Synopsis
Dry skind rivest he searchfo r effectivee mollientsT. his reports earchefso r an explanationo f the superbs kin
feelo f this nativeH awaiiano il. Usings kins trippingt echnologayn dg asc hromatographwy,e demonstrated
kukui oil'sa bility to penetrateth e stratumc orneuml,e avinga triglycerideb arrierc ontaininga mixtureo f
saturateda nd unsaturatefda tty acids.A kukui oil-basedlo tionw asa lsov ery effectivein layingd owna n
emollientl ayer of lipids. However,s kin penetrationd id not distinguishk ukui oil from oils containing
saturatedfa ttya cids.I t is speculatetdh at the skinf eelo f kukui oil mayb e duet o the factt hat it laysd own
a mixtureo f saturateda nd unsaturatefda tty acids,f orminga semipermeabblea rriert hat wouldp rotectt he
skin from further drying and would allow dry skin to heal naturally. It was found that kukui oil is quite
stablea s judgedf unctionallyb y the degradationo f linolenate( C18:3n-3).