Carrot oil is a well-known and respected skin care product. Many of us rely on carrot oil’s healing properties in spring season.
Carrots are considered as symbols of a healthy life. It’s hard to come up with any other plant that is so famous for its healthy effects. The carrots are also considered as an example of sustainable vegetable production because they are usually locally produced. They are also easy to obtain in organic quality and fresh. So why not use such a good plant in cosmetics? What are the ingredients in carrot oil and how is it made? What are the skin care effects of carrots? Carrot oil has many good properties. A variety of very different products are sold under the same name. Let’s see what carrot oil is.
Carrot oil means many different products
The carrot itself is not an oil plant. You cannot squeeze oil from the carrot root. This is a good thing to remember when you are going to buy carrot oil. Orange carrot oil is a mixture of carrot and some oil or extracted liquid from carrots. For the extraction Either dried or fresh carrots are used for extraction and some carrier oil is added. The carrier oil is often sunflower oil, soybean oil, avocado oil, corn oil or other neutral vegetable oil. Usually a mixture of several oils is used in carrot oil.
There are also other, added ingredients in many carrot oils. Glycerol and essential oils can be found in many products sold under the name of carrot oil. Carrot oils are thus refined cosmetic products. Some of them contain many other things than just carrots. Therefore, there are big differences between the carrot oils on the market. When purchasing ready-made carrot oil, always look at INCI very carefully. Then you know what you are buying and what you are paying for.
Carrot seed oil is not the same thing as carrot oil
Carrot seed oil and carrot oil are very often mixed together. However, they are two completely different products. Carrot seed oil is squeezed from tiny little carrot seeds. It is a very valuable oil that is full of antioxidants. Carrot seed oil should be used in small quantities for particularly nurturant creams and facial masks.
The myth about the UV-filtering effect of carrot seed oil and carrot oil
Carrot oil is sometimes used as a tanning and sunscreen product. Reason for that is the skin colouring effect of carrots and the carotenoids it contains. However, carrot oil does not contain any ingredient that will prevent the skin from burning under the sun.
Carrot seed oil contains a large number of antioxidants. These antioxidants are said to prevent skin burns. Carrot seed oil is even given an SFP (Sun protection factor) of 40. That would mean incredibly effective UV protection. However, this is not the case at all. Applying carrot seed oil to the skin does not prevent sunburn. It is just a waste of expensive oil and the result will be disappointment.
A good sunscreen is really difficult to make by yourself. Large, multinational manufacturers have for decades been trying to develop good sunscreens. The development efforts of sunscreen have required huge financial sacrifices and years of testing for them. You cannot make reliable sun protection at home. So do not even try. Just buy it from the store and stay with reliable manufacturer.
Next time someone offers you carrot oil for sun protection, first look at the official SFP label on the product. In some products it could be, say 15. The SFP 15 is not very high number in sun protection, and with such a low quality sunscreen it is better to stay under shadows of trees on a beach.
The effects of carrot on skin
I am talking about the carrot and its benefits for the skin only. Let’s talk about carrot seeds at another time.
Carrot contains skin-friendly ingredients such as carotenoids and vitamin C. Carotenoids are plant pigments. They give the plants their characteristic colour. Carrot’s bright orange comes from beta-carotene, a carotenoid.
Beta-carotene is a potent antioxidant
The skin benefits of beta-carotene have long been known. Carrot benefits the skin both internally and externally. Carrot juice is healthy, but if you drink it too much, it may colour your skin yellow. However, this is not dangerous.
In external use, beta-carotene acts as an antioxidant on the skin. It fights free radicals, preventing the skin from oxidizing. This keeps your skin youthful.
Carrot carotenoids help the skin regenerate. Old skin cells are removed and make room for newer, younger skin cells. This process makes the skin look younger.
Carrots are naturally antibacterial
Carrot soothes the skin and prevents excessive bacterial growth. Therefore, it is advisable to use carrots after sunburn, when the skin is irritated and red.
Carrot lycopene helps treat impure skin
I also recommend to use carrot for oily skin. Not only does carrot soothe acne skin, it also balances and moisturizes oily skin. Lycopene in carrots is an important antioxidant in the treatment of oily skin. Therefore, many products mentioned for oily and combination skin contain precisely lycopene.
How to make carrot oil yourself
Carrot oil is really easy to make by yourself. I wrote you a simple recipe for making your own carrot oil. Nowadays I try to put all my simple recipes in the “recipes” tab. It is easy to find them from there. You don’t have to look for them in the middle of blog text.
Have you already bought a sunscreen for becoming summer or perhaps for a holiday? What is your favourite sunscreen product?