Asian women are known for their delicate beauty and smooth, fair skin. This is probably why I’m always intrigued by any traditional skin lightening remedies from the Orient. One of these remedies is rice powder and rice water. What is rice powder? What is rice water? Rice powder is simply uncooked rice that has been ground into a fine powder. Water or milk added to rice powder creates a paste, which can be used as a face mask. Rice water is the nutrient-rich water that comes from soaking or washing uncooked rice. Rice water is cloudy in appearance. How can rice powder lighten our skin? There are plenty of anecdotes about how rice powder and more specifically, rice water, can keep our skin youthful and translucent looking. But why does rice powder work, exactly? Rice contains a high concentration of PABA. PABA (para aminobenzoic acid) is a very good sunscreen. When taken internally, PABA also raises the Vitamin C levels in our bodies. Rice also contains two other sun protecting agents – ferulic acid and allantoin. Ferulic acid is an antioxidant. Incredibly, scientists have found that when ferulic acid is added to Vitamin C and E, its sun protection ability doubled. (Scroll down this page to read an extract of the study’s findings.) Allantoin is a good anti- inflammatory agent. It soothes sunburns and also promotes the skin’s repair. When applied as a paste on the skin, rice powder has been shown to inhibit tyrosinase. Make your own skin lightening ‘rice water’ toner Washing your face in rice water can give you fairer and more translucent skin. While results will not be dramatic, you should see your skin become lighter within a month. The best part of this is that it’s so easy to do. (For the sake of not wasting food, I do encourage you to only do this if you plan on cooking the rice for your meals later!) You can add water to uncooked rice to make your very own 'rice water' cleanser and toner. Step 1. Using a clean bowl, soak some uncooked brown rice, white rice or red rice in water. A handful of rice should be more than enough. Step 2. Run your fingers through this, as if you’re cleaning the rice. Step 3. The water should look pretty cloudy right now. Drain this water into another clean bowl. Step 4. Splash the ‘rice water’ over your face repeatedly (Tip: exfoliate your skin first with a scrub or washcloth so the rice water can be better absorbed). For even better skin lightening, do not towel your face dry but leave it damp to air-dry on its own. Frequency and results: Do this consistently at least once a week and you should see your skin lighten after a month. If you feel comfortable, you can also use it a few times a week. The ferulic acid in rice is not a very strong acid, and the water would have diluted/ weakened the solution further, so there should not be skin sensitivity. However, always use your own good judgement as everyone’s skin is different. If you have more rice water left over, you can pat the remaining water on your face and neck or refrigerate the rest.

Hehehe! Never heard this before, it's a new one on me! I will try it.

Me too go try am oooo

Really

Na wa...
Any testimonies?