7 Reasons to Welcome Jojoba Oil into Your Life!

Jojoba oil is a humectant ingredient. This means it works to seal your skin with a protective barrier that keeps it from losing moisture. This quality makes it ideal for safeguarding your skin against winter dryness. It is increasingly added to cosmetics and haircare products, but the pure oil can be applied to skin and hair.

Its natural fats mimic those of the outer layer of the skin, explains Joshua Zeichner, MD, director of cosmetic and clinical research at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. This helps the skin retain moisture and heal.

As our lips are sensitive to lower humidity in the air during winter, and even habitual licking, they often require more TLC than skin covering other parts of our body.

Vitamin- and mineral-rich jojoba oil helps promote lip softness. It can be gently massaged on the lips to protect against dryness and cracking.

Dermatologists recommend jojoba oil as a route to controlling the buildup of oil, and even as a useful ingredient in the prevention of acne.

Interestingly, this botanical substance is actually a type of liquid wax rather than a triglyceride, which most oils are. It is unique among plant-based oils in that it resembles human skin oil or sebum. This makes jojoba oil lighter, less greasy and less likely to build up on your skin and clog pores than other oils as it moisturizes. Amazingly, this ‘tricks’ your sweat follicles into thinking that your skin doesn’t need additional sebum for hydration.

Being a wax rather than an oil also gives it a longer shelf life and resistance to high temperatures compared with true vegetable oils. This lighter consistency also makes jojoba an ideal skin cleanser.

Indigenous Americans were aware of jojoba’s healing power. Scientific research confirms that this oil promotes wound healing as it encourages your skin cells to bind together after they’ve been separated by a cut or scratch.

Jojoba oil has been shown to help soothe acne, eczema, psoriasis and other skin conditions, and may aid in calming skininflammation, including on the scalp.

Other medics attribute anti-fungal and anti-viral properties to jojoba oil. Docosanol, the active ingredient found in most cold sore creams, naturally occurs in jojoba oil.

Jojoba oil also relieves shaving cuts and sunburn, and unlike other essential oils, it is typically non-irritating.

As jojoba oil is rich in E and B vitamins, it can protect skin against free radical damage caused by everyday exposure to environmental factors such as pollution. This protective vitamin content also means it is commonly added to natural sunscreen products.

Not surprisingly, jojoba oil is also held to offer anti-ageing benefits. This is because free radical damage can trigger the breakdown of skin collagen which can lead to wrinkles and other signs of ageing.

Just a few drops of jojoba oil are all you need to add hydration to dry hair. Smoothing a tiny amount of jojoba into your hair and through to the ends, also tames flyaway hair and smooths split ends.

Jojoba oil helps fortify hair follicles, causing hair to grow stronger and healthier, and reducing hair breakage too. Its vitamin E content adds shine and volume to your tresses too. 

Head massages with jojoba oil help to also condition the scalp. This reduces scalp dryness and so prevents dandruff and itching.

The price of pure jojoba oil, also known as Simmondisa Chinensis oil, starts at under $20, even though it is often added to expensive premium beauty products. 

Available at most natural grocery and drugstores, look out for formulas without too many additives and added fragrances. Organic, cold-pressed, jojoba oil contains the highest level of antioxidants and nutrients, so is most highly recommended.