Natural Remedies for Skin

“The body of science in and around plant medicines is very, very strong. Each of these has been tested against different bacteria that infect people, against different microorganisms that can infect skin and cause systemic problems – and the thing is – these products work.” - Chris Kilham, Fox News Health

Forget about your local drugstore, sometimes the best medicine can be found in rainforests and other remote areas of the world. Just ask the Medicine Hunter, Chris Kilham, who travels around the globe in search of natural remedies.

He recently stopped by the Fox News Studios to talk with Dr. Manny Alvarez, senior managing editor of health at FoxNews.com, about three topical healing agents.

Tamanu Oil:

“This is from the nut of a tropical tree. It’s something that women from the South Seas use to get rid of stretch marks,” Kilham said.

And that’s not all this oil does – it can also help with a slew of other skin issues.

“There are now several products made from this oil that help with acne,” Kilham said. “ If you have dry skin, if you have burns – if you put tamanu oil on burn – it will instantly get rid of the pain.”

Where you can get it: Natural food stores

Manuka Oil:

“This comes from New Zealand. It smells a little ‘piney’ almost,” Kilham said. “The best use ever for this was that I got stung by a scorpion and I put a drop of this on the sting, and it got rid of the pain right away.”

It’s also a powerful antibacterial agent.

“The use manuka in hospitals to treat infected wounds in New Zealand and they use the manuka honey for burns,” Kilham said.

Where you can get it: Natural food stores

Bee Propolis:

“This is my all-time favorite. Bees make this stuff from out of the resin of certain plants and they line their hives with it, and as you may know, a beehive is a sterile environment. So the inside of a beehive has no bacteria or micro-organisms. For example, if a mouse gets into the hive, the bees sting it to death and then cover it with propolis, and so the hive won’t get an infection.”

Just a little drop of this on your skin –you’ll find that it makes a kind of barrier – that could potentially protect you from harmful bacteria.

“A student of mine actually had a patch of MRSA on her side that had not been treated properly, and I gave her some propolis to use – and finally after multiple treatments of different things – it went away.”

Where you can get it: Natural food stores

The bottom-line: All of these products have great science behind them.

“The body of science in and around plant medicines is very, very strong,” Kilham said. “Each of these has been tested against different bacteria that infect people, against different microorganisms that can infect skin and cause systemic problems – and the thing is – these products work.”