Skin care: Home remedies for acne

Acne is a skin condition that is characterised by pimples, scaly red skin, pinhead and black heads.

Sadly, the scars remain even after acne diminishes. Acne is a condition that is synonymous with adolescence and can spill into adulthood. Here are the best home remedies for acne.

Acne is a skin condition that is characterised by pimples, scaly red skin, pinhead and black heads. Sadly, the scars remain even after acne diminishes. Acne is a condition that is synonymous with adolescence and can spill into adulthood. Here are the best home remedies for acne.

References: RealAcneTreatment.net, Jiva Ayurveda

What are the causes of acne?

- Hormones
- Stress
- Pregnancy
- Cosmetics
- Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Firstly, improve the hygiene of the facial skin. Wash your face frequently with warm water to wash off the dirt and excess oil. Wash the oil off with a mild soap and a loofa or mild sponge. Avoid oil-based cosmetics or completely avoid cosmetics to reduce acne.

To reduce acne your skin needs three important things:

- Water
- Sunlight
- Fresh air

Follow a balanced diet to reduce the inflammation of the skin. According to ayurveda, have food that you can digestion easily, chew your food properly, and avoid oily, spicy and pungent food. Consume vegetables and drink a lot of liquids.

Ayurveda treatment for acne:

1. Mix lodhra - lodh tree, dhanyaka - coriander and vacha - acorus calcmus with water and apply it to face. Leave the mixture on for 20 minutes and wash it off with luke warm water.

2. Apply a mixture of haridra/haldi - turmeric, chandana - sandalwood and water. Keep the paste on your face till it dries and wash it with warm water.

3. Consume one teaspoon of amla or Indian gooseberry powder, once in the morning and once again in the evening. Amla will help cleanse the system internally.

4. Make a mixture of neem, haldi, saffron, red sandalwood, tulsi and fuller's earth or clay-like material with milk. Spread this paste evenly across your skin.

5. Tomatoes have beneficial properties that will reduce acne and reduce suntan. Prepare a mixture of ripe tomatoes and cucumber juice and apply it to your face.

This mixture will benefit you in several ways:
- absorb excess oil
- well-toned skin
- fights bacteria to prevent acne

6. Apply a paste of apple and honey to reduce pimples and acne. This mixture also makes your skin healthier and rejuvenates your skin.

7. Keep aside some amount of your ice tea and prepare a few ice cubes by freezing the tea. Gently rub the green tea ice cubes on your skin. Green tea has strong properties to fight bacteria. Use the green tea ice cubes twice or thrice a day. Plus green tea flushes out the toxins.

8. Cut an aloe vera leaf and apply the gel on the surface of your skin to reduce acne. If you do not have an aloe vera plant, there are several aloe vera gel products available in the market.

9. Today, neem is parcelled in various ways - oil, powder, soaps, paste and it is also used in toothpaste. Neem has antiseptic and anti bacterial properties that makes it an effective for reduce acne.

10. Prepare a mixture of nutmeg and raw milk to fight acne and reduce it. But this is a long process, after applying the paste made of raw milk and nutmeg; leave it on for two hours.

11. Papaya is a fruit with several health benefits. For acne, squeeze the juice from raw papaya and apply it to the acne affected area. Raw papaya juice reduces swelling and fights bacteria on the skin.

12. Pomegranate is available all year round, but now you can use it to fight acne. Here you need to peel off the pomegranate skin, roast it and make it into a powder. Add few drops of lime juice to the pomegranate powder to make a paste.

13. Consume lime water or nimbu paani and green tea often to eliminate toxins from the body. Besides reducing acne, lime water and green tea purifies the systems and even cools the body, especially during summer.

14. Indians love to have rice everyday. Now you can use rice flour to cure acne. Make a paste of rice flour with milk and apply it to the acne affected area. Let it dry for 30 minutes and wash it off with warm water.

15. Take some lime juice and add some honey to it to fight acne. Lime juice has strong properties to fight bacteria while honey helps improve your skin.

16. Acne is a result of inflammation of the skin. Hence try gently rubbing your skin with ice cubes to reduce inflammation. It does not burn your skin and reduces scars.