Is baby oil good for skin?

If you’re a fan of smooth, soft skin, the chances are that you’ve used baby oil to achieve it at some point in your life. It’s cheap, readily available and highly effective – what could possibly go wrong? However, with so many different oils and skincare products out there these days, it can be hard to decide which is best for you. In this article we’ll take a closer look at the humble baby oil – what is it made of? How does it work? And perhaps most importantly; should you really be slathering this stuff all over your body?

What Exactly Is Baby Oil Anyway?

Baby oil attempts to mimic “mineral oil”, which is clear and odorless from petroleum refining. Mineral oil was once noted as safe by the Environmental Working Group (EWG).

Well first off let’s start with some definitions! Baby oil refers to any kind of mineral-oil-based product that is typically used on infants’ skin during or after bathing to protect against dryness (although increasingly popular with myself). Mineral-oil itself is derived from crude petroleum and undergoes heavy refinement before being sold as either medicinal grade or cosmetic grade. However, we think it’s important to note here that just because something was originally sourced from crude (which sounds pretty gross when written like this) doesn’t necessarily mean its bad.

So…Is Baby Oil Any Good for Your Skin Then?

While nothing works exactly the same way for everyone; overall indications would suggest that yes! people do seem satisfied using their baby oils.
There are two main reasons why people use baby oil on their skin:

Reason One: Adds Moisture

As mentioned above,babyoil acts as an emollient – meaning it forms a protective layer over the surface of the skin trapping in moisture already present within our bodies.

Reason Two: Softer Skin

Secondly, baby oil can help to naturally soften skin by reducing water loss; most importantly that natural layer of oils which our skin produces as a defense. In this sense, it acts like a moisturizer.

How Does Baby Oil Actually Work?

Now we’ve discussed what babyoil is and why people use it.. We get the nitty-gritty stuff ..let’s explore exactly how it works!

The Main Players:

First, let’s familiarize ourselves with some key terms:

• Sebum: Oils produced by the sebaceous glands in the skin.
• Transdermal: Refers to anything that crosses over or passes through bear-ish things 🥲

Baby oil doesn’t penetrate your varing layers of body tissues .
It merely sits on top where one applies as an even coating but does affect something in regards to transdermal – namely transportation. We know from science class at school if you recall (if not go study again) Different materials have different permeability rates -that is their ability to allow other molecules or compound ions pass relatively unrestricted across their surface e.g think of when placing tea bags filters under tap water–water washes off while tea particles are retained behind allowing extraction & infusion process occur right?

In theory, using mineral-oil-based-baby-oil-type product could both hinder harmful compounds from penetrating our skins along with keeping helpful ingredients benefits stay longer within our skins!

But What About All Those Other Chemicals?

So far so good…but surely there has to be more than just baby-just-Petroleum jelly/liquid-paraffin? To make sure check out ingredient list yourself for any possible nasties generally safe compositions should include:

1. Mineral oil (known hereafter specifically as Paraffinum Liquidum)
2. Fragrance-free/easily non irritating scent additives(sometimes ‘parfum’)
3. Vitamin E (Tocopherol)
4. Aloe Vera
5. Calendula Extract

What to Watch Out For/Possible Additives to Avoid:

• Dyes of any sort: those pretty colors could be synthetic and cause allergic reactions!
• Surfactants e.g Sodium Laureth Sulfate) which may advertise as making a product foam more or capable in soapy actions; but can strip away natural oils and contribute further irritation.
• Retinyl Palmitate for daytime use – it reacts with sunlight as per EWG’s 2019 sunscreen rankings might increase risk of tumors, especially when used improperly!

It should be noted that not all sources agree on the above advice.

Skincare Expert Opinions:

When asked about baby oil’s hygienic suitability Dr. David Bank serves up this comprehensive definition “Mineral oil essentially forms an occlusive barrier over skin cells, allowing them to rehydrate by trapping moisture inside”

So the verdict on baby oil is…..it depends! As long as you read labels carefully & choose fragrance-free options or at least keep one eye peeled out for possible irritants – it could potentially make life easier with a simple yet effective product!

You may also consider branching out into trying different -olas , such “Jojoba”- still maintaining close emulating function without compromising ingredients origination🌞

Conclusion:

Overall, we think that using baby oil can definitely offer some great benefits for your skin — just make sure you take care when applying it onto yourself 🤍🌿✨