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By Popular Demand: Yes, I Wash My Face With HONEY!
- Mar 8, 2010 at 11:21 PM
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- Comments (8) Total Views (2384) Everyone can see this journal post.
Okay. I've had more than one person ask me about me washing my face with honey. It's true, I slather the sweet stuff all over my face in the shower. I can't tell you exactly what provoked it, other than the fact that I'd heard about it somewhere, along with other natural beauty remedies like mayonnaise in the hair and oatmeal as an exfoliant.
So I did a little googling, and I'd like to present my findings for anyone who's interested in chemical-free beauty...stuff.
Ya'll know I'm not a crunchy mama by any means. Hell, I made Hamburger Helper Stroganoff for supper tonight, so I'm far from a Green Queen LOL!
Why Honey?
Basically, honey is an antibiotic. I was breaking out something crazy from using way too much exfoliating scrub. If you exfoliate too much, your skin can't keep up, so it overcompensates and causes you to break out more. I have classic T-zone combination skin. I get dry and flaky in some parts and oily and gross in other parts. I read somewhere or other that I could use honey.
Honey is used as a first aid thingamajigger by some homeopathic peeps. So naturally, it'll help your breakouts. It's also a natural moisturizer.
I had a half-empty bottle of honey sitting in my pantry just waiting to be used. So I was like "Oh, okay. We'll try this honey facewash thing I read about a long time ago. Can't hurt, right?"
How to Use It
You squeeze a little bit of honey (about a tablespoon) into your hand. It helps if your face and hand is wet beforehand, which is one reason I use it in the shower. You'd think honey would be all sticky and gross, but once it gets wet it becomes surprisingly pliable. I rub it between my hands and rub it on my face, focusing on areas that tend to get flaky and gross (like my cheeks and forehead). I then shave my armpits or do whatever mundane shower thing I have to do. Then I rinse my face like I would any other facewash.
What About Moisturizer?
Well, in my (relatively short) experience in using the honey as a facewash, I still need to use my Olay moisturizer. But I promise you, it makes a HUGE difference compared to regular facewashes. The majority of store-bought facewashes contain something called sodium laureth sulfate, an ingredient that strips the natural oils from your hair and skin. The no-poo shampoo peeps can tell you all about that. (I didn't make it that long with the no-poo experiment. I might try it again one day!)
So I think it all depends on your personal skin. I can tell you that my face is a lot more hydrated than it was before, I no longer have flaky grossness. It feels clean tight, but not stripped and bare. Maybe someone with more normal skin wouldn't need to use a moisturizer.
Raw or Regular?
If you do a google search for "honey as a facewash", the majority of people use raw organic honey. That's great, but I use regular Aldi honey LOL. Do whatever you feel comfortable with.
What Else is Honey Good For?
I came across a website while googling. Here's a good long list of other stuff honey is said to be good for. Whether it's all true or just homeopathic old wives' tale mumbo jumbo is for you to decide!
Wounds or Grazes - cover wound with honey and a bandage. Excellent healer.
Honey for Burns - apply freely over burns. It cools, removes pain and aids fast healing without
scarring. Besides being a salve and antibiotic, bacteria cannot live in honey.
Bed Wetting - a teaspoon of honey before bed, aids water retention and calms fears in children.
Sleeplessness - a dessert spoon of honey in a mug of hot milk aids sleep and works wonders!
Hyperactivity - Honey is a mild sedative with minerals,
vitamins, amino acids etc. Replace all white sugar with honey. White
sugar is highly stimulating with no food qualities!
Nasal Congestion - place a dessertspoon of honey in a basin of hot water and inhale fumes after
covering your head with a towel over the basin. Very effective.
Fatigue - dissolve one part of honey in 3 parts of water and
keep in the fridge. Honey is primarily fructose and glucose and so it
is quickly absorbed by the digestive system. (Honey is a unique natural
stabilizer - ancient Greek athletes took honey for stamina before
competing and as a reviver after competition).
Facial Deep Cleanser - mix honey with oatmeal approx. 50/50 till thick and apply as a face-pack. Leave
on for half an hour then wash off. Great as a deep cleanser for acne etc.
Poor Digestion - mix honey with apple cider vinegar approx.
50/50 and dilute to taste with water - aids digestion. (Also reputed to
be wonderful for the joints).
Hair Conditioner - mix honey with equal quantity of Olive Oil
and rub into hair. Cover head with a warm towel for half and hour then
shampoo off. Feeds hair and scalp. Hair will never look or feel better!
Sore Throats - let a teaspoon of honey melt in the back of the mouth and trickle down the throat. Eases
inflamed raw tissues.
Stress - honey in water is a stabilizer - calms highs and raises lows (true). Use approx. 25 percent honey to water.
Food Preservative - cakes with honey replacing sugar stay fresher longer due to natural antibiotics.
Reduce liquids by approx. one-fifth to allow for moisture in honey.
Baby's Bottle - four teaspoons of honey to a baby's bottle of
water is an excellent pacifier and multi vitamin additive. If baby's
movements are too liquid then reduce by half a teaspoon; if too solid
increase by half a teaspoon. [see caution regarding infants below].
Teething - honey rubbed on a baby's gums is a mild sedative and anaesthetic. [see caution regarding infants below].
Osteoporosis - English research has shown that a teaspoon of honey per day aids calcium
utilisation and prevents osteoporosis. Essential from age 50 onwards.
Long Life - one common fact worldwide is that the most
long-lived people are regular users of honey. An interesting fact yet
to be explained is that beekeepers suffer less from cancer and
arthritis than any other occupational group worldwide. (due to the 72+ trace elements in wild flower honey).
Migraine - use a dessertspoon of honey dissolved in half a glass
of warm water. Sip at start of attack. If necessary repeat in 20
minutes. Always effective (so tip goes) as migraine is stress related. (here is another tantalizing indicator that migraine headaches may be nothing more than a trace element deficiency).
Conjunctivitis (pus in the eye) - honey dissolved in equal quantity of warm water. Apply when cooled as lotion or eye bath.
Those interested in a more scientific explanation can refer to Kaye M.
Russell's 1983 MSc thesis, Waikato University, "Antibiotic qualities of
NZ honeys" - a long-ignored paper, which has been validated by very
recent biomedical research (Jan. 2000); available through the public
library on request.
(http://www.truehealth.org/ahealt03.html)
So there you have it. I thoroughly enjoy doing something "good" for my skin. Like I said, I'm not usually hardcore into natural remedies, but I'm really glad I picked up this habit. I only wore minimal makeup the other day, and I felt great. I'm not telling you that you MUST go try it, but I really think it's something good to keep in the Pantry of Ideas, if you know what I mean.
Happy Honey-ing =)
Comments:
:D
Honey is not suppose to be given to children under the age of one (1) because of the risk of botulism.
Baby's Bottle - four teaspoons of honey to a baby's bottle of water is an excellent pacifier and multi vitamin additive. If baby's movements are too liquid then reduce by half a teaspoon; if too solid increase by half a teaspoon. [see caution regarding infants below].
Other than that, this list is really cool!
Hey! that's great. You know i'm pretty cruchy myself. I wash my face with baking soda but i still have problems with dry skin and oily skin. I've never heard of this honey thing before but I guess i have to try it now! lol
This is awesome - I'll have to try out some of these. Thanks for posting it.
wow! i never knew about half of these. the bedwetting one really does work, or so says my 5 year old's bed.
Oh yeah, I didn't notice the baby's bottle one until I'd already posted it. ACK!
Oh boy, I'm so curious....want to try this - but so terrified of breaking out even MORE! Haven't had the best experiences with natural face products before, but really want to find something that works for me. What's the harm in trying, right? Another "honey healing remedy".....my brother had the WORST, DEEPEST, LARGEST splinter in his foot that I had ever seen. After trying, with no success, to get it out, we finally sprinkled it with baking soda, slathered on some honey, and covered it with a bandaid. Later that night, he removed the bandaid, and the honey / baking soda combo had brought the piece of wood (can't even really call it a splinter) to the surface where he could very easily and painlessly remove it. Pretty cool. Thanks for posting this - I'm all for new things. Haven't yet washed my face this morning...... so here we go!
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Interesting for sure. I'm marking this so I can check it out further later on.
- clarewillow
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