Most of us remember amla as a bitter and sour fruit that our grandmother would ask us to eat regularly. A staple in the kitchen of every Indian household, amla or the Indian gooseberry is a superfood that contains various nutrients and amazing properties that keep you in good health.
It is Ayurveda’s most popular ingredient as it’s key to curing many ailments. It can be consumed in different forms, such as amla powder, amla juice, amla chutney or pickle. It can even be applied topically to help with skincare woes.
Benefits of Amla for Skin
Following are the major advantages amla offers for our skin:
1. Treats Acne
Amla helps remove acne scars. A natural blood purifier, amla prevents pimples and improves skin’s healing time. It protects and preserves beautiful, glowing skin. It eliminates spots, fine lines, and wrinkles, keeping the skin young by enhancing its colour. Using amla paste on affected areas helps treat inflammation and reduce scarring.
2. Brightens Complexion
Amla is highly loaded with vitamin C and antioxidants, both of which help brighten the skin and lighten the complexion. You can either consume amla juice or apply it as a face pack. An excellent cleanser helps remove dead skin cells from the face, resulting in bright, glowing skin. Regularly consuming amla produces more collagen in our skin, making it soft and beautiful.
3. Reduces Skin Pigmentation
Healing properties in amla cleanse your skin and help reduce skin pigmentation. Apply some amla juice to your face and let it dry. Then with a small piece of cotton, wipe it off.
Even drinking amla juice for skin whitening is good. It helps remove skin tans. Amla also treats skin diseases like leprosy, psoriasis, skin allergies and eczema.
4. Anti-ageing Powerhouse
One of the most significant benefits of amla for skin is how it helps skin age slowly. As it’s enriched with the goodness of vitamin C, amla is beneficial in retaining the youthfulness of your skin.
The natural antioxidants in it protect the skin from the harmful impact of free radicals. These radical factors break down skin collagen, causing skin blemishes, wrinkles, fine lines, dark spots, etc. Consuming amla daily can prevent premature ageing, thus giving you soft and supple skin.
5. Prevents Dandruff & Itchiness on the Scalp
Amla juice is an effective remedy for curing dandruff and scalp itchiness, especially during winters. Dry scalp is a common occurrence in the winter season. Applying amla juice moisturises your scalp and stops the building up of dandruff, which is the result of a dry scalp. Amla’s anti-bacterial properties treat dandruff-induced itching. Apply amla juice on your scalp 15-20 minutes before washing your hair. Then rinse it thoroughly with water.
6. Exfoliates the Skin Gently
Amla also functions as a mild exfoliant when applied topically to the skin. Apply a face mask with amla paste or powder to gently exfoliate your skin. This will remove dead skin cells and prevent impurity build-up.
Also read: Amla Juice Benefits for Females
Amla Juice Benefits for Skin
Considered one of the healthiest drinks, amla juice is a storehouse of vitamin C and other essential nutrients like iron, which offer a range of health and beauty benefits. An elixir for your skin, amla juice prevents acne and the resultant scarring, giving you bright, clear and glowing skin. In addition, amla juice benefits for skin are aplenty.
Amla is a potent agent for skin tightening and exfoliation. Its astringent properties tighten open pores and improve your skin tone. Being a natural cleanser, amla juice heals your skin from within, making it healthy. Being a natural cleanser, amla juice heals your skin from within, making it healthy.
Amla juice helps rejuvenate your skin and adds an extra layer of freshness, making it outshine. Either way, whether you apply amla juice directly or drink it, it prevents the onset of premature ageing.
Take 30 ml of amla juice and dilute in 30-50 ml of water for healthy and nourished skin. Add sugar/honey/salt as per your taste and drink it daily. Apart from that, you can also opt for its topical application. Dab amla juice with cotton on your face and rinse it off once it dries.
Amla Powder Benefits for Skin
Besides consuming amla as part of our regular diet, it can also be used externally as face packs and exfoliating scrubs to get rid of dead skin and protect it from pimples, acne, sunburns and other skin problems.
In several age-old skin remedies, amla was commonly used for combating suntan or enhancing skin tone. Make a face mask with two tablespoons of amla powder or freshly blended amla, one tablespoon of yoghurt and one teaspoon of honey. Mix it well and apply it evenly on your face and neck. Allow it to dry for 20 minutes, and then wash off with cool water. Pat your face dry.
You can use amla powder with a carrier oil. Simply mix amla powder with oil and apply it to your skin and scalp. Use coconut and almond oils for best results.
As per studies, amla improves the skin's elasticity by removing dead skin cells and forming new ones. Its inherent antioxidant properties offer protection to the skin from UV rays and prevent potential skin damage.
Amla powder benefits for the skin also include amla reducing inflammation and redness of the skin. The anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of amla help control the outbreak of acne, which results from the production of excessive sebum that makes the skin very oily. Exfoliating your skin with amla powder will keep acne and skin allergies at bay.
Use a scrub made from half a cup of freshly blended amla or amla powder, half a cup of granulated sugar, and one tablespoon of rose water – all mixed together. Gently scrub your skin with this paste and wash it off with cool water. This will make your skin soft, youthful and healthy.
Conclusion
Amla is a tiny fruit loaded with numerous health benefits. It acts as an antidote to many body-related issues and ailments, promoting its growth and development. Also, adding a small amount of amla to your daily diet can do wonders for your skin and overall health, as its high nutritional value will strengthen your immune system and improve the blood flow. This, in turn, nourishes your skin, making you glow.
Our skin requires natural love and care in times of harmful chemical-based skin products and bad pollution levels. For more than a thousand years, Ayurveda has been considered amla one of the best skin-friendly foods. It’s time now that you use it for yourself to experience the benefits.
Also read: Surprising Amla Benefits for Your Health and Wellness
References
- Takashi Fujii, September 2008; Amla (Emblica officinalis Gaertn.) extract promotes procollagen production and inhibits matrix metalloproteinase-1 in human skin fibroblasts - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18588964
- Khwandow Kunchana, May 2021; Potential Use of Amla (Phyllanthus emblica L.) Fruit Extract to Protect Skin Keratinocytes from Inflammation and Apoptosis after UVB Irradiation - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8146754/
