Hippophae Rhamnoides (Seabuckthorn) Fruit Oil
Hippophae rhamnoides · INCI Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil
Sea buckthorn oil is pressed from the small, bright orange berries of Hippophae rhamnoides, a hardy shrub of cold coastlines and mountain slopes. It is one of the more distinctive oils in the Dry and Dry Sensitive blends, both for its colour and for an uncommon fatty acid it shares with your own skin.
We use the fruit oil for its omega-7 and its carotenoids. Most of the bigger claims come from studies of sea buckthorn taken by mouth.
What it is
There are two oils in sea buckthorn, and the difference matters. The seed oil is lighter and richer in the everyday omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. The fruit oil, which is the one we use, is the deep-orange oil from the berry flesh, and it is unusually high in palmitoleic acid, an omega-7. That is the point of interest, because palmitoleic acid is one of the fatty acids your own skin makes. Alongside it come carotenoids, which give the oil its colour, and tocopherols.
Much of the well-known research on sea buckthorn tested it as something you swallow, which is a different question from what a cold-pressed oil does on the surface of the skin.
What it does in our formulas
Sea buckthorn fruit oil conditions the skin and brings omega-7 and carotenoids with it.
It conditions the skin
A rich fruit oil, sea buckthorn softens and conditions the skin in the reliable way of a good emollient.
Well characterisedIts omega-7 suits the barrier
Sea buckthorn is one of the few plant oils high in palmitoleic acid, an omega-7 the skin also makes. The research suggests this may support the barrier; it is not a settled effect.
Emerging evidenceIt brings antioxidant carotenoids
The deep orange colour is carotenoids, carried alongside tocopherols. Both are antioxidants, and they help keep the oil stable.
Well characterisedWhat the research does not show
Sea buckthorn attracts some bold claims, and the compounds behind them are interesting. The catch is where they were studied.
Marketed as Proven for eczema, dry eye and skin ageing
Marketed as A microbiome active
On the label and in the range
Sea buckthorn appears in the Dry Sensitive and Dry blends, in the lower third of the ingredient list at a modest level, since a little of an oil this strongly coloured goes a long way. On the label it reads by its INCI name, shown with its common name, and marked as cold-pressed and organic. The exact percentage is published on each product page.
Is it suitable for me?
Sea buckthorn fruit oil is well tolerated and suits a vegan routine, with no restrictions under UK or EU cosmetic law. Its deep orange comes from carotenoids, and while the neat oil can leave a temporary tint, at the modest level it sits at in the blend it does not stain the skin. It is gentle enough for the sensitive types in the range, which is why it is part of the Dry Sensitive blend.
As with anything new, if your skin reacts easily it is worth patch testing first.
The research behind this page
We review the published literature. We do not conduct the studies below.
- Zielińska A, Nowak I. Abundance of active ingredients in sea-buckthorn oil. Lipids Health Dis 2017;16(1):95. →
- Balkrishna A, Sakat SS, Joshi K, et al. Cytokines Driven Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Psoriasis Like Efficacies of Nutraceutical Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) Oil. Front Pharmacol 2019;10:1186. (background; not evidence for this product) →