6 DIY Skincare Ingredients To Never Use
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When chemical skincare products fail, DIY natural remedies come to the rescue! Or so the internet will have you believe. While some home remedies can actually work wonders, others may show disastrous results! Why the big gap though? Well, it’s all in the ingredients you use. Certain ingredients are very skin-friendly due to their mild nature. But the commonest ones that form the base of almost all such recipes are frankly poison for your skin! And you really want to stay as far away as possible from them.
Here are 6 DIY skincare ingredients you should immediately blacklist and vow never to use again:
1. Lemon Juice
Used in practically every DIY home remedy, lemon juice is far from a friend to your skin. Blame it on the high acidity of lemon juice! An average lemon’s pH value is about 2, while that of your skin is 4 to 5.5. So, when you apply lemon juice to your skin, you disrupt its natural pH balance.
Moreover, the acidic nature of lemon juice can break your skin’s protective layer, thereby exposing you to the elements and leaving your skin flaky and dry. And as if things couldn’t get any worse, prolonged use of lemon juice on your skin can make it prone to skin damage! However, if you must absolutely use lemon, make sure you mix it with water and honey.
2. Sugar And Salt
They are not that great for your skin when used independently either, but when used in a combo? They are deadly! Commonly used as exfoliators, both of these ingredients can do more harm than good. Although they are crystalline with granular sizes, both salt and sugar crystals can damage your skin quite easily. Use them in a combo and you could end up with rashes and red marks coupled with inflammation and itchiness all over your skin!
3. Baking Soda
Another one that’s quite common in homemade skincare recipes, baking soda is often used as a pore cleanser or scrub. While using it sparingly won’t cause much damage, if you make it a part of your regular skincare routine, you can end up with some nasty results. Consistent use of baking soda on the skin can cause acne, breakouts, red patches, dryness, and oiliness (depending on your skin type). Even if you mix baking soda with water to counter its harsh effects, the mixture still remains alkaline. Which means it can throw your skin’s natural pH balance for a toss and even disrupt its bacterial composition.
4. Cinnamon
Ah, the delicious aroma of cinnamon can lure you into using it as an ingredient for your homemade body scrubs. But you’ve got to stop right there! As divine as it may smell, cinnamon is only good as long as it’s in food and not on your skin. When you apply cinnamon directly onto your skin, you give a free pass to problems such as blisters, boils, irritation, and even acne! So then, what’s the point of a skin home remedy that only worsens your problems? Just use cinnamon in your dishes rather than in your skincare regime.
5. Raw Eggs
Part of countless hair masks, raw eggs are also used on the skin, albeit less often as compared to hair. And why shouldn’t they be? They are loaded with goodness – from a high protein content to their amazing ability of improving your complexion as well as the elasticity of your skin! That said, even though they sound pretty awesome, using them is a rather tricky thing as they also pose certain ‘risks.’ The whites of raw eggs contain bacteria known as salmonella, which can lead to a bad case of food poisoning. And when applied to the face, you can expect more disastrous results to follow. So, steer clear of this one.
6. Mayonnaise
Definitely the most bizarre ingredient on this list, mayonnaise is quite a hot ingredient these days in a variety of home remedies for skin problems. But think about it. Do you really think it’s good for your skin? First of all, it’s jam-packed with fatty acids and oils, making it kind of really greasy. And second of all, can you imagine what would happen if you apply fat and oil to your face? Swollen pores and acne, that’s what! So, if you really are keen on using mayonnaise, just leave it for the dry ends of your hair. As for your skin, it’s a humongous no-no!
If you ever come across skincare recipes that make use of the above items as their key ingredients, do not try them. They’ll claim to do you a lot of good but you’ll realize soon enough that that’s not quite the story. If you really want flawless skin, try out organic products on the market. They’ll do the job just fine, and hopefully minus the side effects!
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