Photo by Karla.

We love interacting with our readers, whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, comments or our Ask the Experts column. Part of the effort to interact more closely to you guys is for us to share our own experience. What happens when we take our own advice? I tried it so you can see.

Oatmeal has been mentioned several times on the site as a healthy ingredient and energy booster. Not too long ago, I even recommended a good bowl of oatmeal to help fight PMS. After trying it out myself, I’ve concluded that oatmeal definitely has superpowers.

First, let me tell you about my experience with oatmeal as a great beauty product, especially now that summer is just around the corner. The oatmeal face mask is nothing new; it’s been around for a very long time and used as a staple in almost every spa. Although pretty common commercially, oatmeal face masks are underestimated at home. This is an extremely cheap and natural way to refine your pores and keep your skin fresh and clear.

Oats are abundant in saponins, chemical compounds found in various plant species. These compounds causes soap-like foaming when shaken in liquid, making oatmeal a great natural cleanser. Here is the basic recipe for a homemade oatmeal face mask, with an added special ingredient, Vitamin E jelly. Since oats are a natural oil-free ingredient, and if you’re like me with  skin that’s prone to dryness, pop in this additional ingredient to level the moisture. This is optional, of course.

1. Grind 1/2 cup oats in a food processor.
2. Pour the crushed oats into a clean bowl. Little chunks are okay, but make sure it’s powdery enough to spread evenly.
3. Mix 1/4 cup honey or pure maple syrup into the oats.
4. Slice a Vitamin E soft gel capsule in half and pour the jelly into the oat mixture. Mix well. If the mixture is too thick, you may add warm water until the desired consistency.
5. Apply on face, staying away from the eyes.
6. Lay down and relax, meditate, watch television or read a book for 10 minutes.
7. Gently wipe off mask with a damp towel. Rinse face clean and tap dry.

Aside from being a great beauty regimen, oatmeal has helped me in various nutritional ways as well.

• More filling, less calories. I love dessert, and I most especially love baking dessert. Try replacing all-purpose flour with oat flour, which you can find in a regular supermarket. I like homemade oat flour as well, which you can make by simply grinding oats in a food processor. You get twice the fiber, which makes you feel fuller, but more importantly, a huge chunk of your dessert calories will be scratched off. If you look for it, you’ll find gluten-free oatmeal flour too.
• Let’s get physical! I love including oatmeal as part of my daily exercise regimen. Having a nice bowl of oatmeal at least 2 hours before hitting the treadmill makes me so much more energetic. It improves my endurance for running as well. Oats send a signal to the body to burn fat more efficiently to send fuel to the muscles more quickly.

Do you have other great experiences with oatmeal? Do you have a great oatmeal recipe to share? Shoot us a comment below!

Karla Mercado lives in New Mexico and is the author of Balancing Tenderfoot. She is passionate about human medicine, nutrition, and writing.

This is me enjoying a coconut oil massage in Boracay, Philippines.

I was born and raised in the tropics and whenever I think of home, I think about coconut oil. Never a beach trip goes by without my friends and I getting hour long coconut oil massages from the island massage therapists. The smell and texture of coconut oil gliding against your skin is very different from regular massage oils. It’s organic, light and absolutely soothing.

Coconut oil has been around for generations and has been used by millions as a staple in their diet–it’s a great source of fat, does not burn easily and very resistant to rancidity.

But isn’t coconut oil bad for your health? There had been bad publicity about the high saturated fat content of coconut oil, but research shows that the structural make-up of coconut oil in terms of fatty acids is actually very unique and not unhealthy at all. The fat composition of coconut oil is made up of Medium Chain Fatty Acids (MCFA), which make this particular oil behave differently once it has reached the digestive tract: because its particles are considerably smaller in size, it is easily digestible and does not require too much energy to get absorbed, thus putting on less strain in our digestive system. Dr. Nishant also wrote about it in The Skinny on Coconut Fat.

Are you vegan or lactose intolerant? Coconut oil is a great substitute for dairy additives to snacks. For instance, you can toss your homemade popcorn with coconut oil instead of butter. Sounds weird? Bet you didn’t know that coconut oil is actually used in movie theater popcorn here in the US, which gives it its distinct flavor!

Fountain of youth. Coconut oil is loaded with antioxidants and can be a great addition to your beauty regimen. Aside from its moisturizing quality, coconut oil is also composed of Vitamin E, which is a popular ingredient used in many beauty products that help prevent premature aging. My personal favorite coconut oil beauty regimen is rubbing a few drops of it on my nails, which is my organic version of what I learned from my grandmother who would break open Vitamin E capsules and rub the liquid onto her fingers for healthier nails and softer fingers.

Health boost. Coconut oil is composed of lauric acid, which researchers were very excited to introduce as a powerful immune booster. With its antimicrobial properties, coconut oil is a great shield from bacterial and viral infections.

Sit back, relax and enjoy the summer. Coconut oil is a great organic stress reliever. It’s soothing quality makes it a very popular massage oil. It is also extremely gentle even to the most sensitive skin, so don’t be afraid to rub a few drops of it against your temples to cure mental fatigue. It smells great, too!

Karla Mercado lives in New Mexico and is the author of Balancing Tenderfoot. She is passionate about human medicine, nutrition, and writing.

Photo by denisemattox.

You already know that beauty is more than skin-deep. Skin health and appearance depend on much more than what fancy lotions, latest “age-defying” cream or organic make-up you might be using.

Beauty begins on the inside…with the gut and nutrition!

Think of your gastrointestinal lining as the skin inside your body. The health of this gut lining can improve the health of the rest of your body and especially your outside skin. There are many similarities: the gut lining replaces itself often, its irritations and inflammations show up on the skin, and nourishing blood flows just under the surface. What is happening on your skin is reflection of what is happening in your gut. A happy gut equals more radiant skin.

You are what you eat.

Many skin problems can be improved with smart nutrition and identifying and eliminating food sensitivities and allergies. Water and essential fatty acids are internal lotions, making skin soft and supple. Nutritious whole foods provide important anti-oxidants, vitamins and minerals for the frequent renewal of healthy skin cells.

Get the glow!

Move water and nutrition to the skin surface through getting the glow going. Anything that brings a light sweat to the skin means that the skin is being nourished and the toxins are being removed. The glow can be through walking, yoga, bouncing and even sex. Any movement that brings a light sweat counts.

Smile from the inside.

Learn to manage your reaction to stress. Stress affects the health of your skin. We’ve all noticed cold sores, acne or blemishes popping up when we are under stress. Acupuncture, meditation and sleep can all help us lessen the effects of stress on our skin.

When we start to work on the inside, we not only feel better but also look better!

Dr. Gibran Ramos completed his six year training and internship in Naturopathic and Chinese Medicine at National College of Natural Medicine. Dr. Ramos helps patients transform their lives and optimize their well-being at a private practice in Portland, Oregon.

Photo by fedewild.

Going under the knife isn’t the only way to get rid of fine lines and cellulite. Let this be your guide to a couple of alternatives: acupuncture and cupping. Here’s the lowdown on the two procedures, what to expect when you visit your acupuncturist and what to expect when it comes to results.

Acupuncture: the procedure

If it’s your first consultation with the acupuncturist, you’ll be asked a series of questions like how much water you drink and how many times a day you go to the bathroom. It might seem irrelevant but this thorough understanding of your daily health and wellness provides the practitioner with essential information to individualize your experience.
Next your acupuncturist will have you lie down or recline into a comfortable position. First, a few needles will be inserted into acupuncture points along the body to encourage circulation and wake up sluggish organs signaling vitality. Once those needles are humming with qi, the acupuncturist will begin administering needles to the facial tissue. These hair-thin needles will be gently placed into the skin along areas that need a little pep.

You may ask to have your “smile lines” softened or perhaps that little furrow in your brow relaxed. In some cases a low frequency of electrical stimulation will be administered along the shaft of the needle to encourage the problem area to fill in with new collagen and elastin.

Acupuncture: the results

While results vary from person to person throughout the course of treatment, most patients report an overall sensation of vitality in the face, and the experience of facial rejuvenation. Patients can look forward to experiencing visible diminishment of fine lines without the expense and danger of surgery and chemical injections.

Photo by migraine chick.

Cupping: the procedure

Chinese Medical doctors have traditionally been using cupping for preventing the cold and flu, reducing headaches, and easing backaches in their everyday practices. As patients grow increasingly more aware of its benefits, other new exciting applications for this simple and safe procedure are being developed, namely cellulite reduction.

A small amount of massage oil is applied to the buttocks, hip, low back, and along the upper portion of the leg. These are problem areas that will benefit the most from the application of cupping. A cotton ball soaked in alcohol is placed on the end of a surgical hemostat and lit. This lit end is placed inside the cup then quickly withdrawn. As the hemostat is removed, the cup is rapidly placed upon the skin creating a vacuum.

Cupping: the results

Continued cupping treatment will rapidly and safely encourage metabolic waste elimination via the lymph system at a fraction of the time and cost of endermologie, chemical injections, and topical creams. Patients can expect a visible appearance of smoother skin within one or two treatments but keep in mind that treatment length and frequency are always determined on an individual basis.

Other alternatives

While facial rejuvenation and cupping offer safe, scalpel-free solutions, clean, hydrated, and properly moisturized skin will keep you glowing.  It will come as no surprise that the following skin care remedies are as wearable as they are edible!

• REN’s Revivo Lift. Rich in ginseng and trace elements this serum will revitalize skin leaving a toned sensation.
• Korre’s Yoghurt moisture mask. The probiotics found in this hydrating mask will ward off bad bacteria to help exfoliate and smooth skin.
• Pangea’s organic goji face mask. Goji berry, noted as one of the most powerful antioxidants, gently exfoliates both facial and all over body skin to encourage free radical drainage.

Want to see how your skin care scores? Visit the Environmental Working Group’s awesome cosmetic database Skin Deep to see how your personal care products add up.

Christine M. Dionese L.Ac. specializes in integrative medicine, medical journalism and was the VP of marketing at WellWire LLC. Visit her wellness and lifestyle blog, Reaching Beyond Now.