With the chill in the air, I can just feel my skin drying out by the minute. And, with October being #breastcancerawareness month, we must consider eliminating toxins from our life that can lead to disease. Wholesome, edible and organic ingredients are great alternatives to skin care. Remember that your skin can absorb most of what you apply topically to it, so watch out for those parabens, SLS and fragrance that are found in most beauty products.
One of my holistic remedies is to slather moisturizing honey, organic oats and flax on my skin once a week. When the Wall Street Journal published a story about me using food on my face, they opened with, “when Jen Casey eats her oatmeal in the morning, the leftovers rarely end up in the trash. That’s because she rubs them all over her face“. They weren’t far off.
As a humectant, honey naturally draws moisture to the skin, oats are soothing and moisturizing, and flax provides antioxidants and essential fatty acids, not to mention they make a great exfoliant.
As we know, eating all these ingredients provide nutritious benefits, and our skin absorbs the nutrients when used topically. They are all non-toxic, edible ingredients, so your mask is actually good enough to eat. As always, first do a patch test. Apply a small amount to skin and wait 5 minutes to see if you have an intolerance or allergy to any ingredient.
In a food processor, pulse:
- 1 Tablespoon organic oats
- 1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds
Once ground until fine, transfer into a small bowl and add
- 1 teaspoon honey
Mix well and apply to a clean, damp face. Lightly massage into your skin to gently exfoliate dry skin. Leave on for 15 minutes, rinse well and apply a natural moisturizer while skin is still damp.