Just because it's natural, doesn't mean it's good for your facial skin

Natural skincare ingredients are all the rage right now, and with good reason. Why pay $100+ on expensive skincare when you can just pick an avocado from a tree and get equally, or maybe even better, results?

While this may be true for some natural ingredients, there are still several natural products that we must be wary of when it comes to our facial skincare.

Avoid the following common DIY skincare ingredients to ensure that you are doing natural skincare the right way.

In addition to the ingredients we've listed below, one unnatural ingredient that's common in many beauty products that you should avoid is paraben. Discover the 7 reasons why you should avoid paraben this article here.

Here are the natural ingredients you should avoid:

1. Coconut Oil - Don't put it on your face.

Coconut oil is rated as a 4 out of 5 on the comedogenic scale (the scale that measures how much a product will clog your pores). In other words, it has a high likelihood of clogging your pores. And clogged pores cause your skin to have breakouts.

Coconut oil is good as a hair and body oil, but not as a facial moisturizer, especially if you already tend to deal with oily skin.

For moisturizers, try using Squalane, marajuca oil, argan oil, jojoba oil, or maraula oil (or Yu-Be 😉)

 

2. Salt and sugar - don't exfoliate with either of these.

Why not salt, you ask?

Salt grains have a crystalline structure, which make it jagged and abrasive to the skin.

What about sugar?

Bacteria feeds off of sugar, so if you don't wash the sugar-containing product off of your face properly, then your face becomes an all-you-can-eat buffet for bacteria. Yikes.

Too much sugar can also cause you to age faster through a process called glycation. During this process, the sugar molecule permanently attaches itself to a collagen molecule, which causes the collagen proteins to become non-functional, thus contributing to signs of premature aging.

Instead of salt and sugar, exfoliate with alpha or beta hydroxy acids. Not only are they more gentle on your skin, but they also exfoliate on the cellular level and help to clear acne and reduce wrinkles and sunspots.

You can also try exfoliating your skin with Yu-Be's face and body exfoliator that contains gentle, soothing ingredients 

3. Lemons - good for your water, not so much for your face.

Lemons contain citric acid and Vitamin C, which are components known to help lighten and brighten the skin, as well as fight free radicals.

Sounds perfect for your skin, right?

Not quite. Lemon juice is extremely acidic!

Your facial skin's pH is at the level designed to prevent bacteria from getting in and allows the skin to function at its optimal ability. Applying a product like lemon juice, that is far off from the skin's natural pH level, will wreak havoc.

Lemon juice also contains a chemical that makes your skin photosensitive. By applying lemon juice to your skin, you're much more likely to burn in the sun.

Alternatively, you can use a Vitamin C serum.

Fun Fact: Yu-Be's Moisturizing Skin Cream contains Vitamin C 🍊

 

4. Never use baking soda on your face

The pH of baking soda, unlike lemon juice, is extremely alkaline

Baking soda will destroy your moisture barrier and open your skin up to infections like acne breakouts, as well as cause dehydration and aging.

As a raw ingredient straight out of your kitchen cabinet, baking soda is not safe for your skin.

 

5. Apple Cider Vinegar - too acidic

Like lemon, it's too acidic for your face's sensitive skin.

If you want to go natural, you can use a Witch Hazel toner that is not distilled in alcohol

 

6. Toothpaste as a spot treatment

People have used this as a spot treatment because it contains baking soda and hydrogen peroxide, which are known to kill bacteria and dry out the skin.

However, the reason to avoid using toothpaste is the same as the reason to avoid using baking soda - it is too alkaline.

Toothpaste also contains menthol and peppermint, which are ingredients that can not only burn your skin, but also over-irritate it, which will cause your skin to produce more oil and thus more pimples.

Instead, use an actual spot treatment product that contains salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide.

 

 

SAFE DIY INGREDIENTS:

• Raw, local, organic honey. You can try Manuka honey, which is great for the skin because it also has medicinal properties
• Aloe is a natural humectant, meaning that it binds moisture to the skin
• Oatmeal can help treat inflamed or irritated skin, as well as eczema
• Charcoal/Activated charcoal  is effective at absorbing toxins, bacteria, and oil from your skin