Pumpkin Spice Lattes…pumpkin scones….pumpkin muffins….pumpkin pies…Jack-O-Lanterns…It’s Fall and that means pumpkins abound. Between Halloween and Thanksgiving, pumpkins get tremendous attention. Don’t limit your enjoyment of pumpkin season to indulging in the yummy, spicy treats because there’s even more reason to love this popular fall squash: its marvelous skin care properties!

Rich in vitamins A, C, and E, and in the mineral zinc, pumpkins are incredibly healthy to eat—and to wear! The same nutrients that are beneficial to you when you eat pumpkin can help heal your skin from the outside. Pumpkin has benefits for all skin types, with special properties to help dry skin, oily skin, acne and blemishes. With the help of pumpkin, your complexion can look flawless.

The vitamins found in pumpkins make them essential for good skin. Vitamin A is crucial to skin care, and it goes by another name you might be familiar with: retinol. It speeds up the process of cell renewal, which imparts pumpkin with strong anti-aging and anti-acne properties. Another important vitamin found in pumpkin is vitamin C, which along with its immune qualities is a strong antioxidant. Another strong antioxidant is vitamin E, and its main function is to fight the free radicals that cause aging, although it also helps to moisturize the skin. Finding all three of these incredibly useful skin vitamins in one place is awesome, and pumpkin’s skin benefiting qualities do not stop there.

Pumpkins also have many essential minerals, including an especially high amount of zinc. Zinc helps the skin by aiding collagen production, which keeps your skin tight, while also fighting free radicals, preventing growth of bacteria, helping fight blemishes and acne, and reducing inflammation. Additionally, the enzymes found in pumpkin can actually help dissolve dry skin cells, replenishing them with new, rejuvenated cells. This is especially important if you live in a harsh climate, as wind and cold weather can dry out the skin. Combining all of these vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and enzymes together in one ingredient makes pumpkin a must have for skin care.

Pumpkin can be a key ingredient in numerous types of skin care products, anywhere from masques, peels, exfoliates, scrubs, and moisturizers. There is plenty of amazing skin care products on the market that incorporate pumpkin. For those of you a little more adventurous that have the time, you can also easily make your own pumpkin skin care products, while also finding a use for the pumpkin parts you already have lying around. There are plenty of places on the internet that have recipes for DIY pumpkin skin care products, anything from sugar scrubs to face masks to face peels to moisturizers, balms, and anti-aging serums.

Whether you purchase or make your own, spend a spa day at home letting pumpkin soothe and heal your skin, while enjoying some of Fall’s best pumpkin treats, like pumpkin pie and pumpkin spice lattes.