I’ve employed Manuka honey masks sporadically with fine results, but it was never life-changing. I wanted to test what it would do for my complexion—which is redness-prone, suffers from hormonal breakouts, and seems to be perpetually dehydrated—with everyday use. Instead of doing a daily Manuka mask, which sounded time-consuming and sticky, I decided to swap out all my cleansers for Manuka honey instead. I’m pretty lucky—while I’m certainly not one of those people who’s been genetically gifted with “great skin,” I don’t have a ton of skin problems either…as long as I’m keeping my sleep, diet, and stress in check, my complexion is relatively calm. Here’s the thing: Since I am a modern woman who lives in New York, that’s almost never. Any imbalances and stresses of life really show up on my face. Without fail, I get a honking zit right before and after getting sick; when I’m stressed my skin is sunken, dry, and dull; and my personal favorite is the cute, persistent cluster of chin zits I get when I ovulate. No matter what I’ve tried (and believe me, it’s a lot), no product, mask, or treatment has ever been able to prevent them. They’d become the inconvenient side effect of going off the pill, being in my 30s, and being a lady—until I started using Manuka honey as a cleanser. Yes. Manuka honey not only helped existing blemishes, but it fully prevented my hormonal breakouts. Using it for a full menstrual cycle allowed me to see the effects, and for the first time since I can remember, my chin zits simply did not appear. I kept waiting and expecting them to show up, even in a less pronounced way, but for the full 30 days my skin was soft, smooth, and breakout free, and it wasn’t because I was getting sleep, feeling stress-free, and eating perfectly. Ironically, I was out of whack across the board for a month of travel, facing some tough family issues, and constantly thinking about the current news cycle. It’s safe to say that my skin could have been in full-on freakout mode, but it was not. I used a bottle of Activist’s Raw Manuka Honey 850+ MGO in the 8.8-ounce size, which retails at a pricey $75. I also tried their 300+ version, which rings up at $45, to see if the higher “MGO” would make a difference—it does. It sped up the healing process and made a noticeable difference in my acne scarring and hyperpigmentation. In the 30 days I’ve been experimenting, they’ve introduced an even more affordable $32 version, but I haven’t tried it yet. If $45 to $75 sounds like a lot of money to pay for honey, you’re not wrong. Often when supporting an independent operation that’s putting sustainable measures in place to develop a good-quality product, prices are higher. Plus, if you think of it as your new cleanser and mask in one, the price becomes a little less daunting. But if that’s still too much, my other favorite Manuka honey brands are Wedderspoon and Comvita, which have a range of pricing options. Compared to other honeys I’ve put on my face, 850+ MGO Activist Manuka had a bit more movement and was less “sluggish.” It’s a beautiful deep-amber color and contains evenly spaced, nonclumpy little granules that probably helped with skin exfoliation. After perfecting the art of washing my face with honey over 30 days, there are a few things I’d recommend. I wound up keeping the jar in the shower because it was a little messy, and I washed my face every morning and evening with a small dollop of honey on a wet face. It’s really helpful if you’re concerned about getting your bathroom counter sticky. Honey is a great cleanser for clean skin, but I wouldn’t recommend using honey to take your makeup off. So if you’re wearing a full face or need to remove mascara, double-cleanse using your normal cleanser first (oil cleansing would be a great option here) followed by your Manuka honey. Finally, if I had the time (sometimes I’d shave my legs and let my conditioner sit), I’d leave the Manuka on for a few minutes. It felt so good, and my skin loved it, so why not? The other thing that’s totally changed my skin? This acid-based masking and serum routine.
