3 great uses of tea (camellia sinensis) for your skin

Black Tea from Mountain Rose Herbs

I think most people know about the traditional use of soaked tea bags on the eyes for beauty-care. Why? Because of the astringency of tea, it makes a perfect mild toner for the skin and is especially good for keeping the complexion clean, smooth, and bright. That same astringency also reduces eye puffiness. Tea contains high amounts of polyphenols, which research suggests has protective effects against free radicals and toxins. Applied externally, tea, probably by way of these same compounds, also helps prevent against sun damage by squashing free radicals and reducing inflammation (not by blocking UV rays!). These properties also help prevent signs of aging by reducing the inflammation that can lead to wrinkles. Using green tea, and other tea (Camellia Sinensis) preparations with freshly brewed concoctions, taken internally or used externally, is the best way to receive the benefits from this wonderful plant!

Tea Toner
1/4 cup boiling water
2 tea bags — (green, white, oolong, or black)
1/4 witch hazel distillate

Pour boiling water over tea bags.
Steep at 30 min – 1 hr or longer for a strong infusion.
Combine cooled tea with witch hazel. (the distillate is better to use than commercially prepared witch hazel preparations found in drug stores)

Tub Tea
Large muslin bag or extra-large tea-ball
1/4 cup dried herbs (optional)
1/4 cup dried tea (green, white, oolong or black)
1/4 cup sea salts (optional)

The same properties that make tea so lovely for the face, also make it great for a full-body bathing ritual. Some herbs you can add to the tea blend include rosemary (stimulating), chamomile (relaxing), lavender (relaxing), raspberry leaves (invigorating), mint (stimulating), sage (cleansing, thyme (cleansing), lemon verbena (stimulating, cleansing), and rose (relaxing, comforting).

Sweet Feet Tea
Astringency at its best! Keep your feet smelling fragrant and clean. Soaking feet in black tea helps reduce foot odor and perspiration. How? The tannins in tea actually change the skin’s pH!

2 black tea bags
2 cups boiling water
2 quarts cool water

Make a very strong infusion: steep tea bags in boiling water for 30 min – 1 hour
Fill a large bowl or plastic pan (rectangular plastic dishwashing tubs work great for this) with cool water and mix in tea infusion.
Soak feet for 20-30 min. Repeat treatment daily for a week to achieve a decrease in foot odor.

If you have some favorite tea beauty rituals, share them with me!
If you are a tea lover, you might also like a post I wrote a little while ago on various blends of Indian Chai Tea

Natural Remedies Tip #3 – Hydrotherapy with Salts

Hydrotherapy, or the use of water as therapy, involves the practice of purifying the body, whether in terms of detoxification or ritual purification, and has been in practice for millenia. The Romans and Greeks utilized water-based cleansing and bathing rituals, building elaborate bath houses and saunas, as have many other cultures throughout history. Water itself is seen as sacred in many mythological traditions –so much so that its use for deep cleansing is probably universal. Using water through the use of baths, saunas, steams, or rubs increases circulation of blood & lymph and helps the body detoxify by increasing perspiration.

Using salts, whether epsom, sea salts, or mineral-rich dead sea or himalayan salts can enhance the detoxification process. Salts draw impurities from the body, help heal infections, reduce inflammation, and add mineral content to the body &  aid in cleansing.  Adding salt to a bath replicates natural mineral springs, often seen as sites of healing, cleansing, and transformation. Bathing with mineral rich salts are also wonderfully relaxing and even serve to soften the skin. Salt water baths, all told, are much better for the body than chemically-produced bath bubbles! Below I include two recipes that incorporate the use of salts for your own water rituals.

Cypress & Rosemary Purifying Bath
2 cups Epsom salts or Dead Sea Salts
3 drops cypress essential oil
3 drops grapefruit oil
3 drops ginger essential oil
1 Tbsp whole milk or carrier oil (such as olive)
1 sprig fresh rosemary

Add the essential oils to the milk or carrier oil, mix with the salts, and then add entire mixture to a hot bath. Add the rosemary sprig to gently infuse into the bath water, releasing its fragrance. Soak in the tub for 15-30 minutes and then rinse with lukewarm water.

Detoxifying Seaweed Bath
1 cup Epsom Salts
1 cup Himalayan, Dendritic, or Dead Sea Salts
1/2 cup dried kelp, dulse or other seaweed
1 cup baking soda (to soften water and smooth skin)

Combine the epsom salts, sea salt, and kelp in a blender and grind into a fine powder. Alternatively, sift together in a flour sifter (this will still be safe for food use because you aren’t using any essential oils). Add mixture to a tub of hot water along with the baking soda. Soak for 20 minutes and then rinse with lukewarm water.

Check out my Etsy shop for Water Ritual and Dream Journey bath teas, Sea Milk Detoxifying Soak, and other bathing pleasures.

Chamomile (matricaria recutita) ~ gentle giant

Soothing Skin Bath Soak

Chamomile is a common name for an herb that usual includes both the Roman and German varieties. Once called ‘maythe’ or ‘mayweed’, the name is based on an old English word for ‘maide’ or ‘woman’ and is probably due to the plant’s calming, relaxant effects which have been used to soothe menstrual pains (Pollington2000). While both varieties have similar action, German chamomile is purported to be better tasting and milder in action that Roman Chamomile, which makes the former a better choice for pregnant women and children.

Chamomile is a commonly known herb that has amazingly wonderful, diverse qualities. It is traditionally used as a remedy for teething or cranky babies, to relieve and upset stomach, to ease menstrual cramps, and to reduce tension and induce sleep (K&W2001). Though individuals who have ragweed allergies may find that they are allergic to topical application of chamomile poulstices or salves, an allergic reaction is fairly unusual. In addition, in treating eczema, chamomile has been found to be as effective as hydrocortisone (steroidal cream) and superior to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (Aertgeertsetal1985). My own daughter has had eczema since she was an infant, and I have been delighted to find that a lotion created with chamomile & calendula infusions in both distilled water and natural vegetable oils has provided wonderful eczema relief. I now offer this lotion in my shop, primarily targeted for use for individuals with eczema, for children & infants, and for those with sensitive skin, though this lotion is fine for anyone and has a light scent of chamomile tea without the use of any fragrance or essential oils.

Chamomile

Chamomile is a wonderfully calming herb, both calming to the skin (as above) and calming to the tummy, the mind, the body, and the spirit. It gently brings someone into a state of restful sleep, and soothes even an irritated baby or newborn struggling with colic. German Chamomile has a long history of use during pregnancy and breast-feeding and is a common tea in Europe, Central America, & South America. (That said, it is important to note that Roman Chamomile has been found to have aborficent effects in studies on animals, and so it is important to choose German Chamomile over the Roman variety.) Part of chamomile’s calming effect on the nervous system is the large amount of easily assimilable calcium, making it a great herb to treat insomnia, nervousness, irritability, restlessness, and nighmares, along with connected conditions such as hypertension and cramps, spasms, and stomach distress. Menstrual cramps can be eased with the combination of chamomile & ginger (Tierra2003).

Conditions for which chamomile is beneficial are myriad, and include irritable bowl syndrome, indigestion, infant colic, gastric reflux disease, dysmenorrhea (cessation of menstrual cycle), gastritis, stress-related insomnia, peptic ulcer disease, spastic colon, cramping w/ diarrhea, oral ulcers, topical wound healing, eczema, and anogenital irritation. Chamomile can be taken in many forms: dried flowers, capsules, cream, salve, tea, tincture, bath tea or salt blend, but in this case we are fortunate because chamomile both smells and tastes lovely! I use chamomile in several different bath tea blends, including my Dream Journey bath tea

Chamomile & Calendula body lotion

Dried flowers can be added to the tub or in a muslin bag and in combination with epsom salts, this remedy can be very beneficial for hemorrohoids or irritated skin. Add a handful of oatmeal to the bag and you have a soothing emollient, combined with chamomile’s anti-inflammatory powers to aid allergic skin rashes, eczema, or just as a wonderfully soothing bath for baby. Topical poulstices made from the dried flower (clean cloth dipped into a water infusion) is useful for treating mastitis or other inflammatory issues

I find that the smell of the essential oil is a bit cloying and not always reflective, in my mind, of the light sweetness of the dried flowers, but the essential oil also has therapeutic action and is a welcome (though sometimes expensive!) addition to facial creams that require some ‘calming’ action to facial tissue. It is also good to use in balms and salves for children, as it is both therapeutic and very safe for all ages. For insect bites, the essential oil can be mixed with some aloe vera gel and applied directly to the bite.

Contraindications are few, though it may potentiate anticoagulants such as warfarin so use should be cautious and monitored if an individual is taking such a pharmaceutical. Again, though chamomile has a long, empirical track record of use for pregnant & breast-feeding mothers, it’s probably a good idea that Roman Chamomile be avoided throughout pregnancy (breastfeeding would be okay) and perhaps even in the first trimester because of chamomile’s mild emmenogogic effect (brings on menstruation). Chamomile overall represents one of the safest possible herbs for use with infants, childrens, and nursing mothers, who deliver the benefit of the tea through their breastmilk, and therefore is one of my herbs of choice in bath teas and products for babies, though it’s light, sweet fragrance and flavor certainly add to the strengths of this gentle giant. I say ‘giant’ because its gifts to us are so great.

REFS:
Aertgeerts, P. et al (1985) Z Hautkr. 60(3):270-277
Kuhn, Merrily and David Winston (2001) Herbal Therapy & Supplements: A Scientific and Traditional Approach
Pollington, Stephen (2000) Leechcraft: Early English Charms, Plantlore, and Healing
Tierra, Leslie (2003) Healing with the Herbs of Life

Hello everyone!

Well, I finally have my own blog, devoted to all the fun aspects of herbal-inspired (or should I say ‘infused’?) self care, including mind, body, and spirit… I am going to post recipes for home use, information to help sort out current debates about preservatives, chemical ingredients, and what constitutes a ‘natural’ product, as well as what some of our very mysterious precious ingredients, such as buckthorn berry and carrot root extract. I welcome questions and queries that will lead me down the research highway.

I currently have an ever-expanding line of bath, body & beverage tea products::: LILITH’S APOTHECARY ::: on my Etsy site: www.lilithsapothecary.etsy.com and I have a www.lilithsapothecary.com site in progress.

Also check out the Etsy Philly Street Team for some great, local Philadelphia artisans! http://phillyetsy.blogspot.com/

I also have a shop devoted to jewelry creation on Etsy: www.lilithsjewels1.etsy.com ~ as a friendly FYI !!!