This story is from March 25, 2015

Coffee’s beauty secrets

Mar 25, 2015, 18:38 IST

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Coffee’s good for a lot more than just that jolt of energy caffeine gives you. There are also the results of studies that come out ever so often.

Coffee’s good for a lot more than just that jolt of energy caffeine gives you. There are also the results of studies that come out ever so often.
They claim drinking coffee in moderate amounts (that’s four to five cups a day, according to the International Coffee Organisation) can reduce risks of Type 2 diabetes, stroke, cardiovascular diseases, colon cancer, liver cirrhosis, gallstones, skin cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.

So now that you’ve switched to coffee - using real beans, not that instant powder - remember to save the grinds. They have more powers than actually advertised. All you need is a ready supply of freshly ground coffee beans.
Even celebrities believe in its powers. For proof, log on to Hollywood star Gwyneth Paltrow’s website, Goop. Click through her ‘Do’ list till you stumble upon her simple styling tips.

Dr Abhijit Desai, a dermatologist, says, “Coffee does have antioxidant properties. It’s also a vasoconstrictor as well as a diuretic (they cause a person to lose water) and is considered to be useful for reducing dark circles.”
Happy hair
Expensive bottles of shampoo and conditioner can do wonders for your hair. So can the coffee berry. Aleena Jetha, from a spa in Mumbai, offers hair protein treatments that are laced with coffee. “It has antioxidants and works against the chemicals that cause hair fall,” she says, but warns that coffee shouldn’t be applied to coloured or processed hair.

Astute recessionistas can even try some coffee therapy at home. Some experts suggest using espresso (add ground coffee to hot water and let it brew, apply the warm drink to hair and rinse out after 20 minutes). It leaves the hair looking softer and shinier.
Battle the puff
You’ve had a late night because you were out partying/were buried under a pile of work/were racing to meet a deadline. So the next day, you (naturally) have the biggest dark circles and the baddest case of puffy eyes. Here again, coffee comes to the rescue. “When
combined with Vitamin K, it’s the best cure for puffiness around the eyes,” says Dr Apratim Goel, a dermatologist. “It reduces blood supply to the area by shrinking the vessels and reduces puffiness by removing water content,” she adds.
But don’t rub ground coffee under your eyes, please. Dr Goel recommends that you use eye creams from reputed companies.
Happy skin
Instead of spending massive amounts of money on fancy exfoliating face or bodywash, use ground coffee.
Dermatologists attest to coffee’s anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. In fact, coffee prevents free radicals from doing the damage they do to the skin cells. “Coffee helps in the lightening and tightening of the skin,” says Goel.
It helps reduce pigmentation and is often used to brighten skin or reduce the tan in facial treatments and as part of beauty treatments.
Also, since ground coffee is coarse, it helps strip away dead cells to reveal the soft skin underneath. In fact, Paltrow says on her website that using coarsely ground coffee with Turbinado sugar and olive oil helps you cleanse your pores.
To make your own coffee-laced exfoliant, first consider your skin type. Girls with oily skin should mix ¼ cup coffee grinds with yogurt (dahi) or besan.
Fights odour
You’ve been cooking up an Italian or even Indian storm using lots of onion and garlic, and know that just soap and water will not get the smell off your fingers. So, rub some coffee - again, preferably ground - onto your hands. It’s rich, dark fragrance is more powerful than the stubborn garlic/onion stink.
A word of caution
Dr Desai says that he wouldn’t discourage patients from using caffeine-laced beauty products, “It’s worth a try. But use such products with caution.” Coffee-based products work, but they aren’t extraordinary. You could get some of the same benefits from other sources such as nuts as well, he says.

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