Green Tea for Acne
Green tea is a natural acne treatment that has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine, but is only now gaining popularity in the west. The most popular regimen involves drinking lots of freshly-brewed green tea on a regular daily basis (”lots” meaning about 8 glasses per day). Green tea has been shown to be one of the most powerful herbal antioxidants available, and when applied topically as a cream, the effects are even comparable even to mainstream drugs such as benzoyl peroxide. Either orally or topically, green tea can be an effective treatment, although some of the long-term benefits are best seen by choosing the internal treatment.
Besides being valuable as a potent treatment to detoxify your cells, green tea can also help reduce inflammation, enhance digestion, and lessen the effects of hormonal shifts. It’s really one of the most all-round healthy beverages out there, but you have to take it the right way. Some things to keep in mind are:
1. Don’t add sugar. This can neutralize many of green tea’s beneficial effects.
2. Brew it yourself. Ready-made green tea is usually loaded with additives (like sugar) that again strip away many of the benefits.
So hang a bunch of tea bags in a pitcher and brew a day’s supply of tea at a time. This is, of course, if you want to go full-swing with the regimen. Personally, I find a full green tea regimen to be a lot less convenient than something like B5, but even if you just drink a few glasses per day, it can still help. It may be easier to take green tea in pill form by means of green tea extract capsules, but these seem to be less effective for many users - most likely because green tea is much more readily absorbed in liquid form.
In any case, green tea is another great natural alternative if you’re still looking for a clear skin solution. Buying green tea by the bag and brewing it yourself may not be the easiest solution, but it is very cheap, and there are no harmful side effects. It also tastes great, in my opinion.
