This is a guest post from Jill Therese from HealYourFaceWithFood.com

While I was trying to heal my acne, I used every possible drug treatment there was (you name it I tried it).

Unfortunately, most of them left my skin feeling dry, itchy, painful, and quite frankly- terrible looking.

So, once I finally cleared my acne naturally 4 years ago, I wanted to move towards a more holistic approach for all of my products.

Although there is a great variety of herbal treatments available for acne, I wanted to give you my 10 favorite herbal acne treatments that I know you can most likely pick up at a grocery store or natural food store near you.

So, maybe for today, try shelving the benzoyl peroxide, differin gel, retin A, etc. and try out one of my favorite herbal remedies below: 

1. Drink Chamomile Tea 1x Daily

Alpha bisabolol, a compound in chamomile, has been found to reduce wrinkles and fine lines by speeding up the process of healing; it also possesses super anti-inflammatory properties too- super great for acne clearing.

2. Try Witch Hazel as a Toner

Witch hazel comes from the leaves and bark of the North American witch hazel shrub- so it’s super all natural.

It’s anti inflammatory so it’ll help reduce zit inflammation and is also great as an astringent because it helps to tighten skin tissue:) Use as a daily toner for a few days and see how it feels.

3. Apply Raw Garlic to Your Breakout

Sounds potent, I know- and it is (only use if you are not seeing the man of your dreams tonight:). Garlic is super anti-inflammatory as well as antibacterial so it’s great for acne healing.

If you’re feeling up to the challenge of having a garlic smell surround you for a few hours- follow this plan: cut up a piece of garlic and rub on the broken out area 2x daily for 3-5 minutes. It’ll help relieve the pain and inflammation of the breakout and it will also speed up healing.

4. Use a Lemon as a Scar Reducer

Ok, you got me, lemon isn’t really an “herb”… but I just love lemon, it’s one of my favorite natural treatments for acne healing because it reduces oil and kills bacteria.

After you wash your face in the PM, apply some lemon juice to a cotton ball 1x a week on inflamed/scarred areas. Since lemon juice has a natural brightening quality it’ll also help naturally fade any acne scars you may have.

5. Create a Basil Toner

Pick up a bunch of basil at the store (usually around $2) and let the leaves dry out. Crumble them up into 2-3 teaspoons and add to boiling water. Let the leaves steep for 10-20 minutes, allowing the water to cool.

Then, apply to any acne breakouts with a cotton ball. Basil is super antibacterial and can be a great natural cure for your breakouts.

6. Use a Dash of Cayenne Pepper to Start Your Day

I use this pepper every morning in my morning tea (hot water with lemon and cayenne) as it stimulates digestion and circulation.

Digestion is super, super important (I know Tracy has talked about “poo” before:) to healing your acne; when your digestive system is in balance, it’s much easier to create a balanced body overall and as a result, clearer skin.

7. Make a Chickpea Flour Mask

Take one teaspoon of chickpea flour and mix with one tablespoon of water to make a paste. This paste can help exfoliate dead skin cells and also helps with oily skin. Apply 1X a week.

8. Drink Don Quai Tea

This tea can be great for hormonal regulation, if it fits your needs. Our hormones have a huge impact on our skin. Depending on your specific hormonal imbalance, don quai can be highly beneficial for you re:estrogen balancing (estrogen imbalance is a cause of acne). Drink one cup every 2 days for two weeks and see how your skin (and body) feel.

I know that Tracy also knows a ton about hormones and their affects on your acne, grab her new book here to read!

9. Use Licorice Root on Breakouts

You can pick this up at the store- sometimes called anise root. You can drink it as a tea or apply it topically depending on the type you find. It’s great for inflammation and irritation.

10. Drink a Burdock and Dandelion Tea

You can usually find dried versions of these two herbs in your local health store. Make a tea with 2 tsp of dried burdock root and 5 tsp dandelion roots. Let steep, drain the leaves and drink.

The anti-bacterial, anti-fungal properties in the tea combined with its diuretic properties help to clear the skin naturally of toxins.

One herb I must mention that often gets some anti-acne buzz: tea tree oil. I have to tell you, I could have included this on my list (a lot of people swear by it) but I absolutely hated using it for my skin.

It smelled awful to me and didn’t clear my acne; even thinking back to the smell reminds me, emotionally, of how hard having acne was, and how deeply frustrating it can be. That being said, if you hate the smell of garlic, or the taste of chamomile- don’t use those herbs!

You want using herbs to feel cleansing and healing- not cause more anguish / embarrassment.

If you’re into trying a few items on this list, my recommendation would be to grab 1 paste/mask, 1 toner, and 1 tea to try for 2-4 weeks. You might see results with certain herbs more than others so don’t stress if you don’t find a solution right away, try another!

Another note, I hope you’re able to find success with 2-3 herbs on this list; but keep in mind, herbal healing can be a bit “slower” than your typical fast acting antibiotic.

Overall however, I’ve found that slower healing is the best way to create permanent healing. I hope it can for you too:)

If you’d like to share, what’s your favorite herbal healing for your acne?

Jill Therese is a former acne sufferer who finally cleared her skin naturally in only 30 days after struggling for 15 years. She is now committed to helping others heal their acne from the inside out with the powerful Heal Your Face With Food Program- a 30 day program to heal your acne naturally through food and nutrition.

To grab 34 tips and tricks to start healing your acne today- head over to www.healyourfacewithfood.com and grab a ton of skin healing goodness.