Disclaimer: I am no scientist, nor am I a dermatologist. I have tried to do my research well using reputable sources, but I may get some things wrong. Do let me know if I have so I can change it.
When that controversial Queen Marie Antoinette arrived in France, she was just a young teenager, as was her new husband. Together they were Dauphin and Dauphine, or, simply the Crown Prince of France and his wife, the future Queen Consort.
Now, young Louis was not known to be a handsome fellow. He was rather on the large side, awkward in social graces, and his young skin was covered in that plague of adolescence; acne. And so the porcelain-skinned Marie had this advice for her new husband, which may sound strange to us, and utterly simple;
Wash your face with lavender water several times a day, and drink lots of donkey's milk.
That's it! And according to sources, it worked!
So why did this utterly simple formula work so well?
Lavender has many, many amazing qualities. The scent is soothing and calming, of course, but beyond that even! It can be just as calming to a rash or to red skin as it is to a flurried mind, a good quality in an anti-acne remedy. The essential oil has been shown to have antibacterial and antiseptic qualities, and since acne is caused in part by bacteria, it delivers a double punch.
Another good quality of lavender water that I've found is it works very well for evening out skin that is dry in some places and oily in others. When the skin is naturally moisturized, and spritzing skin with even just plain water can help with that, it secrets less sebum (oil) to counteract dry spots, thus resulting in less oily skin. Amazing, isn't it?
Lavender water is extremely easy to make on your own, even from the bare bones of the recipe. If you have a good nursery nearby, you can go out and find your own little plant and set it up for a season. Once it blooms, you'll have your own little lavender crop! You can grow from seed as well; it's much cheaper, but you'll have to wait a little longer, as lavender does not flower in its first year. NOTE: If you plan on using lavender for cosmetic purposes, make certain you never use pesticides on it.
If you can't grow your own lavender, it's not difficult to find online from bulk herb suppliers, or even locally at specialty and culinary shops. (It's great in recipes too, whether sweet or savory!) You can still provide your own water for the recipe, after all!
All you need is two our three handfuls of fresh (one one handful of dried) lavender blossoms and four cups of water. Tie the lavender up in a piece of cheesecloth to save having to strain it later and boil your water. Toss in your lavender, cover, and let it simmer about five minutes. Remove it from the heat and let it steep. I usually start in the morning and that evening the steeping is done. Pull out the cheesecloth bundle, bottle the liquid, et voila! Lavender water! You can add a tablespoon or so of vodka as a preservative, if you like. It's also simple to make lavender water with essential oil; just add thirty drops, give or take a few for preference, to four cups of water.
You can put some on a cottonball and wipe your face with it twice a day, or you can do what I like to do, which is to find a small spray bottle and mist my face with it after I shower.
Another thing I liked to do, back when I was younger and my skin was more troublesome, was to add a few drops of lavender oil to a bottle of witch hazel. Witch hazel is a wonderful astringent for very stubborn skin, just make sure to moisturize dry spots after using it.
Now what's this about donkey's milk?
Donkey's milk is not exactly popular in the modern world, and as such there has really been little research on it, but a few things are certain. The most notable is that it is very low in casein, the primary protein found in cow's milk, and very high in lysozomes, which are enzymes known to consume biological debris such as the natural hormones present in milk from a pregnant animal. It also contains high levels of many of the vitamins you would find today in "Hair, skin and nail" supplements.
Because of its chemical makeup, primarily the presence of both natural and unnatural hormones, cow's milk has come under fire as a cause of acne. Cow's milk can also cause an increase in blood glucose, which in turn can increase insulin, which, by chain reaction, increases sebum production.
Right now there is little evidence for or against this part of Marie's cure, but it could possibly be that it's not necessarily the donkey's milk that helps acne, it's drinking it instead of cow's milk. Unless you have a female donkey around, you may not really be able to test this. But you can try goat's milk, which also has a radically different protein and amino acid structure from cow's milk. It also is easy on lactose intolerant stomachs, and you may even have a mild cow's milk allergy you didn't know about that is contributing to your breakouts.
Goat's milk can be a little expensive, however, unless you have a goat of your own. And if the idea of keeping either a donkey or a goat around for milk and pet purposes intrigues you, may I direct you to Storey Publishing's excellent line of "Guides to Raising" particularly their title on Miniature Livestock.
If any of you have experiences with either of these tricks, tell us in the comments! We'd love to hear your advice. Also let me know if you have any success with these ideas, or other tips for troubled teenage skin.
Who knows? Perhaps her Majesty knew something scientists, and the beauty industry experts, don't.
