Last night, I was feeling under the weather so my mom recommended I take an epsom salt bath to help ease my achiness. I hadn't used epsom salts since the sprains and strains of my high school athletic career.
But I was hopeful that this old-timey cure would do the trick for my adult flu. Of course, Mom was right. After a good soak with some lavender and cedarwood oils (a recommendation from Mandy Aftel [1]) I felt healed, as if I had come straight out of the Dead Sea.
So, this got me to thinking about other uses for the miracle salts. I did some research, and according to the Epsom Salt Council [2], there are many beauty benefits to magnesium sulfate. . .as it's known in the world of science. To see what they are, .
- Va voom — Epsom salts can give hair body. Who knew?
- What a release — The salts help replenish magnesium in the body, which can make energy levels increase. Which, in turn, can make you look better. A lift in magnesium also relieves stress, increasing serotonin levels and lowering blood pressure. Yay.
- Smooth skin — Not only to the salts deep clean, try massaging handfuls of the crystals on pre-moistened skin for an exfoliating experience.
- Oily no more — To help dry out oily skin and invigorate all other skin types, mix 1/2 teaspoon of epsom salts with your face cleanser and then massage for a mini facial.
- Mask it — For normal to dry skin, whip up a three-ingredient facial mask: Blend 1/4 cup of grated carrot, 1/2 teaspoon of epsom salts, and 1 1/2 teaspoons mayonnaise. Spread over pre-dampened skin, wait 10 minutes, and remove. Next, refer to YumSugar [3] for all other mayo/carrot/salt combos.
Source [4]