Oatmeal: Not Just for Breakfast Anymore

It is one of the most nutritional foods to have at breakfast, or any time of day. Oatmeal not only provides excellent health benefits when consumed, it is also being used in many skin care products as well. So even if you don’t care for eating oatmeal, your skin can enjoy the benefits. Oatmeal is commonly used as a scrubbing and exfoliating agent in many of your skincare products. It’s nature’s gift for smooth and soft skin, and you can even make a customized facial treatment at home by including this wonder food!

The edible grains of a widely grown cereal grass, oats (avena sativa) appear in many beauty products. People appreciate their soothing, anti-inflammatory properties. Oats are also highly absorptive, hypoallergenic, and help to soften skin. They have the best amino acid balance of all the cereal grains (amino acids work as water-binding agents in skin care products). Oats have also been clinically shown to help heal dry, itchy skin. Oat grains and straw appear in shampoos, dusting powders, moisturizers, and cleansing bars and that's just the start of a list!

Did you know that oatmeal can also be used for skincare? Specifically, oatmeal helps to relieve itching. Colloidal oatmeal, which is oatmeal converted to a fine powder, has been used for thousands of years to cure itchiness. Oatmeal has been proven to protect the skin and provide relief towards itching. In addition, it is an excellent irritation healer. When insect bites and poisonous plants ravage your skin, oatmeal can be used to relieve these skin rashes.

Enthusiasts also used oatmeal powder in hot baths. When you add oatmeal powder into your warm bathwater, the water turns milky which allows the oatmeal to disperse rather than settle to the bottom. In addition to its healing properties, immersing yourself in a tub of oatmeal powder feels great. Keep the water lukewarm rather than hot. Hot baths will only dehydrate your skin and strip it of its essential oils. Soak in the oatmeal bath for no more than 20 minutes. Opt to pat or blot your skin dry rather than rubbing your skin to keep the moisture intact.

You may be surprised to learn that oatmeal is one of the best natural treatments for dry skin. Plain rolled oats, can be used to make a gentle and very effective natural skin cleanser, facial scrub, and soothing facial mask. An excellent multi-purpose skin care treatment, oatmeal helps to relieve dryness, restoring natural moisture balance to aid in healing minor irritations due to the many causes and sources of skin sensitivities. Minor skin irritations can be caused by sensitivities to the ingredients in skin care products, exposure to chemicals found in household cleaning products, exfoliation with the wrong product, excessive scrubbing or rubbing during the exfoliation process, and many other factors. Cleansing the face with oatmeal helps to soothe skin irritation and reduce discomfort.

One of the most popular home made masks is a mixture of oatmeal and honey. This is best applied at night, and is safe for almost all skin types. This is one star secret that can give you that glowing look the next morning. A honey and oatmeal facial is a perfect way to de-stress in the evening, and can be made at home with just a few ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1/2 cup fast cooking oatmeal
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup water

Mix all ingredients in a clean bowl until you have a smooth paste. Gently massage onto damp skin, and rinse off with warm water. Next day you can repeat the recipe for a fantastic smoothing facial treatment.

Oatmeal, when used as a skin cleanser, actually absorbs and removes surface dirt and impurities while providing very gentle exfoliation, leaving skin smooth, soft, and clean, without soap. As a facial mask, oatmeal deep cleanses pores without irritating and drying out skin. And as a facial scrub, oatmeal gently but effectively removes dead skin cells, to reveal softer, smoother looking skin. In addition, cleansing and exfoliating with oatmeal provides the bonus of a natural, healthy glow.