Have you been slapped with chapped lips, zits, wrinkles, or dandruff? I’ve had it all, but found cures—natural cures.
The cure for chapped lips? I used to buy $50 monthly lip balm, which never worked. But then, I started eating a daily slice of pineapple. At first my mouth stung, but after a week, the bromelain in pineapple cure my chapped lips, pain free. So, I’ve since sought natural skin therapies.
Natural therapies zap zits, too. Store-bought skin cream gave me acne. But extra virgin olive oil slathered on my skin soothes, zit-free, while clearing wrinkles. Another cure for wrinkles? Rubbing pineapple on your face. But wasting pineapple’s sweetness seems sinful. So, I slip it in my stomach, not slap it on my skin.
Best of all, I’ve found two ways to beat dandruff: first, cold showers lessen dandruff by keeping oils inside the hair and skin—and dirt outside. But cold blasts stop me from rinsing thoroughly, which causes dandruff. On the upside, cold showers mean smaller globs of shampoo. So, one shampoo bottle lasts.
Second, probiotics crowd out dandruff-causing yeast. So, eat two servings of unpasteurized sauerkraut a night. Not the fake stuff—you know, the unsightly canned or vinegary kinds. Instead, eat the sauerkraut made with only salt, water, and cabbage—rich in probiotics.
Karen Fischer zeroes in on natural cures for the flakes in her book The 8-Week Healthy Skin Diet
- What causes flakes? “Dandruff can simply occur when you are run down, overworked, or stressed, and it can occur in conjunction with psoriasis. Anti-dandruff shampoos address none of these factors” (p. 186).
- What else causes dandruff? “Climate (especially winter) … emotional or physical stress … sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) … inadequate rinsing of hair after washing … overly dry scalp or excessively oily/greasy scalp … deficiency of essential fatty acids, especially omega-3” (p. 186).
- Medicated anti-dandruff shampoo won’t cure dandruff. The flakes keep coming back.
- So, add the following to shampoo to zap flakes: tea tree oil … licorice root … vitamin E … chamomile … [or] olive leaf extract … “ (p. 187).
- Probiotics treat dandruff, too: “Probiotics [work] like having a million tiny ‘bouncers’ making sure fungus and bacteria don’t stack up in too many areas of your body” (p. 195).
- And exercising cures flakes, too: “Exercise to improve scalp circulation … couch potatoes are more likely to have dandruff” (p. 197).
- For the bold types, cure dandruff by hanging upside down: “You can also improve circulation to your scalp by doing headstands. Go to a yoga class to learn how to do it correctly” (p. 197).
- As a less taxing solution, use olive oil: “A 28-year old woman visited our clinic … After her second application of olive oil … no flakes were detected. Five months later she continued to be 100% dandruff free” (p. 191).
- Other benefits of olive oil? “Olive oil (Extra Virgin) … protects against free-radical damage …. Olive oils studies have found that topical application has an anti-cancer effect—it greatly reduces tumor frequency from UVB rays …” (p. 134).
Last week, I chatted with a longhaired lady at Tim Horton’s. But first, why did healthy me visit trans-fat Tim’s? My beau loves the French Vanilla lattes. For myself, I only buy bananas from coffee shops—and slather them with sugar-free cinnamon.
So, I asked the lady, “How did you get that long, healthy hair?” “Hair extensions!” she said. I told her I soak my hair in extra virgin olive oil. She seemed curious, until I said I use olive oil on my face as a cure for wrinkles. She peered at my smile lines, waved her hand petulantly, and scoffed, “Everywhere olive oil.” I agreed, “Swimming in olive oil,” as I paddled my arms. Then she left snickering.
Good thing I didn’t tell her I gargle with olive oil. Why? Coconut oil works best.
