I cook with extra virgin olive oil and am a proponent of olive oil in cooking. There are many medical and scientific studies that have proven the health benefits of using olive oil in moderation in cooking. The Mayo Clinic site carries several articles that extol the virtues of cooking with olive oil  (although some medical sites are reporting olive oil may be as bad as a Big Mac when ingested). However, I could not find any articles on the Mayo Clinic website about the virtues of applying olive oil to your skin.

Personally, I use olive oil on my hands after I open the bottle. Especially my right hand gets the olive oil treatment because I open the bottle with my left hand, and the oil from the cap gets on my left hand, so I wipe it off and massage it into my right hand. In all my years of doing so, I have never seen the least bit of difference between my left hand, where the olive oil gets on my fingers and palm, and the right hand — the hand I massage the excess oil into.

And while I might occasionally use olive oil on my hands, I don’t use olive oil on my face and don’t recommend that my readers do so.

Olive Oil is Acne Forming

In spite of what the many olive oil and “natural” websites claim, olive oil is moderately comedogenic. This means applying olive oil on your skin can cause comedone or acne formation. Not only that, but using products like olive oil can potentially trap bacteria already present in sweat or moisture in the pores. See:

• Comedogenic Ratings

• Cosmetic ingredients with acne forming tendencies (comedogenic)

Going to Google Instead of an Expert

Unfortunately, the way Google works now you have articles from sites like eHow, LiveStrong or olive oil sites written by people with no medical training whatsoever ranking on page one. By and large, these writers get their information by regurgitating the information they found on page one of Google, so the same misinformation gets repeated, over and over. Several of the LiveStrong articles refer to the Mayo Clinic to lend credibility to their claims about the health benefits of Olive Oil in skin care, when in fact, the Mayo Clinic quotes are only about olive oil and diet. To make their points about skin care, they refer to sites about as trustworthy as “Olive Oil R Us.” Just because an article or website ranks high on Google doesn’t mean the writer or web owner has a clue what they are talking about or has gone past page one of Google to do their “research.”

Choosing a Witch Doctor Over the Mayo Clinic

Sadly, on one board, someone posted that a professionally trained and educated dermatologist stated “olive oil will clog pores” and then took advice from an untrained herbal home-remedy “specialist.” Really? Would YOU pick a witch doctor over the Mayo Clinic? Because that’s pretty much what you are doing when you let some natural-remedy proponent tell you that your doctor or dermatologist is wrong.

While some non-medical sites state that skin doesn’t absorb olive oil, most natural remedy sites loudly proclaim that olive oil is readily absorbed, which is simply not true.

Olive Oil Molecules Need a Carrier

In fact, olive oil molecules do not effectively penetrate the skin and need a “suitable carrier”  to get them past the skin’s protective barrier. Human skin comes equipped with a protective barrier that will not readily permit the passage of most lipids (fat) soluble portions of plants and oils. This protective barrier more readily permits the absorption of carefully formulated water soluble products with special carriers and there is plenty of proof that so-called “natural” and “essential” oils are not absorbed past the protective barrier.

Squalene

It is actually the SQUALENE in olive oil which is so good for your skin, and squalene is readily absorbed  “when mixed in the proper formulation in an oil-in-water emulsion,” NOT when applied with olive oil. See

• Biological and Pharmacological Activities of Squalene and Related Compounds: Potential Uses in Cosmetic Dermatology

Dangers of Olive Oil

Recently a friend told me of someone she knew who got a terrible infection from bacteria trapped in the skin by olive oil. Her “natural” solution to proper skin care caused her to have to get expensive medical care. I watched my own mother, who swore by natural remedies, try to cure a small, scaly spot on her leg with olive oil and other natural remedies. By the time I tricked her into seeing her doctor, her melanoma was so far advanced it killed her.

Who Do You Really Trust with You Skincare?

Next time you read an article telling you that some natural remedy is the best choice, please look at the URL. If it is “Oiive Oil R Us” or “Natural Remedies R Us” and not a reputable medical, educational, dermatological or scientific site, why are you trusting it with your skin, health & beauty?

Rodan + Fields Dermatologists defines squalene as:

Squalene: A vegetable oil that soothes and calms irritated skin. It is very similar in structure to our own skin oils.

Squalene is used as part of the formulation in the Rodan + Fields Mineral Peptides Powder SPF

Also See:

• Do Skin Care Home Remedies Work? Why Natural Skincare Remedies Can Be Deadly
• ESSENTIAL OILS LACK OF SKIN ABSORPTION
• Biological and Pharmacological Activities of Squalene and Related Compounds: Potential Uses in Cosmetic Dermatology

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