Green Tea for Acne Relief

Author: Susan Anderson

Having trouble with acne outbreaks? Tired of spending money on expensive treatments? Worried about the long term use of medications? Are you wanting to try a more natural approach to curing an outbreak? Try Green Tea!

Green tea comes from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. The difference between green tea and black tea is in how they are processed. Whereas black teas are fermented, green tea leaves are steamed. This prevents the EGCG compound (epigallocatechin gallate), a powerful antioxidant, from being oxidized.

Green tea can be an effective aid in a variety of issues, and is recommended for use in combating acne for several reasons. It acts as an anti-bacterial substance, decreasing hormonal activity. Since acne is often caused by hormones, which produce excess oil and clog pores, causing blemishes, green tea may be a good remedy for this problem.

The antioxidants found in green tea are beneficial in acne prevention because they help the body fight against free radicals which create cell and tissue damage. It helps reduce inflammation and aids in detoxification, which is needed to help clear up acne. Green tea also has very few potential side effects, especially in comparison to other acne products and medication.

WAYS TO USE GREEN TEA FOR ACNE

• Brew up a cup of green tea to drink and help cleanse your body from the inside out.
• Splash cooled green tea onto your face, it is a good astringent, just apply with cotton balls.
• After drinking a cup of green tea, rub the tea bag over the affected area for additional support or use as a compress.
• Purchase a bottle of green tea extract and add a few drops to your favorite hot or cold beverage.
• For topical use, add drops of green tea extract to an organic based, fragrance free cream or lotion, then apply to your skin.
• Green tea can also be purchased in capsules form- making it convenient and easy to use any time
  

Green tea is easy enough to find on the shelves of your local grocery store, and the price is right- inexpensive. If you are in search of capsules and extracts, a local health food store or online supplier is your better resource. Regardless of what form of green tea you use, start to incorporate it into your daily routine, besides helping with acne it has the added side effect of boosting your health in a variety of other ways. But we will save that for another article.

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Detox Yourself Through Dry Brushing

Source: Dr Denice Moffit, Natural Health Techniques

DID YOU KNOW?

• The skin is the largest most important eliminative organ in the body and is responsible for one quarter of the body’s detoxification each day?


• The skin eliminates over one pound of waste acids each day in the average adult, most of it through the sweat glands?


• That the skin is known also as our third kidney?


• That the skin receives one third of all the blood circulated in the body?


• That the skin is the last to receive nutrients in the body, yet the first to show signs of imbalance or deficiency?
  

Detoxification is performed by a number of organs, glands, and transportation systems, including the skin, gut, kidneys, liver, lungs, lymphatic system, and mucous membranes. The dry brushing technique deals with detoxification of the skin.

Dry brushing is a way to stimulate all the above organs of detoxification because it provides a gentle internal massage.

Dry Brushing was recommended by the Finnish Dr., Paavo Airola for his patients 30 years ago and is still popular in European spas and many cancer treatment centers today. The Russians, Turks and Scandinavians have used this treatment for centuries. Dry brushing is promoted as a preventative for dry skin and a way to exfoliate the skin, thus stimulating skin renewal that is super soft to the touch, but there are many other benefits as well:

BENEFITS OF DRY SKIN BRUSHING:

1. Removes cellulite

2. Cleanses the lymphatic system

3. Removes dead skin layers

4. Strengthens the immune system

5. Stimulates the hormone and oil-producing glands

6. Tightens the skin preventing premature aging

7. Tones the muscles

8. Stimulates circulation

9. Improves the function of the nervous system

10. Helps digestion

11. AND it’s easy, inexpensive and invigorating!

WHAT YOU NEED TO DRY BRUSH:

To dry brush, use a soft natural fiber brush with a long handle, so that you are able to reach all areas of your body. One with a removable head with a strap for your hand is a good choice.

A loofah sponge or a rough towel can also be used. Most nylon and synthetic fiber brushes are too sharp and may damage skin although I found a softer bath brush with nylon bristles that seems to do the trick. The important thing is to find something that is just right for your skin. Once your skin becomes “seasoned,” you can switch to a coarser brush.

TIPS AND TRICKS FOR DRY BRUSHING:

Always dry brush your dry and naked body before you shower or bathe because you will want to wash off the impurities from the skin as a result from the brushing action.

You can do the brushing head-to-toe or toe-to-head. It really doesn’t matter as long as the entire body is brushed. Long sweeping strokes starting from the bottom of your feet upwards, and from the hands towards the shoulders, and on the torso in an upward direction help drain the lymph back to your heart.

Note: Be sure to brush toward the heart, brushing away from your heart puts extra pressure on the valves within the veins and lymph vessels and can cause ruptured vessels and varicose veins.

Use light pressure in areas where the skin is thin and harder pressure on places like the soles of the feet.

Skin brushing should be performed once a day, preferably first thing in the morning. A thorough skin brushing takes about 15 minutes, but any time spent brushing prior to bathing will benefit the body. If you are feeling ill, increasing the treatments to twice a day is good. You can also dry brush areas of cellulite five to 10 minutes twice a day to achieve cellulite dissolving but the technique needs to be done consistently for a minimum of five months.

Avoid sensitive areas and anywhere the skin is broken such as areas of skin rash, wounds, cuts, and infections. Also, never brush an area affected by poison oak or poison ivy.

Finish up with your regular shower and ending with three hot and cold cycles. That means turning on the water as hot as you can take it for several seconds, then as cold as you can handle it, then hot, then cold for three cycles. End with either hot or cold. This will further invigorate the skin and stimulate blood circulation, bringing more blood to the outer layers of the skin.

After getting out of the shower, dry off vigorously and massage your skin with pure plant oils such as olive, avocado, apricot, almond, sesame, coconut or cocoa butter. Add a little peanut and Castor oil to the mix if you have arthritis. Edgar Cayce says this works to take out some of the pain, and we’ve found that to be true over the years.

Clean your skin brush using soap and water once a week. After rinsing, dry your skin brush in an open, sunny spot to prevent mildew.

Any well designed program will take about 30 days to see and experience the changes. Please be patient and keep up the program! For a thorough lymphatic cleansing, perform skin brushing daily for a minimum of three months.

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