What Is Salve?

Many people suffer from dry skin. Dry skin is not anything serious but who wants to live with dry skin. Most of us use moisturizers like lotion to aid with our dry skin. Most people at one point or another will suffer with dry skin in their lives. Our skin is one of the most important things in our bodies. Our skin protects us from things like viruses, bacterias and diseases. This is why it is crucial that we take good care of our skin at all times. Like I said, most of us use lotions to help our skin stay healthy but there are also other things you can use beside lotions. There are salves that can be used to help soothe your skin. So what is a salve?

Salves are ointments used to promote healing of the skin or as protection for your skin. So there are other things besides lotions to help soothe your skin and keep it healthy.. Many of us have used salves without even knowing. Chapsticks are a form of salve that we use to protect or heal our dry lips. I’m sure we have all used chapstick to help heal our dry lips. Well that’s exactly what a salve is. You know chapstick looks more like a wax rather than a lotion, which has more of a runny texture.

Salves are a solid combination of oils and a wax such as beeswax or soy wax. Creams and lotions, as you’re likely familiar with, vary from thicker to more light in texture, and combine oils with water to create a hydrating topical treatment. Salves are a topical herbal treatment that can be a gentle yet effective way to address painful scrapes, itchy rashes, and dry, dull skin. So salves not only help with your dry skin, they also help with rashes, scrapes and dull skin.

Besides chapstick, the first time I remember using a salve was when I first found out I had psoriasis. I had no idea what it was at the time. My skin just got really red, kind of looked like I had some sort of rash. My mother had a salve that she told me to try to see if it helped any, so I tried it. It is more of an ointment than anything else. Let me tell you though, it did make a difference. It didn’t make the psoriasis go away but the difference really was noticeable.

I stopped using the salve when my doctor prescribed me a cream to help with my psoriasis. I honestly don’t know which one worked better because they both pretty much just did the same thing. It didn’t cure my psoriasis, it just helped a little with the dry skin. The only difference was pretty much just the texture. Creams and lotions are water based while salves are more like an ointment.

Honestly I still use the salve at times because the cream at times just doesn’t cut it. Salves work really well. They do what they’re supposed to and you can even make your own at home, I’ve never tried it myself but did hear it from a friend. Although the salve I used didn’t cure my psoriasis, it did help with the red dry looking skin. If someone were to ask me, I would definitely recommend it. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the texture. Besides that it was good. I’ll continue to use it while I get a medication that actually treats my psoriasis. God bless!