Tag: coconut oil

One Thing You Never Thought Of Doing With Oil

Published on by Lee2 Comments

It sounds extra AF, but swishing oil around your mouth might just be the best thing for your health and skin, seriously! The idea comes from ancient Ayurvedic medicine and involves taking a tablespoon of oil and swishing it around your mouth like mouthwash, for twenty minutes. Believe it or not, this detoxifying method actually has a ton of health benefits that improve oral health, and it can even improve acne, whiten your teeth, help with headaches, and detox your entire body.

How To Do Oil Pulling:

On an empty stomach – first thing in the morning is the best time – swish a tablespoon of oil around your mouth for twenty minutes (at least ten minutes if you’re in a hurry). Our preference is coconut oil, because obvs we have a ton lying around and it’s also antibacterial, but you can also use sesame, olive or sunflower oil. Initially, it might feel a little gross, but persist, and like us, you might even end up enjoying the experience! It should always be done on an empty stomach, so wait at least four hours after eating, and an hour after drinking.

Whatever you do, don’t swallow the oil; otherwise, you’ll basically allow all the toxins that have been drawn out to go into your stomach. Once you’ve swished for 15-20 minutes, spit it out in your bin. You can do almost anything (except speak) while you do this, but keep an eye on the time, as if you do it much longer than 20 minutes, it’s possible that the toxins could be reabsorbed into your body. Rinse your mouth with warm water or salt water, and brush your teeth.

How Oil Pulling Works:

how oil pulling works

It’s quite gross to think about, but your mouth is filled with bacteria, fungi, toxins, and plaque. Oil pulling literally cleanses your mouth by drawing out all the toxins from your gums and teeth, before they’re able to spread to the rest of your body.

Why Oil Pulling is Awesome:

Who’d have thought that you can forego a ton of expensive beauty products simply by following this daily ritual? Oil pulling is an amazing way to improve your health and detox your body, skin, and gums. Though there’s yet to be significant research into oil pulling, promising results have been found, and many doctors recommend it – apparently, Gwyneth Paltrow and Shailene Woodley are fans. Here’re just some of the amazing benefits:

Skin-clearing: Catching out nasty toxins before they reach the rest of your body has a huge impact on your skin. The same way washing your skin gets rid of surface bacteria, oil pulling gets rid of bacteria that causes skin problems before they have a chance to take hold. Reports have shown that oil pulling for a month has helped improve acne and eczema.

Teeth whitening and fresh breath: Oil pulling can remove surface stains from your teeth, and because the fats in oil can dissolve plaque, it prevents plaque build-up and reduces the risk of tooth cavities for an extra white smile. The removal of bacteria from your mouth also results in fresher breath throughout the day.

Detoxes your body: The mouth is our gateway to the majority of substances in our body, by removing bacteria from the mouth before it has a chance to reach the rest of your body it majorly impacts on your health.

Increases energy: Our immune system works 24/7 to eliminate toxic waste from the body. By getting rid of these nasty toxins at the source before your body has to, it saves precious energy to be spent on other activities.

Reduces headaches and hangovers: We’ll be honest, anything that promises to cure a hangover is worth trying; the process of oil pulling will remove alcohol toxins still lurking in your body from the night before, helping you and your body feel much better. Headaches and migraines can be a reaction to your body being under toxic stress; so extract the toxins, reduce the stress!

Why Coconut Oil is Our FAVE:

We’ve found that coconut oil, (try to use 100% raw organic cold-pressed coconut oil) is the best oil to use. Not only is it easy to find and inexpensive, but it’s also by far the best tasting of the bunch. Coconut oil also contains lauric acid that has antimicrobial and anti-fungal properties, while Vitamin E is rich in antioxidants and it’s antibacterial. If you’re going to have oil in your mouth for twenty minutes, it should at least taste okay!

Oil pulling can easily become part of your morning routine: swish while you shower and tone, or while you get dressed and scroll your Insta feed. If you’re at home, take advantage of the period after lunch before dinner and swish on an empty stomach while you watch TV.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK?

Odds & Ends: 5 Amazing Uses for Coconut Oil

Published on by Lee5 Comments

Years ago, if someone were to tell me that there was one single product that solved dozens of health and beauty woes, I most likely wouldn’t have believed them. One product that you can use to cook, moisturize your hair, remove your makeup, and hydrate your skin? Not possible, I would have thought. However, this little miracle does exist. And, unlike much fancy beauty and cooking products out there, it is free of chemicals and 100 percent natural. This wonder is none other than coconut oil.

I use coconut oil every day on my skin, my hair, and even in the kitchen. In fact, most of the time when a friend comes to me asking for a quick fix for a beauty or skin problem, my answer is “just put some coconut oil on it.” Now that you know a little bit about my obsession with coconut oil, today I’m going to share five ways you can incorporate it into your own lifestyle…

1. Face and Body Moisturizer
If you rub a little bit of coconut oil between your hands, you will immediately notice how incredibly moisturizing it feels on your skin. As a face and body moisturizer, coconut oil is much more hydrating than average store-bought lotions because the oil penetrates deep layers of the skin and actually helps to strengthen underlying tissues ( Huffington Post). It will also help remove dead skin cells, removing any rough or flaky texture from your skin’s surface and giving you a full body glow. You can use coconut oil as a moisturizer for your entire face, but I like to put it under my eyes and on my lips before bedtime. For my body, I mix equal parts coconut oil and body lotion together to create an ultra-hydrating cream, and I apply it right when I get out of the shower. You can also add essential oils like lavender or vanilla to scent your oil, but many people love the natural, tropical scent as it is. The best part about this oil is that it will absorb into your skin without feeling oily or greasy.

2. Hair Mask
Just as coconut oil works wonder for your skin, it will also give your hair a silky texture and tons of shine. I use coconut oil as a hair mask at night after I’ve washed my hair. Simply heat up about 3 to 5 tablespoons of coconut oil in the microwave, so that it’s a warm liquid. Then, after it has cooled, apply it to your hair as you would any hair mask. Put on a plastic shower cap or wrap an old T-shirt around your head, and leave the oil in while you sleep. When you wake up, wash your hair and discover your best hair day yet. You can thank me later. Note: Unlike store-bought hair masks, coconut oil is all natural and great for your skin. So, if a little bit happens to rub off onto your pillow while you’re sleeping, you don’t have to worry about dealing with clogged pores or a breakout the next day.

3. Makeup Remover
One of my favorite uses for coconut oil that I discovered all on my own is its gentle power to remove makeup. I was applying a bit under my eyes one night before bed, and I noticed that it was easily removing some extra mascara that hadn’t washed off with my face wash. Now, before I wash my face, I use my finger to gently rub downward on my eyes and eyelashes to remove my eye makeup from the day. Tip: Leaving a little oil on the base of your eyelashes can actually help them grow a bit, so it’s ok if you don’t rinse it all completely off afterward.

4. Cooking Oil
Coconut oil is also one of the healthiest oils to use when cooking. Our favorite nutritionist Shira Lenchewski, RD., explains that unlike animal fats, which are made up of long-chain triglycerides (LCT), coconut oil is made up of medium chain triglycerides (MCT). MCTs are metabolized more rapidly in the body than LCTs, so there’s increased fat burning potential. Many healthy oils (like olive and flax) break down into harmful compounds when heated to their “smoke-point.” But coconut oil remains stable at higher temperatures, so it’s a great option for stir-frying and pan-searing. For cooking, Shira recommends using unrefined coconut oil, also called raw or virgin.

5. Baking Ingredient
Coconut oil is a great ingredient to have in the pantry if you love baking. Shira says that because coconut oil is a saturated fat, it’s a great substitute for butter in baked goods. Saturated fats are the typical fat of choice in baking, due to their favorable effects on texture. And while saturated fats don’t have the same beneficial effect on good cholesterol as mono- and polyunsaturated oils, they do play a role in various brain and body functions, explains Shira.

Tip: Always buy unrefined, extra virgin coconut oil, since it goes through the least process and is closest to its natural state. For cooking, make sure your coconut oil indicates that it can stand high-heat, not just medium heat.

I also take a coconut oil supplement with my daily vitamins to make my hair shiny and my skin blemish-free. And I’ve been using coconut oil to experiment with oil pulling. I’ve been trying it for the past two weeks, so I’ll be sharing my results here on BeautyLeeBar.com in the coming weeks…stay tuned!

Do you have one favorite multi-purpose product you swear by?
Tell me about it in the comments below.

Xx
Team Hello Beauties