Salt
Salt Water Skin Care Benefits
What’s the secret ingredient to French Fries……… ‘SALT’. Without salt on your fries, you are practically just eating potatoes and not chips.
But salt is not just a tasty flavoring for food. Salt has many uses. The anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties makes salt a great healing agent for fighting infections on the body.
What do we do when we get a sore throat? We gargle some warm salty water! The salt in the water attaches itself to the infectious cells and draws out the moisture inside the cells, effectively dehydrating them until they are dried up and dead.
When used on the skin, salt can play an even bigger role with your beauty regime. Salt can help make your skin smooth and radiant. Lets find out how!
Taking a dip in the ocean is probably one of the best ways to get your dose of salt medicine. The ocean contains many vital elements that we need: vitamins, trace elements, mineral salts, amino acids, hormonal and bacteriostatic substances that have biological balancing effects, and living microorganisms that secrete antibiotic to help with beautify your skin.
Salt in the treatment of itchy skin, eczema and psoriasis
Salt water baths are excellent for itchy skin, improving eczema outbreaks, and treating psoriasis.
As salt open the pores and draw out toxins, they relieve the irritation and itching. When you finish your bath or shower, spend a few minutes rubbing salt into your skin. The rubbing actually helps improve circulation which is always good but the friction from the salt particles will remove dead skin which is often the source of the itchiness.
Salt for skin exfoliation
When taking a dip in the ocean, the salt in salt water exfoliates the outer surface of the skin, removing dead skin cells and revealing the fresh new cells underneath, which leaves the skin glowing.
Alternatively, for a home exfoliating treatment, you can use a salt scrub mixture during your shower to exfoliate the dead skin cells which dull the skin and leave your skin glowing from head to toe. Salt does not disturb the skin’s natural barrier, however, it does help restore overall mineral balance, which helps the skin to maintain proper moisture.
Salt for fighting infections and inflammations
If you are suffering with a skin infection or inflammation (eg. skin rash, insect bites, small cuts, scraps or dry skin), running it through some warm salt water will help the condition. As the water evaporates, it leaves the salt behind and attaches itself to the surface of infectious cells, drawing the moisture out and killing the cells.
Salt in the treatment of acne
Many research and documented reports have indicated that salt water can help to acne treatment.
Salts help to draw out toxins, microscopic dirt, impurities and kills bacteria that accumulate with oily skin. As it cleanses the skin, it also stimulates skin cells in normal metabolic detoxifying and cleansing processes.
Salt used for healing sore muscles
Salt water baths are great. If you are suffering from ache and pains in your body, the salt water bath will assist with decreasing inflammation, calming nerves and improving your circulation, which may help heal sore muscles and reduce fatigue. Bathing in sea water puts you in contact with waves that are massaging and pulsating, and is full of dissolved gases and rare minerals.
N.B It is important to note that six to seven days after a storm, the saltwater in the ocean can become contaminated and full of unlikely micro-organisms. It maybe wise to stay away from the ocean during this period.