Coconut oil for skin is one of those must have products that you’ll want to keep on hand for your natural skin care recipe “kit”.
When you understand all of the wonderful benefits of Coconut oil for skin it’s no surprise that people living in tropical climates have prized coconut for it’s conditioning and protective skin properties for thousands of years.
Coconut is so versatile and so easy to use both internally and externally for cooking, for coconut skin care treatments, conditioning hair and much more.
Why is coconut oil the best moisturising ingredient for skin?
Coconut is rich in many fatty acids, it also has amazing protective SPF, antioxidant and moisturising properties. The right brand of extra virgin coconut oil, is pure and completely free of chemicals and pore clogging compounds that commercial products can contain..
Some of the many coconut oil benefits for skin include:
- SPF protection, coconut has been used as a sunscreen for centuries due to its SPF 4 to 6 protection factor.
- Coconut oil is very moisturising, it contains essential fatty acids which penetrated deep into your skin locking in moisture.
- Coconut is anti-bacterial making it great for soothing infections and reducing inflammation and bacteria in acne prone skin.
- Use coconut oil for skin and hair straight or add other ingredients like argan oil, rosehip oil, evening primrose oil, tamanu or other oils for an easy to make skin serum.
- Antibacterial – coconut oil is great for acne prone skin or other skin infections because it is naturally antibacterial.
- Coconut oil is loaded with vitamin D, minerals and antioxidants. This makes it fantastic for protecting and repairing environmentally damaged skin, softening wrinkles and restoring missing nutrients in your skin, neutralising free radicals and protecting your skin.
- Coconut cream and milk can be used in facial cleansers or on their own to give the skin a quick moisture boost.
How to use extra virgin coconut oil for skin and in cooking:
The easiest way to use coconut oil is to simply warm a teaspoon of extra-virgin coconut oil in the palm of your hands. Rub in the palm of your hands and apply to clean dry skin. Allow the oil to absorb. This may take a few minutes but once it has absorbed it will not leave any residue. You can do the same with your hair. Coconut oil is also a fantastic hair treatment.
You can also mix extra-virgin coconut oil for skin serums with several other beneficial oils for skin to make moisturizers, serums and face masks.
Depending on your age, skin type, condition or issue you can vary your recipe, adding different quantities of specific ingredients to make the perfect coconut oil based facial treatment for your skin.
- You can bake or cook with coconut oil at high temperatures and tastes delicious in curries or cupcakes
- Eat 2 teaspoons of this oil a day to help with weight loss and digestion and to protect mental acuity (sharpen your mind).
- Use it as a mouth wash to protect gums and kill gum disease causing bacteria (this mouth wash method is sometimes called coconut pulling).
- Use it for cuts and grazes to help fight bacteria, acne on skin and for feet to fight tinea when used with essential oils.
Coconut Oil For Skin Homemade Recipes:
Coconut oil skin moisturizer:
Ingredients:
1/2 a cup of extra-virgin coconut oil
1/2 a cup almond oil (you can use rose hip oil for scarred or very dry skin)
1/2 cup water or aloe vera juice or carrot juice
3 tablespoons of beeswax
Instructions:
Melt the oils and beeswax together in a double boiler and mix well. Allow to cool a little then slowly add liquid. You can add many other ingredients like essential oils once it has cooled to room temperature which contain anti-ageing, antibacterial, softening and firming properties. You can even repair damage and soften wrinkles with the addition of carrot seed oil, neroli and frankincense. Find out more about which oils to use and how to combine them with extra virgin coconut oil or other constituents in the comprehensive guide Natural Homemade Face Masks and Skin Care Recipes . It’s loaded with specifically formulated easy to make recipes with lots of benefits to nourish and moisturize your skin.)
This is a light but very nourishing moisturizer for all skin types but especially dry skin.
Coconut oil salt and honey foot scrub:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup extra virgin coconut oil
6 tablespoons mineral or epsom salts (or brown sugar if you don’t have salt)
1 tablespoon of honey
Few drops of tea tree or lavender oil and peppermint oil (any combination) for their antibacterial properties to boost the effectiveness of the antibacterial benefits of coconut and honey, plus they soothe sore feet and stimulate circulation.
Instructions:
Combine these ingredients together and massage on to moist feet. This recipe disinfects, softens and moisturises feet. You can also use this recipe on your face if you have acne. Just use 3 tablespoons of salt and 3 of brown sugar instead and avoid the eye are if using peppermint oil.
You can add other ingredients – use our serum wizards to find out which essential oils are good for your specific skin type and condition.
Coconut oil wash and face serum for pimples:
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil and olive or Almond oil
3 drops tea tree and/or lavender oil or neem oil
Squeeze of lemon or lime juice for oily skins.
Blend these ingredients together and use as an antibacterial cleanser to clear up acne and pimples.
Rinse with water and squeeze of lemon or few drops of tea tree oil added to the water or use aloe vera juice.
The coconut and essential oils in this recipe make it a very antibacterial potent recipe. The coconut oil is also gentle on skin and soothing too. By using lavender oil it also soothes inflammation and calms redness.
(If you don’t have tea tree or lavender oil use lemon juice or basil juice squeezed from fresh basil and a pinch or turmeric powder to combat and remove acne bacteria)
These are just a few recipes you can make using coconut oil for skin, you can also add coconut oil to many of the serums and masks listed in Natural Homemade Skin Care Recipes .
How to choose a good virgin coconut oil brand:
When choosing coconut oil make sure you buy only extra-virgin olive oil that hasn’t been heat-treated so it retains it’s pure potency. Brands like Banaban (see Recommended Products) or Nature’s Way extra virgin coconut oil are my favourites.
- Coconut oil for skin care use should not contain hexane. Hexane is a petroleum derived chemical often used in the extraction of coconut oil.
- Cold pressed is best. Non heated extracted coconut oil retains all of the benefits of vitamins and minerals that may be affected by heat extraction
- Extra Virgin Coconut Oil is a coconut oil brand that is free of sprays and chemicals.
So there you have it – a list of coconut recipes and Coconut Oil For Skin and body care. You can find many more on this website or in our book.
Happy coconutting :)
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