Gua sha is a traditional Chinese practice that involves running a flat angled tool, usually made out of quartz or jade, over your skin; and one woman has shown the difference it has made to her face in an online video.
Laura Galebe is a digital creator based in New York City who gained popularity on TikTok for her beauty and lifestyle content aimed at young women. In a video that was shared to the platform on July 18, Galebe showed her followers how she had managed to slim down and tone her face just by sticking to a short yet consistent gua sha routine for a year.
The therapeutic practice has been popularized by A-listers like Emilia Clarke and Gwyneth Paltrow, who have a strong foothold in the wellness sphere of influence, making it a staple in beauty routines across the world.
Gua sha has long been praised for aiding with lymphatic drainage, a technique which stimulates the lymph nodes nestled under the skin and de-puffs the appearance of the dermis as a result. Galebe has become the poster girl for gua sha, after championing its effectiveness in a social media video that showed off her own drastic results from the practice.
The 23-year-old influencer told viewers online that she simply runs her smooth-edged quartz tool over her face's natural bone structure and neck, in the way that's advised by facialists, for a couple of minutes every day. She wowed audiences online with how much her face had transformed, all thanks to her gua sha tool, after sharing a before and after image of herself.
"Gua sha is a Chinese medicine technique that provides lymphatic drainage which helps get rid of stagnant water retention on the face, jaw, and neck. I started doing this back in 2020 after seeing other TikTokers doing it and it completely changed my face," Galebe told Newsweek.
Nina Prisk is an aesthetics nurse and skin expert at Update Aesthetics, based in London's Harley Street. She told Newsweek that when gua sha is gently scraped across the skin it can help improve circulation and promote healing.
"Usually the intensity is gradually increased and the tools that are used have smooth, rounded edges. Some people believe it can be beneficial to incorporate into your skincare routine because of the fact that it can help to improve circulation, reduce inflammation and tension, and help to tone and smooth the skin as well as brighten," she said.
How Does Gua Sha Work?
According to Prisk, it's believed that scraping the gua sha tool across the skin can help to stimulate microcirculation in the soft tissues. This increase in blood flow can in turn help to detoxify the skin and reduce inflammation and puffiness.
Dr. Vinod Vij is a U.S.-trained plastic surgeon based in Mumbai, India, he is also the founder of Clinique Aesthetica, a cosmetic enhancement clinic.
"As a beauty ritual, gua sha has been used for centuries to improve a range of skin issues. It's an incredibly effective tool when it comes to reducing inflammation and promoting healing, which makes it an ideal treatment for people with inflamed acne, rosacea or other inflammatory skin conditions," Dr. Vij told Newsweek.
"By using a gua sha regularly, you can reduce puffiness, improve circulation and give your skin a brighter, smoother appearance."
"Gua sha can also be used to help with wrinkles, fine lines and sagging skin due to its ability to stimulate the production of collagen. The beauty tool helps increase blood flow to the face which brings more oxygen and nutrients to the skin cells. This process leads to firmer, healthier skin that looks more youthful," he added.
According to the aesthetics doctor, not only does gua sha provide a range of physical benefits to the skin, it can also help with mental and emotional wellbeing. The massage-like motions of using gua sha can be very calming and relaxing, and its therapeutic quality can work to reduce stress levels and improve sleep quality.
Weighing up the effectiveness of the old ritual turned new trend, Vij said that gua sha is worth the hype and that the practice does exactly what it is meant to do.
"Overall, incorporating a gua sha into your skincare routine is an excellent way to improve skin health and promote overall wellbeing," he said.
"The results are visible and tangible, making it an easy tool to incorporate into any beauty regime for anyone looking for healthier, brighter skin. With regular use, you can look forward to a clearer complexion, lifted skin and an overall sense of inner peace."
Most people tend to use gua sha around the eyes, to reduce puffiness and target size of eye bags. The plastic surgeon added that some gentle gua sha around the eyes can also lift the appearance of dark eye bags.
Galebe told viewers of her viral video that consistency really was the key to her achieving results with gua sha.
She wrote under the post: "When it comes to gua sha, consistency is key. It takes about 1 week to see initial differences and I saw most of the differences from 6 months to 1 year of consistent use. Follow each step, and repeat each movement three to five times."
The video, shared to TikTok under Galebe's handle @LauraGalebe, has been liked by more than 500,000 users.
"Ok, this is the video that finally convinced me to gua sha," one user commented.
Update 08/25/23, 03:51 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional comment from Nina Prisk.
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Melissa Fleur Afshar is a Newsweek Life and Trends Reporter based in London, United Kingdom.
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