The legend says that Queen Isabella of Hungary, old and suffered from several pains, received as a gift from an alchemist a special rosemary tonic. After using this flavored water for a year, Queen Isabella was so fit, healthy and full of youth that she was asked to marry the young Carlo Alberto, Grand Duke of Lithuania. Beyond the myth, the fame of the tonic of the Queen of Hungary, as it is called, has grown such much that it is possible to buy it even today in shops and herbalists. But its formula is so simple and with easy-to-find ingredients that everyone can prepare it at home with garden herbs! So let's see the recipe for this beauty tonic, ideal for dull skin, enlarged pores, signs of skin aging. A flavored water beneficial for the skin without having to worry about the INCI as it is prepared by you.
Water of the Queen of Hungary, recipe
Get 4 sprigs of rosemary, 2 tablespoons of fresh sage and, in case of redness and dermatitis, also 1 teaspoon of chamomile flowers. Put these herbs into a jar and cover them with apple cider vinegar. Close the jar and let it rest in the sun for 3 weeks. After this time, filter the lotion and add a cup of witch hazel water. Alternatively, if you don’t have witch hazel water you can use rose water. Store in the fridge. Apply on the face in the evening with a cotton pad, then apply your usual face cream.
Water of the Queen of Hungary, what science says
The tonic has very interesting ingredients for skin care that can be beneficial in case of different skin diseases or skin aging. For example, apple cider vinegar has a proven antimicrobial action and therefore can help against acne and blackheads (Yagnik et al, Sci Rep, Jan 2018). Rosemary is antioxidant, healing, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory and is believed to be able to fight the damage of sunlight on skin cells (Nobile et al, Food Nutr Res, Jul 2016 - Hsu et al, J Am Acad Dermatol, Jun 2005). Sage also plays a deep anti-aging action by counteracting free radical damages (Hamidpour et al, J Tradit Complement Med, Apr 2014). Moreover, the sage leaves are astringent and bactericidal and therefore, in addition to mature skin, they also help acne-prone skin (Dawid-Pac et al, Postepy Dermatol, Alergol, Jun 2013). Chamomile has been used for centuries to treat skin problems and scientific studies have observed that behind tradition there is a real benefit. In fact, chamomile is able to act as a product containing 0.25% of hydrocortisone, a drug indicated in case of topical treatments for skin inflammations (Shenefelt et al, Herbal Medicine Chapter 18). Finally, the witch hazel is cited by scientific studies as a remedy for skin problems such as eczema, acne and enlarged pores given its antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and astringent action due to its content in tannins that are antioxidant substances (Thring et al, J Inflamm, Oct 2011).
