Whenever I hear success stories of how Kukui oil has helped someone’s eczema I know I am doing the right thing! Hawaiian Kukui nut oil has helped so many of our customers since we started handcrafting Hawaiian Bath & Body® natural soaps. We put Kukui oil in all our products and it’s ground zero when we begin formulating something new. This is Helen (not her real name but yes she’s a real person!) and this is her beautiful, soft and supple neck without the scaly skin of eczema that tormented her for years.
Scaly Skin
Many of us either suffer from or know someone who suffers from eczema. It is very common here in the islands. I’ve encountered every walk of life from infants with their brand new baby skin to the elderly who have suffered and dealt with eczema all their lives, and everyone in between. Being in the public arena and talking to people candidly about their skin and their hygiene habits, conversations rapidly go from, “Aloha, how are you?” to, “My Auntie has scaly skin,” to, “I think of you when I’m in the shower!” And when I meet someone from here who’s never heard of the health benefits of Kukui oil, I love the chance to share! So this just happened! I was asking around the office what I should write my next blog about and lots of ideas were being thrown around. Then someone said, “Write about everyone having eczema!” then someone else said, “Ya, Helen used it and felt relief in 3 days!” How did I not know that one of my employees had eczema AND hasn’t had a breakout in months?! The same amount of months that she’s been working here!! Because she started using our soaps and kukui oil!!! I kid you not, it just happened!! I ran into the store and patiently waited while she was helping a customer. Helen is one of our newest employees having started 5 months ago. She’s born and raised here, one of 5 siblings but the only one with eczema. She’s always had itchy, scaly skin on her neck, from ear to ear, a difficult area to cover up, which often left her feeling a little self-conscious. Island style is not usually associated with wearing turtleneck sweaters, plus they made her skin itchier. To try to get rid of what she called, “crocodile skin,” she would scrape and scratch it off as best she could then cover it with makeup. Neither of which helped and both of which exacerbated the problem.
Kukui Means ‘Enlightenment' in Hawaiian
During training for her retail sales position Helen learned of all the great skin care benefits of Kukui oil and how it is the basis for and the integrity of our Hawaiian Bath & Body® soap and skincare line. All our team members, from Retail to Production, know the skin health properties of this great Hawaiian oil and readily share it with the guests who visit our store. On a basic level, Kukui oil moisturizes dry chapped skin, helps soothe the effects of sunburn and is great for stopping the itch from bug bites. Every guest gets a little drop to sample. On a treatment level Kukui is considered to be a well-balanced oil good for both dry and oily skin. It is loaded with Oleic acid and Linoleic acids, both of which have high levels of fatty acids. It is also naturally full of vitamins A, C and E, antioxidants that are known to protect your skin from environmental effects and prevent free-radical damage to skin cells. It’s the 25%-30% oleic acid, so close to the makeup of your own sebum, which absorbs so nicely into your skin leaving it feeling smooth and silky, never greasy. Oleic acid is known to reduce inflammation, and helps to regenerate your skin. Almost equally balanced at 35%-45% is Linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid. Our bodies do not produce this essential fatty acid so we must get it from outside sources. Kukui nut oil is the perfect source! In topically applied tests, Lanoleic acid has reduced clogged pores by more than 25% in a short time. And it also helps with water loss prevention.
Kukui Oil Love
Using natural skincare like Hawaiian Bath & Body® that’s loaded with Kukui oil is the first step in helping soothe eczema symptoms like Helen did. There are many steps to take, like stopping the use of skincare that has irritating detergents and other harsh chemicals like parabens, and hidden ingredients lumped together in phthalates which is a substance added to plastics to give it more flexibility and durability. Reading labels can be irritating and time consuming, but your health is well worth it! Once you get the hang of it, you’ll get better at spotting the better ingredients. It warms my heart to know that Hawaiian Bath & Body® has helped so many people over the years with this beautiful island oil. For me, Kukui oil has been my, “go to!” I was introduced to it about 20 years ago, around the time we started the idea of a natural soap with no harsh ingredients and lots of Kukui oil. I use it every morning and every evening, after every trip to the beach or time in the pool. It’s my, “go to” for moisturizing, for stopping bug bite itch and for helping to heal scraps and cuts. On the occasion that I actually do wear makeup, it’s my remover! I used it on both my kids’ bottoms (never a diaper rash!) and on their sweet baby skin and they continue to use it as teens. I love Kukui oil, it’s a must for me and my family! Let it be part of your skin health routine too.
Aloha and a hui hou!
Debora
