Quick Guide to Ayurvedic Skincare and Top Products

Marketing in the holistic skincare industry has led to so much confusion. I remember I was approached by a vendor in a mall, who promoted his natural skincare product. I asked to see the ingredients, and I didn’t recognize any of them! Each one was produced in a lab. Even if an ingredient is derived from a natural fruit or seed, the processing is so intense, that these ingredients no longer have their prana, or life force in Ayurveda. So, when we choose our ayurvedic skincare products, it is important to really look at the ingredients, make sure there is nothing mysterious or confusing on the label, and to investigate the source of the ingredients.

In Ayurveda, we consider the whole picture. How our the ingredients are picked, grown, processed, and packaged is very important to getting a high-quality ayurvedic skincare product. For example, although rose water may be a good cleanser for pitta, imagine if those roses were years old, produced industrially, and stored in an unbreathable plastic bag. This product would be far removed from its original source, which means its effects would be null or very minimal. For any ayurvedic skincare product, I recommend looking into the sourcing of their ingredients and their mission. Go with your intuition on whether it is a company you can trust. With the products I will mention below, they have sources that I trust and founders that truly understand herbs and ayurveda.

As an Ayurvedic Health Counselor, I cannot stress this one enough! Many clients approach me for products when their diet is imbalanced for their dosha. For example, someone with Pitta dosha who eats lots of spicy food and has a diet high in meat and dairy will have a difficult time remedying their acne with products only. I like to think of products as the icing on the cake. Following an Ayurvedic diet to balance the gut first will be very beneficial for your skin, since the skin is the second tissue, or “dhatu,” that gets nourished after your lymphatic system when you dissolve your food. Diet first, products second!

If you are trying to heal your skin, you need to consider that your gut may be sensitive to certain foods, which could be the source of your skin imbalance. I learned this the hard way. After struggling for years with acne, I removed dairy from my diet, and I rarely break out anymore. After a few years with what I thought was stress-related eczema, I realized that my body had become sensitive to sesame. I took out sesame products, and the eczema was COMPLETELY GONE. Turns out, the ancient Ayurvedic texts did connect sesame with skin imbalance. I finally listened, and it worked!

I highly suggest trying an elimination diet if you have suffered from skin imbalance for a long time. Remove one food at a time, for 2 weeks, and see what happens! The major ones are eggs, wheat, sesame, jaggery, soy, oils,  dairy, and any food that you consume a LOT of (sometimes the body becomes sensitive to those). Give it a try, you might be surprised!

In Ayurveda, your skincare will differ depending on your Ayurvedic Body Type. We are all born with different skin, so we must care for it differently, depending on our skin’s unique needs. To learn what type of skin you have, refer to the pages that describe Vata body types, Pitta body types, and Kapha body types. To summarize, Vata types tend more towards dryness. Pitta types tend towards acne and redness (high fire energy). Kapha body types have combination skin, but they tend toward oilyness. The products and herbs below are a great way to start your holistic ayurvedic skincare routine.

Vata body types are high in Air Energy, and this airyness creates dryness, eczema, bumps, and sometimes psoriasis. So for ayurvedic skincare for Vata, you want high Earth energy ingredients in your diet and products in order to balance the Air energy out, like fennel, licorice, sesame oils, tulsi, almond oils, and other grounding natural substances.

Vata body types need MOISTURE! Oils are a great way to add moisture and earthiness to the body and keep it in the body for an extended time. Organic, unrefined almond oil is an excellent way to heal Vata body types’ dry skin. It is also helpful for dry eczema and psoriasis as well, without too much redness! Almond oil is a great oil for Abhyanga, Ayurvedic Oil Massage.

Diet is always a big part of Ayurvedic skincare. If you take care of your gut, it will make skin healing a lot easier! A fennel seed tea in the early afternoon is a great way to calm Vata. Licorice tea and marshmallow root are also excellent options for Vata.  They are soothing for the colon. A healthy colon, which is where “Vata dosha” or Vata energy comes from in the body, means great Vata skin! Simply place 2 tsp of herbs (this can be a combination of them) in 2 cups of water. Boil on low heat for 10 minutes. Drink separately from meals.

Ajwain, also called carom, has also been used to pacify Vata dosha and heal bodily dryness for centuries across Europe, Africa, and Asia. This is a beautiful herb to have as a tea and also to cook with!

If you have dry Vata skin, you always want to use more nourishing, natural cleansers. Alcohols and chemical-based cleansers are incredibly harmful. Vata body types lack moisture in their skin, and so oil-based cleansers work well for them. I love the Mountain Rose Herbs “Wild Lemon Face Wash.” The blend of natural coconut oil, olive oil, lavender, aloe vera and other ingredients make for a VERY nourishing natural facial cleanser for dry skin.

Pitta body types are high in Fire Energy, which can cause acne, redness, psoriasis, and skin burning sensations. So for natural holistic skincare for Pitta, you want high Earth and Air energy ingredients in your diet and products in order to balance Fire, like fennel, licorice, rose, and pomegranate.

Rose is a lovely cooling ingredient that benefits Pitta skin types. Scrubs like Mountain Rose Herbs’ Rose Cleansing Scrub help to absorb and balance the skin’s excess oil, as well as cool the redness and inflammation. A mixture of cooling rose, Pitta-balancing dandelion root, and grounding clay, this natural scrub is a great option for Pittas! I recommend using this twice a week!

Chamomile flowers are a very cooling ingredient that is highly beneficial to Pitta skin. It can be ingested or used externally. Making a tea with 1 tsp of chamomile buds and 2 cups of water, boiled on low heat until 1.5 cups of water is left, is good to ingest. The best option is to make a cold infusion. Place 1 tsp of the buds in 2 cups of water in a clear, glass jar and place in the moonlight overnight. This tea is great to ingest or to use as a cooling morning facial cleanser. Keep in the fridge for a few days to use each morning.

Another popular Pitta herb is Brahmi, whose name means “the pure essence of consciousness.” It has two primary uses. One is to balance the brain and increase sattva, which is the feeling of harmony and peace. The other is to heal and balance the skin, specifically Pitta-type skin. It is cooling, grounding, and calming, exactly what a Pitta type needs!

Another favorite for Pitta types is Amla, a sour fruit that is native to India. This “Indian gooseberry” is highly astringent, or drying, whic means it has high Air energy. This is why it is a great herb to balance Pitta’s Fire. I recommend Pitta types consume this 3 times a week, as a slow-cooked tea around lunch time.

Aloe vera is a beautiful cooling, bitter ayurvedic skincare ingredient for Pitta body types. Those with flaring acne and redness should take aloe internally and externally. Aloe is very bitter, which means that it is a great liver cleanser and Pitta balancing food. 1 tbsp of the juice can be taken 15 minutes after meals, or only after lunch if your skin is not very imbalanced. Externally, I recommend aloe vera facial gel. Applying this on the skin before bed will provide great skin relief for Pitta body types.

Kapha body types are high in Earth Energy. They tend to have combination skin. So for natural ayurvedic skincare for Kapha skin, you want high Fire and Air energy ingredients in your diet and products in order to balance it, like beans, pepper, chilli, apricot, tulsi, and neem.

Kapha types benefit from dry scrubs that help absorb and balance the heaviness and water-density in their skin. Natural scrubs, like this fair trade, organic Apricot Seed blend, is excellent as both a face rub and body rub. I recommend thoroughly massaging it into the skin before a shower for at least 5-10 minutes. Using this Ayurvedic skincare technique also helps to massage the lymphatic system, which will help the body remove excess earth energy and oilyness from those areas.

I absolutely love this oil for combination Kapha skin! The Rani oil formula is beautifully balanced with herbs like blue lotus, manjistha, and other Ayurvedic specialty herbs, steeped for over 5 days to get a well concentrated mixture. Kaphas already have fullness in their skin, so this is a product that can be used once a week to give the skin a little extra love. These herbs also soak into the skin, and when absorbed by the body, they are excellent for Kapha body types and balancing combination skin.

An excellent way to increase the Air energy within a Kapha body type is to consume BITTER herbs, teas, and foods. Arugula, dandelion root, beet greens, chard, mustard greens, and other leafy greens are excellent for balancing the skin from the inside out. Neem powder is also a MUST for Kapha body types as a regualr supplement. It is highly bitter, so it is the opposite of Kapha’s sweet, earthy nature. I recommend Kapha types take 1/2 tsp of neem diluted in a tiny bit of warm water and honey at least one hour before breakfast on an empty stomach. Wash it down with 1/2 cup of warm water (it will be bitter)! This is a magical ingredient for Kapha healing, including supporting lung health and kidney health!

Other great herbs for Kapha are Arjuna, Clove, and Turmeric. These herbs are excellent to incorporate regularly to bring lightness to a Kapha body type. All of these herbs help to prevent against heart disease as well and are anti-diabetic and anti-infammatory for Kapha types!

Since Kapha body types are high in Earth Energy, they tend towards stagnation in their systems. This leads to stagnant lymphatic fluid, water, and fat. Kaphas need movement support, which increases their Air energy (Vata dosha) and brings balance. In addition to regular exercise, dry brushing is an ancient Ayurvedic skincare technique for bringing Kapha body types into balance. Using a dry bristle brush, preferably natural like horsehair, brush from the feet to the abdomen first in long upward strokes. Then brush from the hands to the torso in a similar fashion until you have covered each arm thoroughly, then from the torso to the belly button. This brings all the stagnant lymph, which is worsening your skin, towards the digestive tract! Do this just before taking a warm shower for 5-10 minutes. This will do wonders for water retention as well when done regularly, at least 3 times a week!