For centuries, our ancestors have considered Honey as heavenly nectar. And our Ayurveda Sastra has already introduced us to honey’s diverse medical properties.
Honey for acne is a natural solution often prescribed by medical practitioners. Ayurveda has described honey as liquid gold for its antibacterial, antiseptic, anti-allergic, and anti-oxidant qualities.
Why Does Acne Occur?
Acne is commonly caused due to the blockage of the sebaceous gland which results into inflammations. Hormonal activity also often makes the sebaceous gland to malfunction and produce excess sebum which clogs the pores and causes inflammation. This makes the pores susceptible to infections by microbes and gets severe day by day.
Why Does Honey Treat Acne?
As we already know, acne is a skin disease that involves inflammation of your skin. The excessive sebum secretion, blocked pores together makes a thriving ground for bacteria.
And we all know that, what we use to fight bacterial? Yes, antibiotic. And yes you guessed it right, honey is an unbeatable antibiotic. There are some other causes too:
- Honey is a natural anti-inflammatory agent.
- It has a lot of antioxidants and vitamins like vitamin B2, B3 and B5.
- It’s antiseptic in natural due to its antibacterial properties.
- It’s a good moisturizer.
So honey will heal your acne with its anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. And at the same time it will gift you a soft glowing skin.
How Does Honey Help In Acne Treatment?
So, if you are still not quite convinced about anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of honey. Here are some facts for your grey matter.
- Besides fighting bacteria causing acne, it has hydrogen peroxide which is a natural antiseptic. This hydrogen peroxide heals the wounds created by acne infection.
- Honey also reduces swelling, redness and pain related to acne.
- The natural antioxidant prevents the damage caused by free radicals and improves glow and softness of skin.
- When you consume honey regularly, it helps you to build up a strong immune system. Thus protects you from other infections too.
- Consuming honey also purifies blood and boost metabolism. Proper blood circulation and purified blood helps our body to get rid of toxins. Less toxin in body mean less chance of acne breakout.
Raw Honey or Manuka Honey, Which One Is Better For Acne?
We often get confused about what type of honey to use – Raw or Manuka! So let’s find out which one is better actually. Raw honey is the natural honey without being pasteurized or processed. It has plenty of anti bacterial, anti-inflammatory agents.
On the other hand, bees make Manuka honey from pollen of manuka bushes. Compared to raw honey it has stronger antimicrobial properties due to the presence of enzyme methylglyoxal 100 times more than raw honey. So it has stronger antimicrobial effect than raw honey.
How to Use Honey for Acne Treatment?
We are assuming by now that you are well convinced about honey’s ability to fight acne. But you might be still confused about how to use it properly. Let’s know some effective ways:
Remedy 1: Raw Honey
- Clean your face
- Apply raw honey all over the affected areas.
- Leave for 30 minutes
- Wash it with lukewarm water and then cold water.
Remedy 2: Honey & Nutmeg Face Pack
- Mix equal quantity of honey and powdered nutmeg.
- Apply on affected area like a face pack.
- Leave for 1 hour and rinse with water.
- Repeat once daily.
Remedy 3: Cinnamon & Honey
- Mix two tablespoons of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder.
- Apply the paste on affected area.
- Leave for 10-15 mins and rinse with lukewarm water.
- Apply toner.
- Repeat regularly.
Remedy 4: Honey and Sugar Scrub
- Mix a small amount of honey and brown sugar
- Gently massage the affected areas for 3-4 mins
- Rinse with water
- Repeat regularly.
How To Use Honey For Acne Scar Treatment?
Honey work as a wonder even on those hideous scars. It helps to regenerate skins thus removes scars.
Home Remedy 1: Honey and Lemon
- Mix few drops of honey and lemon juice
- Apply on acne scars
- Leave until dry.
- Rinse with cold water
Home Remedy 2: Honey and Olive Oil
- Mix one teaspoon of olive oil with a tablespoon of honey
- Massage on areas with acne scars for 3-5 minutes.
- After massaging place a warm wash cloth over your face and let it cools off.
- After the cloth cools off, use it to wipe your face. It will remove dead skin cells.
Home Remedy 3: Honey and Nutmeg
- Mix a teaspoon of nutmeg and honey
- Apply on scars
- Leave for 30 minutes and rinse with lukewarm water.
Home Remedy 4: Honey and Cinnamon
- Mix a tablespoon of honey, cinnamon powder and nutmeg altogether
- Apply on acne scars
- Leave for 30 minutes and rinse with lukewarm water.
Some Honey Face Masks For Acne Treatment
Apple Honey Mask
Preparation:
Scoop out the seeds of the apple and put the rest into the mixer. You will get a fine pulp. Then add three to four tablespoons of honey into the pulp. The amount of the honey will depends on the size of apple and the area you want to cover. Mix well into a uniform paste.
How to Apply:
- Apply thick layer of this mask on your whole face.
- Leave for 10-15 minutes and let it dry up.
- Then clean it with lukewarm water.
Facts:
Apple works as a gentle scrub for cleaning your face. Glycolic acid in apple facilitates exfoliation. Together they clear up the dead skin cells and open clogged pores. This eliminates the microbial infections too.
Lemon Yogurt Honey Mask
We have already discussed about this treatment with lemon and honey but with yogurt you can make another variation of mask.
Preparation:
Mix all the ingredients proportionately in a bowl and get a lotion like thin paste.
How to Apply:
- Apply one layer of the mixture on your whole face
- Wait until it dries.
- Then apply the second layer and keep repeating the process until you have used the whole batch.
- Then wait for 10-15 mins and let the entire paste dries off
- Rinse with lukewarm water.
Facts:
The citric acid in lemon is an excellent cleanser. Yogurt on the other hand is a good cleanser as well as natural softener. Adding some yogurt is important for people who have medium to dry skin, as only lemon juice alone can make your skin feel dried.
Aloe Vera-Honey Mask
Preparation:
Mix aloe-vera gel (the semi liquid substance you get inside aloe-vera leaves) with required quantity honey to cover the whole affected area.
How to Apply:
- Apply the entire preparation on the whole affected area like a thick paste
- Let it dry
- Rinse with lukewarm water.
Facts:
Aloe Vera is well known for its skin friendly properties. It moistens, soothes and tones skin. With Honey it works best on sensitive skin.
Tea Tree Oil-Honey Mask
Preparation:
Add required amount of tea tree oil (2-3 drops) with one tablespoon of honey.
How to Apply:
- Apply on the whole face
- Wait for 20-25mins
- Wash with lukewarm water.
- Repeat this application for 2-3 times a week.
Facts:
Tea Tree oil has strong antimicrobial and fungicidal properties. Combined with honey it efficiently eradicates acne.
Some Drawbacks Which You May Not Like
- Honey is sticky, and preparing different masks, face packs or scrubs can be messy.
- It’s a long term plan. You won’t get results overnight
- Honey and some other ingredients can be allergic for some of us. Consult your dermatologist before start using any of these.
Some Precautions To Take
- Due to strong Anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties, you may be allergic to honey. To know for sure perform a small skin test. Apply few drop of honey on your skin. Leave for few hours. If you notice any irritation or rash, you are allergic to Honey.
- Ingredients of these treatments are all natural. Although to confirm that you aren’t allergic to any of them, perform a skin test. Apply the mask or face pack on a small patch on your wrist and wait for few hours. If you experience some irritation, don’t use that treatment on your face.
- Some ingredients like aloe Vera, apple they are very less likely have any side effects. But regardless to your allergen history, it’s always safe to perform a skin test.
- While using tea tree oil you need to be cautious. Due to strong germicidal and fungicidal properties it’s shouldn’t be used during pregnancy. Tea-tree oil may not suit some skin types. Prior start using any essential oils you should consult a practicing aroma therapist.
Some General Guideline To Follow
Here are some points to follow while trying these methods.
- Always try to use freshly prepared masks, packs or scrubs.
- You can store them in fridge, but not more than two- three days.
- You already know about Manuka honey. It’s considered to be the best choice in terms of anti-microbial properties.
- After applying masks don’t clean your face with any kind of soap or face wash. Just plain water is fine
- After rinsing your face with lukewarm water, wash your face with cold water. It will tone your skin.
- Always do skin test before applying any masks or face pack.
- Always clean your face before applying any mask or face pack
So do you know any other remedies to treat acne? If so, help your fellow readers, by telling us about it in the comment section below.
