The Science Behind Our Sea Buckthorn Oil

The evidence

Why our sea buckthorn oil is different, in plain terms, with the one human study our skin statement rests on — and clear lines around what it does and does not mean.

What is in the bottle

Our sea buckthorn oil is a Flavex supercritical CO₂ extract of organic sea buckthorn berries (Hippophae rhamnoides). Carbon-dioxide extraction uses pressure rather than heat or chemical solvents, and it is a 7-to-10-times concentrate: it takes seven to ten kilograms of berries to make one kilogram of oil. The only other ingredient is a trace of organic rosemary extract to keep it fresh.

The one fatty acid worth knowing about

Sea buckthorn berry oil is one of the very few plant sources of palmitoleic acid (omega-7). Ours runs 28 to 38% palmitoleic acid, concentrated in the berry, not the seed. Palmitoleic acid is naturally part of human skin, and its levels are highest in young skin and decline with age. That is the honest reason this oil belongs in a skin conversation.

The human study behind “supports healthy skin”

In a clinical study, 60 women took sea buckthorn oil by mouth for three months. Skin hydration, elasticity and related measures were recorded with instruments before, during and after. Both skin hydration and overall skin elasticity improved significantly over the study (P < 0.001).*

Where we draw the line

This page is about skin structure and function — hydration and elasticity — and nothing more. Sea buckthorn appears in older traditional and research literature in other contexts, but those are outside what this product is intended for, and we make no such claims. We would rather show you the one thing we can stand behind than a long list we cannot.