Simply Natural Ideas: Love the skin you're in

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Simply Natural Ideas: Love the skin you’re in

7 July 2011 4 Comments

Rochelle Hanson/ARDEAN PETERS

By Rochelle Hanson

When you take a bottle of sunscreen and read the label, can you pronounce the ingredients? Most of us are conditioned to buy generic products off the shelves to supply our basic needs. I’m not an expert on the topic, but I do know that whatever you put on your skin will be absorbed into your blood stream. Would you ever consider eating your sunscreen? What about your body lotion or your makeup, would you eat that? It’s common knowledge that the chemicals in most of these consumer products are not healthy for us, yet for some reason, most of us are not concerned about it.

Have you ever considered using coconut oil as a natural sunscreen? Because it’s a saturated fat, the bonds are stronger. Coconut oil is built to take the heat. It remains stable when under direct heat while cooking even at high temperatures up to 160 C or 350 F. Both inside and out, coconut oil is tremendously beneficial to the body. I just wrote a blog post about the benefits of coconut oil. They are countless. You’re welcome to have a look at the blog if you’d like to know more.

It’s been a long time since I’ve bought a regular consumer product for my skin. Knowing that the skin is the largest organ of the body, I decided that if I am going to be treating my body well on the inside, it didn’t make much sense to neglect the outside and clog up my pores with chemicals. The first thing I stopped buying is off-the-shelf facial cleansers. I was spending so much money trying the latest greatest thing. For months I used a mixture of baking soda and water as a facial cleanser. This was very effective but it was also a bit drying and i had to follow up with an oil to moisturize. Then I switched to apple cider vinegar and water. I also used that for months as well. Really enjoyed the benefits but also found it to be a bit drying.

Just about two weeks ago I started using the Oil Cleansing Method. My friends, let me tell you, this is it. I could tell right away. Every time I use this method, my skin improves in appearance, elasticity, and texture. It’s getting to the point where I’ve finally decided to let go of all the makeup, well at least the foundation. This was a very difficult decision for me to make because I am a recording artist, and people are always taking pictures of me. I’ve tried to let go of it before, and I always reverted back. I’ve decided to commit to 30 days with no makeup. I’m loving the skin that I’m in.

So, what is the Oil Cleansing Method? Simply stated, you are cleansing your face with oil. I do it in the shower. For the past two weeks I’ve been using 100% castor oil. I rub a dime sized amount of the oil into my skin in a circular motion. I let the steam of the shower open up my pores and allow the oil to penetrate. Then i take a clean washcloth used only for my face, and wet it with water as hot as I can stand it. I place the cloth over my face and press the cloth into my skin, pulling out the oils. Then I wipe any excess oils away.

This may sound strange, but when you think about it, oil bonds to oil, so if you use clean oil to remove the gunk and dirt that’s trapped in the oils of your skin, the two oils will bond and your face will be clean. There are a ton of ladies doing this on YouTube, which is where I got the idea. The one who impressed me the most is, MopTopMaven. Watch her video on oil cleansing to get even more ideas. Her skin is absolutely gorgeous. She will walk you through the entire process and you can see her entire skin care regimen using all natural products.

So the next time you’re about to slather on the body lotion or smear on the sunscreen, think about your overall health and the cumulative impact of the chemicals you choose to put on your body. You are beautiful, you are intelligent, and you deserve the very best. Consider a natural alternative. Start loving the skin that you’re in.

Rochelle Hanson is a Freelance Writer and Natural Health Enthusiast, offering practical tips on natural health and wellness. For recipes, motivation, and ideas on natural health, connect with Rochelle on Facebook, and subscribe to her blog, Simply Natural Ideas.