From heavy makeup and torturous hair styling to consuming a host of junk food including high-calorie sweets and snacks, the festive season often tends to leave both our health and looks damaged. Be it skin rashes and inflammations caused by makeup and absorption of pollutants, or acne, pimple and digestive problems as a result of unhealthy binging, or tired puffy eyes because of exertion and night outs, there’s a host of damage control to be done to get your glowing and healthy self back. Beauty experts and doctors chalk out a two week plan, addressing each of these issues.
The detox diet
Flushing out the toxins from your system is important to clean your body from inside. You could try the following detoxifying diet programme:
Cut down the oil content: For at least two weeks, reduce the oil content in your food. Avoid using ghee on your rotis and butter on your bread. Instead of fried dishes, opt for baked and grilled dishes.
Trim down the sugar intake: Lower down your sugar intake — not only sweets but also the sugar you add in your tea.
Don’t starve, eat fresh fruits, veggies: Avoiding certain things doesn’t mean you starve. Instead, reduce the size of your meal. Eat lots of raw fruits and veggies to compensate your nutrient needs. Go for green leafy vegetables or fruits such as oranges, kiwi and papaya. Avoid smoking and alcohol consumption during the detoxifying period.
(Inputs by nutritionist Dr Sandhya Pandey, Columbai Asia Hospital, Gurgaon)
Treat puffy eyes
Lack of sleep and fatigue is the culprit behind puffy eyes and dark circles, says beauty and makeup expert Aakriti Kochar of Oriflame India. “Be it skin renewal or getting rid of dark circles, a good sleep is a must as our skin undergoes its repair process when we’re off to sleep. So, before you start with your rejuvenation techniques, take a good 10 hour sleep,” says Kochar. And now, to combat puffy tired eyes, you could opt for any of the following methods:
Veggie magic: Slice refrigerate raw potato or cucumber into circles, and place it on your eyes. Relax for about 15-20 minutes. You’ll notice a tremendous change in those under-eye bags as they’ll instantly diminish in size.
The milky way: Dip cotton pads in chilled milk, place on your eyelids and relax for 20-30 minutes. This well help your eyes in water retention and it would also cool them off.
Chilled tea bags: Moisten two tea bags in cold water and refrigerate them for a while. Place them over your eyes, lie back and relax for about 15 minutes. Finish by washing your eyes and face with cold water, and drying your skin thoroughly. You would feel relaxed and rejuvenated.
Of spoons and iced water: Chill four steel spoons in cold water and then place one over each eye. Keep switching the spoons while let the other one chill in the glass of water.
(Inputs from Asian Roots Spa, Safdarjung Enclave)
Handle damaged hair
Harsh chemical colours, excessive straightening and curling as you styled up your hair during the festivities may have left your tresses rough and lifeless. To give a fresh lease of life to your locks, all that is required is care and pampering. "Rinse your hair thoroughly with a gentle hydrating shampoo. This will restore your hair to its healthy state. Opt for SLES-free shampoos with extracts of chickpea and amla. SLES or sodium lauryl ether sulfate is a detergent-based chemical found in many beauty products that’s often found to be harsh on your skin and hair," says Chandrika Mahendra of The Himalaya Drug Company. Smoothen your hair with a good volumising conditioner or natural extracts of water lily and shoe flower. You can even try a hair smoothening mask made of equal quantities of milk and yogurt, 4 tablespoons of honey and 3 drops of olive oil. Refrigerate the mixture for 10 minutes, apply the mask from tip to roots and massage the scalp. Wrap your hair with a hot towel and leave it on for 20 minutes, and rinse off.
Treat puffy eyes
Lack of sleep and fatigue is the culprit behind puffy eyes and dark circles, says beauty and makeup expert Aakriti Kochar of Oriflame India. “Be it skin renewal or getting rid of dark circles, a good sleep is a must as our skin undergoes its repair process when we’re off to sleep. So, before you start with your rejuvenation techniques, take a good 10 hour sleep,” says Kochar. And now, to combat puffy tired eyes, you could opt for any of the following methods:
Veggie magic: Slice refrigerate raw potato or cucumber into circles, and place it on your eyes. Relax for about 15-20 minutes. You’ll notice a tremendous change in those under-eye bags as they’ll instantly diminish in size.
The milky way: Dip cotton pads in chilled milk, place on your eyelids and relax for 20-30 minutes. This well help your eyes in water retention and it would also cool them off.
Chilled tea bags: Moisten two tea bags in cold water and refrigerate them for a while. Place them over your eyes, lie back and relax for about 15 minutes. Finish by washing your eyes and face with cold water, and drying your skin thoroughly. You would feel relaxed and rejuvenated.
Of spoons and iced water: Chill four steel spoons in cold water and then place one over each eye. Keep switching the spoons while let the other one chill in the glass of water.
(Inputs from Asian Roots Spa, Safdarjung Enclave)Handle damaged hair
Harsh chemical colours, excessive straightening and curling as you styled up your hair during the festivities may have left your tresses rough and lifeless. To give a fresh lease of life to your locks, all that is required is care and pampering. "Rinse your hair thoroughly with a gentle hydrating shampoo. This will restore your hair to its healthy state. Opt for SLES-free shampoos with extracts of chickpea and amla. SLES or sodium lauryl ether sulfate is a detergent-based chemical found in many beauty products that’s often found to be harsh on your skin and hair," says Chandrika Mahendra of The Himalaya Drug Company. Smoothen your hair with a good volumising conditioner or natural extracts of water lily and shoe flower. You can even try a hair smoothening mask made of equal quantities of milk and yogurt, 4 tablespoons of honey and 3 drops of olive oil. Refrigerate the mixture for 10 minutes, apply the mask from tip to roots and massage the scalp. Wrap your hair with a hot towel and leave it on for 20 minutes, and rinse off.
Tackle skin woes
Cleansing is the mantra: Clean your face the natural way sans any chemical-loaded cosmetics as that might just aggravate the problem. Splash your face with warm water and apply a mixture of turmeric powder with gram flour and a pinch of kesar. Leave it for 10 minutes and wash off by massaging with your fingertips in the upward direction. Turmeric’s antiseptic, anti inflammatory and antioxidant properties mixed with the coarseness of gram flour produces excellent cleansing results. Mild scrubbing: A mild scrub will help take out all the dirt and grime from the pores. You could go for a green tea, sugar and lemon scrub. Tea is one of the most powerful anti-oxidants and will instantly flush out the toxins from your skin and also help remove dead skin cells.
Remove impurities: Boil a cup of water. Add dried herbs such as peppermint or lavender. Now steam your face with this for five to 10 minutes.
Rejuvenating face mask: Treat yourself to a rejuvenating face mask to make your skin soft and supple. Go for a mud mask mixed with raw milk as they are best suited for scraping out clogged dirt from the pores. You can also apply a mask made of oatmeal powder, grated cucumber, aloe vera juice with few drops of lemon and milk. Peel off from your face once its dry.
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