Caffeine can make you look prettier. Not only by eliminating tiredness from your face and making you look refreshed but also by helping you take the greatest care of your skin. If you consider the natural stimulant your perfect morning energy boost, it is time to take it up a notch. Include the raw ingredient in your daily beauty routine, and you will be surprised to find yourself glowing from within. So, are you ready to use caffeine for beauty? Here is why and how you can use this excellent beauty brew.
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What Is Caffeine?
Caffeine is a crystalline alkaloid compound, which is white in color and bitter in taste. It is mainly found in certain plants’ seeds, fruits, and leaves in different amounts. Being a natural stimulant for our brain and the central nervous system, caffeine is consumed as coffee, tea, energy drinks, soft drinks, and even caffeinated chocolate across the globe. A cup of freshly brewed, hot coffee can prevent tiredness, improve alertness, and uplift your mood almost instantly.
Caffeine is proven to be beneficial for a number of health conditions including fatty liver, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, cancer, migraine, Alzheimer’s disease, retinal degeneration, etc. (1)
Why Should You Use Caffeine for Beauty?
Caffeine contains lots of skin-friendly nutrients and skin-benefiting properties that cumulatively give us blemish-free, gorgeous skin. Here is how:
1. Holds Great Antioxidant Properties
Studies have revealed that the antioxidant content of caffeine offers excellent protection to our skin when used both internally and externally. According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, its antioxidants are even more potent than those found in green tea and fruits like blueberries. (2)
2. Prevents Premature Aging
The antioxidant properties of caffeine present in the extracts of coffee beans are enough to put a stop to skin damage caused by oxygen-free radicals. As a result, the substance can combat untimely aging by minimizing signs like wrinkles, fine lines, sagging, dark spots, etc. Also, it makes our skin firm, youthful and glowing. (3)
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3. Induces Vasoconstriction Effects
Researchers have proved that caffeine can constrict blood vessels spread throughout our entire body. (4) Sometimes the tiny blood capillaries underneath our facial skin get enlarged and become unable to contract, which results in facial flushings like rosacea or redness. The topical use of caffeine can treat such conditions by making the constriction of blood vessels easier.
4. Works As Anti-inflammatory Agent
Caffeine is a highly anti-inflammatory substance, thanks to its strong vasoconstriction effects. Hence, you can treat skin inflammation with it effectively. Even many skincare products contain decent amounts of caffeine and are used for healing inflamed skin effectively. (5)
5. Keeps Eye Puffiness At Bay
Caffeine can help you reduce the redness or puffiness of the area under your eyes to a great extent. When the delicate eye area develops leaky blood capillaries due to dehydration, pollution, or exhaustion, an excellent caffeinated eye cream can be used for getting rid of it. It can tighten up the capillaries immediately and provide a temporary solution for the problem. (6)
6. Gives Freedom from Cellulite
If you have cellulite and are dying to get rid of it, caffeine can help you a lot. It can dehydrate the tissues by pulling fluid out of them, which helps in reducing those annoying dimples in your skin. Being a member of the methylxanthines family, caffeine can also stimulate the functions of fat-braking enzymes and decrease the appearance of cellulite. (7)
7. Provides Maximum Sun Protection
Keeping the skin protected from the harmful effects of solar radiation is essential for looking beautiful. The caffeine present in the leaves, beans, and berries of coffee is rich in antioxidants, which prevents the skin cells from getting damaged by the sun’s ultraviolet rays. It is also known to repair the damage of skin caused by detrimental UV emission.
8. Fights Against Skin Cancer
The sun’s damaging UV rays also cause fatal diseases like skin cancer. However, oral and topical caffeine use can help you fight against it. As the alkaloid substance can regulate the extent of sun damage to our skin, it becomes easier for us to stay away from the ailment.
Also Read – Why Should You Drink Green Tea For Weight Loss And Obesity Control?
How To Use Caffeine For Beauty?
Now, here are some simple and easy DIY caffeine fixes for your skin that you must consider including in your daily beauty routine:
For Exfoliation
After enjoying your cup of coffee, massage your face gently with the grounds (skip the delicate undereye and mouth areas). Follow small circular movements to slough off dead cells from the outer layer and boost collagen production.
For Better Circulation
Prepare ice cubes by adding some freshly brewed coffee to them. Tracing your entire face with one of those cubes will rejuvenate the skin by increasing the flow of blood in it. As a result, your face will look healthy and more vibrant over time.
For Skin Brightening
Take some coffee grounds and mix them with 2 tablespoons of plain yogurt. Apply the mixture to your cleansed facial skin and wait for around 15 minutes. Then, rinse with cold water. It will give you a radiant and glowing complexion naturally.
For Puffy Eyes
Cooldown some coffee grounds and apply them around your eyes. Relax for half an hour and then rinse with plain water. Your eyes will become refreshed and brighter.
For Cellulite
Scrub the cellulite-affected parts of your skin with some coffee grounds. Follow a gentle circular motion and keep practicing it twice every day. This will help you minimize your cellulite to a great extent.
Caution
Overdosage of caffeine can cause addiction and adverse effects on our bodies. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that you keep your daily caffeine intake limited to 500 mg. only. If you are an ardent coffee-lover, you must not have more than 2-4 cups a day to avoid irritation, anxiety, restlessness, etc.