With the heat, high temperatures arrive and with it the desire to spend more time outside the home than inside. The problem is that the skin needs protection from the sun's rays so that it does not burn or have more serious consequences on our health.. Do you want to save money on sun creams? Do you have aloe vera on hand? How about learning how to make aloe vera sunscreen?
If you have this plant with you and can get hold of all the ingredients you need, then you could easily make your own sunscreen. More natural, cheaper and, above all, made with ingredients that you will know what they are, so there will be no surprises. How about we give you the keys?
Ingredients to make a sunscreen with aloe vera
Next we are going to list the ingredients that you will need to make the protector with aloe vera. There are several, but you will see that they are very simple.
- Natural aloe vera gel. You need three tablespoons but if you have the plant, with one of its leaves open in half and all the pulp removed, it should be enough.
- Wheat germ oil. One tablespoon will be enough.
- Bee wax. The same, a single tablespoon.
- 10 grams of zinc oxide powder. This is perhaps the most difficult ingredient to find, but in herbalists you should find it.
- Distilled water (for example, that of the plates). It is used to dilute the aloe. If you are using the plant itself then you will have to spend a little more time on it to really melt it well.
- Coconut oil, olive or almond You will need a quarter of a liter. You can choose the one you like the most, although with the olive one the cream will be a little more sticky. With coconut or almonds there will be a more homogeneous texture. If you have oily skin we recommend these instead of olive.
- Grapefruit seed extract. You only need a few drops.
- Oil essence. Only optional and if you want the cream to smell. If you don't mind that it doesn't have a smell, better avoid it.
How to make a sunscreen with aloe vera: the steps
Now that you have the ingredients, and if you've gotten them all, it's time to get down to doing it all. You will see, you are going to start by putting a pot with the beeswax and the oil in a bain-marie. The goal is for it to warm up a bit and mix.
At the same time We recommend that you put another pot with distilled water and the aloe vera so that it heats up and melts well. This can take a while, and also later you will have to wait for it to be warm to be able to mix it with the above.
In the first pot, when you see that everything is already mixed and melted, add the wheat germ oil, zinc oxide and the essence if you want a pleasant smell in the cream. If not, just the above. Keep stirring so everything is mixed.
Once the second pot has warmed, you will have to add it to the first one and stir until everything is well mixed.
Now, before going any further, We recommend having glass containers to fill them with the mixture. If you do it now you will achieve that, when it hardens (which it will do when it is cold), you will not have to keep changing it. But if you only have plastic and they do not withstand high temperatures, you will have to wait for it to cool down and then put it on.
Do sunscreens with aloe vera really protect?
One of the doubts that may cross your mind is whether really making a sunscreen with aloe vera is better than buying one that you know the protection factor it has and that, after all, you have trusted it all the time. life.
The truth is that many of the sunscreens and sun creams that are sold have loads of chemicals that sometimes we do not know and that can even be toxic or harmful to the skin (despite the fact that they protect us).
But that does not end there. And it is that, when you put on the sunscreen and get into the water, it contaminates that water and with it all the animals and plants that are inside it. With what you will be damaging the environment.
That is why many opt for something more natural which is known to protect, but would not harm the environment.
In addition, from what we have found out, sun creams with aloe vera protect the skin much better from solar radiation. Among other things, because prevent sunburn from appearing (Burns). But, in addition, it also protects the skin from the consequences of sun exposure.
Sunscreen… and something else
Normally, when you use a sunscreen, you know that it is only for sunbathing. It should be taken half an hour before it, so that when we go into the sun it is already acting as a barrier. But, after that, it has no other use.
However, in the case of aloe vera sunscreen, it does have another use. Not only will it serve to protect you from the sun and not burn you, but also, After that day at the beach, pool, or simply sunbathing, you can apply it again as an after sun.
That is to say, it will help you to relieve the sensation of dryness and tightness of the skin (from having been exposed to heat and the sun, despite using the cream). But it will also help you hydrate your skin, not only from the sun, but in general. In fact, it is advisable to apply it for a minimum of 2-3 days so that the skin is nourished by it.
Now that you know how to make a sunscreen with aloe vera and that the heat is coming, don't you think that your skin deserves something healthier and that does not damage the skin in the future? Do you know more recipes for a sunscreen with plants?