The Good News on Sugar
There is good news for you sweet tooth lovers out there! So it seems that eating sugary delicious treats may add a few inches around the middle. That being said, sugar does wonders for your skin. Do you desire that healthy glowing skin? Skip baking your favorite cookies with brown sugar, and exfoliate with it.
Brown sugar brings many benefits when applied to your skin. First of all the granules are so fine, it reduces the chances of micro tears in your skin. In other words, it is very gentle without clogging pores. This sweet brown stuff contains glycolic acid which is an alpha hydroxyl acid that breaks down the glue that holds all skin cells together. What does this mean? When you do not exfoliate your skin, your dead skin cells shed off very slowly making your skin look tired and dull. When you continually exfoliate the dead skin cells they are sloughed away and the skin cells below them are then pushed to the top. This is called cell turnover, and if you do this properly with the right products, your skin will be soft with a healthy glow. Glycolic acid also fights off bacteria! According to Heather Lindbergh of American Spa magazine, “as a natural humectant, sugar draws in moisture, keeping the skin hydrated and supple.” This is especially good for the dry winters we often feel here in Colorado. We know that you have some leftover brown sugar from the holidays, so here are some easy recipes, just for you!
Coconut Brown Sugar Scrub
¼ cup of melted Coconut oil
2-4 tbsp. of Brown Sugar (the amount of sugar should depend on how runny you want it)
Invigorating Scrub
¼ cup of olive or grape seed oil
2-4 tbsp. of brown sugar
2-5 Drops of peppermint essential oil
Oatmeal Cookie Scrub (This one is messier, but great)
¼ cup Olive, grape seed or coconut oil
2 tbsp. Brown sugar
2 tbsp. Oats
2-4 tbsp. of Milk
*For each of these recipes: mix all ingredients together, scrub gently onto skin, and rinse.
Before starting on your path to beautiful skin, check out these tips:
1. It is best to make these scrubs right before hopping in the shower.
2. Scrub in small circular motions, using only gentle pressure.
3. Although the brown sugar can feel so great on the skin, be sure to go over each area of the skin no more than three times.
Enjoy!
Jennifer Fulcher, Aqua Fleur Day Spa
American Spa, December 2013 issue “Sugar Blossoms” article by Maya Stanton
aquafleur 