How to Make a Detoxifying Body Scrub with Green Tea, Baking Soda and Sea Salt

With a hectic lifestyle, it is easy to focus our beauty efforts on our faces and forget that the skin on the rest of our bodies also needs some tender loving care from time to time. Skin problems such as heat rash, hives and dry scaly patches of skin can add years to your appearance and be a very visible reminder that the face is not the only factor that governs how old we look.

I created the following body scrub recipe to meet a range of skin care needs. The body scrub recipe contains natural and inexpensive ingredients that will help detoxify, exfoliate and moisturize your skin. The body scrub will also help tone and tighten your skin while leaving it with a healthy glow. Making and using this body scrub recipe will save you money and limit your exposure to toxins often found in commercial blends.

The following containers and implements are necessary to make this body scrub recipe: one large mixing bowl that can hold three cups of liquid; measuring cup; saucepan; one large wooden or plastic stirring spoon; one tablespoon and a mixer or blender.

You will also need the following ingredients and implements to prepare this body scrub recipe: one-half of a cup of oatmeal; one quarter of a cup of baking soda; one-half of a cup of sea salt; one cup of water; one green tea bag and 1 tablespoon of honey.

Begin making this body scrub recipe by using a mixer, blender or herb grinder to powder the half of a cup of oatmeal. When a pinch of the oatmeal floats on water it will be ready to use in the body scrub recipe. Oatmeal powdered this finely is called colloidal oatmeal and is often used in beauty care products. It will moisturize your skin and help draw out toxins.

After completing the first step place the cup of water in a saucepan and bring the water to a boil. Once the water is boiling, remove it from heat and place the green tea bag in the water to steep. Green tea has much higher caffeine content than regular tea. Caffeine is a diuretic that will naturally tone and tighten your skin. Green tea also contains tannins that will bind to toxins helping to detoxify your skin.

While the green tea is steeping combine the oatmeal, baking soda and sea salt in the mixing bowl and stir until the body scrub mixture is uniform. Both the baking soda and the sea salt in the body scrub will help cleanse your skin of toxins while leaving it with a soft and supple feel. The sea salt in the body scrub will also help slough off dead skin.

After combining the dry ingredients heat a container of honey under hot running water until the honey has a thin and runny consistency. Once the honey is runny, add a tablespoon of it to the mixing bowl and stir the body scrub blend for a minute or two. Honey is naturally anti-bacterial; it is also a humectant meaning that it will help draw moisture to your skin.

Add three quarters of a cup of the green tea to the body scrub mixture and stir until it is well blended. If the body scrub mixture is too thick, add the remaining green tea to the body scrub blend a little at a time until the body scrub reaches the consistency you desire.

Your body scrub is now ready to use. I recommend that you use it in the shower since it is a bit messy. Use the green tea bag as a scrubby by dipping it in the body scrub mixture and then scrubbing your body from head to toe. This body scrub is also safe for use on your face provided you are very careful to avoid your eye area because the salt in the body scrub can irritate your eyes.

Making this body scrub with the stated proportions will yield enough for two applications. Store any remaining body scrub in a sealed container in your refrigerator for up to three days.

Be Aware! Many natural ingredients can cause allergic reactions in people that use them. Avoid any ingredients that you know you are allergic to and discontinue using any formulations that cause skin irritation, hives or other signs of an allergic reaction.