Health and beauty benefits of hibiscus flower

Hello friends,

How are you all? Today I want to discuss about the health and beauty benefits of hibiscus flower. I’m sure that all of us have studied about Hibiscus rosa-sinensis in our school days. In biology class, one used to dissect the flower and display each part carefully. I remember, during my tenth standard board exams, I was praying that I should get hibiscus flower for biology lab exam as it was the easiest:-D Okay, let us get into the topic.

Hibiscus flower is so common that it is easily available. Use can surely see two or three hibiscus plant in any neighbourhood. Generally, the flower can be seen in colours like yellow, pink, red and white. Among these only red flowers with five petals are used for many skin, hair and health related treatments.

Health benefits:

1. Hibiscus is rich in vitamin C and has flavonoids.
2. If you are suffering from anemia, consuming hibiscus tea daily will help you boost your haemoglobin levels.
3. Loss of appetite can be rectified by consuming the flower tea.
4. It contains antioxidants that are helpful in curing/reducing fever, cold, cough, menstrual cramps.
5. It is known to effectively decrease the blood pressure for people suffering from high blood pressure and type II diabetes. Even if you do not have high blood pressure, consuming hibiscus in tea form maintains your blood pressure.
6. It prevents cancer as it is very rich in antioxidants.
7. Researches have shown that consumption of hibiscus also reduces the bad cholesterol from the body.
8. It speeds up the metabolism thereby aiding in a gradual weight loss.
9. It has anti-inflammation, anti-bacterial properties.
10. It also has anti-depressant properties so it helps in reducing depression, mood swings, hot flashes during menstrual cycle. It also relieves menstrual cramps.
11. It has diuretic properties which increases urination thereby flushing the toxins from our body. It also satiates thirst.
12. It maintains the health of our internal organs like liver, kidney and digestive tract.

Note: However, one should not go overboard with the consumption of hibiscus. It is advised to limit to two or three cups of hibiscus tea per day to reap the benefits.

You can either choose to drink it hot or cold. Hibiscus tea can be made from fresh flower petals or dried petals. The market is flooding with dried hibiscus tea petals. We have a hibiscus plant at our home which gives at least forty or fifty flowers per day (touchwood). So I brew my tea with fresh cleaned petals with a dash of lime and honey. Hibiscus itself has a sour taste to it which is refreshing. For those who are bored with conventional lemon-honey-warm water routine adding hibiscus petals will be different and you get added benefits.

Beauty benefits

For skin:

1. Hibiscus is known as the natural botox plant. It increases the skin elasticity and keeps it wrinkle free. Prepare a face pack with hibiscus flower paste, with fuller’s earth and apply it on your face to get skin lift effect instantly.
2. Regular topical application of hibiscus flower paste helps to give an even tone of our skin. It fights hyperpigmentation and removes dark spots.
3. It fights the skin damage. The anti-oxidants present in the flower flushes the free radicals from the skin layers.
4. It moisturizes the skin as it helps the skin to retain its moisture.
5. The flower and leaf extract has astringent properties so it can shrink the larger pore of the skin and gives a smoother skin.

Some face pack ideas:

The beauty of DIY face packs is that we can modify it for our liking by adding or subtracting the ingredients based on our skin types and needs. But, here are some ideas for a face pack.

• Make paste of hibiscus petals, add some multani mitti(fuller’s earth) and apply it as a face pack. This pack can be used by oily skinned beauties as fuller’s earth has the ability to absorb oil from the skin and mattify it.
•  Dry skinned beauties can make hibiscus petal paste add some honey and olive oil and use it as face pack. The flower helps in retaining the skin’s moisture; honey also acts as a humectant.

For hair:

1. It stimulates the hair growth.
2. The flower and leaves can be used to make diy shampoos and conditioners.
3. It conditions the hair well and aids in reducing hairfall.
4. It also reduces dandruff.
5. It helps in preventing/reducing pre-mature greying of the hair.
6. The flower and leaves can be used as hair packs either fresh ground or as dry powder forms.

Some hair pack ideas:

• Soak fenugreek overnight and grind to a smooth paste. Grind hibiscus flower petals and leaves to a smooth paste. Mix these two pastes and apply on your hair for 20 minutes and wash your hair with your regular shampoo for silky smooth tresses.
•  Crush some petals of hibiscus flower in luke warm water until it is mushy. Remove the flower residue and apply the remaining liquid on to your hair for well-conditioned hair.

Picture source: 1, 2, 3, 4