The plethora of pigments in our skin colors is what makes us unique as humans. Like hair and eye color, there is some nature and genetics which predispose us to certain shade. However, there are some environmental and lifestyle factors that can also have a bearing on our skin tone, such as pollution, various medical conditions like vitilgo, stress, dry skin, or prolonged use of chemical cosmetics.
These days, many of us wish to achieve a fair and flawless skin. With a market saturated with skin-lightening creams and lotions, we may end up spending thousands of dollars on products that actually, ultimately, do more harm than good by exposing out skin to chemicals. As you know, our primary concern here is promoting optimal health, but the plus to this is that you can save yourself some money by using natural home remedies that will effectively lighten your complexion, without nasty side effects.
Our list it not intended to be exhaustive, so look out for the specific vitamins and minerals and complete your own research. The key to any natural approach is variety!
Contents
Aloe Vera Gel
Aloe vera helps to reduce signs of hyperpigmentation and restore skin to its original color. Hyperpigmentation is where certain patches of sikn may have an uneven tonality and appear patchy. With its soothing and cooling effect, aloe vera helps cells regenerate; rebuilding damaged tissue, which is important for healthy skin.
Yogurt
Lactic acid has mild bleaching properties and as such if yoghurt is applied topically to the skin, it not only soften it, but applied repeatedly over time, it can cause a significant change in your complexion.
Turkey
Vitamin B-3 is packed into turkey. Also known as Niacinamide, it can be an effective skin-lightening agent, since it has been shown to suppress the transfer of melanosome to the skin. Incorporating turkey into your diet has numerous other health benefits.
Gram Flour
Made from ground garbanzo beans, gram flour is one of the best natural ingredients used to lighten skin complexion. It contains various nutrients that promote healthy skin and can easily be made into a paste and applied topically.
Honey
Primarily used in skincare as a moisturizing agent, honey also has mild bleaching properties and is another store cupboard essential that helps to even out skin tone. With its added antibacterial properties, it can assist fading age spots and acne scars too.
Cucumber
Since it contains a high collagen count, cucumber is excellent at keeping skin supple; evening and lightening overall skin tone. Place cucumber slices topically on darker skin areas, in need of lightening and it will soothe and even skin tone.
Oatmeal
A famous exfoliant, oatmeal can be used as a topical scrub. Ultimately, the best way to encourage new skin cell growth is to improve your skin by sloughing off old skin cells. Oatmeal can be mixed with yoghurt and honey as a face mask, which bleaches as it exfoliates and soothes.
Turmeric
Turmeric helps build up the kind of melanin content necessary to maintain an even skin tone. Again, applied topically, mixed with gram flour or yoghurt, turmeric has a bleaching agent, which also promotes regeneration.
Liquorice Extract
Scientists in Japan have identified the compound glabridinin, which is found in liquorice, to absorb UVA and UVB rays; resulting in it acting as a powerful and effective skin whitening element. Additionally, liquorice extract contains anti-inflammatory properties to soothe the skin and reduce redness.
Using a combination of the above skin lighteners to make various topical pastes, and also adding a few drops of lemon juice, another known bleacher, can slowly even out and lighten overall pigmentation.
Of course, it’s important to bear in mind that whilst these remedies are effective, they are also natural and therefore require time and patience in achieving your desired goal. What is key here is that optimally healthy skin contributes to beautiful skin tone.