What’s the first thing that people notice about you? Your face. In the northern hemisphere it’s the cold season now and with it, a slew of factors that can have a detrimental impact on your skin.
It starts with cold air hitting your skin. Since cold air can contain less water than your skin is accustomed to, your skin may not get the moisture levels that it needs to remain healthy, comfortable, in one word, beautiful. In effect, cold air can cause the skin to dry out, and with it all the unwanted consequences such as cracked and chapped skin, itchiness, and redness.
In winter, we stay indoors much more. Despite being warmer, the air in our homes doesn’t necessarily contain more moisture. On the contrary, although the heating systems are really great in keeping buildings warm, they dry out the air. And now you have extreme temperature fluctuations when you go from inside to outside and vice versa. These fluctuations cause the capillaries of your skin to contract and expand considerably. The result can be redness and inflammation.
So, what to do to drive away the winter woes and get your glow back? Drive them back with mandarins, a fruit that improves your skin tone, reduces inflammation, and that comes with a lot of “anti” – anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-microbial.
The mandarin orange
Also mandarin or mandarine (Citrus reticulata) is a citrus fruit. Whether you find mandarins, tangerines, or clementines, they’re all different varieties belonging to the mandarin family. Mandarins have the same colour as oranges but are smaller and are more practical and easier to peel thanks to their looser skin. Like all members of the citrus family, mandarins are a healthy vitamin and mineral bomb.
A ripe mandarin is firm to slightly soft and pebbly-skinned that’s why it got its botanical name Citrus reticulata. Reticulata means netted in Latin. As for why it’s now called mandarin orange, it’s because it’s a loanword from the Swedish “mandarin apfelsin”. Those of you who know German, Apfelsine is what the Germans call an orange. Apfelsine means Chinese apple (Apfel = apple, Sina = Chinese). But it’s not clear why or where the name mandarin was added.
The tree is thought to be native to East Asia, South China throughout Vietnam and Japan. It’s the building block of many other citrus fruits. For example, when it’s crossbred with pomelo, you get orange.
The mandarin tree grows to about 7 meters in height. Beware because its tree trunk and major branches have thorns. It has shiny, green, and fragrant leaves.
The fruit is small, measuring about 4 cm in diameter. It can be yellow-orange to red-orange. The peel is thin and loose so that it’s easy to peel off. Just like the other members of the citrus family, the inner part (the fleshy part) is separated into segments. There are varieties with and without seeds. Mandarin is really delicious, fragrant, and sweet.
Mandarin is a big thing
Mandarin season usually runs from mid November through early February coinciding with Chinese New Year. Giving mandarins as New Year’s presents meant you wished the receiver abundance and good fortune. The fruits are also often displayed as decoration during the Chinese New Year, a period of 2 weeks.
In the West, mandarin oranges signal for many the beginning of the holiday season. Sometimes, Santa Claus brings gifts of mandarins, nuts, chocolates, and other sweets for the good child but the rod to chastise the misbehaving child.
The content
Although low in calories, the mandarin fruit contains many nutrients including vitamins and minerals including
- Vitamin B
- A high level of vitamin C
- Carotenoids beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin
- Soluble and insoluble fibre
- Calcium
- Phosphorus
- Magnesium
- Potassium
Eating mandarins is a great way to fight off winter sniffles. Thanks to vitamin C, mandarin helps your body form and maintain blood vessels, bones, and muscles. It helps your body absorb iron, and boosts your immune system and wound healing.
The minerals present helps your body build bone strength, create new bone, and fight osteoporosis.
Mandarin can counter your winter woes
In winter, your skin tends to be dull due to cold temperatures and dry environment. You may also not be getting enough of trace minerals which are needed so that your body can synthesise its natural antioxidants.
Fibre
Let’s start with the not so obvious: Fibre is important in our diet because it’s crucial in keeping your digestion healthy. When your gut is healthy, you’ll see it on your skin. Having a good digestion is also important because it’s what fuels how your body makes new tissue such as skin.
Since mandarin is a good source of fibre, it helps your gut and how your body breaks down what you ate into molecules which then are the building blocks for new skin.
Vitamin C
This is your weapon against dull skin. But not only. In the skin care world, it has an almost legendary reputation because it has many benefits. It’s widely agreed and well-established that not only are its benefits wide-ranging but also pretty much everyone can use it and reap its benefits.
The most important effect vitamin C has is that it offers protection against pollution, environmental, and sun damage. Then it makes uneven skin and dark spots less visible as well as brightens dull or blotchy skin.
Not to forget that it boosts collagen formation and supports skin healing. Also very important is that it helps protect the collagen in your skin and slows down its breakdown. By boosting collagen production – having more collagen in your skin, it’ll become firmer, tauter, and smoother-looking.
Lastly, vitamin C is also anti-inflammatory and so can help reduce redness and irritation.
Carotenoids
The carotenoids beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin present in mandarins function both as antioxidants and can be converted into vitamin A. This means they can protect your skin against cell damage just like vitamin C. Since the carotenoids are a precursor to vitamin A, your body can convert them into the other skin care ingredient with extensive benefits. These compounds as well as vitamin C are effective anti-bacterial agents.
Minerals
Eating mandarins helps your body to form its own natural antioxidants to protect the components of healthy, radiant skin. The trace minerals not only help your body synthesise bone material, they’re also involved in the many protective aspects of your skin such as skin development.
How to use
The most convenient way is to use skin care infused with mandarins. If you like the idea of DYI skin care, you can always leave one mandarin aside when you picked a bunch.
To find ripe mandarins, carefully pick them up and feel them in your hand. It should be firm but not hard and it has a nice mandarin (citrusy) fragrance. The skin should also feel somewhat loose.
In closing, I’ll leave you with a simple recipe: You can use mandarin juice where the face pack recipe recommends lemon juice. If you like more DYI ideas, feel free to tell me in the comments.
