When most of us eat a banana, the peel usually ends up in the trash — or in the best case scenario, it gets composted. The truth is, a banana peel has a wide range of uses, offering benefits you would have never dreamed of. Before you toss that next peel, remember these 10 useful things.
Did You Know You Could This with a Banana Peel?
Around the globe, humans eat A LOT of bananas and considering 12 percent of its weight is the peel, that’s a lot of extra waste in the landfills. In fact, it’s estimated that Americans alone, eat 3.2 billion pounds of bananas each year — that’s 304 bananas every second.
To be less wasteful, reducing the amount of greenhouse, it’s time to improve your habits. From enhanced skin care to shiny silverware, a banana peel offers some amazing benefits. After you consume this nutrient-rich food, don’t count out the peel, because you could do this..
- Reduce Acne
No one wants to suffer from an acne breakout, but luckily, there are a range of natural remedies available that won’t dry out your skin or cost you a fortune. When rubbing banana peels on affected areas, you can essentially reduce inflammation — enhancing the healing process.
- Cure a Wart
If you’ve had a wart in the past, you know that ‘freezing’ it off can be rather painful. If you currently have a wart, it’s time to eat some bananas so that you can get your hands on the peel. All you need to do is rub the inside of the peel onto your wart each night. Within two weeks, your wart should be cured.
- Whiten Your Teeth
A yellow peel rubbed on your teeth? How could that whiten them? While focusing on the nutrients in banana peels, it appears that high amounts of magnesium, potassium, and manganese, can effectively remove stains. Rub the peel on your teeth for approximately two minutes before brushing with non-flouride toothpaste.
- Soothe an Itch
Whether you got bit by a bug or have a rash from poison ivy, banana peels will not only soothe the itch, but promote healing. This is especially effective when aiming to reduce the effects of mosquito bites. Once bite, rub the area with the inside of a banana peel in order to reduce both itching and swelling.
- Ease Symptoms of Depression
It has been found that banana promotes positive mood, due to its tryptophan levels — a type of protein that converts into serotonin. This brain chemical is what makes us feel good and relaxed, allowing you to feel happier. The peel actually contains more of the ‘good’ stuff your body craves, including magnesium, fibre, potassium, and of course, tryptophan.
The easiest way to benefit from this remedy is to make a soothing tea. In a small pot, boil water and add 1-2 banana peels. Allow the water to boil for 10-15 minutes before straining into a mug. Due to its tryptophan content, this tea is also known to promote sleep, all while hydrating your body.
- Control Insects
Although you may want to control insects, many individuals no longer want to use chemical pesticides and insecticides. This remedy is especially effective for ants and aphids. Simply cut up a peel and bury it 1-2 inches deep in the soil around your plants. It’s also recommended that you include the peel from an orange as well
- Feed Your Roses
Roses are a common garden plant, and for good reason — they’re beautiful and versatile. Banana peels decompose rapidly, so their nutrients quickly become available. As the peel breaks down, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and other trace elements find their way into the soil, feeding surrounding roses.
- Polish Your Shoes
If you’d like to give your shoes (or silverware) a good ol’ polish, all you’ll need is an over-ripe banana — the type you’d use for banana bread. When you purchase shoe polish, one of the key ingredients is generally potassium. Simply rub the peel on your shoes and you’ll quickly see the difference this ‘waste’ can make.
- Improve Indoor Plant Health
If you have a number of indoor plants, you are more than likely improving the air quality in your home. Believe it or not, due to the products we use, the air indoors is generally ‘dirtier’ than the air outdoors. To unsure that your plants are happy and healthy, treat them to some banana-infused water.
All you need to do is soak a banana peel in a large jug of water. When it’s time to fertilize your plants, combine one part banana water with five parts regular tap water. The roots of your plants will happily soak up the added nutrients. You can even cut up small pieces of peel and turn them into the soil.
- Feed Livestock
If you have any farm animals, they will happily eat your leftover banana peels. From rabbits to goats, cows to pigs, banana peels can be used to feed all types of animals. While studying chickens, for instance, it has been found that when feeding them banana peels, production improves in terms of feed intake, weight gain, liver health, and even cholesterol levels.