We Indians have a lot of misconceptions about looking beautiful. The biggest misconception is that one who looks fair is beautiful, whereas everyone's facial features are different and have their own unique characteristics. Measuring beauty by skin colour would only be foolish. Still, you will find dozens of such products in the market, which claim that you will become fair within a week. Scientifically speaking, skin colour keeps changing according to age and hormonal changes taking place in the body. If the natural colour of your skin is dark, you can make it fair only through chemical treatment, which also has its own side effects.
You would not want to put yourself at any health risk by becoming fair. Some people are bent upon whitening their skin by using home remedies. Whereas if you apply any household item on your skin with incomplete information, it may cause reactions on your skin and instead of improving your skin colour, it starts darkening.
We have talked to dermatologist Dr Amit Bangia on this subject. He says, "People use many of the ingredients present in the kitchen in home remedies and apply them on the face. But there are some things which you should never apply directly to the skin. They are acidic and irritate the skin."
Doctor Amit tells us about 5 things which can harm the skin and darken your natural skin tone.
Lemon juice
Lemon juice contains citric acid. If you apply it directly on the skin, your skin may get damaged. Dr. Amit says, "Lemon juice changes the natural pH of your skin and this causes irritation in your skin and increases the chances of hyperpigmentation. Not only this, lemon juice makes your skin sensitive. And when you go in the sun, you start getting sunburned." Therefore, lemon should never be applied directly on the face nor should you apply too much lemon juice on the face. You can always mix 3 to 4 drops of lemon with water or any other household ingredient and apply it on your face.
Aloe vera gel
Aloe vera gel has been called a natural moisturizer for the skin. It is safe for the skin, but you should not apply it directly on the face. It contains a kind of acid, which is yellow. The aloe vera gel available in the market is refined, once you apply it directly on the face, there are not many problems, but today when you cut the aloe vera leaf from the plant and extract the gel, then first you have to soak it in water for some time. Should be kept soaked. When the yellow element comes out, then you should take out the gel from it, mix rose water or milk etc. in it and apply it on the face. Doctor Amit says, "If you have a wound on your face, do not apply aloe vera gel at all, it can increase inflammation in the wound and its stain can remain on the skin forever."
Mustard oil
Mustard oil is used for many things in India. It is used in cooking, applied on hair and many people even massage their body with mustard oil. Doctor Amit says, 'When you apply mustard oil on the skin, it increases the production of melanin, which makes the skin black. Whereas it is comedogenic. Due to this, the pores present in the skin get clogged and the possibility of acne increases. In such a situation, if you need oil to moisturize the skin, then you should apply coconut oil and not mustard oil.
Alum
We Indians also use alum a lot. Alum softens the skin and eliminates inflammation. But its benefits are available only when it is used properly. Doctor Amit says, "If you rub alum on your face, you may get burning, itching as well as strange irritation. However, alum is antiseptic and has astringent properties. You can wash it by dissolving it in water. You can use its water and add other household ingredients to it." If you keep alum on the skin for a long time, your skin may turn black.
Salt
Salt is also important among the home remedies used for skin. Salt has skin-exfoliating properties, but it can also burn the skin. Not only this, salt can also cause irritation, itching and rashes on the skin. Therefore, you should always dissolve salt in some liquid and then use it. Salt reduces swelling on the skin and also reduces pain. It also removes the layer of dead skin on the skin, but use it with great caution.
Note- You will not get instant benefits from any of the remedies mentioned above. By using it regularly you will soon see good results. Those with sensitive scalps should first seek expert advice and everyone should also do a skin patch test before adopting any remedy.
