One of the greatest ways to keep your skin healthy, supple, and luminous is to strengthen and replenish your skin’s natural barrier. It’s to stabilise elements in your skin that break down when hit with free radicals and sea buckthorn oil has been used for thousands of years to of that exactly.
If you got dry skin, spots, fine lines, protect your skin from the sun, or fight spots, sea buckthorn is an ingredient you want to have in your life.
A little bit of background
Contrary to expectations, seabuck thorn isn’t some crustacean or adorable coral reef dweller. No, it comes from the inverse: It’s a small, thorny shrub that mainly grows in the Himalayan mountain ranges.
Seabuck thorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) also goes by sandthorn, sallowthorn, seaberry, or Siberian pineapple. It’s a hardy plant – must be if it grows in the Himalayan mountains, right? It can tolerate temperatures as low as −43 Celsius.
Seabuck thorn is a widespread plant. It grows in Europe, all the way to China and Tibet. You can find it in coastal and mountainous regions because it can withstand drought and frost.
It produces yellow and orange fruits. The berries are edible but taste sour and oily while also giving you a mouth-puckering feel. The fruit flesh encases a stone with an oily seed.
The oil can be sourced from the fruit or only the seeds. Both oils contain a wide range of active ingredients and are outstanding it their own rights. They look different, smell different, and also have different properties.
The oil extracted from the berries has a more viscous texture and is orange-red to dark red in colour. It’s called pulp, fruit, or berry oil. At room temperature, it’s a viscous liquid but at lower temperatures, for example when you put it into the fridge, it gets even gloopier.
The oil pressed from the small dark seeds is paler and also less viscous. It remains liquid also at low temperature.
The pulp oil comes from the top and middle layer of seabuck thorn juice. That’s the liquid that you get when you press the seabuck thorn fruits. It separates into 3 layers, with the top layer being a thick, orange cream; the top and middle layer containing the fatty acids that made the oil famous; and the bottom layer is the pomace (mush) and juice.
What’s common between fruit and seed oil
Both can be used as carrier oils but address different skin concerns.
Vitamin E
Both the oil extracted from the fruit pulp and the one extracted from the seeds contain considerable amounts of vitamin E. In detail, these are alpha and gamma tocopherols.
The vitamin E complex is on the one hand antioxidant and provide protection against UV rays. On the other hand, this group of compounds help your moisturiser to work better.
Vitamin E enhances your SPF as it can absorb some UVB light, although it doesn’t protect against UVA which can enter into the dermis and so may cause more damage. This group of oil-soluble compounds may reduce sun damage. Although it’s not quite clear how, it seems it absorbs UVB light and reduce your skin’s response, aka inflammation such as swelling and redness.
As a moisturising agent, acts both as a humectant and draws in water as well as an emollient and softens your skin. It stops your skin from losing moisture and strengthens its moisture barrier. Having high water levels gives your skin a softer and more youthful texture. It can penetrate the surface of your skin and protect its top and middle layers.
Carotenoids
Both the fruit and seed oil contain carotenoids, although at varying degrees as shown in how red or pale its colour is. In average, the fruit oil contains about 350 mg of carotenoids in every 100 grams. Compare that to only 67.5 mg per 100 grams of seed oil. Whereby it’s important to note that the carotenoids levels vary greatly depending on where the plant grew.
Carotenoids are yellow, orange, and red pigments made by plants, algae, and fungi. It’s what gives colour to carrots, pumpkins, tomatos, or berries such as sea buckthorn.
Carotenoids have several functions in a plant. It gives flowers a nice colour to attract pollinating animals. They absorb UV light for photosynthesis and are involved in protecting from UV.
These plant pigments provide antioxidant effects and also have vitamin A activity. That is, your body converts them into vitamin A.
What’s different between fruit and seed oil
Although both contain fatty acids but their composition is significantly different. The fruit oil contains monounsaturated fatty acids. The seed oil on the other hand is characterised by polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Fruit oil
The berry oil contains omega-7, unsaturated fatty acids. Although not essential because your body can produce them itself, this type of fatty acid is still great for your skin. The fruit oil is great for dry skin types as it’s highly moisturising. It’s also calming and can alleviate red and inflamed skin.
Seed oil
The main group of fatty acids is linoleic and alpha linoleic acid. This type is a polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acid. It’s an essential nutrient and you have to get it through your diet or apply it topically.
This means the seed oil is great for oily skin types and people prone to breakouts. It’s also a good moisturiser but feels light on your skin and doesn’t block your pores. Linoleic acid is also known for its anti-inflammatory. Good news again for people prone to spots as it can reduce inflamed skin around the zits.
Uses
Many cultures in Europe through Asia, including places as north as Siberia have used sea buckthorn as source for food as well as for medicinal purposes for centuries. The plant is versatile so that not only the fruits were eaten but its leaves, flowers and barks were used in a variety of ways.
The leaves were used to prepare a herbal infusion rich in antioxidants and it’s said to be used for anything from blood pressure to generally boost immunity.
In the modern world, seabuck thorn juice is a common thing in Scandinavia and Germany. The bottom layer of the pressed juice are source material for things like syrup.
In closing
The reason why seabuck thorn oil or supplements are so popular now is that the berry contains at least 190 active compounds. It contains a whopping 12 times more vitamin C than oranges – although its content is also nothing to sneeze at.
Depending on your needs, you want either seabuck thorn berry oil or seed oil because they have different properties and help with different skin needs.
If you want to address fine lines, have anti-ageing benefits, and in general have dry skin, seabuck thorn fruit oil is the one you want to add to your skin care routine.
If you want to fight spots or tend to have oily skin, you want to go with the seed oil. This oil will penetrate your skin fast and help alleviate inflammation. Both oils offer protection against free radicals.
