Coconut Oil for Skin

In order to understand the role of coconut oil on the skin, we have to go through the process of wrinkle formation. The skin is made up of connective tissues, which are responsible for its elasticity and smoothness. In young people, these tissues are strong and with age, free-radical attack breaks them down and the skin looses its elasticity as well as its strength. It has been observed that a free radical attack can lead to a chain of such reactions and as a result the skin looses its smoothness and develops wrinkles. This can be countered with the help of antioxidants, which can stop the chain reaction caused by the free radicals. The body must get sufficient antioxidants from the diet and refined vegetable oils do not contain natural antioxidants.

It is also claimed that these refined oils may promote the production of free radicals in the body. You can also tackle this problem with the help of skin products with antioxidants. As most of the commercial skin products lack antioxidants, coconut oil is considered to be best for skin care as it is loaded with antioxidants, which can fight free radicals and prevent aging. It can penetrate the deeper layers of the skin and strengthen the connective tissues.

Benefits of Coconut Oil for Skin

By fighting the free radical attacks on the skin, coconut oil can give you smooth and supple skin, free of wrinkles and blemishes. Hence, coconut oil as a skin moisturizer is very popular and widely accepted. It aids the skin in getting rid of the dead cells and give you a smooth and glossy look. This oil can protect you from the blemishes caused as a result of aging and sunlight exposure. Apart from enhancing the appearance of the skin, coconut oil is also useful in curing acne, wounds, rashes, burns and skin inflammation. It is also believed that it can improve the complexion, apart from protecting the skin from getting dry and flaky. Coconut oil is considered as one of the best massage oils. Unlike mineral oils, which can sometimes cause side effects, coconut oil is found to be completely safe for use in massages. Even though, there are three to four types of coconut oil available in the market, virgin coconut oil is the best for skin. You can even make coconut oil at home, especially virgin coconut oil.

Owing to the benefits of coconut oil for skin care, many of the skin care products, like soaps, lotions, creams, etc. have this oil as one of the main ingredients. It is also used in the treatment of some skin problems, like eczema and psoriasis. Apart from skin care, coconut oil is used for hair care too. You too can adopt the practice of using coconut oil, for achieving a young and healthy skin.

Herbal Remedies for Skin Whitening

• Dry orange peels in sun. When they are fully dried, grind them in a mixture and make powder. Add raw milk to it, make a paste and apply it on your skin everyday. Rinse it off with lukewarm water when dries. It’s tested pack for skin whitening.
  
• Take sandalwood powder, add lemon juice, tomato juice, cucumber juice to it, make a paste and apply on the skin till it dries to get a brighter, lighter and even skin tone.

• Gram flour has whitening agents to it. Take 2 spoonfuls of gram flour; add a pinch of turmeric to it, few drops of lemon juice and few drops of milk cream. Make it a paste and apply on the skin. When it dries scrub it off. It can be applied all over the body everyday.
  Soak almonds in water overnight. Peel them off in the morning. Make a paste and add honey to it. Apply it on face and scrub it off when dries to make skin whiter and glowing.
  
• Potatoes have bleaching agents in them their juice is quite helpful in giving an even skin tone. Reduce pigmentation and blemishes. It can be applied on the skin everyday to get it whiter.

Healthy Foot Care Routine

When it comes to beauty care one aspect of our body that we tend to neglect often is our feet. Your feet carry the weight of your entire body and if often one of the most abused and least cared for parts of your body. Foot care is very important in order to keep your feet healthy and beautiful. The skin on your feet is very delicate and foot skin care on a regular basis is a must if your feet are to look beautiful. Given below is a foot care routine, that is simple and is not time consuming and that you can follow a few times a week.

* The first step to good foot care is to remove the hard skin from your feet. You may have to use a pumice stone or apply cream generously on the area in order to remove the dead foot skin. Soak your feet in a bowl of slightly hot water. This will soften the dirt and the dead skin, which will allow you to remove it easily. You could use a foot file as well, rub your skin gently and rinse off the flaky residue.

* After this soak your feet for about 10 min in a bowl of warm water. Add some mineral salts or palm sea salts, along with a few drops of lavender essential oils that will relieve the aches and reduce the swelling.
* Dry your feet, especially between your toes. Trim the nails of your toes by cutting straight across the tip. Shape the corners with an emery board.
* Massage your feet with rich foot skin cream. Cup your hands on either side of your foot and with your thumbs firmly press the upper part of your foot while pushing your thumbs outwards.
* Gently massage the anklebone in a circular motion to remove any stiffness in the ankle.
* Remove the extra cream from your nails. Then place cotton wool tufts in-between your toes to keep them apart.
* First apply a base coat of nail polish and then apply a second coat if required. When you apply nail polish, begin from the middle of the nail with one quick stroke and then work outwards.
* Wait for ½ an hour before wearing your shoes.

How to get rid of black lips

Quite a few of our readers have complained about black lips. Even though we haven’t had this issue ourselves or any immediate friends, this is quite a common issue and usual reasons are as follows:

Using lipstick and other lip products of cheap brands

• Exposure to sun
  
• Heavy application of lipstick
  
• Excess drinking of tea or coffee
  
• Smoking (This is the most important and the commonest reason)
  
• Allergy
  
• Dryness

Here are some tips that can help with black lips:

• You can use your toothbrush simply to exfoliate the dead skin cells off your lips. But remember to use them gently to avoid hurting your delicate lips. Apply a thin coat of a good lip balm after this. Incase your lips are chapped too, then stick to the same remedy, but with the toothbrush coated with Vaseline this time.
  
• Massage your lips gently with a good lip balm every night. Also make sure that you drink at least eight glasses of water every day. During daytime, use lip balm with at SPF 15 or higher to protect them against glaring sun rays. Follow this routine religiously every day.
  
• Try using concealer on your dark lips before wearing your favorite lipstick. For better outcome, use a lip liner to outline your lips and then fill them up with lipstick or lip gloss. Always go for best brands as far as cosmetics are concerned.
  
• Incase you have noticed that your lips have started to turn dark after you have begun using a lip balm or lipstick from a mediocre brand, discontinue use immediately. Consult a dermatologist for repairing the damage undergone.

Maintain a healthy diet and have lots of fruits and green vegetables. At the same time, avoid consuming caffeine and smoking totally if you don’t want your lips to turn dark. Try working out at least thrice a week to keep a good health.

Hair Fall And Dandruff (Urdu)

Soft Skin (Urdu)

Remedies for hair growing (Urdu)