Why Your Skin Loves Honey

When it comes to looking after your skin, you should take the same care about what you use as you do with what you eat. Most people know that a good healthy diet is important to good health, and are familiar with the saying ‘you are what you eat’.

Well your skin could be equally important. It is your largest organ, and plays a major role in protecting your body. As what is put on your skin can be absorbed through into it, care should be taken over what you put on it, and the ingredients of skin care products you use.

Honey is a great natural ingredient for skin treatments. Being completely natural, it is free from harmful chemicals that may otherwise be used. Of course some products may make use of honey and also still add other harmful chemicals it, so you should check all ingredients used.

Honey is a known humectant, which means it works as a natural mosituriser. It is hydroscopic, drawing pure moisture into you skin to help hydrate, smooth and soften. This is why it is used in so many skin and hand creams. However some of the other benefits of honey for you skin can be offset if a product also contains 'bad' chemicals in it.

One of the causes of premature aging of skin is exposure to free radicals. Honey acts as a powerful natural antioxidant helping to counter any free radicals in your skin. Its soothing properties make it feel good when applied too.

Many homemade skin treatment recipes will include honey in their ingredient list. It’s use for healing and to beautify the skin has been well documented through the centuries.

Even putting straight natural honey direct onto your skin is good. Although you probably want to do this in private as of course there is the sticky layer of honey to consider - but that is no different to how you go about applying other face masks anyway. In this case you can happily lick your fingers after applying.

In recent times a growing amount of research into honey has shown it contains natural antiseptic and antibacterial properties, although these can vary in level between honeys. One that has particularly potent antibacterial properties in some batches of it is New Zealand’s manuka honey. Suitable batches of which are now being used for treating hard to heal wounds, burns, and other skin infections.

For other honey types the more natural and raw they are the better. The mass produced supermarket honeys are probably best avoided for this purpose as they tend to be overly processed, and can use a lot of heat in their processing, which can reduce or destroy many of the beneficial properties found when it is in a more natural state.

Another tip for when to use honey: cuts and grazes - apply some honey over the cut of graze before applying a plaster / wound dressing. In this case the honey also forms a barrier helping stop new infection from entering.