Your loofah is actually a giant dried ‘cucumber’ - and no one can believe it

26 July 2019, 11:09

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

People are just starting to realise what a loofah is made from - and the answer is mind blowing.

Whether you’re heading off on holiday or just to the local lido this weekend, you might have dug out your loofah to get your skin prepped for bikini season. 

But while most of us have used the exfoliating sponge in the shower without a second thought, people are just starting to realise what it’s made of - and the answer will blow your mind. 

It turns out the beauty tool is actually a giant dried cucumber which originates from India.

The green fruit of the Luffa aegyptiaca plant grows to between 12 and 18 inches and it’s also known as the Egyptian cucumber.

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According to Garden Guides, it is now grown commercially in China, Korea, Japan, and Central America and has many different uses. 

As well as getting rid of tough skin, the vegetable can be harvested, cooked and eaten like a squash, or eaten raw like cucumber.

If you wanted to make a loofah for your bathroom, the giant cucumber should be left to mature and turn brown. 

When it is dried out completely, it should be soaked in hot water until the skin can be easily slipped off.

And there you have it, you’re own homemade loofah. 

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Obviously, this groundbreaking information has completely floored people on Twitter and one wrote: “I was just thinking about what a weird word Loofah is and I googled them. Turns out they are a type of cucumber and not a sea creature. MY MIND IS BLOWN.”

“People! PEOPLE!! I just learned that loofah are VEGETABLES! They're related to cucumbers. Why did none of you tell me?!,” another said. 

A third added: “BRO. A LOOFAH IS A PLANT???? ITS A CUCUMBER?”

And a fourth said: “Twitter trip out on this!! Did you know those loofah sponges are actually from a type of cucumber/squash?! That’s right, you’re scrubbing yourself with a fruit!”

So, there we have it, loofah's are actually vegetables and our mind is blown!