I swear by homemade ‘Botox in a bottle’ — don’t waste money on injectables
This might be better than a genie in a bottle.
New York-based nutritionist Maty Harrington has taken to TikTok to share her recipe for a juice she calls “Botox in a bottle,” urging others to skip the injections and try this instead.
Botox, known by its official name as “Botulinum toxin,” is a type of dermatologic injection that some use to prevent wrinkles from forming on their face.
The cosmetic procedure temporarily relaxes the muscles in the face, using a toxin called onobotulinumtoxinA to do so, according to the Mayo Clinic.
“I used to waste so much money on my skincare, and I soon came to realize that your skin is just a reflection on the nutrients you’re putting in your body,” Harrington explained in the clip, which has reached more than 192,000 views.
“And some hormones,” she added.
In order to make the mixture, Harrington explained that you don’t even need a juicer — in her video, she simply used a blender.
She began by throwing in half of a green apple.
“One medium apple has 14% of the daily recommended daily Vitamin C intake,” Harrington claimed. “I prefer green because it’s less sugar.”
Harrington then added two beets, a vegetable that she dubbed a “nutritional powerhouse.”
“They’ve been seen to help with aging, reduce pigment and fight against acne,” Harrington alleged.
After that, the nutritionist put in a quarter cup of aloe vera juice, which she alleged can help with inflammation and even skin conditions like psoriasis and dermatitis. She also added one chopped-up cucumber, which has hydrating properties.
Next up was a handful of mint leaves.
“Mint leaves are known for their antiviral and antibacterial properties,” Harrington claimed. “I’ve noticed that they really help with my dark spots.”
Lastly, she instructed interested viewers to add half of a lemon and around two cups of filtered water.
After blending it all up, Harrington strained the mixture to make it nice and smooth.
“Save some money on Botox, and drink this instead,” she said at the end of the one-minute clip.
The Post reached out to Harrington for comment.
It looks like Harrington could be onto something with the concoction — according to a 2021 article by Good Housekeeping, beets have a high amount of Vitamin C, which can help to treat UV damage — a factor that can contribute to aging skin, per Yale Medicine.
Beets also contain a natural plant pigment called betalains, which contains anti-inflammatory properties, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
And the topical use of aloe vera may help people with psoriasis — a skin condition that causes an itchy and scaly rash — per the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.
Aloe vera does contain different compounds that reduce swelling as well, according to Manasija Rath, MD, a physician at Penn Presbyterian Internal Medicine.
“It contains anti-inflammatory chemical compounds — which reduce swelling — called anthraquinones. These chemical compounds promote healing and alleviate pain when applied to your skin,” Dr. Rath explained in a 2019 article from Penn Medicine.
“If your skin needs to heal, aloe may be a good option.”
Harrington also included mint leaves in her recipe, which she claimed had “antiviral” and “antibacterial” properties.
According to Mount Sinai, peppermint “kills some types of bacteria, fungi, and viruses” — at least in test tubes — which suggests that it could potentially hold “antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties.”
While it’s unclear whether ingesting all of the ingredients in this homemade elixir will really prove to be “Botox in a bottle” — or if you should be using them topically, like aloe vera — it looks like some of the vegetables by themselves might be beneficial to one’s overall health.
In the comments section on Harrington’s video, some users claimed that they were going to try it out for themselves.
“Making this,” one person wrote.
Another agreed, writing, “Alright, I’m influenced to the grocery store I go.”
“I’ll literally make anything you suggest,” someone else admitted.