Skin Brushing
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Health and vitality, we see it in someone who has skin that glows and radiates with life. Toxic and sluggish often shows up in the skin as blemishes and clogged pores.

Our skin wraps us, protects us, and helps keep us healthy. It is our largest organ and first line of immune system defense, responsible for allowing sweat, toxins, and debris out. Our skin is part of the groundwork that allows circulation and lymphatic vessels to move throughout the body. It also absorbs various elements from the environment. For examples, think of essential oils, the nicotine patch, and negative ions in the air.

In this time of winter with the cold air outside and the dry-heating-system air inside our epidermis can become dry, itchy, and bogged down. When you’re in this state there’s nothing better in the world than a good session of skin brushing, dry or wet, to help make your outer layers and your whole body feel immensely better, while gaining health benefits.

On the market there are a large number of options when it comes to skin exfoliation tools, ranging from loofah scrub brushes to sea or epsom salts to exfoliation gloves. The best one for you is the one you’ll use. So experiment with the wide variety of sizes, textures, and hardnesses to find one you like.

Many systems of skin brushing recommend that you work from the extremities towards the heart as you brush. This is based on the concept of lymphatic drainage massage, so that you move lymph fluid back into the circulatory system. However for a truly effective lymphatic drainage massage you want to start from the extremities closest to the torso, draining those areas in towards the body before moving out to the outermost parts of your limbs to drain those inwards, as well.

Interestingly, when you look at the Chinese and Japanese acupuncture meridian methods of massage, you often follow the directions of the meridians, which can be towards the extremities in some cases, rather than away from them.

A very simple way to go about your own skin brushing practice is to do what feels good and right for you and to enjoy the experience. After all, if it becomes a chore requiring diagrams and many steps, you’re likely not to bother with it.

Things to watch out for or to avoid with exfoliation are areas of the skin that have open sores, wounds, fungal conditions, or infections. And if you have a lymphatic, nerve, or circulatory/heart issues, are pregnant or have other health issues, check in with your doctor to get the okay before going ahead.

The range of tools and materials that you can use to exfoliate are numerous:
  • brushes, rough sponges, loofah sponges, exfoliation gloves and cloths
  • sea salt, table salt, epsom salt, dead sea salts
  • brown sugar, coarse sugar, fine sugar
  • ground almonds or other types of nuts
  • ground oats, rice, barley, cornmeal or other grains
  • poppy or sesame seeds
  • ground pumice
  • ground coffee beans
Items that help increase the exfoliation or moisturizing effects on the skin:
  • ginger
  • lemon or limes
  • herbs and spices, including roses, lavender, chamomile, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice
  • white, green, red, or black clays
  • fruits and vegetables, including bananas, avocados, ground carrots, cucumbers
  • nourishing oils and essential oils
Don’t let dry sluggish skin keep you down. Right now, there’s something in your cupboard that you can use to help invigorate your skin, helping you to feel fabulous.

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Photo Credit: Dirk Herrmann
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