Why would you wash your face with honey?

1. It is antibacterial and antimicrobial. It will get off any lingering nastiness that’s thinking about setting up camp on your face and creating pimples.
2. It is slightly drying which means it helps soak up any pimples or oiliness.
3. It is also incredibly moisturizing. Seems like a double standard, doesn’t it? But it’s true. Honey sinks into your skin and moisturizes like you wouldn’t believe. (Remember Cleopatra and her honey baths to look young?)
4. It imparts all kinds of beneficial enzymes that work at scrubbing your face for you, as well as perform a little anti-aging action.
5. It’s great for acne, aging skin, normal skin, dry skin … honey loves EVERY SKIN TYPE.
6. It is healing and helps repair acneic sores and scars.
7. It’s 100%, absolutely, positively natural, great for your skin, and such a SIMPLE addition to your routine!

How to Wash Your Face With Honey

First, remember that these directions are for washing a face that doesn’t have makeup on it. Honey alone doesn’t take off all the goopy gunk.

For now, if you wear makeup, just continue to take it off the way you normally do, and incorporate the honey wash into your morning, pre-makeup routine.

Here are your wash instructions:

1. Tie your hair back or get it out of your face. (Honey makes hair really sticky.)
2. Pour 1/2-ish teaspoon of honey into the palm of your hands and rub your hands together for 2-3 seconds, just to warm up the honey.
3. Place the honey on your face and massage it in for a minute or two – all around, don’t forget an inch of face.
4. Optional – leave the honey sitting there on your face for 5 or 10 minutes, just so your skin can drink the goodness in.
5. Rinse a few times with water. You’ll be surprised at how quickly and easily it rinses off!
6. Bask in the beauty that is your face now.

That’s it!

If you want a way to remove makeup just change things up a bit.

First, wet a washcloth with water. Then, pour 1/2-ish tsp honey on the wet washcloth. Sprinkle about 1/2 tsp baking soda on top of the honey. Splash a little water on your face, and then scrub everywhere very, very gently. The baking soda is slightly exfoliating, so we don’t need to scrub hard at all.

Then, just splash water on your face a time or two. Your makeup (other than the eye makeup) should be nearly (if not completely) removed.

With the baking soda, you’re throwing your skin’s pH balance out of whack just a little bit, leaving it vulnerable to dryness and/or potential pimples. Apple cider vinegar will help balance this out and put your skin back into a healthy state of being. A little diluted apple cider vinegar on another cloth afterward, wiped evenly all over your face will help.

The start of fall brings new seasonal home and yard items that pose a threat to the safety of our pets. These common items can cause serious problems if ingested by animals. Here is the list of seasonal products that we recommend keeping away from pets.
 
Mushrooms:

While most mushrooms are generally non-toxic, certain types can be very dangerous. One of the most dangerous is the Amanita phalloides or death cap mushroom which is found throughout the United States and Canada. The proper identification of mushrooms is extremely difficult and often only done by experts. Therefore, it is wise to consider all ingestions of unidentified mushrooms as toxic until proven otherwise. Depending on what type of mushroom is ingested, symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, depression, tremors, and seizures, with liver and kidney damage occurring later. Pet owners should scour their yard frequently to get rid of any mushrooms.

Mothballs:

While you may think these white balls are benign, they are not. Mothballs typically contain either paradichlorobenzene or naphthalene. While the old fashioned mothballs (naphthalene) are often considered more toxic, both can be deadly. Symptoms include vomiting, severe abdominal pain, tremors, weakness, possible kidney or liver failure, and severe abnormality of your pet’s red blood cells.

Antifreeze:

As people prepare their boats, cars or cabins for winter, pets may inadvertently be exposed to antifreeze. As little as one teaspoon in a cat or a tablespoon or two for dogs, depending on the size of animal, can be fatal. Signs of early poisoning include acting drunk or uncoordinated, excessive thirst, and lethargy. While signs may seem to improve after eight to twelve hours, internal damage is actually worsening, and crystals develop in the kidneys, which result in acute kidney failure. Immediate treatment with an antidote is vital.

Mouse and Rat Poisons (Rodenticides):

As you prepare to winterize your garage, cabin, or house, make sure to place poisonous baits in areas where your pet cannot reach them (e.g., high up on shelves, hidden behind work spaces, etc.). “Rodenticides also pose the potential for relay toxicity,” said Dr. Ahna Brutlag, assistant director of veterinary services at Pet Poison Helpline. “In other words, if your dog eats a large number of dead mice poisoned by rodenticides, they can experience secondary effects.” Because there are several different types of chemicals in mouse and rat poisons, all with different active ingredients and types of action, it is imperative to keep your pets away from all of these potentially dangerous poisons.

Compost bins or piles:

Piles of decomposing and decaying organic matter and molding food products in your backyard compost pile have the potential to contain ‘tremorgenic mycotoxins’, meaning molds which cause tremors. Even small amounts ingested can result in tremors or seizures within 30 minutes to several hours.

Red maple leaves:

Horse lovers, beware. As little as one pound of dried maple leaves blowing into your horse’s pasture can be toxic. When ingested, these leaves result in a severe hemolytic anemia – it causes red blood cells to rupture, causing weakness, pale gums, an elevated heart rate and shock.

The best thing any pet owner can do is to be educated on common toxins, and to make sure you pet-proof your home and yard  appropriately. Make sure to keep all toxic products in labeled, tightly-sealed containers out of your pet’s reach. When in doubt, if you think your pet has been poisoned, contact your veterinarian.