Should I Avoid Seed Oils in Skincare?

Should we avoid seed oils in skincare? Watch the video or read below:

Let's talk for a minute about "seed oils."

In the last year there's been a lot of talk in natural living circles about avoiding seed oils. The claim is that seed oils such as sunflower, safflower, canola, are "toxic" due to their polyunsaturated fats. PUFAs, as they're called, are suspected of breaking down quickly in the body, or being rancid initially, and creating inflammation.

While the actual research on the topic is somewhat sparse and conflicting, many people are now avoiding all seed oils in their diet. But do we need to avoid seed oils in our skincare? 

The quick answer is no. 

If we avoid seed oils in our skincare we'd be missing out on a lot of benefits. 

Red raspberry seed oil, for instance, has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial effects. 

Pomegranate seed oil has antioxidant properties and has been found to help damaged skin repair itself. 

Jojoba oil is a seed oil, with a fatty acid profile very similar to our skin's natural oil, with antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and even anti-psoriasis properties. Dietarily it's been found to fight obesity and cancer. Source

My baby has had a teething rash and dry skin on his cheeks. I've been making a balm for him (melting down unscented lotion sticks and adding extra oil to make it soft, basically). One time I thought I'd try olive oil instead of sunflower oil, thinking maybe the polyphenols would be beneficial. Well, the rash got worse, and it turns out there's science to back that up. Sunflower oil has been found to be superior to olive oil on infants skin; olive oil, which isn't a seed oil, but a fruit oil, is actually not recommended for use for massaging infants because it can actually irritate their skin. Source Source

Rosehip seed oil is high in vitamins A and E, and has been found to help wounds to heal. 

The bottom line: while you might not want to eat a lot of foods fried in seed oils, there's no need to avoid seed oils in skincare. Experienced formulators will know to add antioxidants like vitamin E or rosemary extract to delay the oxidation of oils if the formula is of concern. And by avoiding all seed oils, you would miss out on a lot of benefits. 

Follow up question: If I'm allergic to sunflower seeds, do I also need to avoid sunflower oil? Answered on our Instagram reels here.