People are incorporating frozen cucumbers into their skincare routines
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It all started when I visited my sister one day and walked in on her rubbing a frozen cucumber on her face. I was partially caught off guard, partially not because, well, my sister is weird — and she’ll try (almost) anything if it promises her smooth, radiant skin. She then went on to tell me all of the amazing benefits and how great her skin always felt afterward. A simple search on TikTok revealed hundreds of videos of people doing and saying the same as my sister.
TikTok user Erica Yettaw collected over 200,000 likes on one video depicting her simply rubbing a frozen cucumber on her face, with the words, “Rubbing a frozen cucumber on my face for 30 seconds every day has made the biggest difference in my skin. Eczema gone. Rosacea is gone. Barely break out, skin is the most even-toned it’s ever been. I LOVE my bare face now!”
Before you sprint to the grocery store for cucumbers, let’s talk about the benefits of this unique skincare method:
🥒 Cucumbers are packed with nutrients and vitamins that help the skin:
Mostly made up of water, cucumbers are naturally moisturizing. Due to their cooling properties and high levels of ascorbic acid (known as vitamin C), these bad boys are helpful with brightening skin, increasing collagen levels, and protecting the skin against environmental stressors like pollution. Dr. Kemi Fabusiwa, medical doctor and director of Joyful Skin, told Refinery29 that “due to these characteristics, cucumber will likely have some benefit to the skin in dampening down inflammation and brightening dark spots.”
According to Women & Home, cucumbers also help with textured skin. “Cucumbers also contain key components like vitamin K, which stimulate cell growth and improve elasticity in the skin and can reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles."
🥒 The frozen element is a game-changer:
Much like the skin icing trend, rubbing a frozen cucumber on your face is helpful for blood circulation, reducing puffiness and redness. TikTok doctor Dr. Karan Raj posted a video explaining this. "The ice in the frozen cucumber might cause blood vessels in the skin surface to constrict," he wrote on TikTok. When that happens, puffiness and redness are temporarily reduced. This might even help reduce the size and discomfort of inflamed acne as well.
Here’s how to do it, per the pros at Well + Good:
“Cut the cucumber at one end to leave a smooth, exposed surface. Then place it in the freezer, inside a plastic bag. Since it’s cut and exposed, you’ll want to avoid both cross-contamination with other foods and freezer burn.
Once frozen, the uncut end will feel very cold, so wrap it in a paper towel to keep your hands warm. Then you’ll start rubbing the cut end of the cucumber over your face for a few minutes. It will start to thaw, so just cut a slice away from the end when you’re finished in the morning and let the cucumber refreeze with a brand-new exposed surface.”
Try it our for yourself and let me know how it goes below! ❤️
