What is Jojoba Oil?
Jojoba (pronounced ho-HO-ba) oil comes from the seed of the jojoba plant Jojoba plants grow wild in southern states in the United States and parts of Mexico. It takes about three years for a Jojoba seed to grow into a mature plant. About 95% of all Jojoba plants grown in the United States are used for health products. In order to keep up with demands, the main bulk of Jojoba oil is grown and harvested on farms in Israel and Argentina and then exported to the US.
In its pure form, Jojoba oil is a clear golden color and has a hint of a nutty smell. Once the oil is processed, it becomes odorless. The oil has a long shelf life, meaning it can be stored for a long time and be just fine.
In the past, Native Americans used the oil from the Jojoba seeds for hair and skin care and used the seeds themselves for tea and survival food. Today we use the oil of the Jojoba plant in many different beneficial ways.
In this article I will go over these benefits and why you should use Jojoba oil for hair and skin.
Jojoba Oil Benefits
Unlike other oils, Jojoba Oil is packed with the essential vitamins and minerals needed for healthy hair and skin. It also does not have any harmful toxins, making jojoba a great choice for anyone with sensitive skin. There are a number of benefits of jojoba oil such as:
Hair Conditioner and Hair Growth
Skin Benefits for Oil and Greasy Skin
Control Acne and Eczema
Benefits of Jojoba Oil for Natural Hair Growth
Constant extreme heat, maltreatment from styling hair, and harmful chemicals from shampoos, conditioners, and hair sprays all help to weaken and damage your hair. Jojoba oil can help undo the damage caused by these practices. It can even help stop hair loss by speeding up hair reproduction!
Benefits of Jojoba Oil For Hair
Use Jojoba Oil for Hair Growth and Loss: One of the top benefits of using jojoba oil is hair growth. Hair follicles release a natural oil called sebum. Sebum helps to keep your hair moisturized. Unfortunately, sometimes too much sebum is produced, causing your hair follicles to be blocked. When your hair follicles can not breathe, they become thin and damaged and this leads to hair loss. Jojoba oil helps damaged hair and stops hair loss by removing the excess sebum. On top of that, the oil’s antibacterial properties help clean the scalp and provides your scalp with the nutrients needed for hair growth.
Quick tip: For a great hot oil therapy, you can mix a few drops of Jojoba oil and coconut oil together right before you shampoo your hair. This will greatly improve your hair growth.
- Use Jojoba Oil for Dry Scalp: Jojoba oil also provides your scalp with a natural moisturizer needed to prevent itchy dry scalp and dandruff. The oils go deep into the pores of your scalp and provide a hydrating compound that balances the pH level of the scalp. This also helps to keep your hair healthy at its roots.
- Use Jojoba Oil For Hair Conditioner: Do you have dry or frizzy hair? Jojoba oil can restore the moisture needed to fix your hair’s texture and look. Jojoba oil can be used as your hair conditioner. Add 3-4 drops in to your hair and massage the oil into your hair and on your scalp. Add more drops if necessary. The oil will moisturize your hair and protect the follicles from heat damage.
- Use Jojoba Oil For Hair Shine: Jojoba oil is great for fixing dry hair. The oils act as a natural hair serum. When you apply Jojoba oil to your hair, the oil will lock in the moisture, which will give your hair a nice shine and glow. You just need a few drops in order to give your hair the shine it needs.
- Use Jojoba Oil For Beard: Jojoba oils promotes beard growth and can be used as a beard softener.
Jojoba Oil Skin Benefits
Jojoba Oil is technically not an oil but it is actually a liquid Wax Ester. Wax Esters are similar to the skin oils our bodies produce. In theory, using jojoba on your skin can make your skin think that is has produced enough oils. Jojoba oil can help people with oily skin, by causing the overproduction of skin oils to balance out. It is full of the vitamins that help promote healthy glowing skin. Because Jojoba oils are non-toxic, nonallergic, and non-comedogenic, it works great on sensitive skin and helps to reduce acne. It also helps to fix wrinkles, skin scarring and other skin aging symptoms.
- Use Jojoba Oil for Wrinkles: Jojoba oil works great when fighting skin aging. Jojoba oil contains a good amount of vitamin E. Vitamin E helps to keep your skin firm and hydrated. Jojoba oil will reverse the look of wrinkled skin and reduce fine lines on your face. Massage a few drops of Jojoba oil into your face every night to help promote skin cell production.
- Use Jojoba Oil as a Moisturizer: If you are prone to dry skin, you can use jojoba oil as a full body moisturizer. The anti-inflammatory properties in the oil help your skin reduce its dryness. The oil will soften your skin and restore its natural oil production to a normal balance. It is advised to apply a good amount of oil on your body or face right after your shower. This will lock in the most moisture and keep your skin smooth and looking healthy.
- Use Jojoba Oil For Oily Skin: Oily skin is caused by the overproduction of sebum in the sebaceous glands on the skin. Oily skin can cause many skin problems such as acne. If you have oily skin, applying a few drops of Jojoba oil on your skin can help. Using oils on oily skin can make things worse, but this is not true with Jojoba oil. The oil surprisingly reduces the sebum production. Jojoba oil acts as a natural sebum, tricking your skin to think that sebum production is high. Therefore causing your skin to reduce production of sebum.
Jojoba Oil for Acne and Eczema
Acne is mainly caused by oils clogging your pores, so it sounds odd that an oil can help solve your acne problems. However, jojoba oil is not quite an oil but instead a liquid wax ester.
Jojoba oil has antibacterial properties that can seep into your pores and clear them of bacteria, dead skin cells, and excessive sebum. These are the main causes of pimples, blackheads, and acne breakouts. The antibacterial properties also stop the growth of bacteria in your hair. The oil contains vitamins A and E, which help to soothe itchy irritated skin such as eczema. The oil will also create a layer of protection from substances that can irritate eczema. Use Jojoba oil on a daily basis to reduce eczema and remove acne scars.
Using Jojoba Oil to Treat Acne
Follow these simple steps to get the most out of using Jojoba oil for treating acne.
- Wash the acne prone areas. This will help unclog your pores of any top layer dirt and bacteria.
- Allow your skin to dry before you apply the jojoba oil. Use a cotton ball or q-tip to apply the oil. Gently apply the oil to your acne, be sure not to scrub. This is will cause the acne to become worse.
- Apply the oil 3 times a day. Do this for 2 – 3 weeks and you will start to see a major difference
Choosing The Best Jojoba Oil Brand
There are many brands that sell Jojoba oil. Some of these brands are very effective, while others are not so great. When selecting a brand to purchase, first you want to look for Jojoba oil that is organic. Do not just purchase an oil that is cheap. You may end up with an oil full of chemicals that will clog your pores. Look out for if the oil is pressed or not. You want to purchase “cold pressed” oil, sometimes called unrefined. Stay away from refined Jojoba oil. This type of oil is low quality, same as blended Jojoba oil.
Jojoba Brands That I Recommend
To be honest, in my searches for the best Jojoba oil brand, I found that Leven Rose and High Altitude Organics to be the best choices. That’s all that I could find, that actually work the best. There are a lot of oils that say this and that, but none actually come through on their promises. Try these two products and let me know your opinion. If you have found another brand leave it in a comment below.
A Few Tips Before You Leave
A few people have reported that they have been having problems with the oil sitting on top of their skin. This is usually caused by using too much oil. If this happens to you, I have found that simply rinsing off the excess oil with water and then patting dry with a towel helps a lot.