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View Full Version : I bought the wrong oil!



Lisa-K
March 4th, 2016, 11:54 PM
Oh, I can't believe I made such a stupid mistake. I was in a rush yesterday and basically grabbed the coconut oil and didn't pay attention to the label. This morning, I pull out the jar and realize that it's not virgin coconut oil; it's refined coconut oil for cooking purposes. Ugh. I read that this can clog up pores if used on the skin (is this true?) so I'm thinking it might not be such a great idea to put on my hair either. What do you guys think? Should I give it a shot anyway?

It's very bland and has no coconut smell or taste whatsoever.

Coconut oil isn't exactly super easy to find here. So I won't get a chance to go back to that store until another week or two at least.

Sarahlabyrinth
March 5th, 2016, 12:02 AM
It's probably still fine for your hair.

mermaid lullaby
March 5th, 2016, 12:47 AM
I wouldn't worry about it :meditate: just use only two drops and that's all you need.

Well, to me...coconut oil is coconut oil. I guess, it depends on your skin If it breaks out or not.

bunneh.
March 5th, 2016, 01:06 AM
If it's good enough to eat, it's good enough to put on your body.

Wusel
March 5th, 2016, 01:13 AM
If it's good enough to eat, it's good enough to put on your body.

Exactly. I love Kerrygold butter and put it on my hair sometimes :D

parkmikii
March 5th, 2016, 01:23 AM
If oils make your skin break out then perhaps you could only use it on the ends? I too agree that if it's good to be put on your head it's perfect for hair :D

Wildcat Diva
March 5th, 2016, 01:41 AM
It's fine. Many threads on here have said the same. It's not a big deal. Use it to your heart's content.

turtlelover
March 5th, 2016, 01:48 AM
I have used both kinds, and they work exactly the same. It is the oil molecules that do your hair the good, not the stuff that they removed during the refining. I will say that I miss the fragrance of the unrefined stuff when I buy the cheaper variety, but my hair could care less.

Arctic
March 5th, 2016, 02:53 AM
It'll be fine; in fact many people buy it on purpose as it doesn't have a smell.

"One" word on pore clogging. If you have acne prone skin, and/or skin that doesn't like coconut oil - which is a known comedogenic oil - then you might have problems with any and all variations of coconut oil. And many other oils.

Even if you only put it on your ends, the oil does travel up the hairshaft, rubs to your pillows and to your face, gets in touch with your clothes and body skin, your hands and from there to your face.... so if your skin is one that reacts to oil(s) by breaking out, you might not be able to use them on your hair.

I am personally one of those people. My hair loved, loved, loved oiling. I used them couple of years. After a while of using I started to have a gradual worsening of my acne (I already had acne prone skin, so the oils did not "cause" acne, they just aggravated it). Suddenly I had the worse acne of my life. I had hard time pinning down the culprit as the problem had stated gradually and not right away, and also even after I had started to suspect oils, I was a bit in denial because I loved what they did to my hair. I tried all kinds of acne medications and treatments and nothing helped much. So I tried reducing and then gave up oils, and my skin went back to normal (which is still acne prone with occasional blemishes, but not a tons of big, angry acne lesions).

I mostly used those oils at the ends, a drop or two. But they do travel on you hair shafts and on your skin, up and down. It's crazy that so small drops can cause acne so bad. But definitely something to consider and keep an eye on.

Maybe even worse thing than the worsening of my acne has been that my skin seemed to become sensitized during that time to oils, and it is at a point where a very little, short contact makes my skin angry. I need to be very sure my lotions and products are oil free. I manage to do a veeery occasional pre-shampoo deep treatments with oil (a drop or two) but that's about it. I can use moderately shea butter, for some reason it doesn't give me immediate breakouts, but it too does give me them if I use it prolonged time. But I tend to avoid it, too, and when I do those deep treatments where I want to put a bit of oil (pre-shampoo) I usually go with shea.

Lisa-K
March 5th, 2016, 05:39 AM
^^Wow, that's crazy, Arctic! Thanks for the heads up!

And also a big thanks to everyone else! I feel better about it now :-) I admit I'm a bit disappointed there's no coconut smell lol

Arctic
March 5th, 2016, 05:51 AM
Yeah I love the smell too! :inlove:

Many people with acne prone skin can and do use oils, but some of us can't. I don't know if oils cause clogged pores on those, who don't already have acne prone skin in the first place.

meteor
March 5th, 2016, 12:05 PM
I feel better about it now :-) I admit I'm a bit disappointed there's no coconut smell lol

Yes, the refined kind should work for hair just fine, but if you really want that coconut smell, virgin coconut oil is the way to go.

Coconut oil is comedogenic, so many folks do sometimes break out to it, especially if it's used on the face (I do, too), but many can still use it on hands and legs without an issue...
It's worth mentioning that even non-comedogenic oils can break out people, it's down to individual sensitivity really, so it's important to watch out for that. :flower: I think mineral oil and some anti-bacterial and anti-fungal oils (e.g. neem, blackseed, tea tree, etc) are some of the oils that are considered to be somewhat less likely to cause breakouts though.
And some oils (usually rich in oleic acid - e.g. olive oil, sweet almond oil) are linked to Malassezia fungal overgrowth (this fungus is lipid-dependent), which can trigger seborrheic dermatitis: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18004291, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16382685... Just something to be aware of, especially if you have sensitive skin.

Nadine <3
March 5th, 2016, 01:37 PM
It's fine. I use refined for my hair because extra virgin stinks to me.

cathair
March 5th, 2016, 04:07 PM
Arctic and Meteor beat me to it :) What they said.

I always use refined coconut oil on my hair, I don't think there is any difference for this purpose. If you were eating it there might be more room for debate.

cathair
March 5th, 2016, 04:08 PM
It's fine. I use refined for my hair because extra virgin stinks to me.

That too :D Agree strongly.

KingPrawn
March 6th, 2016, 02:14 AM
I use the cheap rubbishy coconut oil as a make up remover. Best remover I've ever used! As others have said though, depends if your skin can handle it!