Introduction: Prickly pear oil

Prickly pear oil is a treasure of nature with multiple virtues.

This precious oil, extracted from prickly pear fruits, is renowned for its exceptional skin and hair care properties. In this blog, we'll explore the benefits of prickly pear oil, its various uses, and how to recognize it.

The Benefits of Prickly Pear Oil

Prickly pear oil is rich in antioxidants, vitamins E and K, and essential fatty acids.

These components make prickly pear oil an excellent choice for reducing fine lines and wrinkles, improving skin elasticity, and promoting cell regeneration. Additionally, prickly pear oil helps reduce dark spots and deeply moisturizes, leaving skin soft and radiant.

How to Use Prickly Pear Oil on Your Face

To benefit from the benefits of prickly pear oil.

Apply a few drops to clean, dry skin. Massage gently until completely absorbed. You can use prickly pear oil alone or mix it with a moisturizer. Prickly pear seed oil is also excellent for this use thanks to its lightness and quick absorption.

Differences between Prickly Pear Oil and Prickly Pear Seed Oil

Prickly Pear Seed Oil

The process of extracting prickly pear seed oil is delicate, long and complex.

To obtain one liter of pure oil, approximately 1,000 kg of prickly pear fruits, or 30 to 60 kg of seeds, are required. This requirement makes prickly pear seed oil very rare and expensive. The seeds are harvested by hand, washed, sun-dried, and then cold-pressed. Cold pressing preserves the seed's vitamins and nutrients, requiring intense, powerful pressing without heat.

Additionally, each seed contains only 5% pure oil.

It is crucial to bottle the oil immediately to preserve all its virtues and avoid oxidation, thus guaranteeing its effectiveness in your beauty routine.

Prickly Pear Oil

Making prickly pear oil is simpler and faster than making seed oil. It's based on the principle of oil maceration, where fresh prickly pears are macerated in sunflower oil. Oil maceration allows a plant or fruit to be infused into an oil, which acts as a solvent and conveys the plant's active properties, flavor, and aroma.

What are the benefits of Prickly Pear Oil and Prickly Pear Seed Oil?

Prickly Pear Seed Oil

Prickly pear seed oil, often called "Precious Oil," is one of the rarest oils. This precious elixir requires more than 12 hours of extraction to obtain one liter of oil. Here are some of its benefits:

Magical Anti-Aging : High vitamin E and sterol content helps prevent signs of aging.
Against spots and acne : A powerful antioxidant thanks to more than 1000 mg of vitamin E per kg.
Fights stretch marks and scars : Fatty acids regenerate and nourish the skin.
Hair Care : Nourishes the ends and soothes the scalp, ideal for regular use.
Nail care : Softens dry cuticles.
For the beard : Enhances the beard and provides anti-aging care.
Rich in Omega 6 : Ensures suppleness and hydration of the skin while protecting it.

Prickly Pear Oil

Although it has similar benefits to prickly pear seed oil, prickly pear oil is less concentrated in active ingredients, making it less effective. Its benefits include:

Wrinkle Soothing : Reduces wrinkles, although the effect is less noticeable than with seed oil.
Hydration and regeneration : Rich in omega 6, it hydrates and regenerates the epidermis.

In short, what is the difference between these two oils: Prickly Pear Oil and Prickly Pear Seed Oil?

The main difference lies in their production process, composition, and effectiveness. Cold extraction, a complex process, extracts the oil from the heart of the seed, where most of the benefits, such as the high presence of vitamin E, are found. Prickly pear seed oil thus offers maximum benefits.

On the other hand, maceration is a less profound process, which explains the lower concentration of benefits in prickly pear oil and its more affordable price.