Rosehip oil beauty benefits

The natural skincare industry is booming and the world is your oyster when it comes to the range of natural oils, nut butter and essential oils. They are all packed with nourishing nutrients that help maintain healthy skin. Today we will be focusing on rosehip oil and how integrating it in our skincare regime is beneficial. Rosehip is from the Rosaceae family, also known as the rosa canina a type of wild rose originating from Africa, Europe and Asia. The fruit is what is commonly used to extract the oil.

Types of rosehips
There are a variety of rosehip oils from different countries, depending on the type of rose and the type of processing involved will determine the grade and quality of the rosehip oil. These are some but not all types of rosehip

Rosa canina (dog rose) – the rose petals are often pink or white and have a beautiful delicate smell.
Rosa Avensis (field rose) – usually white petals and is a British native plant, with a deep musky scent
Rosa Rubiginosa (sweet briar) also known as Rosa Mosqueta has a fruity lemony scent – native to Chile, produces small pink flowers. Smells beautiful and valued due to the scent. Popularly made into teas due to the high levels of vitamin C.
Rosa Spinosissima (burnet rose) – are usually white, or have a splash of delicate pink. often seen along the coastal areas. Can be used in liqueurs and teas.
Rosa Villosa (downy rose ) – known as the apple rose with tiny pink petals.
Rosehip oil processing
Rosehip comes in different forms and the processing is key to the quality. The following methods used are

cold pressing – pressing fruit or seeds through a machine to extract oil without the use of heat.
chemical solvent extractions – used to separate oil from seeds, the seeds are treated with a solvent until the remaining oil is reduced, the mixture of oil and solvent are further separated by distillation to yield the oil
supercritical extraction – this is a superior method of extraction using CO2 at high pressure and low temperatures, compounds are separated during the extraction yielding high-quality oil.
Rosehip oil grades
There are different types of rosehip oil grades owing to the processing involved during extracting this oil. Some oil is extracted from the seeds only, others extract the oil from the whole fruit. Some rosehip oils are refined, meaning they do not have the dark orange, amber colour and also will have lost some of the nourishing nutrients, It also goes rancid very quickly and is usually a clear oil. Unrefined rosehip is usually a dark orange colour with an earthy aroma and would have been extracted using cold pressing or supercritical extraction to maintain the full nutritional essence. You may find it labelled as virgin or cold-pressed, as it has not gone through processing and removal of scent, colour or nutrients.

Rosehip skin benefits
Rosehip is nourishing for the skin, it benefits it by hydrating, moisturising and protecting it. It helps in reducing epidermal water loss, so when your skin is moisturised, it locks it in. It is also a great anti-inflammatory, so would be useful for those with problem skin e.g acne. Also promotes skin healing and reducing scarring. It is a great antioxidant and rich in (not exhaustive)

Vitamin A, C, D and E – great for reducing signs of ageing, skin pigmentation, fade scarring and also aids in skin rejuvenation
essential fatty acids – omega 3 and 6 – beneficial for skin regeneration
contains oleic, palmitic and linoleic acid – which combats acne outbreak
Rosehip is a great all-rounder and suitable for all skin types, it can be used on its own or mixed in a moisturiser to maintain healthy supple skin. If you want to try an affordable oil that is natural and packed with nourishing nutrients, then this is one to try. What favourite oil is your staple and what do you like about it?
Would love to hear from you, until next time………………