New skincare products hit the market on a daily basis, and it is challenging to keep up with all of them. With a plethora of chemical-ridden products everywhere you look, it is hard to believe that a typical kitchen ingredient like oatmeal can be good for your skin.
‘Oat is everywhere at the moment from ‘Oat Milk’ Latte to Oat flour bread, we are having a love affair with oats. They are the chia seeds of 2020 and beyond.
Let’s take a look at what colloidal oatmeal is and why so many people incorporate it into their daily skincare routine. Yes, your kitchen pantry staple bowl of breakfast goodness can hold the secret to the skin of your dreams. Tasty!
What is Colloidal Oatmeal?
Colloidal oatmeal is essentially ground-up rolled oats added to some sort of liquid base to then be applied topically. Oatmeal is thought to have become a skincare product in Egypt around 2000 BC. It was originally used to help people sleep, to decrease anxiety, and as an anti-inflammatory for inflamed and irritated skin. For centuries people have used its benefits to help cleanse, soothe, smooth, moisturize, and calm down the skin.
Now, colloidal oatmeal is FDA approved as a safe product to use on your skin. Skincare companies worldwide are adding it as an ingredient into their products.
Benefits of Colloidal Oatmeal For Your Skin
In the 1990s, scientists discovered what it was in oatmeal that made it so good for your skin. A specific grouping of polyphenolics protects skin from lipid peroxidation, which is what causes itchiness, redness, and swelling. They also found that it has a variety of other functions.
- Oatmeal is a skin cleanser. It contains saponins, which is an anti-fungal and cleansing property.
- It contains antioxidants that fight free radicals in your skin. It helps eliminate wrinkles and early signs of aging.
- Colloidal oatmeal strengthens the skin’s outer barrier and protects it from environmental impurities.
- As mentioned above, oatmeal is an anti-inflammatory and an antioxidant for your skin. It reduces discolouration and swelling.
- The fibre and cellulose (beta-glucan)content in oatmeal reduces redness and irritation in your skin.
- Amazingly, colloidal oatmeal contains phenols that might help with the absorption of UV rays. Additionally, if you do get sunburnt, it can help reduce the redness and irritation.
- Oatmeal creates a film on the skin that locks in moisture and prevents transepidermal water loss.
- If you have acne or even an occasional zit, colloidal oatmeal can be applied all over the face or to a single spot to get rid of it. It kills acne-causing bacteria, absorbs oils, reduces inflammation, restores your skin’s normal pH balance, and reduces redness.
Possible Ways to Use Colloidal Oatmeal
Bath Time
You can add Colloidal oatmeal to your bath for complete body hydration and help eliminate irritation. Soaking in a bathtub can dry your skin out, but adding oatmeal will lock in moisture while you unwind and relax.
For Your Scalp
Colloidal oatmeal is great for your scalp! It can be ground to a fine powder and used in a dry shampoo to reduce oil and grease from your hair, or it can be used as a regular shampoo in the shower to eliminate dry scalp and dandruff.
To use as a dry shampoo, mix colloidal oil with cocoa powder for dark hair or baby powder for light hair and apply it to your scalp between washes. For regular shampoo, use colloidal powder mixed with water and apply it directly to your scalp for a moisturizing cleanse.
Moisturizer For Face and Body
You can buy moisturizers that have colloidal oatmeal as an ingredient already, or you can add it to your own. If you make your own, using body butter or a thicker lotion will be more beneficial than a thin, oily lotion. Thicker creams contain more water and less oil, so the oatmeal will be able to lock in more moisture.
Soap
Soap bars containing oatmeal are easy to find and great to use on your body and your hands. You can even make your own soap bars and add colloidal oatmeal into them for an exfoliating and moisturizing body and hand wash.
Body wash
Liquid body washes containing colloidal oatmeal are perfect for people who have eczema or any dry skin condition.
Exfoliator
Colloidal oatmeal has a grainy texture which makes it perfect for scrubbing your skin and removing dead skin cells while also hydrating your skin. It is gentle and can even be combined with other exfoliants like coffee or brown sugar to make a coarser scrub.
Facial cleanser
Colloidal oatmeal is safe to use as often as you feel necessary. For dry skin, it is recommended to use it twice a day. IF you have oily or greasy skin, once every few days is sufficient.
Is Colloidal Oatmeal For Everybody?
People with eczema and/or dry and flaky skin benefit the most from colloidal oatmeal. It is also used as a dermatitis treatment and to help with other inflammatory skin conditions.
Even if you don’t have a skin condition, colloidal oatmeal can help you. It is approved as a safe treatment for almost everybody and very rarely causes any side effects or allergic reactions. If a side effect does appear, it usually is not much more than slight burning or irritation of the skin if you are allergic to oatmeal or the base product in which it is mixed.
To test how colloidal oatmeal will work for you, try a small amount of the skin care product on your arm or the back of your hand. Let it absorb into your skin and wait at least a day to ensure that you don’t have any adverse reactions. You likely won’t, but with any new skincare product, it is important to test it beforehand.
So, Should You Put Porridge On Your Face?
No matter what type of skin you have, colloidal oatmeal would be a great addition to your skincare routine. It has several incredible benefits and is gentle on your skin. Unlike the typical, unpronounceable chemicals that are often found in skin products, colloidal oatmeal is a natural grain with proven benefits. Next time you find yourself with dry, itchy skin, take a colloidal oatmeal bath and discover what it can do for you!
