a. more than skin deep
Your skin is a remarkable organ, the largest one you have.
Weighing an average of nine pounds and equipped with about 300
million cells and 11 miles of blood vessels, your "casing"
regulates body temperature, manufactures vitamin D and is your
first defense against germ invasion, ultraviolet light and harsh
weather. The next time you hear the expression "skin deep" or
something "makes your skin crawl," consider that a square inch
of your hide is only 0.07 inches thick but contains 72 feet of
nerve fibers that fire off electrical impulses in excess of 250
mph.
Since you shed roughly 50,000 skin cells every 60 seconds and
grow a whole new outer layer every 28 days without effort, it's
clear that your skin is an organ of elimination and
regeneration. Unfortunately, as time marches on, it tends to do
so across your face, while stamping a few more creases on your
birthday suit as evidence of each passing year. But with a
little TLC, you can keep your outer crust from becoming crusty.
In addition to a healthy diet and lifestyle, the occasional use
of a skin scrub will exfoliate dead cells and stimulate cell
turnover – and result in a glowing new you.
![[ lavender ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice Company](images/page/skinnyonscrubs/skinny-on-scrubs-lavender.jpg)
![[ orange peel ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice Company](images/page/skinnyonscrubs/skinny-on-scrubs-orange-peel.jpg)
b. base ingredients
Face and body scrubs consist of various raw materials. Sugar and
salt are the most common base ingredients, mostly because
they’re usually on hand. Because sugar and salt are available in
varying degrees of coarseness, the texture of the finished
product is controlled by the type used. Granulated or brown
sugar, for example, have a much smaller particle size than raw
cane (turbinado) sugar. Similarly, there’s quite a difference in
granularity between fine table salt and sea salt.
There are plenty of other base ingredients that are suitable for
face and body scrubs that are likely found in your kitchen or
pantry as well. These include cocoa powder, oat flakes and the
same ground coffee that produced your morning cup of java. In
the botanical department, dried rose petals, calendula flowers,
lavender buds and orange peel bits are excellent partners to
invite to the party.
![[ calendula ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice Company](images/page/skinnyonscrubs/skinny-on-scrubs-calendula.jpg)
![[ rose petals ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice Company](images/page/skinnyonscrubs/skinny-on-scrubs-rose-petals.jpg)