Saturday, April 28, 2012

Whiteheads on Face

Whiteheads on Face The way a person looks seems to become more and more important each day. How a person carries themselves and what care they take of their overall beauty can open more doors than ever before. Hence, it is perfectly natural for people to try and make sure they look their best at all times. Moreover, the amount of hair care and skin care products available in the market are reaching an all time peak and the amount of money that goes into research for even better products is unprecedented. Looking good is definitely a priority for many and people are able to notice the tiniest faults in a person. Issues like whiteheads that used to be considered trivial when compared to a pimple are also starting to share the limelight and become more noticed. Whiteheads and their formation aren’t really all that different. The clogging of pores by excess Sebum, which is the natural oils that helps in keeping the skin protected and are secreted by the sebaceous glands located under the layers of the skin. Even a speck of dust can cause the sebum to build up behind the blockage causing a little bump to rise on the skin. The bump will have a noticeable white speck at the top. Natural human reaction will cause a person to burst the whitehead. However, this could be the last action you would want to take as if it is infected, the infection could spread over a larger area of the skin as well, and this could possibly leave a permanent scar in the area. Home Remedies for Removing Whiteheads Through the years, a number of home remedies have been researched and perfected in the quest to get rid of whiteheads. Here are a few that may prove useful to you: • Soak almonds over the course of the night and grind them to a paste in the morning. Add some honey to it and apply it to the face for about 10 to 15 minutes before rinsing it off with warm water. • Exfoliate your skin by using some mild scrubbers or cleansers on your skin at least three times every week. Before using the scrubbers, try to mild steam your face as this helps remove the whiteheads easily and also helps soften the skin in the process. • In order to reduce the risk of getting whiteheads, drink plenty of water to make sure that your skin is detoxified. These harmful toxins increase your likelihood of whiteheads.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Skin Cleansers

It is essential to keep your skin clean – cleansing regularly removes all the dead cells, dirt, and dust that tend to accumulate on the skin’s surface and clog the pores of the skin. These blockages often result in acne and blemishes, and a variety of other skin problems. Preventing these problems only requires a few basic and regular steps to keep your face naturally clean. Facial Skin Cleansers You should start with a normal cleansing of your face – remove all makeup from your face and place a hot towel over your face to help open the pores. This also helps to soften the dead skin cells and makes it easier to remove them. The next step is steaming – this helps open your pores further, and increases the blood circulation to your skin too. After you are done steaming your face, you can apply a home made face mask to cleanse your skin.There are many natural ways to make an effective facemask at home. Most of our home ingredients are excellent natural face cleansers. One of the most effective ways to prepare a facemask would be by mixing some yogurt, honey, egg yolk, lemon juice, and a teaspoon of olive oil. Apply this mixture all over your face for around fifteen minutes and then wash your face with cold water. Honey has great natural moisturizing properties, and lemon is an excellent natural cleanser, whereas the other ingredients give the skin an even tone. Applying grapes to your face is also a good cleansing method for all skin types. Split a few grapes into halves and gently rub your face with them for around ten minutes. Remember that cleansing alone is not sufficient for healthy, glowing skin. Moisturizing and exfoliation are also important, along with a proper diet. Some of the ingredients used in home made cleansers have moisturizing and exfoliating properties, and thus home made cleansers often do not require any additional treatment. However, if you do need to moisturize or exfoliate separately, you can still use simple ingredients available at home. Milk and cream, for example, are excellent moisturizers, and adding a little rice flour to honey makes for an excellent exfoliant. However, always be careful before using anything on your skin, even natural ingredients. Knowing your skin well will help you to avoid allergic reactions and irritation. After applying natural cleansers, if you feel redness on your skin or any kind of uncomfortable sensation, rinse your skin immediately with warm water and avoid using that ingredient in future.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Swelling of Lips

Swollen Lip Causes One of the possible causes of a swollen lip is the use of cosmetic products to which the soft skin tissue of the lips is allergic. An allergic reaction may also occur due to eating certain kinds of foods or due to exposure to irritants in present in the external environment. Often, a virus called herpes simplex is also responsible for swollen lips, especially if your immune system is weak due to ordinary ailments like common cold. If you have a cold sore, the herpes simplex virus can also be transmitted to your body from close physical contact with an already infected person. Also, during winter lips tend to get naturally dehydrated, as a result of which the person feels like licking her/his lips frequently, which can cause swelling. The deficiency of vitamin B in the diet may also be responsible for this condition. Home Remedies to Treating Swollen Lip However, you might find a few simple home remedies useful in treating swollen lips. Try to determine the cause of the problem. If it is a persistent or recurrent problem, chances are that the swollen lips are an allergic reaction to some foreign substance in your immediate environment. Change all your bed linen and curtains and keep a tab on what you eat and drink. Stay away from cheese, butter, refined wheat flour, manufactured foodstuff containing additives, nuts and figs, tea and coffee. You should also drink plenty of water, as this keeps your lips well hydrated and reduces swelling. Application of hot water on the swollen lips is also helpful in reducing swelling and pain. Soak some cotton wool or a piece of soft cotton cloth in a cup of hot water and dab your swollen lip with this wet cloth for around 10 minutes thrice every day. You can alternate this treatment by massaging the swollen lip very gently with a few ice cubes tied in a towel. These warm and cold compresses help reduce the swelling in a couple of days. Another easy remedy for swollen lips is to wet your finger and put it in a jar of common salt, and then rub the finger gently across the lip. Salt acts as a natural disinfectant and kills any germs that might be responsible for causing the swelling. You could also apply aloe vera gel or the juice of the leaves of this plant on the swollen lip every night before going to bed. Aloe vera has natural soothing properties that relieve inflammation. v

Monday, April 23, 2012

Aloe Vera

Benefits of Aloe Vera for Skin The aloe Vera plant is regarded as one of the best medicinal plants available. There are several benefits of this plant, both when taken internally and when applied externally. When taken internally, aloe is thought to cure various diseases such as insomnia, ulcers, indigestion, infections, arthritis and so on. When applied externally, it helps to treat burns, rashes, sprains, bruises, scalds, sunburn, eczema, and sore muscles. Apart from medicinal uses, aloe Vera also has several cosmetic benefits. It is now widely used in several kinds of face masks, medicated cream, moisturizers, face washes, medicated jellies and more. Aloe Vera gel is also used as an ingredient in many skin care and cosmetic products, where the aloe Vera is thought to increase the availability of oxygen to the skin and help strengthen the skin tissues. Aloe Vera can easily penetrate into the water-retaining layer of the skin and help nourish the skin further. Aloe Vera for Acne Aloe Vera can be used to treat acne in various ways: you can directly apply aloe Vera to your skin through creams, gels and lotions, or you can have it through pills or juices. Whichever form you use, there are strong indications that aloe Vera can be a highly effective ingredient to reduce acne, particularly if it is used on a regular basis. Applying aloe Vera gel twice a day after washing your face helps in reducing the redness and the flaking that often accompany acne. To get rid off acne blemishes or scars, it is often recommended that you have aloe Vera juice every morning and night. This should be had for at least six months for effective results. This would not only help reduce the scars or spots but also improve your skin color and complexion. However, aloe Vera by itself is unlikely to get rid of acne. For this to happen, your treatment needs to get rid of the dead skin cells that tend to accumulate and block your pores. Aloe Vera cannot achieve this, but regular exfoliation and use of an over the counter anti pimple cream containing salicylic acid should do the job effectively For dry skin, aloe Vera is a lot more effective, due to the reasons explained earlier. However, here to, aloe by itself is unlikely to be enough. Still, you can regularly apply fresh aloe gel to your skin two or three times a day. Ideally, you should also use a moisturizing cream to trap the moisture in your skin – this could be a cream that contains aloe as an ingredient.

Dark Spots on Face

Dark spots on the face are the result of local hyper pigmentation. When the concentration of the natural coloring agent in the skin, melanin increases in certain parts of the skin, they tend to look darker than the surrounding areas and appear as spots, mostly on the face and the neck, as these are often exposed to direct sunlight. Overexposure to sunlight is therefore one of the causes that triggers the appearance of dark spots. Sometimes, dark spots also appear on the skin as one progress’ in age, as the production of melanin becomes irregular with age. Home Remedies to Removing Dark Spots on Face There are several useful home remedies that can help you lighten and get rid of dark spots on the face. Eating lots fresh fruits and raw vegetables is a natural way of ensuring an even, flawless complexion as these detoxify and hydrate the skin. Fruits like pineapple and papaya are especially beneficial in this regards, as they are rich sources of vitamin E, which makes the skin look naturally glowing. Also, drink at least 8-10 glasses of water every day in order to keep your skin naturally well moisturized. Applying the juice of citrus fruits on the skin is useful in lightening your complexion. The juice of a fresh lemon is especially useful when applied every day on the dark spots, as the citric acid in this fruit acts as a natural bleaching agent. Another popular remedy for dark spots is to mix sour milk or cream and honey and apply this paste on the face every day. Honey is a natural moisturizing agent while the lactic acid in sour milk lightens the complexion of the skin without irritating it. For another remedy, massage your skin with aloe Vera juice or gel every night before going to bed. You could also crush some horseradish root and mix this with a little vinegar and rub the dark spots with a piece of cotton wool soaked in this mixture. After the juices dry, wash your face with lukewarm water. Rubbing the skin gently with the peel of a watermelon also helps reduce dark spots. Another useful remedy is to mix together one tablespoon each of oatmeal, yoghurt and sour cream and add a few drops of lime juice to this mixture. Massage your face with this paste and leave it on for 10 minutes before washing it away with water. In addition, slice a potato thinly and place the slices on your face for 15 minutes in order to bleach the spots naturally.

Chicken Pox Scars on Face

Chicken pox does not leave behind permanent scars on the face, sometimes the patient, especially if s/he is a child, scratches the blisters or the scabs, which might cause the infection to spread through fingernails and cause scarring. Thus, it is essential to keep the patient’s nails short during the period of the infection to prevent him/her from scratching his/her skin raw. Using mildly salted bath water is an easy way of reducing the itch and soothing the skin. You may also steep margosa tree leaves in the bath water of the patient in order to relieve him/her of the tendency to scratch the skin. Adding a spoonful of turmeric powder into the bathwater also helps, as turmeric has natural antibacterial properties that help to kill the germs in the scabs and blisters. Bathing in a tub of water to which some oatmeal has been added is also helpful in soothing itchy skin. Home Remedies to Reduce Chicken Pox Scars Besides these preventive measures, you can also follow a few home remedies to prevent and reduce the appearance of scars. Apply sandalwood oil on the blisters from the first day of their appearance till the day that the scabs fall off on their own. This soothes the skin and prevents itching. Massaging the skin with vitamin E oil is also useful in speeding up the natural healing process. You must apply this oil twice every day in order to make the scars disappear faster. For another remedy, use a few cloves of raw garlic to rub the area around the scars. The strong chemicals in the juice of garlic help remove scars naturally. Alternatively, use a slice of fresh lemon to massage your skin with, as the acidic nature of its juice heals scarred skin and leaves it looking smoother and lighter. Once the scabs fall off, apply cucumber juice on the scars daily for at least 15 minutes. Then wash it away with cold water. You could also apply honey on the scars every night before going to bed and wash it away the next morning with water. Honey tones up the skin naturally and gives it a firmer, smoother texture. Eating natural sources of vitamin K like spinach, broccoli, cabbage, turnip, lean meats and dairy products is useful for treating chicken pox scars, as this vitamin quickens the natural healing process of the skin. It is also necessary to stay away from carbonated and artificially sweetened drinks and beverages.