The Tuesday Tip: Get Maximum Moisture

Achieving maximum moisture isn't always easy. There are times when, no matter how many creams or serums you apply, your skin doesn't seem to absorb moisture, let alone retain it! Luckily there is one ingredient you can always depend on to hydrate and moisturise the skin. I'm talking about honey...

Ingredients 101: Mānuka Honey

Natural or Synthetic: Natural

Origin: Mānuka Honey is a monofloral honey produced from the nectar of the mānuka tree

Location: New Zealand and Australia

Beauty Benefits: Mānuka honey is famous for its healing properties - so much so that the Māori people have been using it to treat themselves (both inside and out) for centuries! As mānuka honey is antibacterial and anti-inflammatory, it is also great for treating acne. If you suffer from acne, apply this miracle honey directly onto your skin to help reduce the size of pimples, reduce the redness and prevent future flare-ups. Giving yourself a mānuka honey face mask will also hydrate and soothe your skin.

The major antibacterial component in mānuka honey is methylglyoxal (MG), however not all types of mānuka honey contain the same concentration of MG. For these reasons, honey producers developed a scale for rating the potency of mānuka honey, known as the Unique Manuka Factor (UMF). The UMF rating corresponds with the concentration of MG and any type of mānuka honey will need to have a minimum rating of 10 UMF in order to be considered potent enough to provide real benefits. Any mānuka honey above 10 UMF is referred to as Active Mānuka Honey.

Warnings: Mānuka honey is safe to use topically

Found in: Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey Mask 75ml (£21.99 antipodesnature.com / $36.55 feelunique.com). This smooth, creamy mask draws moisture to skin to hydrate it intensely, whilst also treating acne and dry patches. It is the perfect skin pick-me-up and it smells amazing.

A-List Advice: Scarlett Johansson

It was once revealed that manuka honey is the secret behind Scarlett Johansson’s red carpet glow. The Hitchcock star and all-round American beauty uses the native New Zealand ingredient as a face mask. She apples manuka honey directly onto a recently washed face and leaves it on for 10-15 minutes. The 28 year old swears by this natural treatment saying, “It really adds an amazing glow and your skin is so soft afterwards. It pulls out the impurities”.

Scarlett is clearly onto something. Manuka Honey is a natural remedy that New Zealand’s Maori tribe have been using for centuries. It is cherished for its powerful antibacterial and astringent properties which make it the perfect ingredient for treating acne and reducing the appearance of wrinkles.

If you don’t fancy slathering sticky honey on your face I would recommend Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey Mask (£21.99 / $39.00 www.antipodesnature.com) or The Organic Pharmacy Manuka Face Cream (£37.96 / $76.00 www.theorganicpharmacy.com).