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Nature has a marvellous way of offering simple solutions to seemingly complex problems. While designer beauty-industry ads try to convince us that only patented, scientifically formulated products and unpronounceable ingredients offer salvation for troubled skin, an effective and inexpensive alternative awaits in your very own kitchen cupboard: apple cider vinegar.

Taken internally, apple cider vinegar has been used for everything from aiding weight loss to improving joint mobility. Yet this simple apple extract (raw, organic, unfiltered and unpasteurized) is also your skin’s best friend, offering as many therapeutic topical uses as internal benefits.

Not surprisingly, apple cider vinegar is made from the juice of pressed apples that has been put through the natural process of fermentation. It is allowed to ferment past the stages of sweet and dry cider into the vinegar stage. Unlike other vinegars, apple cider vinegar is not distilled (turned to steam by heat), as this destroys most of the enzymes, minerals, trace minerals, pectin and other valuable nutrients. All of these remain intact in the "mother," that is, the solid layer that forms on top of the vinegar during fermentation. Undistilled apple cider vinegar also preserves its natural malic acid and tartaric acids, which assist the body in fighting toxins and unfriendly bacteria.

Healthy skin has a protective acid mantle that can be stripped away by overuse of alkaline body soaps, many of which also contain preservatives, synthetic perfumes, animal fats and hormones. Apple cider vinegar, on the other hand, helps keep the skin in an acidic state. It’s important to remember that the skin is the major organ of elimination, so maintaining an acid mantle assists the normal detoxification process.

Basic Acidic Recipes

Add one cup (250 ml) of apple cider vinegar to a small basin of warm water to use as a refreshing face wash. For a deeper cleanse, add about three tablespoons (45 ml) of apple cider vinegar to a pan of boiled water and lean your face over it. Cover your head with a towel for five minutes, allowing the steam to open up the pores and loosen any impurities from the skin’s surface. Finish off by using an apple cider vinegar-dipped cotton ball to gently pat the face clean.

To de-alkalize the rest of the body, add one cup (250 ml) of apple cider vinegar to your bath water. This is particularly important for people with dry, itchy, irritated skin (often a sign of alkalinity). The outer skin is made up of old cells that continually flake off, clearing the way for the new skin beneath. Many people, however, experience old outer skin cells that don’t peel off effectively, leaving them with dull, dry complexions.

If you prefer to shower, try combining one cup (250 ml) each of apple cider vinegar and warm water in a spray bottle. After showering, spray your entire body with this mixture. Wait a few minutes, then rinse. Once or twice a week, try this without rinsing or towelling off. Instead, use your hands to massage your body, working the apple cider vinegar into the skin. Your skin will dry remarkably quickly, leaving your whole body feeling fresh and invigorated.

Common Skin Problems: apple cider vinegar can be used for a multitude of skin complaints. Irritation from chicken pox, hives, poison ivy, poison oak, shingles, eczema, psoriasis and diaper rash can be minimized by soaking in an apple cider vinegar bath (as mentioned above).

Sunburn: blot an apple cider vinegar-soaked cloth on the sunburned area to reduce pain and prevent blistering and peeling. An apple cider vinegar bath can also provide relief from sunburn. Follow up by topically applying aloe vera gel. (Always consult a health practitioner if a burn is serious.)

Insect Bites: an effective paste for bug bites and stings can be made in just minutes by mixing apple cider vinegar with corn starch. This calms the irritation and helps draw the poison out.

Varicose Veins: Allow an apple cider vinegar-soaked cloth to cover swollen veins for 10 minutes. Elevate and massage the legs with strokes moving upwards toward the heart.

Help for Head and Hair

Dandruff and Itchy Scalp: add two teaspoons (10 ml) of apple cider vinegar to a large glass of warm water. Lean your head over a sink and carefully pour the mixture over your entire scalp. Wrap your head in a towel for 15 minutes. Unwrap head, comb hair and then wash hair as usual. The acidic nature of apple cider vinegar combined with its potent enzymes can kill the bottle bacillus germ that causes many scalp problems such as dandruff, itchy scalp, baldness and thinning hair. Apple cider vinegar also stimulates hair follicles to encourage the growth of healthier hair.

Hair Growth: health and fitness expert Patricia Bragg recommends sponging apple cider vinegar directly onto the scalp, then dabbing royal jelly on afterwards. Royal jelly contains all the B vitamins and other nutrients important for hair health and volume.

Head Lice: Dr Andrew Weil describes the following effective way of dealing with nits (lice eggs). Make a half-half solution of apple cider vinegar and vegetable oil and massage it into the hair and scalp. Cover the head for an hour with a shower cap or plastic bag, then shampoo and comb hair thoroughly.

One of the blessings of moving toward a more natural way of living is that it often enables us to reduce our requirements for household products. When you incorporate apple cider vinegar into your body-care regimen, it makes many commercial beauty aids obsolete. Just think how much cupboard space you’ll save!

Tanya Coad is a health and nutrition researcher who has worked in the health food industry for many years.

Source: alive #231, January 2002

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