The Best Uses For Baking Soda You Need To Know
Learn exactly what is baking soda used for with over 10 uses for baking soda for health, beauty, and cleaning. Baking soda is one of the most versatile, all natural, and affordable products you can use everywhere! Learn to use baking soda for cleaning, baking soda health benefits, and baking soda beauty uses you won’t believe you’ve been living without!
Baking Soda is Great for EVERYTHING!
My new favorite household staple I can’t live without is baking soda! It is so cheap and so amazingly useful. Before the last couple years I pretty much thought baking soda was for baked goods (duh it IS called baking soda), scrubbing a few things and deodorizing your fridge… right?!? (Although some of the boxes do explain many more uses I’ve now found that I purchase the big BIG box!) I was sooo wrong. Baking soda is amazing for so many things I will definitely not be found without, I’m even considering stockpiling it the love is so strong. I feel like it’s one of those products that people knew a lot more of the wonderful uses for it 100 years ago than we even know today.
Let’s Cut To The Chase!
I could write a whole bunch of cool stories and clever remarks now but not this time! Nothing to scroll through to get to those AWESOME BAKING SODA TRICKS!
Let’s first cover a few absolutely amazing beauty tip, tricks, and hacks with baking soda as the main or heavily supporting ingredient.
1. Microdermabrasion
You can actually give yourself an uber cheap, refreshing, tingling, exfoliating microdermabrasion at home with baking soda. And water of coarse. That’s it, just baking soda and water! Mix a thick paste. Wash your face and then apply the mixture in circular motions all over. Though you should avoid the under eye area. This may be way out in left field, but if you have psoriasis on your face (which somehow I developed last year… well I know how, no sleep for years, but mommy will sleep one day.) don’t put it there! Completely exacerbates that. Let this super simple mixture sit about five minutes, repeating the circular motions every minute or two. You will feel it working! Rinse thoroughly, you’ll feel any areas you miss. Voila! At home microdermabrasion!
2. Brushing your teeth
Ever wonder why some toothpastes tout the addition of baking soda to their toothpastes? It has amazing polishing and whitening abilities! Now I assume most people don’t like the taste of baking soda too much. Myself and my daughters are the complete opposite. So we often brush with just baking soda. The whitening action is very impressive. I use baking soda 50% of the time and as a chronic coffee and tea drinker was super impressed with the results! Also saves lots of money on training toothpaste for those with littles.
For those who this just sounds too gross here’s a great pin from The Pistachio Project Green and Crunchy Living about all natural toothpaste using baking soda.
3. Whitening Paste 2 Ways!
I haven’t actually tried this one myself yet. Since I often brush with straight baking soda I’m totally satisfied with the astounding whitening results of that! If that is too much to stomach, I found a two great recipes for whitening paste. They’re amazingly cheap and I bet you already have all the supplies on hand.
This first super simple recipe from Daily Headlines uses baking soda, toothpaste for consistency and hydrogen peroxide. It can’t get much easier than that. Although it does want you leave it in the trays quite a while. Anyone tried that? For a decade I purchases those whitening tray kits for like $40. Pricey! But effective. You put the goo in a mouth guard and keep it on 15 minutes. After five minutes I was always a drooling, foaming mess, spitting excess in the toilet with my mouth stretched out over two trays, trying to soak up the excess with toilet paper! How’s THAT for a visual? Haha, but hey my teeth looked awesome in a week. CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT.
The second recipe was featured on the beloved Dr. Oz! It uses baking soda and lemon for instantly whiter teeth! Sounds easy and affordable enough for me!
4. Shampoo
Anyone ever seen those pins claiming baking soda “saved their hair” with these absolutely amazingly shiny looking locks? Well I haven’t had results nearly like that but it does get my hair good and clean. Mix 1/4 c. baking soda with 3 cups of warm water. Stir to mix and pour onto scalp and rub in. No it won’t foam, as we are conditioned to believe things MUST foam to be cleaning. This is completely false. I learned when studying how to make your own soap that different oils have different effects as far as how many suds they will create. Soap makers actually add certain oils in just to produce that foaming action we all know and love.
Next rinse with vinegar. Usually people use apple cider vinegar but white works as well with a bit less smell in my opinion. My hair is super dry and I don’t like the vinegar smell so I always use a nice regular conditioner after. This is a great hack for those new mom days when the showers have gotten away for you for a few days (a week), and the greasy hair is just getting gross, and you finally find time to wash it, and you’re out of shampoo!!!! Or If you’re trying to go a little more natural.
5. Face/body scrubs
Baking soda makes a great ingredient in face and body scrubs. It is a gentle and strong exfoliant all at the same time! Here’s a recipe of mine. It is exfoliating, reduces cellulite, and draws circulation to the skin to promote healing and tightening. It can be a little messy.
INGREDIENTS:
-1 c. sugar in the raw
-2 tbsp. baking soda
-1 tbsp. coffee grounds
-Sweet Almond oil
DIRECTIONS: Combine all dry ingredients and mix well. Add enough oil to cover the mixture. Stir in. Add oil again until the mix is saturated but not dripping. Your new wonderful mixture will look like this.
6. Washing Soda
Baking soda is not washing soda! Washing soda (in the yellow box on the laundry aisle) is super concentrated soap. But baking soda IS about half the price, and it is one simple molecular change away from being the twice as pricey washing soda! Spread across a large Pyrex dish and bake at 400 degrees for one hour. Stir half way through.
The consistency will change, it becomes more powdery (finer) and yet clumpier. You can always test by taking some on your finger and running under water, it should feel slick and soapy. If you follow the directions though, it will be washing soda.
You can then use this to make your own laundry detergent! Imagine the savings now!! See my incredibly easy tutorial post about how to make laundry detergent HERE!
7. Carpet stain remover
We rent an apartment and have two little kids. When we moved 2 years ago we now have nice off-white carpet throughout almost the entire house!! Even in the dining room. Can ANYONE explain that logic to me?! Anyways every few months we sprinkle the stains generously with baking soda. Then the girls dance on it to work it into the carpet. Fill a spray bottle with half white vinegar, and half water. My oldest gets to spray the mixture on the carpet which creates absolutely captivating fizzing action. Every household little girl gets a good scrub brush and works that stain! Wiping with a clean rag is all that is needed to often lift it up!
8- beyond 10!. Cleaning and Deodorizing your Home
This beautifully clear pin from Dr. Axe explains simply over thirty more amazing things I use baking soda for in cleaning my home! Some great ones I do regularly is use it as a drain cleaner, shoe deodorizer, shower curtain cleaner (seriously one of the most jaw dropping and impressive uses. Requires so much less elbow grease than scrubbing soap scum. Just make a paste and rub in a circular motion on mildew and rinse off.)
So there you have it, baking soda rocks my world how about yours? Now if you’re totally sold and want to buy the biggest best priced bag of ARM & HAMMER Baking Soda
I could possibly find for you click the link. AMAZING DEAL! If that’s a bit too much you can go with the box I usually pick up of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda-4LB
. If I had the room I’d totally swoop up that giant bag but for now get the 4 lb probably every other month. I now keep a jar in at least half of the rooms of the house for a quick, healthy, clean! Not to mention the amounts in my jars of beauty and self-care mixtures! You should definately give some if not all of these a try. I guarantee you’ll be not only satisfied but amazed with the awesome powers of baking soda! To keep with our saving green by going green motif you’ve got to check out HowTo Save Hundreds Making DIY Wipes. Which baking soda use is your favorite? Do you have any more great tips to share I didn’t touch on? If so leave your ideas in the comments below!
