Women in their 50s will understandably despair over their skin especially when their wrinkles appear deeper, their age spots increase in number, and their skin seems to sag with each passing day. Well, why despair over aging gracefully aka Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton when you have the benefit of the best in natural skin care ? We are specifically referring to herbal skin care products many of which can be made at home using kitchen staples.

The emphasis on skin care using herbal methods is on the vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, among other beneficial substances, contained in the ingredients. These beneficial ingredients nurture the skin from the inside out, thus, the recommendation to both consume and apply the ingredients, as necessary.

Let’s start with the vitamins and minerals in fruits, vegetables and herbs. When you eat these food items, your skin cells are being nourished. When you apply the homemade processed versions of these food items, your skin is being nurtured from the outside. So, do eat and apply fruits and vegetables for a holistic approach to herbal skin care.

We suggest the following food items according to their colour:

• Orange and Yellow – These are rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin E and beta-carotene, all of which are potent antioxidants. Foods like carrots, winter squash, bell peppers, oranges, mangoes and tangerines also promote collagen production.

• Red – Foods like red peppers, tomatoes, guavas, papayas, strawberries, red onions and cranberries are rich in lycopene, not to mention Vitamin C, too. This is a powerful antioxidant that provides protection against ultraviolet rays.

• Green – Brussels sprouts, broccoli, collards, kiwi and spinach all contain abundant amounts of micronutrients like calcium as well as Vitamins C, A and E that fight the effects of aging.

• Blue and Purple – Berries like blueberries and blackberries, eggplants and red grapes contain the highest concentration of antioxidants.

As for topical applications in herbal skin care, we suggest mixing rolled oats, dried rose petals, cornmeal, sea salt, facial clay, rosemary essential oil, and warm water to make a paste. Apply on your skin for 10 minutes and then rinse well.

And of course, the staples of any natural skin care regimen are to drink plenty of water, to get sufficient hours of sleep, and to exercise on a regular basis. After all, the best in herbal skin care deserve the best in healthy lifestyle habits at any age, be it in your 20s or 50s and beyond.

During winter, the skin becomes dry because of low humidity. Although many people believe that a colder environment is better for the skin, the winter season can actually cause damage to it. Once the winter season is over, the skin also becomes more susceptible to sun damage.

To prevent the skin from drying out during the winter, you need to moisturize it with lotion or with other herbal skin care options. Moisturizing should be done right after taking a shower, ideally within three minutes while the skin is still damp. There are herbal beauty skin care options that you can choose from to prevent your skin from drying out during the winter.

Marigold

Marigold, also known as calendula, has healing, anti-inflammatory and skin softening properties. Saponins, marigold’s active ingredients, soothe rough skin to restore its radiance. The best way to use marigold is to add the flowers during your facial steaming sessions, so that the open pores will allow it to penetrate into your skin.

Rose

Rose is often the ingredient in premium face creams and other herbal skin care products. It has skin-softening properties that can help improve rough and dry skin during the winter. To use it, mix 12 to 30 drops of rose essential oil for every 30ml of night cream. You can use the mixed cream for your face or for other parts of the body.

Aloe Vera

Commonly used to treat sunburns and other skin conditions, aloe Vera can also smooth rough skin and speed up cell growth. You can use fresh aloe Vera by squeezing out the inside flesh of the leaf and applying it directly to the skin.

Comfrey

Just like marigold, comfrey has healing and anti-inflammatory properties for beauty skin care. It also has moisturizing properties, which makes it ideal for treating dry skin during the winter season. It is popular in North America where it grows abundantly. To use it, add a drop of comfrey essential oil to every 35ml of your herbal skin care night cream. This is ideally used for the face but you can also use it for other parts of your body where the skin is rough or dry.

Because summer is about showing a little skin, it is inevitable to expose your skin to the sun. Without proper protection, however, the mix of humidity, heat and sweat can damage the skin. These damages may cause skin conditions such as sunburn, acne, sunspots and rosacea to appear. To prevent this from happening, herbal skin care and other natural methods of protecting the skin are the best way to go.

Shower

Shower before and after swimming to reduce the amount of bacteria that may remain on your skin from the water. Use herbal soaps to maintain the moisture in the skin. Pat yourself dry gently rather than rubbing the towel on your skin, which can cause irritation.

Moisturize

Because your skin may be exposed to the sun or immersed in salty water, you need to keep it moisturized every after bath. There are herbal skin care products that you can use to moisturize the skin. Many of these products are made from fresh ingredients.

Protect

Always apply sunscreen protection first before exposing your skin to the sun. Choose a sunscreen product that has at least SPF 45. This should be enough to protect the skin, although choosing other herbal skin care products that has a higher Sun Protection Factor may be better. Choose skin care products that do not contain unnecessary fragrances and preservatives that may contribute to skin damage.

While the warm weather may be great for you, the beauty skin care protection that sunscreen products bring can only go as far as protect the first layer of the skin. The best way to protect the skin from the extreme heat of the sun is to stay inside when UV radiation is the strongest, usually from 10am to 4pm.

Hydrate

To restore the skin’s natural moisture, drink lots of water. During the summer when you are exposed to too much heat, it is recommended that you drink at least eight glasses of water for your beauty skin care. The more water you drink, the better.

Our skin goes through a lot each day. It gets dried out, stress out, and deals with many toxins in the air. Cuts and scrapes can occur on skin and other skin problems like eczema and acne can occur. Keeping skin healthy can be a challenge, since skin suffers so much each day. However, by using herbal skin care options, we can work towards skin that looks great and feels healthy. Here is a look at some herbal skin care remedies to try.

Dry Skin Care Remedies

If you’re dealing with dry skin, you can find some herbal dry skin care remedies to help. When the skin loses the natural oils made by the body, dry skin occurs. Harsh soaps and dry air often cause this to occur. When you want to moisturize dry skin, aloe very is a great herb to use. It is often used in lotions to offer healing and moisture to skin. Lavender also is a great herb to combat dry skin, since it helps to balance the product of oil.

Oily Skin Remedies

Many people today deal with oily skin and it can be as frustrating as dry skin. Too much oil can make skin look shiny or it can lead to breakouts. If you’re looking for some herbal skin care remedies, witch hazel is a great option to consider. It works as a toner, toning skin and drying the oil. Lemon also can act as an astringent, cleaning the oily skin deeply.

Remedies for Acne

Acne is a common problem that doesn’t just affect teenagers. Herbal remedies can be used to treat acne effectively as well. Echinacea is a common herb known to help treat acne. It is an antioxidant and can help to increase immune function, eliminating the infection that causes acne to occur.

Eczema Remedies

You can even find herbal skin care remedies that help to treat eczema, which is another common skin condition. This condition can make skin itchy, scaly, red, and very painful. Chamomile is one herb that can to calm the skin. You can drink it or you can place chamomile tea bags right on the skin to eliminate redness and to sooth inflammation.