The following is a list of proven natural skin treatments so often overlooked because of the promises in advertising of chemical laden skin care products marketed today. The natural skin treatments listed are for reference only and you should always speak with your doctor before starting supplementation or when treating a skin condition.

Natural Skin Treatment for Acne:

Azelaic Acid-a natural compound shown to have effects comparable to prescribed creams for the treatment of acne and rosacea.

Tea Tree Oil-does not make the skin flaky and is known to cure mild acne Read the rest of this entry…

Most of us have read about the many health benefits of organic apple cider vinegar but how many of us actually add it to our daily diets? Sounds kind of gross, I know. But what if it were to change your life? As you will read further on in this post, organic apple cider vinegar has done just that for thousands of people.

In addition to curing allergies, sinus infections, high cholesterol, flu, chronic fatigue, candida, acid reflux, sore throats, arthritis, and gout, people are raving about the curing of chronic skin conditions such as acne, rosacea and even dermatitis.

Dr. D.C. Jarvis, MD who wrote “Folk Medicine, A Vermont Doctor’s Guide to Good Health” believes that apple cider vinegar could make any living thing healthier. He believes, Potassium, which is found in just the right amounts in natural apple cider vinegar “is so essential to the life of every living thing and that with out it there would be no life. Potassium’s main function is to promote cell, tissue and organism growth. It is necessary to replace dead cells and tissue. There is no better source of potassium than vinegar—particularly natural organic apple cider vinegar.” Read the rest of this entry…

We have all heard of and should be using omega 3 found in flax and fish, omega 6 found in primrose, and even omega 9 found in olives, but what in the world is omega 7? Could this be another natural skin treatment produced by mother nature?

One legend has it that back in ancient Greece, Greeks were amazed that deserted and wounded horses emerged from a jungle abundunt in a natural source of omega 7 oil known as Sea Buckthorn with shiny, radiant hair and even stronger than before. The Latin name for this source of Omega 7, Hippophae, meaning “Shiny Horse” came from this legend.

So, what are the benefits of Omega 7 or Sea buckthorn?

Omega 7’s have been used for centuries to promote skin health. Sea Buckthorn oil is used to promote the healing of skin concerns such as burns, sores, wounds, eczema and also improves conditions of mucous membranes, including ulcers, lesions, erosions.

Sea Buckthorn oil is used to combat wrinkles, dryness and other symptoms of malnourished or prematurely aging skin. It has anti-inflammatory and anti-microbiological activity, relieves pain and promotes tissue regeneration.

The benefit of Sea Buckthorn also extends to the mucus membranes that line the stomach/GI tract, upper respiratory tract and vagina and is taken as a natural dietary supplement. These benefits combined with the external skin benefits have made it a staple of herbal remedies.

Yet another example of nature’s way of healing. Another natural skin treatment. Remind me again why we continue to use dangerous topical medicines to treat acne and rosacea?

Pure Skin Tip

Did you know that mineral oil and petrolatum found in many skin care products dry out your skin and have been shown to cause chemically induced acne?

The appearance of wrinkles is an indication that your skin no longer produces sufficient amounts of natural oils. Dead skin cells, naturally sloughed off to make way for a new skin layer, should be removed from your skin on a weekly basis. This is easily accomplished with  some at home recipes.

For wrinkle-age skin, look for exfoliants with natural plant based ingredients. Ones with pineapple extracts are an excellent choice, strong enough to do the job, but not so strong as to leave your face in an abraded, tight condition of redness which AHA’s can cause. A good exfoliant leaves your skin looking smoother and clearer, diminishing the appearance of wrinkles and enlarged pores. The exfoliant also acts as a toner, tightening your skin without making it hurt! Read the rest of this entry…

More and more women are searching for an all natural skin treatment and for good reason. Research is showing that what you put on your body quite possibly could end up inside your body. Not what most of us want especially when most products contain harmful additives, fillers and artificial chemicals. True natural skin care products are made with ingredients as nature intended, without mineral oils, parabens, synthetic preservatives, artificial colors, fragrances and other harmful substances.

There is no reason anyone must purchase harmful skin treatments when there are more and more companies offering all natural and organic products in many cases for less money. Read the rest of this entry…

Earlier this month, I wrote about the deadly psoriasis drug, Raptiva in Deadly Psoriasis Treatment or Natural Psoriasis Treatment . According to the FDA, it will pulled from the US market, thank god! Today, I recieved this information from the Health Sciences Institute newsletter:

After being tied to at least 3 deaths (from a fatal brain infection called PML, which Jenny Thompson told you about in the e-Alert back on March 30), popular psoriasis drug Raptiva has been — or rather, will be — yanked from the market by Genentech. According to the FDA, by June 8, 2009, the drug will be completely unavailable…at least in the U.S.

Don’t wait ’til June to stop taking this deadly drug! Call your doctor right away about tapering off Raptiva — stopping cold turkey can cause serious health problems — and finding a better way to keep your psoriasis under control. But beware the other commonly prescribed treatments…

Like methotrexate, which has been linked with severe liver damage. Or cyclosporine, which can increase your risk of hypertension and kidney problems. And let’s not forget the other immunosuppressants — drugs like Enbrel, Amevive, and Remicade — all of which do exactly what they’re supposed to…suppress your immune system, potentially setting you up for a whole host of deadly infections.

Bottom line: Get off Raptiva quickly but safely. But don’t let your doctor switch you to an equally dangerous drug. Ask him about ALL the options for treating your psoriasis – and check the HSI e-alert archives for information about much safer natural choices.

–Michele

Taking care of your skin on a regular basis from the inside should be priority. Even so, we all need a little help when we haven’t been particularly diligent about our daily rituals. It seems that skin problems always arise at the most inopportune times like when you have a party to go or a hot date. Some of the following natural remedies for skin by Rona Berg may help those last minute disasters.

Dehydrated skin: Make an exfoliating mask by mixing 2 drops of lavender oil with baking soda and water until it becomes a paste. Put on face and leave on for 5 minutes. Rinse and moisturize.

Dull Skin: Refrigerate aloe vera gel for at least an hour. Pat it on face and leave on for 10 minutes. Rinse.

Flaky Skin: Place a sprinkling of sugar in your palm and dampen with water. Gently massage the flaky areas and rinse.

Oily Patches: Spritz your face with rose water in a spray bottle every morning or dab it on after cleansing. Keep in refrigerator.

Pimples: Make a paste with water and sea salt and apply it to blemish twice a day soak a piece of bread in milk. Place it on the pimple for up to 30 minutes. Rinse.

Irritated or sensitive skin: Make a pot of chamomile tea. Pour into an ice cube tray and freeze. Wrap a cube in a thin cloth and rub on face.

Other natural remedies for skin that I have used personally:

Rose hip seed oil: softens lines around eyes.

Sweet almond oil: feels as luscious as it sounds

Evening primrose oil: soothes eczema

Lavender: soothes irritations and dries pimples.

We all have off days…use these natural remedies for skin and no one will be the wiser.

Taking care of your skin is so important. It is the only skin you’ll ever have. You determine how well it will look now, and in the future. Therefore you want to be certain that the products or other items that you are using to care for your skin are the best possible. This is why it may be advantageous to create your own natural skin care products rather than taking a chance on store bought products. These products are often filled with harsh chemicals and other mysterious ingredients that you would not want to put on your skin if you really understood what they were. When you make your own products, you know exactly what goes into them. You can also save money, and even give away your products as gifts!

Did you know that you have many great items already in your home that can be used to create your natural skin care products? Everything from fruit to honey, oatmeal to eggs can be used to creative skin lifting products, moisturizing products, and more natural skin care remedies.

It can be as simple as creating a natural face lift with two egg yolks and a teaspoon of sugar, or a bit more complicated such as this bath milk recipe.

Cleopatra’s Bath Milk

• 2 cups powdered milk
• 1 Tablespoon Jojoba or Sweet Almond Oil
• 2 Tablespoons dried rose petals (can be obtained at large health food stores)
• 1/2 cup ground oatmeal (grind oats finely in your blender)
• 10 drops lavender essential oil or other favorite oil

Mix all ingredients well and keep in a glass jar in the refrigerator. To use, put as much as you like into your bath under running water. You can also buy reusable muslin tea bags at the health food store and place the mixture in these. To use, just drop one in the bath water.

The beauty industry is a huge multi-billion dollar industry. We are all looking for more natural skin. Unfortunately, we are bombarded with ads in magazines on the television that tell us these companies have succeeded in creating beauty in a bottle.  Every day there is something new to make you look younger. Yesterday it was Acai, today it is Resversatrol. Many of these products including Resversatrol have only been tested in mice. You buy the next biggest beauty fad, use it for awhile and then there it sits in your cabinet collecting bacteria. Why? Because they don’t always work.

Manufacturers make money hand over fist selling products to us that are “supposed” to make us look more youthful, give us softer looking skin, hide our imperfections, and make us look like a supermodel. But they are not so forthright in telling us that their products are full of chemical ingredients that can do more harm to us than good. Looking younger in the moment is just not worth it though when you may eventually get cancer because the skincare products you were using contained carcinogenic chemicals. For beautiful natural skin and good health on the inside as well, we need to rediscover natural skincare ingredients and products. Your skin is your biggest organ and it needs to be treated with care.

If you really care about your health from the inside out, then you must make an effort to get rid of conventional products and start using organic and natural ingredients in your beauty routines. Here are some easy ways to go natural:

1. Keep your skin healthy from the inside with a healthy diet. Get rid of fruit drinks and soda. Drink plenty of water to flush out toxins and impurities. Water is an internal shower for your body so make sure to drink your eight to ten glasses a day.

2. Use natural oils and natural moisturizers that won’t clog pores like olive oil or coconut oil. You usually only need a small bit around the nose and under their eyes.

3. Use coconut oil as a moisturizer for your driest spots like lips, heels and elbows.

4. Skip washing your hair everyday as the soap can dry your skin. When you do wash your hair use a shampoo bar with natural ingredients and healthy oils.

5. To wash make-up off just rub some olive oil onto your face and wipe off with a soft, dry rag that will exfoliate your face as well. Microfiber cloths are particularly nice for cleansing the face.

6. Use a natural sea sponge to apply facial toner.

7. Try your hand at making your own skin care products with easy ingredients like salt, sugar, oatmeal, milk, honey, olive oil, or avocado oil. They are cost effective and you know exactly what you are putting on your skin. You don’t need a chemistry degree to create beauty products of your own.

8. Dry brush your body to exfoliate your skin and slough off dead skin cells. This is a centuries old practice that is still used by many today.

9. When purchasing products read the labels carefully and only buy products with recognizable ingredients, organic if possible, without parabens or fragrance.

10. Get some sun every day but not too much. For more natural skin, it needs sunlight for optimum health but staying out to long and damaging your skin isn’t good either so strike a balance and wear protective clothes and a big sun hat if you can instead of using chemical sunscreens.

Eczema is a common problem in babies, children, and adults alike. It presents as a red, scaly rash that itches and sometimes oozes when it blisters and breaks open. It can be extremely uncomfortable and even miserable to endure, in severe cases. Thankfully eczema can and often does respond very well to natural remedies, sometimes to the point of clearing up completely. Here are some of the most common suggestions:

Many natural minded physicians are convinced that eczema is mostly due to food allergies. If you can identify the allergen you can avoid it or pursue some other method of healing the immune system so the body doesn’t react to it. The most common allergens would be dairy products, wheat, soy and corn. Incidentally, advocates of raw (unpasteurized) milk claim that switching to raw milk has cleared up some cases of eczema. The best way to find out if it is a food allergy is to eliminate the most common allergens listed above from your diet for several weeks. Once your body is free of these products, begin to introduce them one at a time and see how your body reacts and which foods cause your eczema to worsen.

Natural remedies for eczema include essential fatty acids which are known to provide some relief. Examples of this are the types of fats in fish, Evening Primrose Oil, Vitamin E, coconut oil, organic butter from grass fed cows, and Cod Liver Oil. Talk with your health care practitioner about proper doses of these nutrients. Supplements of essential fatty acids (omega 3 and 6), vitamins E and A (to moisturize the skin), vitamin B and quercetin (a flavonoid which prevents skin rashes), zinc, black currant oil, cod liver oil, bio-flavonoids are definitely worth trying.

Oatmeal baths can be helpful to ease the itching. You can purchase colloidal oatmeal at drug stores, or make your own by grinding oats in your blender and then putting them in muslin tea bags. Place one in your bath water, and use tepid to warm water. Do not use soap. Then while your skin is still wet, apply an organic lotion.

Probiotics can be helpful in healing a gut imbalance. Foods such as naturally fermented and cultured vegetables (sauerkraut, kim chi, etc), kefir, yogurt and kombucha might help your immune system to normalize and heal. There are many natural remedies for eczema however it may take a little trial and error before finding the right supplements and finding the trigger a foods.

For many, it is almost impossible to find relief with diet changes and supplements so an over the counter eczema treatment may be needed to help end the pain and embarrassment of this annoying skin condition.