By: Helen Masterson
Essential oils have long been treasured ingredients in skin care preparations. You'll find lavender, chamomile, tea tree and mint oils in all sorts of soaps, shampoos and lotions. New technology is creating a greater palette of <a href="http://www.anandaapothecary.com">organic oils</a> to work from, with profound therapeutic action on the skin. Here's a review of these "new" oils, and how you might combine them to create exceptional "super extract" for your home made skin care preparations.
<BR><BR>In the process of production of essential oils, plant material is placed in a still, and steam passed through it. The steam is captured, cooled back to water, and on top of this water floats the "essential oil" of the plant material. This extracts the lightest of the non-polar, "fat-liking" compounds. Now, some distillers are using pressurized liquid carbon dioxide instead of steam. When the pressure is released, the CO2 returns to its natural gaseous state, and leaves a greater range of non-polar, fat-liking compounds. This process is performed at lower temperature than steam distillation, such that the resultant "oil" is more akin to the original plant, and can be done on some plants that don't extract well via steam.
<BR><BR>Calendula is a great example. Calendula used to only be available as an "infused" oil. One would soak calendula flowers (also known as marigold) in olive oil for months, to extract the therapeutic properties into the oil. With the advent of CO2 distillation, there is now a calendula essential oil. Calendula is incredibly therapeutic for the skin -- it is a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Its deep orange color is indicative of its antioxidant compounds. Its aroma is exceptionally rich; its complex scent seems to instantly confirm its therapeutic value. Scientific investigation has shown its efficacy in healing injury to the skin; it is calming, soothing, and potentially regenerative to the dermis.
<BR><BR>Chamomile is another flower often found in body care products as an essential oil, or as an aqueous extract. Chamomile is an exceptionally delicate little flower, that produces an incredible extract using the CO2 method. Sweet smelling, rich, and with a deep blue-green color. By color alone, you can imagine how it will synergize with the rest of the extracts here.
<BR><BR>In recent years, sea buckthorn berry oil has become a very popular ingredient in aroma-therapeutic skin care. Its potent mix of healing and regenerative constituents has resulted in it being hailed as the "miracle" ingredient, healing for every possible skin condition. It has even been the subject of research, noting its ability to protect the skin from the sun's rays when applied before going outside. It can quench free-radicals produce from already having been in the sun as well. Its sweet, fruity aroma and berry-red color are indicative of its high concentration of antioxidants and other nutrients.
<BR><BR>Also a fruit, rich in bright red antioxidant nutrients, is rosehip. Cold-pressed rosehip seed oil was "discovered" in the 1980's, being the subject of University research for skin care. It was shown to reduce wrinkle appearance and generally improve skin texture. Known for its regenerative action, rosehip seed became a staple ingredient in anti-aging and scar-reduction formulas. The CO2 extract of rosehips draws the regenerative nutrients from the whole fruit of these wild roses, not just the seeds. The result is a super-powered rosehip oil, useful for all regenerative skin care applications (it is NOT recommended for those prone to acne outbreaks however, as it may exacerbate the condition).
<BR><BR>Thus far we have extracts from the fruits and the flowers, so we look finally to roots. Carrot root CO2, also called "Helio-Carrot" is exceptionally rich in antioxidant and regenerative nutrients that give carrots their bright orange color. This is where the word "carotene" was originally derived. These vitamin-A-like compounds are known for their contribution to the skin's health and healing. "Retin-A" is a synthetic vitamin-A pharmaceutical preparation known for its regenerative properties; carrot extract is used for its regenerative nature as well, without the extreme drying effect of Retin-A.
<BR><BR>These five oils are the CO2 extracts with the greatest therapeutic activity for the skin (and scalp as well). Their use is very simple -- they'll be blended into carrier oils (or even your current skin care products) at ratios very similar to essential oils. The general guideline is using a single extract at a concentration between 1/2 and 1 percent, or combining them for a concentration of no more than 5 percent. Consider these CO2's (as well as essential oils) the micronutrients, and the carrier oils you mix them in the macronutrients -- both are necessary, and combining them properly can create the ultimate skin care "food".
<BR><BR>Each individual extract should be used at no more than a two percent concentration. Understand that this is a maximum -- that the distillers recommend fractions of a percent in common body care products. To measure, keep this mathematical formula in mind: on-third of a milliliter (ml) of CO2 extract in each one ounce of your final product equals a one percent concentration. That's approximately 8 drops of extract per ounce of carrier oil.
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