Rose water
Rose water offers a range of potential benefits, from tension relief to smoothing skin. You can apply it topically to your skin, spray it around you, or ingest it.
Rose water is created by distilling rose petals with steam. Rose water is fragrant, and it’s sometimes used as a mild natural fragrance as an alternative to chemical-filled perfumes.
Rose water has benefits such as:
- antioxidant
- antiinflammatory
- anticancer
- antimicrobiaL
traditionally used rose water in beauty products and in food and drink since the Middle Ages. It’s potential health benefits may include:
Rose water contains phytonutrients that may give it anti-inflammatory properties.
rose water applied to the skin may have an anti-inflammatory effect following sun exposure. Researchers suggest it works by reducing a signaling pathway in skin cells responsible for triggering inflammation.
The same anti-inflammatory properties can also reduce discoloration and puffiness.
People often use rose water as a natural toner to help improve their complexions.
Its mild antibacterial properties may also help reduce certain bacteria on the skin’s surface. In theory, this may help some types of acne and other skin conditions that can worsen when the amount of unhealthy bacteria on the skin proliferates. However, there isn’t specific research on the effectiveness of rose water for managing acne or other skin conditions or comparing it to other treatments.
You can often find rose water as an ingredient in beauty products, such as sprays and mists, that help the skin age more gracefully.
Research suggests that rose water has properties that may help reduce:
- wrinkles
- sun damage
- oxidative stress, which can lead to skin damage
Due to its antiseptic and antibacterial properties, rose water may help wounds heal faster and reduce the risk of infection in cuts and burns.
However, there is no evidence to suggest that it is more effective than medical treatment for these conditions, such as antiseptic ointment.
Doctors often prescribe antibiotics for sore throats, but you may want to try rose water as well. People have anecdotally used rose water to soothe sore throats. While research is needed to prove its effectiveness, there’s likely little risk in trying it.
determined that mouthwash containing rose water and sumac showed effectiveness in managing the severity of oral mucositis, which causes painful mouth sores and inflammation, in people undergoing radiation therapy for head and neck cancers.
Rose water’s antimicrobial properties may potentially help reduce the risk of certain infections.
suggests that rose water may be beneficial in managing symptoms of conjunctivitis, or pink eye, as well as other eye conditions that cause dryness and irritation. However, rose was not the only herb in the eyedrop mixture, so it’s not possible to determine whether rose water alone would have the same effect.