Wake Up and FEEL the Coffee

By the number of media outlets carrying a certain piece of information this week, it seems a substantial number of Americans are curious about how desperate housewife Eva Longoria achieves such a gorgeous complexion. Whether or not you're one of them, it still might interest you to know she uses a coffee mud on her face. Indeed, she mixes, at least once a week, some used coffee grounds with olive oil and lemon juice and puts the globby stuff on her face. And she’s not alone. Well, she probably is alone when she does this, but she’s not the only celebrity putting coffee on her face. There is scientific merit in this practice. As you know if you read ROASTe news regularly, coffee is full of antioxidants, more so than even blueberries. Besides its many other natural compounds that aid health, it’s an astringent that tightens pores. A blogger who goes by the alias “Crunchy Betty” posted a wonderful piece on her recipe for great facial skin at http://crunchybetty.com/mocha-frappucino-mask-coffee-cocoa-and-honey-fac.... Called the Mocha-Frappuccino mask, it combines used organic coffee grounds (preferably finely ground), cocoa powder, a dairy item such as milk or yogurt, and honey. The coffee grounds should be used within minutes of the brewing while they are at their freshest. Put on the mask for 20-30 minutes and wash off in the shower. Olive oil can be added to the leftover grounds and rubbed on the body as a scrub during the shower. Whether taken in through the skin or mouth, these nutritious items are health-enhancing. Crunchy Betty also says the caffeine entering through the skin gives her even more energy. She usually drinks her coffee while waiting for the mask to dry, so she’s compounding the caffeine’s effects. So if you find yourself dragging some mornings, it might be worth it to try one of these masks. In you or on you, coffee does good for you. Remember to use organic for facials, as you don’t want any synthetic chemicals on your skin. And be sure to chill out with a cup while muddied, as the extra relaxation will also help brighten the skin.