Benefits of Apple Seed Oil for Dry Skin

There are many benefits of apple seed oil for dry skin.

Apple seed oil is rich in nutrients and it can soften your skin, relieve your dry skin and protect your skin's moisture barrier. 

This article with cover:

• What is apple seed oil?
• Apple seed oil is rich in nutrients
• Apple seed oil can soften dry skin
• Apple seed oil can relieve dry skin
• Apple seed oil can protect dry skin
• Summary
• References

What is apple seed oil?

Apple seed oil (Pyrus malus) is an oil obtained by crushing apple seeds and collecting the oil.

Apple seed oil is cold-pressed from seeds that would otherwise go to waste in the juice industry and is considered a ‘zero waste’ seed oil. 

Cold-pressed apple seed oil is packed with essential nutrients, including fatty acids, vitamins and antioxidants (Walia et al, 2014; Górnas, 2015).

Apple seed oil has the most delightful aroma.

Top notes of real apple - sweet, complex and mouth-watering, with hints of marzipan. Fresh, warm and comforting. It smells divine.

Learn more: What is Apple Seed Oil?

1. Apple seed oil is rich in nutrients

Apple seed oil is nutrient-rich, and contains essential fatty acids, vitamins and antioxidants.

Cold-pressed apple seed oil is packed with essential nutrients, including fatty acids, vitamin E, carotenoids, polyphenols, phytosterols and other antioxidants (Walia et al, 2014; Górnas, 2015).

Fatty acids

Apple seed oil is composed of fatty acids:

• 52 - 64% linoleic acid C18:2 (n-6)
• 28 - 34% oleic acid C18:1 (n-9)
• 4 - 8% palmitic acid C16:0
• 1 - 5% stearic acid C18:0
• 1 - 3.5% arachidic acid C20:0
• 1 - 3% alpha-linolenic acid C18:3 (n-3)

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a group of fat-soluble compounds known as tocopherols and tocotrienols.

Apple seed oil has high levels of various forms of vitamin E, including β-tocopherol and α-tocopherol and these vitamins have strong antioxidant activity (Górnas, 2015).

Cold-pressed apple seed oil has high amounts of total vitamin E at 1.43 mg/g (Pieszka et al 2015).

Apple seed oil is a rich source of tocopherols, with:

• 0.62 mg/g beta-tocopherol
• 0.41 mg/g alpha-tocopherol
• 0.21 mg/g delta-tocopherol 
• 0.13 mg/g gamma-tocopherol

Apple seed oil also contains tocotrienols, with:

• 0.03 mg/g gamma-tocotrienol
• 0.01 mg/g alpha-tocotrienol

Carotenoids

Carotenoids are natural pigments found in plants, algae, and some bacteria. They are responsible for the vibrant colors seen in various fruits, vegetables, flowers, and even some animals. Carotenoids are a type of phytonutrient, which are bioactive compounds found in plants that have potential health benefits for humans.

Apple seed oil has been shown to contain carotenoid concentrations from 0.001 to 0.016 mg/g. Various carotenoids, including all-trans-violaxanthin, 9-cis-violaxanthin, all-trans-lutein, all-trans-zeaxanthin, all-trans-β-cryptoxanthin, all-trans-β-carotene, and 9-cis-β-carotene were identified in apple seed oils (Fromm et al, 2012).

Polyphenols

Apple seed oil is rich in polyphenols that have strong antioxidant activity.

The total amounts of polyphenols in apple seed oil has been shown to range from 3.9 to 26.3 mg/g (Fromm et al, 2012).

Phloridzin is the most abundant polyphenol of apple seed oil, accounting for 79 to 92% of the polyphenols (Fromm et al, 2012).

The other minor polyphenols in apple seed oil include phloretin-2'-xyloglucoside, 5-caffeoylquinic acid (chlorogenic acid), p-coumaroylquinic acid and (−)epicatechin (Fromm et al, 2012). 

Phytosterols

Cold-pressed apple seed oil has been shown to contain phytosterols at 3.460 mg/g, including:

• 2.629 mg/g sitosterol
• 0.347 mg/g avenasterol
• 0.249 mg/g sitostanol
• 0.219 mg/g campesterol
• 0.013 mg/g stigmasterol 

(Pieszka et al 2015)

2. Apple seed oil can soften dry skin

Apple seed oil is a light oil and quickly absorbed into your skin.

Apple seed oil leaves your skin looking plump and dewy, without greasiness.

Apple seed oil is skin conditioning – is gives skin a soft and smooth appearance, restoring suppleness and improving elasticity.

Apple seed oil is an emollient and can soften your skin.

Skin that does not have sufficient lipid content on its surface can appear dull, dry and rough. Emollients "fill in the gaps" in the skin barrier and soften it along with giving it a healthier look.

3. Apple seed oil can relieve dry skin

Dry skin appears dry, rough, and may scale and flake. It may also show premature signs of aging, like fine line, surface wrinkles and loss of elasticity.

Symptoms of dry skin include:

Apple seed oil is rich and essential fatty acids and it can relieve dry skin and made your skin feel soft and smooth.

Apple seed oil can help reduce flaking and roughness from dry skin.

Apple seed oil can alleviate chapping, cracking and roughness due to dryness.

Apple seed oil can help nourish your skin and can reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles for plumper looking skin.

4. Apple seed oil can protect dry skin

Apple seed oil is rich is fatty acids and can protect the skin's moisture barrier.

Apple seed oil contains 60% linoleic acid, the major essential n-6 fatty acid found naturally in our skin. 

Apple seed oil also contains 30% oleic acid and 9% palmitic acid, fatty acids which are found naturally in the protective outer layer of the skin, and help the skin retain moisture. 

When your skin barrier is healthy, it feels and appears smooth, soft, and plump.

Apple seed oil can protect your skin against chapping, cracking and roughness due to dryness.

Apple seed oil can help protect your dry skin against abuse of the elements, including the drying effects of the sun.   

Summary

There are many benefits of apple seed oil for dry skin.

Apple seed oil is rich in nutrients and it can soften your skin, relieve your dry skin and protect your skin's moisture barrier. 

Dry Skin Love Apple Elixir 5% Vitamin E Face Oil is made with cold-pressed apple seed oil. 

Cold-pressed, unrefined apple seed oil smells like real apple - sweet, complex and mouth-watering. Fresh, warm and comforting. 

References

Acid, L. (1987). Final report on the safety assessment of oleic acid, laurie acid, palmitic acid, myristic acid, and stearic acid. J. Am. Coll. Toxicol, 6, 321-401.

Bakrim S, Benkhaira N, Bourais I, Benali T, Lee LH, El Omari N, Sheikh RA, Goh KW, Ming LC, Bouyahya A. Health Benefits and Pharmacological Properties of Stigmasterol. Antioxidants (Basel). 2022 Sep 27;11(10):1912.

Brown A, Butcher M. A guide to emollient therapy. Nurs Stand. 2005 Feb 23-Mar 1;19(24):68, 70, 72 passim. 

Fromm M, Bayha S, Carle R, Kammerer DR. Characterization and quantitation of low and high molecular weight phenolic compounds in apple seeds. J Agric Food Chem. 2012 Feb 8;60(5):1232-42. 

Fromm M., Bayha S., Kammerer D.R., Carle R. Identification and quantitation of carotenoids and tocopherols in seed oils recovered from different rosaceae species. J. Agric. Food Chem. 2012;60:10733–10742.

Górnas P (2015) Unique variability of tocopherol composition in various seed oils recovered from by-products of apple industry: rapid and simple determination of all four homologues (α, β, γ and δ) by RP-HPLC/FLD. Food Chem 172:129–134.

Masaki H. Role of antioxidants in the skin: anti-aging effects. J Dermatol Sci. 2010 May;58(2):85-90.

Moncrieff G, Cork M, Lawton S, Kokiet S, Daly C, Clark C. Use of emollients in dry-skin conditions: consensus statement. Clin Exp Dermatol. 2013 Apr;38(3):231-8; quiz 238.

Newton H. Using emollients to promote safe and effective skin care for patients. Nurs Stand. 2021 Oct 6;36(10):77-82.

Pieszka, M., Migdał, W., Gąsior, R., Rudzińska, M., Bederska-Łojewska, D., Pieszka, M., & Szczurek, P. (2015). Native oils from apple, blackcurrant, raspberry, and strawberry seeds as a source of polyenoic fatty acids, tocochromanols, and phytosterols: A health implication. Journal of Chemistry, 2015.

Thiele JJ, Ekanayake-Mudiyanselage S. Vitamin E in human skin: organ-specific physiology and considerations for its use in dermatology. Mol Aspects Med. 2007 Oct-Dec;28(5-6):646-67.

Walia M, Rawat K, Bhushan S, Padwad YS, Singh B. Fatty acid composition, physicochemical properties, antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of apple seed oil obtained from apple pomace. J Sci Food Agric. 2014 Mar 30;94(5):929-34.

Author Information

Dr. Natasha Ryz is a scientist, skin care expert and an entrepreneur. She is the founder of Dry Skin Love Skincare, and she creates skincare products for beauty, dry skin and pain relief.

Dr. Ryz has a PhD in Experimental Medicine from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, and she is a Vanier scholar. She also holds a Master of Science degree and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.

Natasha is the former Chief Science Officer of Zenabis Global, and she oversaw extraction, analytics, and product development. Her team brought 20 products to market including oils, sprays, vapes and softgels.

Why I Started A Skincare Company