8 Reasons Witch Hazel Should Be Added to Your Medicine Cabinet

If you don't keep witch hazel in your medicine cabinet, Alanna Ketler gives eight reasons that you should

Witch Hazel is an ancient Native American remedy for a wide variety of ailments and people are starting to see why. Generally, in stores, we see witch hazel available in a clear liquid form in a bottle, but prior to that, it starts off as a shrub with yellow flowers.
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There are two ways of getting the extract from the witch hazel bark, one as a distillation, this is commonly found in stores and generally has alcohol added to act as a preservative, or as a decoction. Many herbalists agree that the decoction method is superior because it makes a more concentrated version which means higher levels of tannins, which is the component that gives witch hazel its superior astringent properties. The distilled version is more shelf-stable, but just be aware of the alcohol that’s added, as some are sensitive to this. Read more

5 Ways Witch Hazel Benefits Your Skin

When it comes to skin care, price and efficacy are not always related. Michael Ravensthorpe reveals five ways that inexpensive, common witch hazel benefits your skin.

Common witch hazel, also called winterbloom, is a flowering shrub native to the forest margins, woodlands and stream banks of eastern North America. It is characterized by its fragrant, gold-colored flowers, which tend to grow in late fall and continue to expand throughout winter.(1) Read more