Chocolate Face Mask

The first thought that came to mind when I heard about the chocolate face mask had everything to do with images of acne popping up all over my face.  I mean, we have been thoroughly led to believe that chocolate (oh, that delicious stuff of my dreams) equates acne.  Some of us experienced chocoholics have even been through, what we believe, was a chocolate induced acne attack on our faces.


You can now get rid of those horrid images of acne and take solace in the fact that certain kinds of chocolate are actually good for you.  Chocolates high in flavonoids (not to be confused with flavonols) are good for your body because of their antioxidant properties.

The chocolate antioxidant properties applies to chocolate consumed orally and chocolate applied topically to your skin, which is what this post is about: a sun-protecting chocolate face mask for normal skin.  Cocoa powder high in flavonoids helps protect your skin against UV/sun damage much in the same way as tomatoes do.  Also, the rolled oats in this chocolate face mask recipe exfoliates your skin.

Ingredients:

*1/2 cup of cocoa powder high in antioxidant flavanoids (I use Hershey's Baking Cocoa Natural Unsweetened, 8oz Can)
3 tbsp of heavy cream
3 tsp rolled oats

*Make sure your cocoa powder has not been Dutch processed because the process gets rid of most of the antioxidants.

Directions:

Grind/blend the rolled oats so that it is a fine powder.  Mix the cocoa powder, fine rolled oats, and heavy cream together in a bowl until it is a paste that you can use on your face.  Apply the chocolate face mask to your face using your fingers and leave it on for 10-15 minutes.

Rinse off and pat dry.  Tone and moisturize as usual.

Enjoy!
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