Ayurvedic medicine offers targeted solutions for skin care

Ayurvedic medicine puts a big focus on detox. Not only for inner body cleansing, but also skin cleansing. When I visited India, I learned some natural ways of cleansing and exfoliating skin, that can easily be done with common products we have in our kitchen.

These 3 easy to make facemasks follow Ayurvedic principles, and are specific to your skin type

Chickpea flour, neem and milk make an excellent all-purpose face mask

Face mask for normal and combination skin types

This cleansing and exfoliating mask is good for any skin type and is a healthy alternative from soaps, foams, chemical peelings that are available commercially. To create this mask we will need:

• 1 tbs chickpea flour
• ½ tbs neem leaf powder
• water or milk to mix

Chickpea flour (called besan in India) is an amazing exfoliator, which removes dead skin cells from our face. Chickpea flour is gentle on the skin and works very well for every type of skin.

I like adding some neem leaves to the mask, because of it’s well-known anti-bacterial properties. Neem is often used as an ingredient in Ayurvedic toothpastes because of this. If your skin is going through a little bit of a breakout, or we feel it needs to be refreshed, then add some neem powder. This is not required, and in case if you don’t have any neem, using only chickpea flour is also sufficient.

If your skin tends to be oily or a combination of types, use water instead of milk. If you have drier or sensitive skin, add milk instead of water. Milk has cooling and soothing properties, it will nourish your skin nicely.

Mix all the ingredients with water to form a thick paste. Apply the paste on your face and allow it to get dry. Then remove the face mask first gently with circle motions using your hands, the remaining leftover mask wash off using water. When we’re done, we can enjoy the feeling of having smooth skin. Follow up with your everyday skin care routine and finish up by using some cream or oil.

Turmeric, sandalwood and yogurt are great for use in a mask for oily skin

Face mask for oily skin

If you have oily skin, give this facemask a try. The ingredients we need are:

• 1 tbs chickpea flour
• 2 pinches of turmeric
• 2 pinches of sandalwood
• 1 tbs natural full fat yogurt
• Milk to mix

This natural exfoliating face mask is best suited for oily skin. Chickpea flour helps to absorb excess oil from the face. Turmeric and sandalwood work together to fight acne and blemishes, thanks to their anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. Milk and yogurt soothe, moisturize and nourish the skin.

Mix all the ingredients together with as much milk and natural yogurt as necessary to form a thick and even paste. Apply and leave on for 15 minutes and wash it off with water. Follow up with your regular evening skin care routine and finish up with a bit of rose water or any face toner after you wash off the mask. This mask is best applied in the evenings because turmeric could stain slightly, but should clear out by the following morning.

Use honey and natural yogurt to create a face mask for dry skin

Face mask for dry skin

If you have very dry and sensitive skin, this is for you. Gather together the following ingredients:

• 1 tbs honey
• 1 tbs natural yogurt
• ½ spoon olive oil (if we have very dry skin)

Honey nourishes and heals the skin, while natural yogurt soothes and cools it down. Olive oil gives an extra moisturizing and cleansing effect. My skin gets quite dry in the summer time, especially after some exposure to the sun. This is the mask i use myself to protect my skin.

As you can see these three natural and DIY face masks are simple and quick to make at home with ingredients that are easily available at your local stores. After all, natural cosmetics are the best for our skin.