Thanks to its richness in antioxidants and astringent agents, green tea is a great ingredient for purifying the skin, cleansing the scalp and preserving skin youth.
An ingredient from Asia
It is with the buds and leaves of the tea tree that green tea is made. “They are picked by hand, dried, then rolled. The first pickings, between March and April, are the most popular, because they are very concentrated in active ingredients ” , explains Katalin Berenyi, expert in cosmetology. In China and Japan, green tea has been consumed for centuries for its taste and medicinal properties. “In Korea, matcha tea (finely ground green tea) is widely used to make homemade masks. It is mixed with yogurt, milk or honey. It is also found in the baths of beauty houses to tone the body ” , she continues.
A depolluting power
Thanks to its content of tannins with astringent virtues, green tea is useful for combination and oily skin, where it tightens dilated pores. “Matcha tea powder indeed has a strong absorption capacity for pollutants, toxins and oxidation products. It can be used both on the face and on the scalp ”, underlines Katalin Berenyi. Green tea extracts are also included in the composition of slimming care, because they stimulate the mechanism of lipolysis, which “destocks” fat, while tannins strengthen skin tone.
Very powerful anti-aging active ingredients
As a drink as well as on the skin, green tea is renowned for its antioxidant properties.
This is thanks to its many polyphenols, including catechins (20%), but also epigallo-catechin gallate (or EGCG) which destroys free radicals. The latter has an anti-inflammatory action which relieves irritation and protects cells against attacks. “In anti-aging care formulas, green tea helps to preserve the elasticity of the skin” , notes Katalin Berenyi. It is also credited with relaxing and stimulating effects on the immune system, due to theanine, an amino acid.
By ridding the skin of its toxins, green tea improves the radiance of the complexion of all skin types.
4 green tea products we love
1. Body scrub
The exfoliating micrograins eliminate dead cells, while the green tea preserves the tone of the skin and delicately perfumes the formula. All in an innovative gum texture like chewing gum.
Exfoliating cleansing gum, Sephora, € 8.50 for 160 ml.
2. Purifying mask
Green tea from Boseong, South Korea, is combined with a cleansing agent to cleanse the skin and restore radiance. It comes in the form of a powder to be mixed with a little water to obtain a poultice.
Matcha Perfect Mask, Erborian, 29,90 € les 8 sticks.
3. Make-up removing oil
Papaya gently exfoliates to reduce pigment spots and moringa extract removes pollutants on the epidermis. Green tea, on the other hand, protects the skin from free radicals. All for a depolluting and anti-dull complexion effect.
Anti / Oxi + Oil, Shu Uemura, € 51 for 150 ml.
4. Hair scrub
This exfoliant, to be applied before shampooing, takes off dandruff, while green tea and essential oils of lemongrass, geranium, cedar, peppermint … cleanse the scalp.
Phytoclear purifying scrub, Elsève l’Oréal Paris, € 5.50 for 150 ml.
