5 Natural Ways to A Radiant Skin

What defines beautiful skin? Clarity, a smooth texture, healthy coloring and of course absence of blemishes and light or dark patches. Stresses of life, work, environment and many other factors including hormonal imbalance, genetics and a lack of proper care, all lead to losing the radiance we are all born with.

There isn't much one can do about genes but the other factors are modifiable. And there are natural ways to achieve a glow.

1. Eat Healthy. Fruit and raw vegetable are good sources of vitamins and have lots of health benefits in addition to improving the skin tone. Nuts and dried fruit are full of skin loving supplements.. Cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes, lettuce and olives can all be tossed into a salad with a bit of extra virgin olive oil and voila! instant beauty meal! Cut and mix your favorite fruit in a salad bowl, add some organic yogurt and sprinkle walnuts on top. It tastes yummy and is packed with goodies.

Fish! add a moderate amount of oily fish, like salmon, in your menu each week and see how it works wonders for your skin. Wheatgerm is another excellent choice, added to your morning beverage or cereal or just plain yogurt.

2. Relax. Relax. Relax. Each morning on waking up, don't just jump out of the bed on autopilot, your head buzzing with the day's tasks. Take a few deep breaths, sit up in the bed, have a look at your bedroom, for no real purpose. start your day with a few stretches and a light and healthy breakfast. keep a block of time just for yourself in the day, where you can read a good book, listen to some calming music, get a facial massage or even nap. don't feel guilty about slowing the pace of your day-to-day life. because stress SHOWS...on your face... and it gives you a haggard look, a tense expression and a sallow complexion.

3. Home made face-packs. a) Mix a tablespoon of milk powder with a tablespoon of honey, a pinch of turmeric and the juice of half/ one lime to make a paste. Apply on the face and neck and leave on for 30-45 minutes and then wash off. Do this twice a week for a shiny smooth skin!

b) Grind some dried orange peel and sandalwood into a powder, add gram flour, all in equal quantities, and keep in a jar. This can be mixed in a bit of milk to make a pack and then as a scrub before washing the face.

c) slap the pulp of a papaya on your face while you nap or are ironing your shirts! Wash away when dried..

d) Sprinkle a little alum on a bunch of grapes, wrap in foil paper and put in hot oven for a few minutes. Cool, unwrap and apply the juice on the face. keep on for 20 minutes. Wash.

e) Citrus fruit juice cuts through the grease on oily skin, which is why its ideal as a base for making pastes if you have an oily skin condition. Mix 2 tablespoons fuller's earth or white clay in water to make a very thick paste. Then squeeze a lime into it. Add as much of cucumber juice as it takes to make the consistency thin and easy-to-apply. You can ignore the water part altogether if you like and make the whole pack with only cucumber juice. You know what to do next! Leave on till dry. then wash off.

f) Tomato is an excellent astringent. Use tomato juice to make a paste of gram flour and rub into the face. Leave on to dry. wash.

4. Vitamins. Vitamin supplements can be used as your dietary source of vitamins and also as a topical agent on skin. Crush a 500 mg tablet of vitamin C into any of the face packs you make and you add a world of goodness to your skin care regimen. Vitamin E and Evening Primrose Oil can also be added for a shine that speaks for itself. Vitamins that help the skin include; but are not restricted to; Vitamin A, C and E. Vitamin B3 is also thought to provide nourishment to the skin.

5. Water. Drink 6 to 8 glasses of water or pure fruit juice in a day. Buttermilk is a healthy and wonderful option. It makes the skin so radiant, its noticeable in a few weeks of a glass everyday!

Do let me know how these suggestions helped.. Also please add your own recipes.... Wish you a beautiful skin!