Traditional skin remedy to lighten skin and pigmentation

What it does: Turmeric has been found to cut the skin’s melanin production. It also helps suntanned skin return to its normal shade faster.

How to do it

You can apply turmeric topically on your skin or ingest it (or do both!). There are many ways to use turmeric on your skin — below are a few simple methods.

Do note that turmeric will stain your skin and some surfaces yellow, scroll to the bottom for some helpful tips.

1) 15-minute mask (with lemon juice). Mix turmeric powder with cucumber juice or lemon juice to make a paste. Apply to the affected area. Leave on for fifteen minutes. Rinse off. With daily use, skin pigmentation will even out.

2) Mask or cream (with natural oils). For a more penetrating and longer-lasting treatment, mix turmeric with a natural oil to form a paste and apply this paste as a mask. You can leave the mask on for as long as you are comfortable as unlike lemon juice, it will not sting. Some good natural oils you can try are  extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil and castor oil (castor oil is probably the best as it can penetrate more deeply into the skin). Depending on your preferences, you can either make a thick paste (more turmeric, less oil) or a very thin, diluted mixture (less turmeric, more oil).

3) Turmeric-infused oil mask. This is very easy to prepare, and as it is “pre-mixed”, it’s also the most convenient method.

Just add some turmeric powder to a natural oil of your choice in a small bottle (use a clear or see-through bottle so you can see when the mixture separates in the next step). Shake well. The oil will immediately turn an orange or a deep yellow and will look ‘cloudy’.

Leave this bottle to stand overnight. The next day, the turmeric powder would have settled at the bottom and you’ll get a beautiful, clear orange oil at the top for your use.

Take a small amount of this turmeric-infused oil and rub it into your skin or face thoroughly. Leave on for at least 30 minutes (longer if you feel comfortable) and wash off.

You can continue to use this pre-mixed oil for some time, but as natural oils will eventually go rancid, you should make a fresh batch when you need to. It will keep fresh longer if you live in a cold climate or if you keep the mixture in the fridge. Nonetheless, it’s a good idea to make a fresh batch every few weeks as the older the oil, the less potent it becomes.

Remember that using natural methods such as these require patience. Give these methods consistent use for at least 1-2 months before deciding if there is any improvement or not. Keep in mind that the skin only renews itself every 30 days or so.

4) Ingest turmeric (eat it or drink it). Apart from putting it on your skin, turmeric taken internally also benefits skin. Some of the ways you can take turmeric are: 1) in food (many Asian dishes such as curries contain turmeric); 2) mixed in hot water or a drink; 3) or in supplement form. To boost turmeric’s absorption in your body, add some black pepper and fat. This can be easily done if you take turmeric at mealtimes.

Why it works: Turmeric has powerful antioxidant properties, protects against environmental toxins, and has antibacterial properties.

Where to buy turmeric powder

You can find turmeric powder easily in most supermarkets nowadays. As it is used mainly in Indian dishes, you can also easily find turmeric in grocery stores that cater to this market. 

Check the labels to make sure you’re getting only turmeric powder — this is because some pre-packaged turmeric products also contain other spices for cooking.

Yellow stains from turmeric: simple precautions and tips

When turmeric is mixed with oils like in methods 2) & 3) above, the yellow stains on the skin become much easier to wash off with soap and water afterwards. You will have to lather up a few times and be thorough, but the yellow stains will come off your skin with washing.

When turmeric is mixed with water (or water-based liquids like lemon juice) instead, it’ll leave a yellow stain on your skin for several hours and may require a few washings to fade it.  although this is inconvenient for most people, this yellow staining—where turmeric remains within the skin itself and not just sitting on top of it—may actually be more beneficial.

However, turmeric stains on fingernails do not wash off (for oil- and water-based mixes), so use plastic gloves when handling turmeric if this bothers you. You can also wrap a small piece of cling film/plastic wrap around your fingers to protect your nails.

Turmeric will also stain some porous surfaces such as plastic (you can remove these stains by soaking them in bleach However, turmeric washes off non-porous surfaces such as steel, glass or ceramic (e.g. most regular sinks). If you’re not sure what turmeric will do to your surfaces, lay down some old newspapers to protect them.

If you use turmeric on your skin overnight while you sleep, it will also stain your pillowcase and bed linen, so line them with towels first or use old linens that you don’t mind getting stained.

Have you seen the Thailand Movie "A Crazy Thing Called Love" ? 

My Favorite that I watched again and again. ♥ 

Nam played by Pimchanok Lerwisetpibol - dark skinned young girl who fell in love with  P.Shone. A girl with goals and dreams, just like everyone. She's determined and is willing to do everything to impress the guy she likes.

In that movie, where her friends are trying to make white,  she used Turmeric Powder to lighten her skin, that stains her skin yet effective in real life. :P♥ .


It's Summer Time and If you went to the beach, went swimming, outdoor fun and stayed in the sun for so long that gave you tanned skin?


♥ Fade a tan by drinking turmeric with milk, if you had suntanned skin, start drinking warm milk with turmeric powder in it and take off your suntan and your skin will start glowing. It will took just about 15 to 30 days for your skin to improve. Proven that It really works. ♥ 

NEXT POST: April 2012 New Stuffs ♥