Acne treatments have been a hot topic in the past few decades. People want to look and feel good, so dealing with acne is an important part of the life of teenagers and young adults. As we find out more and more about the nutritional value of certain plants and foods, we learn more and more about what our skin needs to stay spotless and soft. And with all the beauty blogs, magazines and companies offering a staggering variety of methods, DIYs, and medication for acne, overnight treatments are becoming increasingly important too.
In the past few years, there have been more and more bloggers talking about the benefits of using banana peel to treat their acne.
Okay… what?
As incredible as it sounds, many beauty bloggers claim to have tried this and that it worked for them – with incredible results!
Home remedies are popular now, and people experiment with different foods, oils, and masks to try and get rid of acne. Of course, many of these “proven treatments” lack scientific evidence to support their claims, but for many of them, there are little to no side effects, as they involve foods and plants we eat or use almost every day.
Some of the fatty acids in bananas have been isolated, and are now part of many skin care products used to treat conditions like eczema and psoriasis. So lets for a second entertain the idea that using actual banana peel on your face might actually work.
How Does It Work?
Banana is rich in an antioxidant called lutein, a carotenoid vitamin that has been closely related to vitamin A. Research shows that banana peel lutein can be an effective antioxidant. As such, it can provide skin protection from sun damage and bacteria and reduce the inflammation on your skin, thus reducing your body’s immune system response to acne overall.
It’s also a good source of fatty acids, which are essential for maintaining the proper function of our skin. The peel also contains zinc, manganese, potassium, and iron, which can all help in reducing inflammation, fighting bacteria and reducing acne outbreaks.
Adding a natural remedy to your skin care regimen is not something that should be taken casually. Going for the simple, natural products instead of the expensive, marketed ones sounds all good, but it does not always work. A combination of both seems to be the best option for most, so make sure you choose the best of both worlds.
Methods of Using Banana Peel for Acne
Banana Peel
This approach works only if the banana is ripe. So pick a yellow or a brownish banana, avoid the green ones.
- First, go through your regular cleansing regime. Wash your face thoroughly to make sure your face is clean of all the dirt, toxins and oils it might have on it. Gently dry your face with a towel, don’t scrub. Scrubbing can cause further irritation and acne outbreak.
- Peel it, remove the fruit and either eat it or leave it for later (hint: for other treatments). There’s a huge amount of facial & hair banana mask recipes on the internet!
- Cut the peel in the shape of pads.
- Rub the peels on your face with the inner white part. Rub for about 10 minutes. Make sure you check to see if the pad is still usable. If it turns black, it’s time to throw it away and get another one.
- After you’ve finished, depending on which part of the day you decided to do this, you can do the following.
- If you do it in the morning, let it rest for 15-20 minutes, then wash it off and go about your day.
- If you do it at night, you can just leave it on for the night and wash it off in the morning.
- Keep doing this treatment for a few days. Give it time to work, and make sure that all the other treatments (you surely use other products like cleansers and else) are carried out properly. Do this method once a day.
Keep in mind that although there are almost no side effects, your skin could get irritated and break out even more. In this case, stop the treatment and contact a dermatologist. You might be allergic to bananas, or your skin could be simply way too sensitive to it.
If you are not sure, you can just perform a patch test. Rub a piece of banana peel on a small part of your skin, once every day, and see how your skin reacts to the banana.
Banana Peel & Oats
This mask is also great for your face. Although it requires a bit of preparation, it could be even more efficient as it will cover your whole face. Repeat it daily for best effect.
- Chop a banana peel into small pieces and toss it in a blender with half a cup of oatmeal and 2-3 spoons of sugar
- Blend until it becomes a smooth paste
- Lather the paste on the face, leave it on for 8-10 minutes
- Wash it off with lukewarm water and gently pat your face dry with a towel
- Apply moisturizer
For this one, just as above, the same rules apply. Reaction to this paste is not common, but perform a patch test for a few days to see if your skin will react.
Conclusion
Home remedies are the big thing right now, and so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that more and more people are recommending them and trying them out. The lack of scientific evidence may put off some people, but it’s important to know that most of these home remedies are better when used in combination with other medication like over-the-counter cleansers and moisturizers, or in some cases, antibiotics. So if you are using only banana peel for your acne, you shouldn’t expect any fireworks.
Remember that curing and preventing acne requires a lot of discipline. And yes, meds and DIY recipes can help, but you might also need to change some habits and improve your general lifestyle. Acne can have a lot of triggers and causes, and leading a healthy lifestyle will help us narrow them down and lower the chance of acne outbreak. Before resorting to methods like the one we just described, make sure you know what causes your acne.
