Old Monticello Organic Farms
16 Jan 2008 ~ Categories: blog • body • products
As some of you know, my parents live on and run Old Monticello Organic Farms, New Mexico, otherwise know as OM OF NM.
My family farm in the high desert of New Mexico produces several specialty products for us at International Orange. My parents’ products represent the high quality we believe in at IO. I have been using one of their products in particular lately, the Lavender-Tangerine Salt Rub.
As the weather chills out and my skin starts to pucker, I am using their OM OF NM Salt Rub to keep supple skin even under all these clothes! I am, by the way, an avid believer in salt as a natural remedy.
As we move deeper into fall and winter, body exfolliation becomes more and more important to the quality of our skin. I bet ‘Salt’ sounds like a weird skin remedy to some of you?
So why Salt?
Eating too much salt is unhealthy for us, but using salt on our bodies in the right ways produces solid results.
Think again about skin itself. We know it’s the body’s largest organ, but what do most other organs actually do in the body? They remove toxins we have taken in by breathing, drinking or eating. The liver, the kidneys, and even the lungs have varied ways to eject unwanted debris from our systems.
Our underrated and misunderstood skin does the same.
Indeed various body systems move toxins to the surface of the skin via perspiration and other migration. When the skin is not in its top form, these unwanted materials cannot find an easy way out of our system. Even the classic “liver spots” which some people experience on their skin, especially with aging, are in fact deposits moved there from the liver when it cannot expel undesirable substances otherwise. A salt rub used on the skin, for example, helps this removal process and puts the skin in a position to clean itself out.
Both my parents’ OM OF NM Salt Rub and BATHE, our own International Orange bath soak, are two rare products that have this set of facts in mind. And, they both have salt as their main ingredient. With both of these products we want to help the skin do its natural work, while lightly anointing it with essential oils that promote healthy skin, protection and add mood-soothing, ethereal scent.
Bathing in warm water with Sea Salt and/or Epsom Salt is one very effective way of helping our biggest organ release toxins through the pores. Comprised only of Sea Salt, Epsom Salt, Baking Soda and Essential Oils of White Lotus, Orange Blossom and Vetiver, BATHE, our IO bath soak is one spirit-lifting and body-calming way to detoxify beautifully. Ahh, I LOVE taking baths.
Gently applying a salt rub on damp skin in a circular motion, moving away from the heart, is another way to slough old skin, improve its texture, and stimulate the capillaries to move additional oxygen and nutrients to the scoured areas. Adding natural body oils to the mix for hydration and natural skin protection will leave the skin singing all the way to ‘smooth’. (Only scrub gently or try using finer grained sugar instead if you are sensitive-skinned.)
To rap this up, I want to remind you all of the obvious: Our world is not perfect. That’s no news flash. So, we need to help our skin overcome inattention, less than perfect dietary intakes, and assaults from our environment. Salt is not the first thing we think of when we think about such rejuvenation, but for the skin of our bodies, it can scrub it back to its own natural functioning. We want to find other such opportunities that can help the body’s systems work their best.
Beauty follows.
Thanks for the products mom and dad. We love you.
Wishing you well,
Amy