Every good cook knows how to use spices to enhance a dish and enrich the culinary experience. Spices are also known to have certain health benefits, such as aiding digestion and warding off infection. But did you know that they can also be beneficial when applied topically as a part of your skin care regimen? The following takes a look at three popular spices that can rev up your beauty routine.
Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a perennial plant of the ginger family. The rhizomes, or root-like subterranean stems, are boiled and dried, then ground into the deep yellow-orange powder we find on the spice rack. Curcumin is the active ingredient which gives turmeric its distinct hot peppery flavor and mustard-like aroma. It also gives the spice its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, making it a key ingredient in anti-aging creams and masks. In addition to neutralizing environmental toxins, there is evidence that turmeric can fight viral and bacterial infections.
Look for turmeric in the following products
Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) is obtained from the bark of a small evergreen tree native to India, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The thin inner layer of bark is extracted from harvested branches then left to dry where it curls into rolls called quills. Once dry, the bark is either ground into powder or processed to extract the essential oil. Applied topically, cinnamon has astringent properties that can help regulate sebum secretion, making it useful to balance oily skin. It is also warming and stimulating.
Cinnamon can be found in these products:
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale. Its culinary uses are varied; fresh ginger can be used as is, pickled or stewed. Dried and powdered it becomes the familiar spice used in gingerbread and the like. Due to its antioxidant compound, gingerol, it fights skin-damaging free radicals but can also help even skin tone and boost radiance. It is also energizing and believed to improve circulation.
Look for ginger in: