Rosehip Seed Oil: Benefits You Didn’t Know
Ancient essential oils that provide health benefits are a staple for those of us who enjoy using products made with healthy, natural, plant-based ingredients. One of the most effective of these is rosehip seed oil: a common rose bush oil that most of us have probably used at one time or another. But far too few people know the full breadth of benefits rosehip seed oil brings to the table.
Today, we’re going to break down all the rosehip seed oil benefits you might not know about--yet!
What is Rosehip Seed Oil?
Rosehip seed oil, also just called rosehip oil, has been used for thousands of years and was once harvested all around the world. These days, rosehip seed oil is mostly grown in Chile since that country has the perfect climate for cultivating large crops of the Rosa canina rosebush: the parent plant from which the oil is eventually extracted.
It’s easy to confuse rosehip seed oil with rose oil, but the latter is actually extracted from regular rose petals. Rosehip seed oil is pressed from the seeds and the fruit of the plant, which gives it slightly different properties compared to its rose petal counterpart.
Rosehip’s Roots
This herb, like many other excellent natural ingredients, was used in antiquity, and even as far back as the ancient Egyptians! In the Western Hemisphere, Mayans and other Native Americans also used the rosehip seed oil they extracted for its nourishing and healing properties.
Those ancient peoples originally thought that the oil could help the body to regenerate and heal from various surface-level wounds as it was used in plenty of salves and teas. These days, we have a slightly better idea of how exactly rosehip seed oil provides its many benefits.
How Does Rosehip Seed Oil Work?
Careful scientific examination of rosehip seed oil reveals that it’s an oil packed with excellent vitamins and nutrients.
Specifically, rosehip seed oil contains:
- Antioxidants, which are special compounds that can reduce free radical molecular damage. Without getting too technical, antioxidants can help your body recover and be protected from cellular-level injuries to stay in tip-top condition. Antioxidants are also important in supporting the immune system.
- Vitamins, especially vitamin C. Vitamins are key nutrients your body needs for daily health and normal functioning, with vitamin C helping to support your immune system function.
- Essential fatty acids, specifically linoleic and oleic acids. These acids provide additional protective and moisturizing effects for your body, as well as extra antioxidant potency.
As you can see, rosehip seed oil is chock-full of the stuff you would want in an excellent herbal remedy!
Rosehip Seed Oil Benefits
The benefits you can enjoy by using rosehip seed oil products are diverse and noticeable. Let’s break them each down one by one.
Skin Moisturization
The most common use of rosehip seed oil is with skin hydration and moisturization. It’s all too easy for our skin to become dry throughout the day, especially if we live in cold and dry climates. Properly moisturized skin will feel soft, crack less easily, and look younger for longer since it will age more gracefully.
The essential fatty acids contained within rosehip seed oil are perfect for keeping skin cells strong and preventing moisture evaporation. The antioxidants can help soothe irritated skin as well!
You can benefit from rosehip seed oil’s moisturizing effects with Green Goo’s Skin Repair Salve. Combined with coconut oil, calendula oil, aloe vera, and more in this herbal remedy, rosehip helps to nourish your skin and improve your skin’s overall appearance, especially when it comes to wrinkles, scarring, and even minor burns!
Exfoliation
How can an oil improve exfoliation?
In a nutshell, exfoliation involves using physical or chemical exfoliants – small particles that dig deep into your skin’s pores to get rid of dirt and debris, as well as dead skin cells – to increase cellular turnover rate and help ensure that your skin’s topmost layer is composed of younger cells. Exfoliation once or twice a week is important if you want to maintain glowing skin year-round.
As an oil, rosehip seed oil doesn’t actually help with the exfoliation process. Instead, the vitamins contained in the oil (mainly vitamins A and C) provide your cells with the nutrients they need to regenerate after exfoliation. With exfoliation, you get rid of the old dead skin cells, and the rosehip seed oil helps your body with the turnover of healthy living skin cells.
Vitamin A is particularly good for this reason. Also known as retinol, it encourages skin cell regeneration across the board and is commonly used in anti-aging products.
Boosts to Collagen Formation
Rosehip seed oil is rich in vitamins A and C, which are necessary for producing collagen. Collagen is one of the most important building blocks for skin health, as it determines how elastic and firm your skin is. The more collagen your skin produces, the younger it will look and the more resistant it will be to wrinkle formation.
Rosehip seed oil has plenty of vitamins A and C, which promote collagen production as well as promote your skin’s natural healing and regeneration abilities. Providing your body with these vitamins will result in your skin appearing more youthful even as you age, and your skin feeling softer and more supple to the touch.
Notably, collagen is also important for skin repair, which is why Green Goo’s Skin Repair Salve uses rosehip seed oil as a key ingredient. It’s a great addition to any herbal remedy that can help improve your skin by reducing the appearance of scars, wrinkles, and minor burns.
Pregnant women can also benefit from rosehip’s skin-promoting effects. Green Goo’s Belly Balm makes great use of rosehip seed oil since the extra collagen production it stimulates can help the skin expand gently and healthily. This may result in fewer scars and stretch marks as the pregnancy progresses.
Soother for Skin Irritation
Earlier we mentioned that rosehip seed oil can soothe irritated skin thanks to its high antioxidant content and nourishing properties. This makes it a perfect soothing agent. Many folks rub rosehip seed oil salves, or just the oil itself diluted in a carrier oil, directly onto irritated skin to ease the appearance of redness.
Green Goo’s Skin Repair salve in particular can even help to temporarily alleviate symptoms of long-term skin conditions as well as occasional irritation. You can try using rosehip seed oil to temporarily relieve the redness and irritation caused by:
- Eczema
- Dermatitis
- Psoriasis
- Rosacea
Protects Against Sun Damage
Even with all the above benefits, rosehip seed oil can also act as a capable sunblock ingredient! Rosehip seed oil contains antioxidants like vitamins A, C, and E, and those antioxidants can defend your skin against sun damage and prevent free radical molecular damage that might crop up because of excessive sun exposure.
However, remember that rosehip seed oil is not the same thing as a dedicated sunscreen like Green Goo Solar Goo. While rosehip can help mitigate the effects of sun and UV exposure, it doesn’t take the place of a good natural sunblock that provides SPF protection (SPF 30 in our case!).
Improves Hyperpigmentation
Some people use rosehip seed oil to reduce hyperpigmentation, otherwise known as dark spots and patches on their skin. You can get these patches from sun exposure, hormonal changes, or even regular aging. Rosehip seed oil’s vitamin A content plays a key role in providing your skin with the retinol it needs to regenerate properly and healthily.
Reduces Wrinkle Lines and Scars
Reducing the appearance of wrinkles and scarring is another great benefit of rosehip seed oil use. While it may not erase wrinkle lines that have already sprung up, it may help your skin avoid more wrinkles over time through proper moisture and nourishment. Use it regularly as a moisturizing or protective oil treatment and you might just find that your skin appears to age just a little more gracefully than it would otherwise.
Immune System Boosts
One last benefit of rosehip seed oil involves your immune system. Like we mentioned, rosehip seed oil’s antioxidants and various fatty acids can strengthen your skin cells and help stop foreign invaders from getting in!
Are There Any Side Effects?
In general, there’s a very low risk of side effects when using rosehip seed oil. But, as with all herbal or natural products, there is the possibility of an allergic reaction if you are typically allergic to plant-based ingredients or certain flowers.
Thankfully, the allergic reaction is usually quite minor – such a reaction is normally characterized by a mild skin irritation or a small rash. In these cases, stop using the rosehip seed oil in favor of a different topical treatment.
You should also keep in mind that rosehip seed oil has a relatively short shelf life. If you decide to purchase rosehip seed oil by itself instead of as a part of another, longer-lasting herbal salve, use it quickly or store any opened rosehip seed oil bottles in the refrigerator to prevent the oil from becoming rancid.
Conclusion
Rosehip seed oil is a phenomenal herbal ingredient that many people already use in some of their favorite skin products without even knowing it. Understanding how rosehip seed oil contributes to healthy skin and holistic bodily health is important if you want to choose the best salves and topical treatments going forward. With an array of rosehip-inclusive wellness products available at Green Goo, you won’t have to go very far to find what you’re looking for!
Resources:
https://pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?LatinName=Rosa+canina