Olive Squalane

Squalane is a unique emollient oil that has been touted as nothing short of a miracle in a bottle. I highly doubt the miracle claims, but I do believe that squalane has an important place in anti aging skin care.

Squalane occurs naturally in human skin/ sebum. Believed to protect and lubricate, its levels are highest when we are young. Somewhere around the twenties, levels start to decline rather rapidly. Doesn't everything?

Squalane used to come mostly from shark livers. Now to my knowledge, most squalane in personal care products (lotions, creams, etc) is olive squalane (obviously plant derived from the humble olive). If you are concerned about its source and it doesn't specify on the label, check with the manufacturer.

One can supplement squalane (squalene) with oral supplementation, and this has proven to be wonderful for dry skin. It also has the action being able to deactivate the free radicals produced by UV exposure. Squalane can also grab hold of lipid soluble toxins and enable them to be excreted from the body. All of which can not just help our general health, but helps make our skin the best it can be. Our skin can't look its best if it is loaded with free radicals and it's a toxic waste dump.

That is oral squalane, how about topical?

Squalane is an odorless, colorless, light, emollient oil. It is very stable and has a long shelf life. It is highly conditioning, bringing relief to dry and chapped skin. This conditioning property makes it a marvelous oil to use in conditions such as eczema and dermatitis.

I have found using squalane as a cuticle conditioner does a wonderful job keeping my cuticles soft and preventing cracks around the finger tips (these can be such a problem in the winter months ).

Try using a few drops of squalane massaged onto your face as a primer for your make up and to "amp" up your moisturizer. It works wonders for me and those that I know. It seems to soften wrinkles just a bit, and allows make up to glide on effortlessly.

You can make your own essential oil "serums" by using a skin friendly essential oil such as carrot seed, neroli, frankincense, etc. and make a .5 to 1 percent dilution of essential oil in squalane. It makes the most elegant serum you can get. Non greasy, all for so much less than you could get in the department stores.

One of the great properties of squalane is that it is non staining, as is fractionated coconut oil. The benefit to this is that you can make professional massage oils. If they get on your bed linens, they will wash out. You can go with a mixture of the two oils, both are wonderful, but the addition of the squalane gives some excellent properties that are lacking in the FCO. Add some essential oils and you have a highly moisturizing and therapeutic massage experience.

Squalane is certainly an oil one should have in their skin care arsenal. And while it may not be a miracle in a bottle, it is enough of a wonder for us to stand up and take notice.