September 2020

Smooth-Glowing-Skin-Consuming-Sweet-Potatoes

Smooth Glowing Skin Consuming Sweet Potatoes – There are many healthy benefits from diligently consuming sweet potatoes. For those who want smooth, bright and radiant skin, diligently consuming sweet potatoes can also be a solution.

Not inferior to yam, sweet potatoes also have properties that are good for the skin. Best used regularly for maximum results.

This plant, which is still related to potatoes, is known as a good source of carbohydrates for health. Apart from containing starch, sweet potatoes also contain omega 3, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and zinc. The vitamins are quite complete, namely vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin E, and vitamin K.

Especially for the benefits for the skin, sweet potatoes can be eaten directly or blended into natural face masks. Sweet potatoes help brighten your face and also make your skin softer and younger looking. The book ‘Healing Foods’ published by DK Publishing House wrote, “The high levels of beta-carotene make sweet potatoes good for the skin by repairing free radicals that cause skin aging.”

Sweet potatoes are indeed rich in vitamin C and Vitamin E, which are very important for keeping skin healthy, radiant and supple. Vitamin C helps increase the collagen which tightens your skin. The antioxidants contained in sweet potatoes also make the face glow naturally. Another super ingredient in sweet potatoes are anthocyanins which help prevent blemishes and dark spots.

Sweet potatoes have a sweet taste. So in cooking you also have to be careful. If the sweet potato is fried, it can actually lose its nutrients. Then it is better steamed or boiled. This will help keep important carbohydrates and nutrients from being lost. To process it, boil the sweet potatoes for 30 minutes until soft. Next, mash with butter and then sprinkle some spices on top. Enjoy the heat while to make it even more delicious.

Another way is to add sweet potatoes to stews or salads. Apart from being more delicious, the addition of sweet potatoes provides good carbohydrate intake for health.

Overcome-Facial-Expression-With-Bananas

Overcome Facial Expression With Bananas – Adult acne is a nasty thing. Just when you thought you’d put those awkward teenage years behind you, you wake up one morning in your mid to late twenties, and there it is: a ginormous, inflamed, middle school-esque pimple staring back at you from your forehead…or your nose…or your chin… Or all of the above – ewww…

Whether you’ve done your time with teenage acne or not, seeing it again during your adult years is not fun – and I’m speaking from personal experience! I’ve tried everything, from pills, to creams, to Proactiv-type products. Nothing worked, at least not for long. Fortunately for me, the problem fixed itself on its own and I now only battle the random breakout here and there.

My younger cousin is now going through the same thing, so for the past few months, I’ve made it my mission to find something that would help her. I didn’t want her to go down the same path as I did with pills, creams, etc. Now that I have this blog, I knew it was my duty to help her find a natural, chemical-free alternative to the steroid-laden pills and creams that are prescribed at the conventional dermatologist’s office.

Lo and behold, this link about using banana peels randomly crossed my path one night, and I sent it to my cousin and never thought about it again. A few weeks later, on our visit down to Florida, I noticed her skin looked much better and her acne scars were starting to fade. Imagine my surprise when she told me she’d been using the banana peels trick and loved it!

She even jokingly informed me that she’s become the “banana-nazi” so to speak, making sure no one throws away banana peels in her presence

The steps are very simple:

  • Take a small piece of banana peel and rub it on the affected area for a few minutes until the inside of the peel turns brown.
  • As it dries, your skin will absorb the vitamins and nutrients in the peel. I leave it on for about 30 mins. and then wash it off with warm water. At night, I just leave it on overnight, then wash off in the morning.
  • Do this 3 times a day, and in a few days, you’ll notice results!

Even if you don’t have actual pimples on your skin, this trick can also help reduce acne scars from old breakouts. That’s where I come in: I used this on some old scars around my chin and jaw line and really noticed results within a couple days!

I’m not brave enough to share before/after pictures for the world to see, but the original poster graciously did this for us in her follow-up post. Just seeing those pictures was reason enough for me to try it and to send the link to my cousin!

If you’re looking to do away with commercial products and harsh chemicals on your skin, I urge you to give this a try. It’s totally worth a shot: what’s the worst that can happen – you get some banana on your face for a couple days? Totally worth the risk

So Why Does This Work?
Banana peels are chock-full of antioxidants, including lutein, which may help protect the skin against sun damage. They also contain esterified fatty acids, which have actually been isolated and incorporated into a patented lotion (Exorex lotion) used to treat eczema and psoriasis!

Some extra notes and other uses

  • Banana peels can also be used to treat warts as well! Just tape a piece of the peel to cover the wart, leave on overnight, and remove in the morning. Continue with nightly treatments until wart is gone.
  • To stop the itch from bug bites and poison ivy, rub banana peels on the affected area – no more itching!
  • Banana peels may also help with hemorrhoids because of the sugar content, which helps them shrink.
  • Reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles by rubbing banana peels on your skin, which helps to tighten and tone the skin.
  • Psoriasis sufferers may also find relief by rubbing banana peels on the affected areas, and may see results within a few days or weeks.
  • Banana peels contain lots of potassium, and the antioxidant, lutein.
  • Use ripe banana peels, to ensure the best results! And make sure they’re fresh; you don’t want to use an old peel that’s been lying on the counter for a few hours. (So yes, you may have to recruit some scheduled banana eaters for you

How To Save the Banana Peels
There’s been lots of questions and ideas regarding how to save the peel to use it for subsequent treatments, so you’re not eating several bananas per day. And a reader (Hi Alison!) was kind enough to share her technique, which works great:

I’ve fine tuned my technique to cutting a portion of the skin from the banana at a time- just a shallow incision around a section big enough to do my face with, then peel off and use. That way it all stays in tact and 1 banana can go 1 or 2 days depending on size. The fruit gets exposed to the air but still good in a smoothie at the end on the day!

A-Tips-For-Getting-Bright-Skin

A Tips For Getting Bright Skin – a  major component  and signal of healthy skin is a natural glow. But causes like lack of sleep, stress, age, and even what you eat can rob your complexion of its radiance. Transform skin that looks dull and tired to luminous and glowing with expert tips and

skincare product picks from Good Housekeeping Institute Beauty Lab scientists and dermatologist experts on how to make your skin glow naturally, no matter how much time you have: months, one or two weeks, overnight, or even minutes!

1. Cleanse regularly

Key to luminous skin: clearing your “canvas” by thoroughly removing debris like dirt, oil and pollution particles that can clog pores and cause dullness. Wash your face morning and night by massaging in a small dollop of face cleanser lightly with fingers in circular motions, working from the inside of the face out for full coverage, says GH Beauty Lab Senior Chemist Sabina Wizemann.

Try our best-tested face wash for boosting radiance, Fresh Soy Face Cleanser, for daily use, and do a deeper cleanse weekly by applying your face wash with a facial cleansing brush, like Beauty Lab test winner and Good Housekeeping Seal star ProX by Olay Advanced Facial Cleansing Brush System.

2. Exfoliate your skin

“One of the best ways to brighten skin and boost its glow both immediately and long term is by exfoliating,” Wizemann says, yet nearly half of GH readers skip it, our survey found. “The process removes skin’s outer layer of dead cells so its surface is smoother and clearer and reflects light.”

Apply either a physical exfoliant, like a face scrub, two to three times per week or a chemical exfoliation, such as a face peel once per week for sensitive or dry skin and three times maximum for other skin types, she suggests. Try the Beauty Lab’s top-tested skin-brightening face scrub, Acure Brightening Facial Scrub, or peel, Philosophy The Microdelivery Triple-Acid Brightening Peel, which also evens skin tone, 71% of testers reported.

For more radiance, follow with a layer of moisturizer, like the GH Seal star Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel, and shield skin with broad-spectrum SPF 30+ facial sunscreen or day cream, as exfoliation makes it more prone to sun damage, including dark spots. GH Beauty Lab test-winning L’Oréal Revitalift Bright Reveal SPF 30 also contains glycolic acid, a gentle exfoliant, as well as brightening vitamin C.

3. Look for brightening skincare ingredients

In topical skincare treatments like serums and moisturizers, look on the packaging
for terms such as “brightening” and “skin tone-evening,” and ingredients like vitamin C, “an antioxidant that brightens skin by blocking an enzyme that produces pigment,” says GH Beauty Lab chemist Danusia Wnek. Try GH Seal star No7 Early Defense Glow Activating Serum, made with vitamin C.

Niacinamide (vitamin B3) “slows pigment production to lighten dark spots,” Wizemann says — our Beauty Lab test winner SkinCeuticals MetaCell Renewal B3 is packed with it. Resorcinol and alpha-arbutin, break down pigment for a more even skin tone, says Cynthia Price, M.D., a dermatologist in Phoenix. She suggests SkinBetter Science Even Tone Correcting Serum Face.

Daily application of these star brighteners can illuminate your complexion over time: Effects can be visible within a few weeks, with optimal results in about three months.

4. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate

“Lack of hydration makes your complexion dull and even accentuates wrinkles,” says Jeanine Downie, M.D., a dermatologist at Image Dermatology in Montclair, New Jersey. “Apply a topical moisturizer morning and evening to replenish hydration.”

The best type to choose? “Our testing shows that face lotions and creams are generally more hydrating than oils, serums, and other formulas,” explains GH Beauty Lab Director Birnur Aral, Ph.D. “They’re emulsions (blends of oil and water components) that carry hydrating ingredients into skin’s top layers, helping it hold moisture.”

To rehydrate the skin barrier, try GH Seal star Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream, which increased skin hydration by 50% over 24 hours in Lab testing. For a fast fix, apply a hydrating mask, such as Beauty Lab test winner Skin Laundry Hydrating Facial Sheet Mask, which boosted skin moisture levels by 25% in minutes.

5. Use shimmery lotion to boost glow

Good news: You can also get a glow instantly. The new category of skincare and makeup hybrid products called “glotions” combine the hydrating benefits of a moisturizer with the radiance-boosting effects of highlighter. (One GH Beauty Lab favorite: L’Oréal Paris True Match Lumi Glotion Natural Glow Enhancer.)

These formulas contain humectant ingredients, such as glycerin and hyaluronic acid, that draw moisture into skin to immediately make it appear plump and smooth, Wnek explains, mixed with finely milled minerals like mica that reflect light to give skin an instant but subtle allover glow.

To apply, do as makeup artists do: Smooth one on as you would a face lotion before makeup, wear alone for a natural look or tap a dot on the high points of your face, such as the tops of your cheekbones and underneath the arches of your eyebrows, to get a touch of no-makeup radiance. Try the Beauty Lab’s picks, below.

6. Eat antioxidant-rich food

Yes, what you eat can have an effect on your skin’s glow. Load up on grapes, berries and nuts like pecans and walnuts, which are rich in polyphenols such as ellagic acid and resveratrol. “Preliminary research has linked this type of antioxidant combats free radicals to help protect skin cells from UV damage like hyperpigmentation,” says former GH Nutrition Director Jaclyn London, M.S., R.D. Aim to incorporate them into your diet daily in meals, like breakfasts, salads, or desserts, or alone as a snack.

7. Know when to call a dermatologist

To tackle stubborn skin hyperpigmentation issues such as large or numerous dark spots (from sun damage or other causes) and melasma for long-lasting clarity, visit a board-certified dermatologist, who can recommend the best options for you. These can include prescription topical products, in-office treatments like professional facial peels, microdermabrasion and lasers, or a combination of therapies, says Pearl E. Grimes, M.D., clinical professor of dermatology at UCLA in Los Angeles.

“For sun damage, like dark spots and pigmentation from acne scars, lasers such as broadband light and intense pulsed light are very effective,” Dr. Price says. “Procedures like microneedling, an intensive form of exfoliation, as well as a series of chemical peels, work best for melasma.”