Honey and Cinnamon for Pimples: Recipe and Cautions

One of the most common and chronic skin problems in the world, acne vulgaris affects countless people and makes each individual actively seek for an efficient remedy. Commercial shelves are overloaded with synthetically derived acne solutions, yet the awareness surrounding natural skincare has been gradually increasing. Honey and cinnamon face masks can be deemed one of the most popular DIY acne cures amongst the myriad traditional household remedies. 

Marketed by beauty influencers and wellness practitioners, the duo-available in almost every pantry has gained a reputation for clearing out breakouts, reducing inflammation and restoring skin health. 

Yet, before the application of concentrated kitchen spices and powerful bioactive agents to compromised facial skin, one must be careful. Honey is celebrated for its dermatological benefits worldwide, while cinnamon remains a double-edged sword. If anyhow, cinnamon is used the wrong way, it can result in skin burns or inflammation. In the following blog, learn about using honey and cinnamon to treat acne by exploring scientifically supported information with precise recipes along with serious health warnings.

How Cinnamon And Honey Fight Acne?

In order to fully grasp why this duo is so effective, you have to look back to the underlying causes of acne. Acne pimples start as pore or follicle obstructions where excess oil and dead skin cells accumulate. These stagnant cells mixed with excess sebum within the pore, trap bacteria called Cutibacterium acnes which metabolizes the pore cloggers and lead to inflammation that results in painful pimples caused by our body immune responses. Here is how honey and cinnamon come in for a fight with acne.

Role Of Honey And Cinnamon

Honey Cinnamon Acne Recipes

Recipe 1: For Active Pimples

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• ¼ teaspoon ground Ceylon cinnamon

Instructions

• Mix honey and cinnamon thoroughly in a small, clean bowl
• Make a thick paste
• Use a clean cotton swab to apply a small dab of the paste on the active pimples
• Leave it for 15-20 minutes
• Rinse thoroughly with Alite Neem and Aloevera Anti-Acne Face Wash and lukewarm water and follow with regular moisturizer

Recipe 2: For Face Mask

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons of raw honey
• ½ teaspoon of ground Ceylon cinnamon

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl to create a spreadable paste
• Apply an even layer across your clean, dry face and avoid contact with the eyes
• Wash after 10-15 minutes using Alite Neem and Aloevera Anti-Acne Face Wash
• Pat dry with a soft towel

Honey is a gentle humectant but at the same time cinnamon is also a highly potent spice that may act as a severe skin irritant. Mixing them for facial care requires extreme care. Here are 6 major cautions explained in deep detail.

1. Risk of Allergic Contact Dermatitis
   In dermatological practice, cinnamon is known to cause allergic contact dermatitis. This happens because the active phytochemicals contained within have been recognized by the immune system as being foreign substances. It can cause a localized, brutally itchy, red, breakout of pimples. It may also cause swelling, hives and a metaplasia of small, fluid-filled bullae which may take several weeks before resolution. Honey may also provoke a reaction if allergic to bee pollen or propolis in susceptible individuals. A generalized patch test on a site like the inner elbow is necessitated prior to any utilization on the face.

6. The Risk Of Harsh Chemical Burns 
   Highly volatile essential oils in Cinnamon have properties that act as weak acids when used on sensitive facial skin. Too much cinnamon relative to the honey can cause chemical burns to the facial dermis, if allowed to sit for an extended duration of time. The damage can appear similar to a burn when the top layers of the skin peel away, turn into darker pigmentation and may take some time to recover and alter the skin barrier integrity. 

7. Micro-Tears from Physical Friction
   Most people commonly apply ground cinnamon onto their faces as a way to exfoliate dead skin cells. A microscopic look at what’s in ground cinnamon reveals these particles as sharp, jagged and uneven specks of dried particles. Repeated exposure to this physical irritation causes microscopic tears within the outer protection barrier of our skin (stratum corneum). When this layer is damaged, pollutants and bacteria enter much further down into the skin and trigger damage, premature signs of ageing, chronic irritation and acne scarring. 

8. Worsening Serious Rosacea
   A potent rubefacient, meaning a substance that brings increased blood flow to the skin with rapid vasodilation, cinnamon would certainly irritate skin with localized rosacea. The excessive amount of blood flow rushing to and dilating the capillaries on a normal face would cause discomfort and unwanted redness, but in a person whose skin is vulnerable or compromised, the excessive heat from this vasodilation would result in over-stretching or shattering the already weak capillaries on the face. For many, it would result in the appearance of painful, red pustules. If the face is already inflamed with diffuse facial erythema or has an already high density of easily visible thread veins or spider veins, it would escalate the condition.

9. Toxicity Differences (Cassia Vs Ceylon)
   The vast majority of the common cinnamon that gets shelved in our spice section in the regular supermarket aisle is Cassia Cinnamon and this form of cinnamon contains very significant concentrations of an organic chemical called Coumarin. Coumarin is known to be harmful and particularly known to be quite irritating to sensitive skin. Applying this to the bare skin is putting yourself to an ultimate risk. Ceylon Cinnamon, on the contrary, is much less concentrated in coumarins, more skin friendly and slightly less stimulating.

10. Danger of Volatile Vapor For Eye Irritation
    Honey and cinnamon paste is totally loaded with aromatic elements which are volatile in nature hence can evaporate easily at body temperature. When you normally apply honey and cinnamon mask on any part of your face, some part of it may be exposed to your eyes by mistake, which can result in the high risk of intense pain, redness, constant tearing up and even loss of vision temporarily. 

Common Mistakes You Should Avoid

Summary

Acne vulgaris is a widespread and inflammatory condition from which most of us struggle with on a daily basis. Many people want to find a more natural substitute to the many commercial treatments out there. Masks with honey and cinnamon are good recommendations from beauty influencers and wellness operators. Promoted to reduce breakouts, soothe inflammation and support skin health.

It is important to be noted that improper use of cinnamon on facial skin can result in burns and inflammation. The traditional problem path for acne is pore blockage by excess oil and dead skin cells, which can trap the anaerobic bacteria (Cutibacterium acnes). Honey could be effective in controlling acne by its humectant and moisture gaining effects, generation of hydrogen peroxide, acidifying and anti-inflammatory effects.

Cinnamon can aid the control of acne by the effect of cinnamaldehyde, its antimicrobial activity and its antioxidant mediated anti-inflammatory effects. The first recipe incorporates raw honey and Ceylon cinnamon as a spot treatment for active pimples. The second recipe takes a larger amount of mixed honey and Ceylon cinnamon and requires application of it as a mask for 15-20 minutes while avoiding delicate tissues such as the eyes.

Risks for use of cinnamon include allergic contact dermatitis, chemical burns and micro-tearing from abrasive cinnamon particles. In addition, cinnamon may aggravate rosacea. Cassia cinnamon is more hazardous than Ceylon due to higher levels of coumarin. Patch testing is recommended and rinsing if intense burning persists for longer and seek consultation with your dermatologist.