Many people take care of their skin and even aim to have bright skin more than just for beauty. Taking care of it also means adding protection to your general health. Especially since the skin is the largest organ of the human body, it’s only common sense that you should look out for it and other bodily organs.
When you were a baby, you would have observed that your skin embodies the Korean glass skin trend—plumpness, softness, and smoothness. But, as you grow older, age comes with many free radicals that affect the presence of wrinkles, fine lines, acne, and hyperpigmentation marks. Continuous sun exposure also leads to sun and skin barrier damage.
Proper skincare slows down the signs of skin aging and prevents harmful effects from damaging the skin. Thus, you need to invest time, money, and effort in learning skincare basics for optimal skin protection and improvement.
A proper skincare routine entails various skincare products containing many complex ingredients. However, while the beauty industry enjoys the success of new skincare formulas, these recent beauty developments aren’t always better. Sometimes, returning to the roots of natural skincare ingredients will help you more on your journey to getting that bright glowing skin.
Listed below are tropical ingredients that are natural alternatives for glowing skin.
1. Coconuts
People don’t call the coconut tree the tree of life for nothing. Coconuts are known to be used in building houses and even became part of the local cuisine scene. But did you also know that they’re great tropical ingredients that help you achieve bright, glowing skin?
That’s right! Coconut oil is a great inflammation reducer and a promising moisturizer ingredient. Its fat suppresses the skin’s inflammatory agents and strengthens the skin barrier. At times of dry seasons when flaky, ashy skin is common, coconut oil is a favorite moisturizer to suit your skin’s needs.
Coconut oil also treats eczema, psoriasis, and other itchy skin conditions. However, a kind warning is that coconut oil, while great for managing inflammation and skin dryness, doesn’t work well with acne.
2. Guavas
Guavas are a sweet treat to eat in the summer heat. But, like oranges and lemons, they’re a great source of Vitamin C. Vitamin C is your secret weapon to achieving that desired glowing skin.
This vitamin has a lot of antioxidants that help curb the harmful effects of UV light and sun damage. It also helps brighten dark spots caused by hyperpigmentation, smoothen fine lines and wrinkles, and boost collagen production.
Collagen is the major component of tendons, ligaments, and skin. It’s analogous to fibers grouped precisely to form a thread and then numerous lines interlaced in an ordered fashion. Vitamin C helps maintain this structure orderly and normalize the process of repairing damaged cells. Thus, your skin will lose its elasticity, shine, and suppleness if you don’t get enough ascorbic acid.
Guavas are abundant in Vitamin C. One serving of guava can get you up to four times the recommended daily intake of Vitamin C. Adding guavas to your daily diet as an ascorbic acid supplement can help you reap the benefits of this vitamin.
3. Honey
Honey is known to be the healthier alternative in sweetening beverages and pastries. Apart from this, the famous sticky natural sweetener is also excellent for acne treatment.
Raw honey helps balance the proliferation of bacteria on your skin, making it good for treating acne. Its antimicrobial properties also help prevent the emergence of future acne breakouts.
If you have pimples or an eczema breakout, unpasteurized honey may help expedite healing and reduce irritation. Furthermore, it hastens the healing processes of your skin cells. Thus, honey is an excellent ingredient for fading acne marks and scars.
Raw honey is also a natural exfoliant, removing dry, dull skin and revealing new skin cells. The removal of dry skin cells unveils brighter skin.
4. Tomatoes
Are you a big fan of pizzas and spaghetti? Well, good news! Your favorite red ingredient, tomato, can also do much for your skin. Tomatoes’ skin benefits come from their abundance of lycopene.
Lycopene, a precursor of Vitamin A and a type of antioxidant, helps prevent and undo collagen damage in the skin. Thus, it helps maintain skin elasticity and plumpness, preventing skin discoloration, changes in skin texture, and the presence of fine lines and wrinkles.
It also serves as a skin barrier against harmful UV rays. When UV rays hit the skin, the lycopene on the skin’s outermost layer absorbs these UV rays, consequently reducing oxidative stress in skin cells. Studies have also shown that long-term lycopene consumption significantly reduced the risk of skin cancer.
Since it’s also a powerful skin barrier, lycopene keeps pollutants such as dust and other allergens from irritating the skin.
5. Avocados
Avocados have an incredible array of skin-boosting advantages to add to their delicious taste as guacamole or spread on toast. You get skin benefits from this nutritious super fruit’s beneficial fats, vitamins, and minerals.
Avocados’ lipids, compounds, and vitamins may aid in skin restoration and treating chronic skin diseases such as eczema and acne. When applied topically, its fats also serve as an excellent moisturizer for dry skin, similar to the functions of coconut oil.
In addition, a high-fat diet—particularly healthy mono-unsaturated fat, such as the fat found in avocados—increases skin suppleness and decreases the appearance of wrinkles. Avocados also have Vitamins C and E, which are excellent vitamins for skin barriers against oxidative damage caused by the harmful UV rays.
Final Notes
Taking care of the skin doesn’t just improve your physical and facial appearance. It also improves your general health.
To take care of the skin, you need to do more than just find the right skincare products and stick to a strict skincare routine. You need to go back to the roots to achieve glowing skin. It would be best if you eat healthier. Eating and applying tropical ingredients such as coconuts, avocados, tomatoes, honey, and guava, leads you closer to your skin goals.
Who knows? You may be boasting about your Korean glass skin after eating these natural alternatives in the next three months.
