with lukewarm water.

Ultimate indulgence for the body, and our skin felt really soft after that. So don't just bin your expired yoghurt. As long as it is not moldy, it can be used.

MichelleO

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Have you any natural food based beauty tips? Please do share it with us!

Try our favourite beauty food links:

Pumpkin Face Mask - Rich In Vitamins A, C, and Zinc
Simple, Safe Skin Cleansers - Formulas

| Adzuki Bean | Condiments | Dessert | Festive Food | Leftovers | Meat | Noodle | Poultry |

| Rice | Seafood | Soup | Soya | Spicy | Stir Fry | Tapioca | Vegetarian |