You may help uncover the healthy, young skin behind the old, dead skin cells by exfoliating your skin. Exfoliation is beneficial for almost every part of your body, including your lips and feet. When new skin cells are formed, dead skin cells should fall off, but occasionally they cling on. This may give the appearance of uneven, blotchy, or lackluster skin.

We’ll look more closely at a few natural exfoliants in this post to help improve the look, feel, and health of your skin.

What are Natural Exfoliants?

Effective exfoliation doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. Actually, all you could need to exfoliate your skin is a variety of natural ingredients that you probably already have in your cupboard. Many of these products can produce precisely the right amount of friction to lift dead skin cells off your skin’s surface.

Among the well-liked natural exfoliants are:

• baking soda
• finely ground sugar
• coffee grounds
• finely ground almonds
• oatmeal
• finely ground sea salt
• cinnamon

You can also combine other products often found in your kitchen to these natural exfoliants.

Examples include:

• honey
• green tea or chamomile tea
• essential oils

These natural exfoliants are all physical exfoliants. This means that by gently rubbing or massaging them on your skin, the dead skin cells can be sloughed away.

Physical exfoliants are different from chemical exfoliants, which contain skin-friendly agents like alpha hydroxy acid and retinol to loosen and remove dead skin cells.

Natural Exfoliants for Your Face

Face exfoliants should have small, uniform particles and a very fine texture. Coarser exfoliants, such as sea salt, sugar, or coffee, are not a good choice for your face because its skin is more sensitive than that of most other parts of your body.

It’s crucial to avoid overly exfoliating your face. Over-exfoliating can cause breakouts and deplete your face’s natural oil layer. Excessive scrubbing can also lead to skin irritation. For most skin types, exfoliating your face once or twice a week works best, according to the majority of skin care specialists.

Examples of natural physical exfoliants for the face include:

• baking soda
• very finely ground oatmeal
• cinnamon

DIY facial scrub recipe

Acne-friendly baking soda and honey scrub

This facial scrub recipe, with its anti-inflammatory and oil-reducing ingredients, is well suited to acne-prone skin.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. aloe vera gel
• 1/2 tsp. vitamin E oil
• 2 drops of tea tree oil

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl, and mix them together well.
2. After washing your face, apply the scrub mixture to your skin with clean fingers. Use light, circular motions with your fingertips to smooth the scrub all over your face. Think of the scrub as a gentle facial massage. Continue the gentle, circular motions for 1-2 minutes.
3. Allow the scrub to sit on your skin for an additional 2 minutes.
4. Rinse the scrub off your face with lukewarm water.
5. Apply an oil-free moisturizer — yes, even acne-prone skin can benefit from a light moisturizer — after rinsing.

Natural Exfoliants for Your Body

Because the skin on your body tends to be thicker and less delicate than the skin on your face, you can often use slightly coarser exfoliants.

Some popular natural physical exfoliants include:

• ground brown sugar
• coffee grounds
• oatmeal
• ground sea salt

A word of caution: Hold off on using sea salt if you have a cut on your skin. The salt may irritate and burn an open wound.

DIY recipes for body scrubs

Oatmeal body scrub

This oatmeal body scrub helps soften your skin thanks to the skin-soothing beta-glucan compound that’s naturally present in oatmeal.

This scrub is great to use in the shower or bath once the warm water has already softened your skin.

Ingredients

• 1 cup old-fashioned oats (this type of oats is less processed than oatmeal in packets)
• 1/2 cup coconut oil or jojoba oil
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
• 1 tbsp. brown sugar
• 2 chamomile tea bags

Directions

1. Grind the oats in a food processor until the oats have a fine dust-like consistency, then pour into a mixing bowl.
2. Combine the other ingredients (empty the tea bags) with the ground oats, and mix until everything is well blended.
3. Apply the scrub all over your body using gentle circular motions, but be sure to avoid your face.
4. Once you’ve finished applying the scrub, rinse it off with lukewarm water.
5. Towel or air-dry your skin before applying a moisturizing body lotion or oil.

Sea salt scrub

If you like, you can add essential oils of your choice to this sea salt scrub for a spa-like experience.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup ground sea salt
• 1/2 cup of coconut, olive, or jojoba oil
• 3 drops of an essential oil of your choice (lavender, rose oil, chamomile, or geranium oil may work well)

Directions

1. Combine the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.
2. While in the shower or bath, apply the scrub to your body using gentle circular motions, but be sure to avoid your face.
3. Rinse well. Once your body is dry, apply body lotion or oil to seal in the moisture.

Natural Exfoliants for Your Lips

Because your lips are more delicate than the skin on your body, you’ll want to use different ingredients than you would for a body scrub.

Examples of natural exfoliants include:

• finely ground sugar
• cinnamon
• finely ground coffee

Additionally, you’ll want to include some ultra-nourishing components to a lip scrub. Examples include:

• almond oil
• coconut oil
• honey
• olive oil
• vitamin E oil

You may also want to add a sweet-smelling component to make the scrub extra appealing. Some options include:

• cocoa powder
• vanilla extract
• peppermint oil or extract

Overexfoliating your lips can cause them to become irritated and dry. For this reason, only exfoliate your lips once a week.

If you have any pimples or blisters on your lips, hold off on exfoliating until these are cleared up.

DIY recipes

Vanilla coffee lip scrub

This vanilla coffee lip scrub combines nourishing moisturizers, like oil and honey, with exfoliating ingredients such as finely ground coffee and sugar.

Ingredients

• 1 tsp. finely ground coffee
• 1 tsp. coconut, olive, or jojoba oil
• 1/2 tsp. honey
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. finely ground white sugar

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.
2. Apply the scrub to your lips with clean fingers, rubbing in circular motions for about 1 minute.
3. Gently rinse off the scrub with lukewarm water.
4. Apply a moisturizer, such as petroleum jelly or lip balm, after exfoliating.

Sugar lip scrub

This DIY lip scrub uses sugar as the main exfoliant, and combines honey and oil to nourish and soothe the skin on your lips.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. finely ground sugar
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. honey
• 1-2 drops of your favorite essential oil

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.
2. Follow the same directions outlined above for the vanilla coffee scrub.

Like anything applied to the skin, there’s always a chance that one or more of the ingredients will cause an allergic reaction in you. This is particularly valid for exfoliants or essential oils. To make sure a component won’t cause you to get red and irritated, you might wish to perform a patch test on a small portion of your skin.

Read Also: How to Create a Personal Care Routine for Busy Lives

Any natural exfoliator that isn’t well-ground should be used with caution. An exfoliant with sharp edges, such as oatmeal, granulated sugar, coffee grinds, or coarse sea salt, may irritate or harm your skin.

Examine all natural exfoliants closely to ensure that the grains are small and smooth enough to apply on your skin.

Benefits of Natural Exfoliants

“Natural” is a catchphrase that everyone in the beauty business is enamored with these days. This word is frequently used in the skincare industry, particularly in relation to exfoliants. The use of natural exfoliants is growing in popularity as more individuals abandon their use of synthetic ones. However, what defines a “natural” exfoliant?

To put it simply, a natural exfoliant is any material derived from a plant or mineral that has the ability to exfoliate the outermost layer of dead skin cells. The most popular natural exfoliants are made of components including oats, coffee grinds, sugar, and salt. These components remove dead skin cells gently, clear clogged pores, and leave your skin feeling smooth and soft—all without irritating your skin or weakening its barrier of defense. Therefore, search for products that have these mild and nourishing components if you’re looking for a natural way to exfoliate your skin.

Natural exfoliants are a great way to revitalize and freshen the skin, and they have several advantages. Natural exfoliants are milder than harsh chemical peels, yet they nevertheless work well to remove dead skin cells, encourage healthy cell turnover, and improve circulation. Sugar, oatmeal, and sea salt are a few of the most often used natural exfoliants because they provide a range of textures and qualities that combine to keep skin looking bright and smooth.

You can take advantage of the many advantages of exfoliation without the negative effects of synthetic components by making an investment in natural exfoliants. Natural exfoliants are an excellent place to start if you want to improve the general health and vibrancy of your skin or lessen the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Top Natural Exfoliants for Glowing Skin

It’s possible to have bright skin without going broke on pricey skin care products. Without going over budget, you may have that glowing complexion with our best natural exfoliants. These natural components have the power to unclog pores, gently exfoliate dead skin cells, and leave your skin feeling renewed and smooth.

Strawberry Brightening Scrub
Benefits:
1. Gentle exfoliation
2. Brightening properties
3. Softens and smooths the skin
4. Anti-inflammatory effects
5. Additional exfoliation

Suggested use:
1. Start by cleansing your face to remove any makeup, dirt, or impurities.
2. Take a small amount of the Strawberry Brightening Scrub and gently massage it onto damp skin using circular motions. Focus on areas that require exfoliation or brightening, such as the forehead, cheeks, nose, and chin.
3. Be mindful of avoiding the delicate eye area.
4. Continue massaging for about 1-2 minutes, allowing the scrub’s ingredients to work on the skin.
5. Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water, ensuring all scrub particles are removed.
6. Pat your skin dry and follow up with your regular skincare routine, including moisturizer.

Note: It’s always recommended to perform a patch test before using any new skincare product, especially if you have sensitive skin or known allergies. This will help ensure that you do not have any adverse reactions to the product.

Acai Pulp Facial Scrub
Benefits:
1. Deep Exfoliation
2. Youthful Complexion
3. Nutrient-Rich Formula
4. Brightening Effect

Suggested Use:
1. Scrub: Wet your skin and emulsify a quarter-sized amount of the scrub between your fingers. Gently massage the scrub in circular motions onto your wet skin. The more water you incorporate, the gentler the exfoliation will be. Rinse thoroughly with warm water.
2. Mask: Start with clean skin and apply a thick layer of the scrub onto your face. Leave it on for 20 minutes to allow the nutrients to deeply nourish your skin. Afterward, rinse away the scrub with warm water.

Note: Since this is a full-strength, potent formula, it is important to follow the suggested directions for use. Adjust the amount of water used and the pressure applied during massage based on your skin’s sensitivity and tolerance. If you have sensitive skin, it’s recommended to perform a patch test before applying the product to your entire face.

18.3% Active Ingredients Vitamin C Glow Max Bright Mask
Benefits:
1. Brightening
2. Age Correction
3. Collagen Boosting
4. Moisturizing and Softening

Suggested Use:
1. Cleansing: Start with thoroughly cleansed skin to ensure that the mask can work effectively. Use a gentle cleanser to remove any dirt, oil, or makeup residue from your face.
2. Application: Take a generous amount of the mask and spread it evenly over your face, avoiding the immediate eye area. You can use your fingertips or a clean brush to apply the mask in circular motions, ensuring that it covers the entire face.
3. Duration: You have the option to rinse off the mask with warm water after a few minutes, or you can leave it on overnight. If you choose to leave it on, be sure to protect your pillowcase to avoid staining.
4. Frequency: The mask can be used 2-7 times a week, depending on your skin’s tolerance and needs. Start 2-3 times a week and gradually increase if desired. It’s essential to listen to your skin and adjust the frequency accordingly.

By following these directions and incorporating the 18.3% Active Ingredients Vitamin C Glow Max Bright Mask into your skincare routine, you can potentially experience improvements in your skin’s health, vibrancy, brightness, collagen levels, elasticity, and overall appearance. Remember to perform a patch test before initial use to check for any potential allergic reactions.

Final Thoughts

Natural exfoliants can do wonders for your skin, but it’s crucial to apply them correctly to prevent skin damage. If you’re new to the process, some best practices to follow are to use a mild exfoliant at first, work the exfoliant in circular motions for no more than a minute, and pay attention to the places you’re exfoliating because some body parts are more sensitive than others.

Furthermore, it’s critical to keep in mind the potential abrasiveness of natural exfoliants when using them improperly. Make sure to monitor your skin’s response and modify your regimen as needed. Keeping these safety measures in mind, adding natural exfoliants to your skincare regimen can help leave your skin looking radiant and refreshed.