The finding of ways to improve the appearance of the skin has been one of the major preoccupations of mankind since the ancient times. The activity of developing different formulas and techniques of producing and maintaining a beautiful skin has evolved to become the powerful skin care industry that it is now.

While the ingredients of skin care concoctions in the past were invariably taken from plants or from fish, fowl or animal sources, nowadays these are mostly manufactured synthetically. Costs, production volume requirements and the demand for speed in delivery of the products to the market, in other words the dictates of commercialization and profit considerations, compel skin care manufacturers to rely on chemicals that can be formulated quickly and at lower cost. Many of these chemicals used in the formulation of skin care products are actually toxic and not originally meant to be used on the human body. To come up with a product that is usable the manufacturers carefully produce them in formulations that contain toxic ingredients only up to a certain volume of content that the human body supposedly can safely tolerate. Aggressive advertising campaign also succeeded in making thousands of these synthetic skin care products so acceptable to millions of people that most are not even thinking that these products actually contain ingredients that are by themselves originally poisonous to man. While it is true that the formulations are scrutinized and carefully regulated according to the standards of safety established by government regulatory authorities, the long term and accumulated effect of constant application of toxic materials on the skin and its eventual absorption into the body worry a growing number of people.

The number of people who are giving a second, and wary, look at synthetic skin care products is actually increasing, and, of course, this fact did not escape the notice of skin care industry. The result: herb-based skin care products. This development is probably a boon to the cause of safe natural skin care except that, many point out, that even these herb-based products has to be loaded with chemical preservatives so that their shelf-life may be lengthened, otherwise they will spoil before they can be sold in profitable quantities.

Can anyone really still find an honest to goodness herbal skin care preparation that is totally devoid of any synthetic parts? The answer is actually yes, but for that, one must go directly to nature; to the plants, where skin care ingredients were originally sourced. There are many different herbs, the extracts of which have been included in excellent skin care preparations. Aloe Vera is one of the most popular. The gelatinous substance freshly extracted from the aloe vera can used as emollient and for the treatment of burns. The dandelion, chamomile, lime flowers and rosemary herbs have cleansing effect on the skin. Lavender, marigold, thyme and fennel have antiseptic properties that can be used to wash the face clean of microbes that can infect the skin. Lavender water and rose water are also known as good skin toners. Oils prepared from herbal extracts are also used in natural skin care preparations. For example, tea tree oil, lavender oil, borage oil, primrose oil, and some fruit oils such as extracts from banana, apple and melon.(adminname：admin)