Argan oil is pressed from the nut of the fruit of the Argan Tree, which is only found in Morocco. The argan tree lives to be about 150 to 200 years old and does not start producing the fruit until it is 30 to 50 years old. Because the tree is found only in a limited area, the oil itself is quite rare.
What do Goats Have to Do With it?
Morocco's mountain goat, called the Tamri goat, eats the fruit of the Argan tree. The goats literally climb the tree to get to the nut. Sometimes ten or more at a time in one tree. For a tree that only grows to be about 35 feet tall, that's a lot of goats.
The argan oil producers would take the droppings of the goats, which had the seed completely undigested, and use that to produce the argan oil. While we're sure that is still practiced today, we are hearing that some argan oil producers are producing the oil without the help of goats.
Argan Oil as a Food
Argan oil is nutty tasting oil that is good for sprinkling in salads, dipping bread in and used in many dishes. Here are a few recipes that include argan oil.
Argan Oil Beauty Benefits
We're about ready to declare argan oil as the best beauty ingredient, period. We've been using argan oil for some time and have yet to be let down. Here are some easy ways to include argan oil in your beauty regimen.
- Hair: Argan oil is a great product to calm frizzy ends, add moisture to dry hair as well as add a little shine. Apply to your hair while it is still damp for an all over treatment or apply just to your dry ends after your hair is dry.
- Scalp: If you're dealing with dry scalp, apply some argan oil to a cotton ball and dab your scalp with the oil. If you do this before bed, you'll give the oil plenty of time to moisturize your scalp before you wash your hair in the morning.
- Face: It might seem scary to apply a pure oil to your face, especially if you have finicky skin, but we have been doing just that and our skin is completely turning around. It's smooth, clear and radiant, all thanks to using argan oil as our daily morning moisturizer.
- Body: You can use argan oil for a full body moisturizer, applying just as you would a body lotion or cream. Apply the oil right after you get out of your shower for best moisturizing results.
- Hands: Argan oil is a great oil to use on your hands, especially on your cuticles and on your nails if they are prone to cracking and peeling.
Argan Oil Product Picks
Because of argan oil's increasing popularity, many skin care companies are jumping on the argan oil bandwagon. It is definitely a mid-range beauty product, but the concentration and small amount needed help with the cost. Plus, with the skin benefits we've seen, we're almost at the point of ditching everything but the sunscreen and sticking with argan oil head-to-toe.
We recommend finding a product line that has 100% pure Moroccan Argan Oil for best benefits. Here are a few product lines that get good reviews, but any 100% pure argan oil is a good purchase.
skincare.about.com