A Natural Beauty Ingredient
There are so many witch hazel benefits when it comes to the beauty world for it has natural anti-inflammatory properties that make it a good skin-soothing ingredient. Sought out this natural beauty is a humble but amazing native North American shrub that is rare among flowering plants. It has delicate, spidery blossoms that open in late fall, alongside last year’s fruits, it is a flower that will continue blooming as late as December or January. A strong and powerful antioxidant, witch hazel is known to have calming components that reduce swelling. It is also known to help repair scarred skin, shrink and tighten pores and it also fights bacteria. All reason the benefits of witch hazel leave you with glowing skin.
A Short History of the Uses of Witch Hazel
The botanic name for witch hazel is Hamamelis virginiana. The generic name comes to Hippocrates who called it Hamamelis. Taking two Greek words meaning apple and together, many say he was referring to the habit of the plant to bloom at the same time that last year’s fruits are maturing and dispersing. Native Americans, including the Cherokee, used the tree for a variety of medicinal purposes for healing cuts and abrasions and to make a wash for sore eyes. A steam distillate of freshly harvested twigs does not get more natural than that. Both the bark and the leaves are highly astringent, though the bark is most often used. The plant contains an abundance of natural tannins that have the ability to shrink inflamed, swollen tissue and tighten pores. The beneficial effect of Witch Hazel on the skin even extends to aiding the healing of scars.