Avocado: Kitchen Cupboard Beauty Tips

Many of us enjoy avocados in a bowl of guacamole now and then, but they have more going for them than just delicious taste. For centuries, ancient Mayan, Aztec, and Incan beauties knew the avocado is also a wonderful beauty aid, rich in beneficial oils that rejuvenate the skin, reduce eye puffiness, heal frazzled hair, and much, much more.

Find out the secrets of avocado here. It’s known as “green gold” for some very good reasons!

Avocados are perishable, so be sure to use these formulas as soon as you make them. When buying avocados, look for organically-grown firm fruit with a slight “give” to the flesh. To use, cut the avocado in half lengthwise and remove the pit. Cover the unused half with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Aztec Miracle for Puffy Eyes
This works so well it’s almost scary. Just slice a peeled avocado half into quarter-inch crescent-shapes. Lie down with a few slices under each eye and rest for around 20 minutes. You’ll love the results!

Easiest Facial Mask Ever
Just mash half an avocado and spread evenly on your clean face. Allow to remain for 15 minutes, then rinse off with warm water. This is best for dry skin types.

Shiny Soft Hair Treatment
In a small bowl, mash and combine:
1 avocado (1/2 for shorter hair)
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon olive oil

Apply to hair and allow to remain 30 minutes or longer, then shampoo and condition as usual. Amazingly silky, shiny, soft hair!

Soft, Smooth Hand Trick
This gently exfoliating scrub will make your hands noticeably softer and smoother.

In a small bowl, mash:
1/4 of a peeled avocado
1 egg white
2 tablespoons oatmeal
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine well and apply to your hands. Leave the mixture on for 20 minutes, then rinse in warm water and pat dry.

Appealing Moisturizer
Turns out we’ve been throwing away (or composting) a valuable part of the avocado!! You can use the inside of the peel as a fabulous humectant and oil-rich moisturizer. Just lightly apply the inside of the peel to your clean face, using gentle upward strokes. You can leave the oil on your face all night or rinse after 15 minutes. Makes a great foundation for your foundation or powder!

Oily-Skin Masque
In a small bowl, thoroughly mash and combine:
1/2 avocado
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 egg white

Apply evenly to a clean face and allow to remain 20 minutes, then rinse with warm water and a cloth. Follow with an astringent, if you like.

Read more: Beauty, Skin Care

By Cait Johnson, author of Earth, Water, Fire, and Air (SkyLight Paths, 2003).

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Teresa H.

12:54PM PDT on Aug 11, 2011

I just tried this~ mixed as directed with 1 egg yolk and 1/2 teaspoon olive oil. Paste was kind of thick. It was not real easy to apply. Maybe the olive oil should be 1 teaspoon. Left mine on for an hour. It washed out easy but when combing it out while still wet, the comb picked up and removed hair-like fibers of the avocado~ peach-fuzz like! It helped some of the frizz but not that much. My hair is softer and has a shine, I will credit that. I will experiment again and increase the oil amount and maybe puree the mixture first in the blender. I also applied this to my dry hair that hadn't been washed. It barely was enough to cover all of my thick hair (that is just past my shoulders). I hope this helps the next person that attempts to try this out.

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Satish C.

9:00PM PDT on Apr 10, 2011

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8:59PM PDT on Apr 10, 2011

Vanessa M.

4:53PM PDT on Oct 14, 2010

I tried the hair treatment and I was just wondering did you guys wet your hair first or just put it in dry? I can't decide which is best.

Chinmayee J.

6:37AM PDT on Jun 18, 2010

I just looked up what I could use half a ripened avocado for, and got my answer :D Thanks for sharing! Am looking forward to making the face mask...

Trisha C.

5:55AM PDT on May 7, 2010

Wow! This is absolutely great and informative article. I will try this formula because we have a lot of avocado fruits in our garden and I never knew that it can give many benefits to human skin and hair.

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5:43AM PDT on May 7, 2010

Sarah C.

10:47AM PDT on Apr 3, 2010

This dried out my hair even more. It took forever to wash it all out as well

Marina B.

6:04PM PDT on Mar 25, 2008

Try using a blender to mix your avocado , it should solve the problem.

ndidi o.

8:00PM PST on Feb 8, 2008

I've tried using an avocado and coconut milk mixture to condition my hair and there were small pieces of avocado left after rinsing the conditioner. Any suggestions?