About avocados

Avocado, the evergreen tropical, pear-shaped, nutrient-abundant fruit has gained so much popularity over the past few years and some would even argue that it’s the world’s favorite fruit today! Avocado may have originated in southern Mexico but was cultivated from the Rio Grande to Central Peru long before the arrival of Europeans. Of course, given the popularity of the fruit, now it can be found in many other regions.

My own Sunday brunch is incomplete without a good old charred avocado toast.  One can find avocados almost everywhere — from grocery stores and farmers’ markets to multiple YouTube vlogs and Instagram recipes. Once considered a delicacy, this green tree fruit is now a staple for dining tables around the world!

It’s natural to wonder what is so special about avocados. This fruit is all sorts of perfection. Surprising to believe that something that tastes so good and gave us our favorite snack of all time ‘guacamole’ can be so rich in nutrition. Its packed with more potassium than bananas, bursting with Vitamin C and antioxidants and loaded with fiber. This one magic fruit is excellent source of wellness for your heart, blood pressure, gut and weight loss. Need we say more?

Well here is the biggest bonus and gift from the avocado fruit – the avocado oil! It’s literally a powerhouse potion for good skin. Packed with bioactive molecules like Vitamin C, E, and essential fatty acids, avocado oil helps reverse the damage to the skin through free radicals as well as DNA related aging including fine lines, dullness, inflammation, and premature aging.

Avocado oil is super rich in folates which stimulate collagen production in the skin, leading to a much-improved appearance and elasticity. By adding avocado oil to your daily skin-care routine, you can help keep your skin glowing, younger, and healthier for much longer.

Now, let’s explore the avocado oil benefits & uses:

1. Gentle moisturization and nourishment for skin

The first avocado oil benefit is that it is rich in Vitamin E and Potassium which are both excellent moisturizing agents.  They penetrate easily through the top layer of our skin and ensure adequate nourishment. And oils in general seal the skin to lock in the natural moisture. This is undisputedly the most important benefit of avocado oil. And what is even better is the lightweight texture that leaves no residue or smells behind. There is absolutely no downtime required after applying avocado oil to the skin.

Now, let me get into how to apply avocado oil for the best results and benefits.  It’s quite simple and a ritual one can quite easily manage every day. Combine a few drops of avocado oil with other essential oils of your choice and massage the mixture into the skin after a bath. Be sure to pat your skin dry before applying the oil. If you are unsure about other oils or they are not instantly available to you, don’t worry! Avocado oil is equally effective on its own and can be applied all over the body to keep skin soft all day.

2. Treats and protects acne-prone skin

Avocado oil is super gentle and when applied in small quantity to acne-prone skin, it moisturizes lightly without the heavy residue associated with oils. With its anti-inflammatory properties, it helps calm active acne. I always recommend consulting your dermatologist before treating active skin conditions as they know the underlying cause and can help advise on the best form of treatment.

Having said that, there is enough evidence available to prove the effectiveness of avocado oil in treating acne-prone skin. Other than the benefits already mentioned, this oil helps accelerate cell renewal, which means it continuously works to replace the dead cells on the skin with new healthy cells, thereby healing skin on the surface and reducing scaring so skin looks great and constantly renews to appear free from acne and acne marks.

For sensitive and acne-prone skin, the best way to use avocado oil is cold-pressed and pure. Apply gently on the affected area and massage for a few minutes till it fully absorbs. Or if you are not comfortable with the after-feel, then gently wipe away with a warm towel minutes after application.

3. Relieves and reduces inflammation

Avocado oil has proven to be calming and gentle to aid extreme dryness associated even with eczema.  If your skin is dry, itchy, painful, and inflamed, all you need is a few drops of avocado oil to help relieve your skin.

Homemade avocado oil body lotion recipe:

You can make a nourishing body lotion using avocado oil as the base, it’s quite simple. Mix two-parts shea or cocoa butter and one-part avocado oil. Feel free to add rose or lavender oil drops for an elevated sensorial experience. And Voila! Your own body nourishing cream is ready.

4. Helps reduces signs of aging

I simply cannot tell you enough about the anti-aging benefits of avocado oil Starting from aiding natural collagen production: Collagen is the main protein structure found in our skin. It’s what binds, strengthens, and elasticizes skin. Without collagen, skin becomes wrinkled, sagging, and droopy.

If that wasn’t enough, avocado oil is packed with the goodness of antioxidants! It contains antioxidants such as alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, and lutein that can restore your skin’s health and reverse the oxidative damage, making your skin appear younger. Avocado oil also contains lecithin and potassium that are very beneficial for the skin. This magical oil constantly fights damage from free radicals and works to reverse signs of aging and revealing your best looking skin each day.

To achieve the best anti-aging results from the magical avocado oil, make it a part of your nighttime skincare ritual. While you sleep, let it work its magic to reverse the damage caused to skin throughout the day by contact from various aggressors.

5. Treats sunburned skin

We all love basking in the sun all summer. When someone says ‘beach’, you say ‘YES’ but it’s always after the fun is over and one is back home, preparing for the routine of the week that one realizes the damage to the skin caused by overexposure to the sun. We have all been through sunburns. They are not only uncomfortable; they also look not-so-good. Well, we have our favorite avocado oil to the rescue again!

With all the goodness and calming properties of avocado oil, one of its major benefits is that it best treats sun burnt skin. So if you have been out on the beach too long, we know are skin takes a toll, but why worry when we know exactly how to fix it. Avocado oil can be directly applied to the affected area or for best results mix with a bit of aloe-vera gel. Aloe shares the cooling and calming properties of avocado oil and together these two super ingredients can help heal sunburned skin.

6. Treats and heals scars and chapped skin

Another avocado oil benefit is that it seals the skin so that no natural moisture can escape the dermis which radically helps in skin healing and reduces appearance of scars.

Like we previously mentioned the rapid skin cells renewal is yet another benefit of regular application of avocado oil. What it quite simply means is that new healthy cells replace the dead old ones, hence repairing the damage on the surface and deep inside the layers of skin. Scars start to fade overtime, revealing baby soft renewed skin.

I would advise using this amazing oil all over your skin for best results, but for some reason you don’t wish to or are short of time, then at least be sure to regularly apply some avocado oil to the affected area and gently massage in circular motion. Massaging skin aids circulation and accelerates the healing process right from contact.

Avocado oil is a natural healer of dry, chapped skin. These are the stubborn dry patches on our knees and elbows, and also chapped lips. I always advise to massage these areas with avocado oil for about 10-15 mins before going to bed and wake up saying good bye to those dry patches!

7. Protects and promotes nail health

Avocado oil has numerous benefits for health, wellness and beauty. I have shared many of these with you in this article but it feels incomplete with you telling you that avocado oil is your own in-home one stop, few drops – manicure and pedicure. Yes! You read it correct.  Avocado oil is known to improve nail health overtime.

It helps heal dry, brittle nails. Using natural oils like avocado oil regularly keep the nails and surrounding skin soft and help reduce breakage. Since we already know, the magical avocado oil is packed with Vitamins A, B & E, folates, anti-oxidants and abundant plant protein, it is also a very rich source of good fats. The good fats in avocado oils help in absorption of other nutrients which in turn repair and rejuvenate damaged, dull, flaky and brittle nails.

Ever since the beauty benefits of avocado oil have become well known, beauty lovers around the world are losing no opportunity of applying this wonder potion directly on skin, scalp and nails for a healthy glow.

For best results and to heal and soften rough, dry nails, mix equal amounts of avocado and olive oils, and apply the mixture to the nails and surrounding skin once or twice a day.

A gentle massage is always advised since it kick starts circulation which in turn starts the healing process. To elevate your sensorial experience with a nice fragrance, try one or two drops of an essential oil, such as lavender.

8. Protects and nourishes scalp

Just as how this wonderful oil works its magic on skin, it does the same for the scalp. In many cultures, head massage is intrinsic to wellness rituals, and definitely a big part of Indian culture, from where we draw our inspiration at amaiaa. Avocado oil has proven benefits for healthy scalp and hair as it moisturizes the scalp, nourishes the hair follicles and promotes hair growth.

Easy DIY treatment:

Just simply mix a couple of drops of avocado oil with any other carrier oils like coconut oil, I always advise to warm the oils as its much more relaxing. Once the mixture is ready and warmed, apply using cotton swabs to the scalp directly. Massage for about 10 minutes and then wrap your hair in a hot towel. For best results, wait for about an hour before you cleanse everything out using a gentle shampoo.