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Say goodbye to dark spots and skin rashes and hello to a bright, glowing complexion.
Is the secret to radiant skin sitting in your spice cabinet? One of the buzziest skincare ingredients right now is turmeric, a golden yellow spice that doesn’t just taste good, it can also deliver some major skin benefits, according to dermatologists. Applying turmeric to your face can help calm skin rashes, lighten dark spots and hyperpigmentation, treat acne and brighten skin tone, just to name a few of its benefits.
To answer all your questions about turmeric — including what exactly it is, how to use it and if there are any side effects — we spoke to four experts.
Read on to find out how you can use turmeric to achieve your brightest, healthiest skin yet.
Turmeric is a root plant related to ginger that’s commonly used as a spice around the world, especially in South Asia. You may recognize it by its bright yellow color, which comes as a result of the active ingredient curcumin, “a potent anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-neoplastic and antioxidant [that] combats free-radicals and free-radical damage,” says Dr. Patel.
Turmeric has been used for centuries as an anti-inflammatory and preventative health supplement, and traditionally has been used to heal wounds and treat pain. It’s also a common ingredient in Ayurvedic skincare. “It is often applied on the skin of brides and grooms a few days before their wedding day to enhance their complexions and give the skin a glow,” says Dr. Bhanot. “For cosmetic purposes, it is used as an ingredient in Ayurvedic oils.”
This spice can do a little bit of everything, but its main benefit is delivering glowing, radiant skin. “It has anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antioxidant properties that show promising benefits in treating acne, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, and even pigmentation when either ingested and/or applied topically,” says Wizemann. Here, in more detail, are the specific ways turmeric can benefit skin:
“Turmeric can be used on all skin types, but it's particularly great for dull, itchy and/or sensitive skin,” says Dr. Bhanot. But note that “it is possible to have a turmeric allergy and it is important to patch test to a small area before applying it to a larger area,” adds Dr. Patel. You can patch test behind your ear, and “if there is no redness or itching, then you can go ahead and use turmeric in your skincare,” notes Dr. Bhanot.
“Though turmeric is most commonly used in a paste or thick mask form, it can certainly be used as an oil, as long as the ingredient combination does not cause turmeric to become unstable,” notes Dr. Sethi. She recommends searching for products that also include soothing ingredients that replenish and calm the skin, like aloe vera and rosehip oil.
You can easily find turmeric-laced skincare products to buy, but you can also make a DIY treatment it if you want to save some money. According to Dr. Patel, DIY turmeric masks “would be the best way to use turmeric topically.” Here's how to make one that best suits your skin type, according to Dr. Bhanot:
If you prefer to buy, here are a few of our beauty experts' favorite products with turmeric in the ingredient list that are formulated achieve that glowing, even skin tone:
As long as you’re not allergic, Dr. Bhanot says that there are no side effects to using turmeric. “There can be some yellow staining of the skin if used in a DIY mask fashion,” warns Dr. Patel, but skincare products on the market have been designed to minimize that staining.