Singer Christina Aguilera recently ditched makeup for the cover shoot of a prominent magazine Paper, making us do the good old double take. She's practically unrecognisable. Even as her style changed -- from her days as a teen pop star to the ultra risqué XXXtina persona to the much more sobered down version of her that we see these days --Christina has been rarely seen in the public space without her makeup on. That's probably why we found it so refreshing to look at the face staring back at us from the magazine cover, stripped clean of any foundation, eyeliner or the red lipstick that she's so fond of.

Although she's pushing 40, the singer looked completely dewy-skinned with pretty freckles speckling her nose and cheeks. While that could be good editing work, the singer is obviously sending out a powerful message: It's liberating to be without makeup. She has already said on her personal website: "I've always been someone that obviously loves to experiment, loves theatrics, loves to create a storyline and play a character in a video or through stage. I'm a performer; that's who I am by nature. But I'm at the place, even musically, where it's a liberating feeling to be able to strip it all back and appreciate who you are and your raw beauty."

While it's difficult to gauge Christina's commitment towards the makeup-free movement, many of her female colleagues, Alicia Keys, in particular, has been very vocal about going au natural. Keys is also among the very first celebs to give up makeup for good as a symbolic rejection of the society's beauty expectations from females.

The average woman may not be a contouring ninja, but most of us can't make it through the day without a little help from our friends kajal, eyeliner and lipstick. But if you want to go makeup free like Christina, Alicia and the likes, it could have some benefits that go beyond making a political statement. Here are some benefits of giving up makeup!

It saves you a lot of money

Makeup is expensive, at least the good ones are. A good eyeliner can cost you anywhere from Rs 300 to Rs 1000, depending on your budget. With the changing trends, you have to keep buying new shades and textures to keep up. That's not all! You need to spend on products to remove makeup as well.

It's good for your skin

Without makeup clogging up every pore, your skin will finally get to breathe. Makeup can aggravate or certain skin conditions like dermatitis, acne, allergies and inflammation. In the long run, makeup may even be ageing your skin faster from all the tugging and pulling. Trust us, your skin is better off without it.

It's good for your health

Makeup products may come in the most exotic-looking of containers, with sky-high promises! But as attractive as their claims seem, most of them contain harmful chemicals like phthalates, parabens, mercury, chrome and lead, which are responsible for everything from premature ageing to endocrine disruption to cancer! Taking a permanent break from makeup may reduce your risk for some horrible health problems.

You will be doing the earth a favour

Many of our makeup products like concealers, nail polish and lipsticks may contain chemicals that cannot be broken down by the environment. When you wash them off in the shower, they end up in the sea, polluting aquatic life.

You will feel more empowered

By going makeup free, you are reducing your dependence on external aids that make you feel attractive. Ditching makeup makes you feel empowered because you learn to appreciate and accept yourself with all your flaws. In a world full of painted faces, your raw beauty will stand out!

If not entirely sure of giving up makeup, you could always take a break for short intervals or reduce dependence on it little by little. Who knows, maybe you'll start liking your natural beauty better!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 28, 2018 10:57 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).