Regaining a healthy glow after flu!

Source: http://healthfitnessrevolution.com/

It's the flu season. With the change in weather, we get prone to bacteria and flu is the most common illness we can contract.

I have been down with flu for the past week, and I was so looking forward to get back to health. I am now steadily recovering and I am seriously so happy!

With illness comes a dull, grey-ish complexion with dark circles. Ah.  So the following are some tips that I follow (in fact, I swear by these steps!) to get healthy complexion and glowing skin back!

1. Drink lots of water 

When down with flu, it is important to maintain the hydration level of you body. It is essential to drink water and ensure you are properly hydrated. I usually ensure that I drink a minimum of 2 litres water each day.

2. Get plenty of rest

It seems like some people have unlearned how to relax. A time-off a particular task is usually translated into logging onto a social network, taking out your phone to surf the net and this is by no means a relaxation technique.

Instead turn off and stay away from your laptop and mobile.  Consider it as a detox program and simply avoid it. Just sleep, and get plenty of rest. The added benefit is that there will be less dark circles under the eyes.

3. Have your dose of vitamin C

My favourite thing to do when I am down with flu is lemon tea! I simply love it, plus if it is really good for your health with the Vit C boost you will be getting. 

Simply boil water, add into a cup with a tea bag (the vanilla flavoured ones are really good!) and squeeze half a lemon into your cup of tea. You can also stir in a teaspoon of honey, which is a natural humectant and will soothe the scratchy throats.

Another variation is ginger tea. You can add grated ginger instead of lemon juice in your tea, let sit for some minutes, strain, add honey and enjoy. Though most food will seem bland, the tea will bring relief and you will enjoy it (seriously!)

After the flu:

4. Scrub, scrub, scrub!

A good sugar scrub with honey and some olive oil will be pampering for your skin and leave it smoother and more refreshed than ever. Prepare a homemade scrub and you can store it for upto a week in a mason jar. The scrub will remove all the dead cells and leave the skin polished.

5. Face mask

A carrot face mask works just great on the skin to give it back its youthful glow after a dreadful time spent with flu.

To prepare the mask, boil one medium sized carrot in water until it becomes soft. Take out the carrot and mash it. Add some honey and 1-2 drops of almond oil. Mix well and apply on your face and neck for 20 mins. Wash your face with warm water and enjoy the glow! Carrots are full if vitamin A and C. They are an excellent food for the health of our skin and eyes.

A good 10 mins face massage will also do you good. You can use olive oil or sweet almond oil and massage the face. Thus will improve blood circulation and make your complexion less greyish.

6. Though the above will bring a noted  difference to your skin's appearance, nothing will really make you feel back to normal than a great fragrant bath! It is the ultimate therapy. Pamper your skin and hair with some delicious conditioners. This will make you feel refreshed and happy!

7. To tackle with the undereye dark circles, give trusted potato juice a try. Potatoes are an excellent source of fiber, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, carbohydrates, potassium, calcium, and iron among others. The juice will help lighten the dark circles and with regular use, the dark circles will fade to a great extent.

Another option would be to use undereye creams for dark circles. However the potato juice remains the cheapest alternative.

And there you go, the tips which I follow after being slow with flu. Do let me know about your way of getting back your glow skin and health back after flu!