The Natural Beauty Secrets of Peru
Beauty secrets from Peru, revealed. (Photo: Stocksy)
I’m a skincare junkie, so when I travel to new places I’m on constant lookout for interesting ingredients, brands, and traditional rituals. When visiting Peru, which has one of the oldest cultures in the world, I knew there would be some secrets to discover.
Even those who haven’t been to the South American country have heard of its infamous coca leaves — ojas de coca — chewed by generations after generation, especially in high altitudes. Yes, they are of the same plant cocaine is made from; no, they do not contain cocaine. In some places the leaves are exchanged as a way of saying “hello, how are you;” men carry satchels specially for the dried foliage, which is frequently brewed to make tea that relieves altitude sickness.
In fact, in Peru I learned that virtually any plant can be tea, whether it’s coca, eucalyptus, a flower or muña—a delicate-looking minty-tasting plant that brings oxygen to the body and helps ease altitude-related headaches. Another popular indigenous beverage is chincha morada, which is made from purple corn, peppercorn and cinnamon (among other ingredients) and is known for its super antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Coca is not only something that’s imbibed or ingested in Peru. Like coffee or caffeine in many body products, it’s used to firm skin tone and reduce cellulite. I discovered this at the stunning hotel Tambo del Inka’s Spa at Valle Sagrado, which offers a multitude of therapies incorporating traditional ingredients like quinoa and gold. Their Firming Coca Treatment uses a mixture of local mineral-rich, nourishing Maras salt and crushed leaves, following five minutes in a dry sauna to open pores. A massage with Coca cream, a natural stimulant and contains vitamins and minerals that detoxify, boost blood circulation, alleviate muscle aches and improve tone, left me with incredibly soft, revitalized skin.
While island hopping on Lake Titicaca — which at 13,000 feet is the continent’s highest-altitude lake — I learned they chew the white part of tortora (reeds) to get calcium and improve the health of their teeth. I was taught about chuho, which has historically been used on Taquile Island by the women to wash just about everything, from their hair to their hands to their clothing. First they mash the fresh green plant on a mortar and pestle–style stone, then add a little water and continue scraping it on the rock until it turns into thick white suds. Another interesting ritual on that island: sacrificing hair. Women cut off and weave a belt from their hair to give their new husbands for the wedding party, and later in life they plait it into tiny braids which they cut off for the husbands to wear under their hats during special dances.
Later, near Chinchero on the road between Cusco and the Sacred Valley, we met a group of women using a different plant as soap. This one was called saqta root, aka “Inca shampoo,” and they claim it prevents gray hair. They grate the root, mix it with water and use the lather to clean wool and keep their thick hair jet black—no environment-harming chemicals. In their weaving collective, they also shared a few of the elements used to dye their wools. Quincaculcho is a natural medicine for back aches that also turns fibers navy blue, while colla flour is used to make yellow coloring and, mixed with water, to protect their skin from solar rays.
And perhaps the best secret I witnessed was the rural Peruvians’ version of a lip stain. From prickly pear cacti they methodically remove tiny cochinilla parasites, which they use dry or fresh to mix with other elements for dozens of hues. If they smoosh the insects while they’re alive, the most vivid cerise hue emerges. In the event of an important party, they apply it to their lips — and sometimes cheeks — for a scarlet rouge they say lasts 24 hours so “you can give all the kisses you want.” It doesn’t get more natural than that.
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