Beauty secrets from around the world

1. Nigeria: Shea butter

Beauty recipe

2. Japan: Meditative baths

For centuries, Japan has been known for its ritualistic devotion to the art of the Japanese bath, and for the belief that the ensuing Zen-like meditative state it instils will cleanse the soul as much as the body. Ryoko Wada, a 34-year-old kimono fabric artist and lingerie sales coordinator who has lived away from Japan for more than a decade, says it’s the baths she misses most – and what she tries to recreate in
her bathroom every night before bed.

Typically, the Japanese will scrub themselves clean first, with brushes or a loofah, then rinse off and fill the bath with clean water as hot as they can tolerate, often adding flower petals or slices of a fragrant citrus fruit called yuzu.

Lighting should be calm, and Ryoko suggests not to read, listen to music or otherwise distract yourself, just soak and meditate. “It’s a time to really relax and get ready for sleep,” she says. “The humidity is also great for the skin.” On her frequent sales trips back to Japan, Ryoko makes
sure she pays a visit to the local hot-springs communal baths for a relaxing mineral soak, and for the social atmosphere.

Beauty recipe

For a Japanese-inspired bath at home, lighting should be subdued; don’t listen to music or read – simply soak and meditate. Add some scented
oils to enhance the atmosphere of serenity and calm.

3. India: Chickpea flour

Across South Asia, chickpea flour – also called besan or gram flour – is a very popular facial cleanser, exfoliant, pore-tightening masque, skin softener and even acne treatment.

Kiran Kshatriya, 51, left India as a child, but brought with her one special tip she learned from female relatives. She washes her face daily with chickpea flour, dampened with enough warm water or steeped green tea to form a paste. “It leaves it very smooth with a lovely texture,” says
Kiran, who has two teenage daughters and teaches business studies and Bollywood dance classes. Women in India also use chickpea flour mixed with lemon juice as a skin tone lightener for knees and elbows.

Beauty recipe

For a rejuvenating masque, mix chickpea flour with a pinch of turmeric, a few drops of lemon, and equal parts milk and olive oil to make a paste. Leave on your face for 15 minutes, then rinse.

4. Brazil: Avocados

 
When Silvia Jones moved from São Paulo in Brazil, she brought with her a long-standing tradition of using avocados for a wide variety of beauty treatments, both inside and out. “We use it for facial masques, body moisturisers, and hair shampoos and conditioners,” says Silvia, 40, a bank executive assistant.

Incan, Mayan and Aztec cultures revered the avocado, claiming that this dietary cultivated there since at least 500 BC, had mystical and aphrodisiac powers. And no wonder – we now know avocados are rich in healthy mono-unsaturated fats and 20 different vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A, B6, C and E, zinc, iron and potassium. The fruit’s healthy fats are also thought to lower cholesterol, reduce inflammation, slow insulin release and boost cell repair. However, for those watching their weight, remember that a single large avocado
contains up to 1600 kilojoules.

Silvia primarily drinks hers – blending them the Brazilian way with milk and sugar as a frothy green smoothie each morning. She consumes five avocados a week this way and says that it makes her skin glow, keeping it well hydrated and moist.

While Silvia likes to drink her avocados, in her culture other uses include putting slices under the eyes to reduce puffiness, and using mashed or whipped avocado in a blender, sometimes mixed with milk, as a facial cleanser. A popular Latin American facial masque is mashed avocado mixed with honey, left on the face for 15 minutes then washed off.

Beauty recipe

For a hydrating masque, mash avocado with honey then smooth it onto the face. Leave for around 15 minutes, then rinse off and relax.