Banana peels may not be tasty, but that doesn't mean you should throw them straight into the garbage. There are all kinds of uses for old banana peels if you're willing to get inventive, and they could make your life a lot easier.
Removing Stains from Clothing
Rub the inside of a banana peel on the stain, then wash as usual. Again, banana skin is useful for tackling dirt (although you might want to try this on clothing you're not too attached to before rubbing a banana peel on your favorite dress).
Neutralizing Odors
Place a piece of banana peel in areas with strong odors, such as shoes or garbage cans, to neutralize the smell. Just remember to change the peel periodically, because if you leave it too long, it'll end up making the stinky situation worse.
Polishing Car Headlights
Rub the inside of a banana peel on car headlights to remove dirt and grime, then wipe clean with a damp cloth. Before long, you'll have wonderfully sparkly car headlights.
Cleaning Greasy Pans
Scrub greasy pans with the inside of a banana peel to remove grease and grime. Those wonderful natural cleaning chemicals within the bana peel will help to break down the dirt, making it easier to clean everything up.
Preventing Plant Diseases
Mix mashed banana peel with water and use as a spray to prevent plant diseases. Bananas contain high levels of potassium, which plants need to fight off infections. A bit of banana will go a long way to keeping your plants healthy.
Nourishing Cut Flowers
Place a piece of banana peel in the water to provide essential nutrients to cut flowers. The chemicals within the banana peel will travel up the flower stems to help keep the plants looking fresh for longer.
Soothing Sunburns
Place a piece of banana peel on the sunburned area to reduce inflammation and redness. It probably won't work as well as treatment you can buy in a drug store, but if you're at the beach without access to other remedies, a banana peel from your picnic lunch might be just what you need.
Treating Acne
A old wives' tale treatment for acne is to use a banana peel. Gently rub the inside of a banana peel on the affected area, then leave it on for 20-30 minutes before washing off. There aren't many scientific studies into the effects of bananas on acne, so be aware that results may vary for this one.
Brightening Teeth
Rub the inside of a banana peel on your teeth for 2-3 minutes, then brush your teeth as usual. Yet again, the natural chemicals within the peel will break down stains on your teeth. Results, of course, may vary from person to person.
Conditioning Hair
Rub the inside of a banana peel on your hair, then leave it on for 20-30 minutes before washing off. The banana peel is full of antioxidants which help with hair health, strengthening and nourishing each strand.
Pulling Out Splinters
Place a banana peel over a splinter on the skin and leave it there for fifteen minutes. The splinter will be drawn to the surface of the skin, making it easier to pull out.
Treating Headaches
Put a banana peel in the refridgerator (or better yet, freeze one solid) and use it as a cool pack on your head when suffering from a headache. This natural cool pack will be soft and comfortable, and can be discarded or used for something else once it's warmed up.
Exfoliating Skin
Gently rub the inside of a banana peel on the skin to remove dead skin cells. Yet again, those wonderful chemicals within the peel will help to remove flakes of unwanted skin that would otherwise stay stubbornly half-attached to your healthy skin underneath.
Cleaning Plant Leaves
If you're hoping to make your houseplants look their best, try rubbing the inside of a banana peel on them. This completely natural cleaning strategy will break down dirt on their leaves without the need for nasty chemicals that might hurt the plant.
Reducing Puffy Eyes
Banana peel is often a common use in beauty face masks because they help with the health of your skin. Rubbing a peel under your eyes (being careful not to get any banana actually in your eye) will help to reduce puffiness or bags under your eyes.
Tenderizing Meat
Some cooks like to add a banana peel in with their meat roasts to help keep the meat soft and juicy. There are plenty of recipes that involve using banana peels, even if you don't actually eat the peel itself with the meal.
Enriching Smoothies
Wash the peel thoroughly and cut off the top and bottom ends. Once you've just got the peel itself (no yucky bits), add them to the blender along with your other fruity ingredients. The peel is filled with healthy vitamins and nutrients, so will make your smoothies even more revitalizing.
Repelling Mosquitoes
Rub a little banana peel on your exposed skin. Not enough to make you stink like banana (although there are worse things to smell of on a hot night!) but enough to disquise the smell of your delicious human blood. Just a tiny bit of banana peel should be enough to confuse and repel mosquitoes and other bloodsucking insects.
Making Banana Vinegar
The peel of ripe bananas can be used to make a vinegar that can be used in cooking and dressings. Simply add banana peels and sugar to water in a jar, seal the mixture up loosely for a couple of weeks, and you've got a fascinating new cooking ingredient.
Keeping Bugs Out of Your Garden
Chop up banana peels and arrange them at the bottom of your garden plants. Not only will the peels provide extra nutrients for your green babies, they'll deter nasty bugs that want to chomp all of your carefully grown leaves and vegetables.
Making Tea
Banana peel tea is purported to have many benefits. It's believed to be good for aiding sleep, as well as improving mood and mental health, thanks to the chemicals within the peels that come out naturally when boiled in water.
Ripening Fruit
Want your plums to ripen quicker? Add a banana peel to your fruit bowl, and they'll mature a lot quicker than they would otherwise. Just be sure to keep an eye on them, as fruit that ripens quicker will also turn bad quicker.
Healing a Bruise
Tape a banana peel to a fresh bruise to help make the swelling go down. Banana peels contain anti-inflammatory chemicals that help your skin to heal quicker after a nasty bump.
Cleaning Your Hands
Have you touched something that's stained your hands? Ink, or paint, perhaps? Rubbing your hands with banana peel will help to break down these staining chemicals so they can be washed off more easily, and will do so without hurting or drying out your skin.
Polishing Silverware
Rub a small amount of the inside of a banana peel on the silverware, then wipe clean with a soft cloth. The natural chemicals within the banana peel will react with dirt and grime that's built up on your spoons, helping you to clean them more efficiently and make them sparkle.
Cleaning Leather Shoes
As with silverware, the chemicals within a banana peel can help break down dirt on leather. Gently rub the inside of a banana peel on the leather to remove dirt and scuffs, then wipe clean with a damp cloth.
Softening Calluses on Feet
Place a piece of banana peel on the callus and secure it with a bandage. Leave it on overnight, and repeat until the callus is removed. Bear in mind that the scientific evidence for this treatment is limited, so results may vary.
Calming Itchy Bug Bites
Place a piece of banana peel on the bite and secure it with a bandage. Leave it on for 15-20 minutes, and repeat as needed. This will help sooth the skin as the banana juices counteract the damage done by insects.
Fertilizing Plants
Banana peels make excellent fertilizer and compost. Mix mashed banana peel with water and mix into the soil to add additional nutrients to your garden or houseplants.
Removing Warts
An old home remedy involves using banana peels to treat warts. Place a piece of banana peel on the wart and secure it with a bandage. Leave it on overnight, and repeat until the wart falls off. If this doesn't work, duct tape is another common tool that is believed to work similarly.