Blowing off thousands of bucks on that little tube of elixir which claims to be natural and magically wipes blemishes and zits off your face, might seem like a pretty reasonable thing to do.
But what if we told you, that the secret to beautiful, supple skin lies in your body itself or more specifically what your body expels, in the form of that golden liquid brimming with urea called urine?
Urine therapy is the talk of the beauty town, and a bevy of people swear by it. Those who practice urine therapy believe in applying fresh urine topically and in some cases even ingesting it. Despite what you think, urine is supposedly cleaner than distilled water, according to dermatologists and actually consists of very useful nutrients and antibodies. The first pee of the day is said to be particularly rich in nutrients.
Beauty trends can get pretty crazy sometimes, but urine therapy claims its origins all the way back to Indian culture five centuries back, then it passed on to the Romans, Egyptians, Greeks and was prevalent during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, so the beauty tip must have some sort of truth to it.
If you need more info before you think of doing anything that involves your urine, you could read Coen van der Kroon’s interestingly titled work, The Golden Fountain: The Complete Guide of Urine Therapy in which he delves into urine’s multiple uses and how it can cure the common cold as well as get rid of zits and scars.
With its minerals, antibodies, enzymes and hormones, urine claims to clear acne breakouts. Coen van der Kroon advises washing the face with fresh urine to eliminate breakouts. It works as an antiseptic as well as a moisturizer, so applying it on a zit reduces inflammation and helps lighten scar marks and spots.
As dermatologist Rachel Nazarian told Marie Claire,
“Urea acts as an ‘exfoliant’ of sorts by breaking down the rough skin and exposing a smoother, softer skin.”
It treats chicken skin, small, rough bumps on thighs, buttocks, upper arms and cheeks. It also cures Athlete’s Foot by dint of its anti-fungal properties. Popstar Madonna admitted to peeing in the shower to prevent getting athlete’s foot, so that’s okay then.
If the thought of slathering your face with your urine is still making you cringe, you won’t be happy to know that your perfumed, luxurious skincare product might have a little bit of pee in it.
“We already use urea, a component of urine, in a lot of skincare products. Urine is essentially mostly water—but a small percentage is urea.”
says dermatologist Rachel Nazarian.
There you go, we will let that sink in.
