2011 Ceramides Challenge

LuvlyRain3 said:

I'm ditching wheat germ oil. Grapeseed oil has definitely replaced this. My prepoo had my hair feeling song. I never got results like that with what germ oil. Plus wheat germ oil is heavy and stinks and is hard as hell to get out of my hair. Maybe the better results hast to do with the ceramide percentage. Wheat germ is 55% and grapeseed is 73%. I need to do more research on ceramides.

Click to expand...

Sorry to rain on the parade but we need to clarify this.

That lists refers to linoleic acid percentages, NOT CERAMIDES.
The original list appears here:
http://www.news-medical.net/health/O...leic-Acid.aspx

To my knowledge, there's no natural plant-based oil that contains such high percentages of ceramides as listed in the quoted thread (usual content is way less that 10%). The original poster probably found the erroneously labeled list at the long hair comunity forum (sorry,no link for this one--it's again this forum's rules. But you can look it up. The tread title is " Ceramides" in the "Mane" forum...) The poster there didn't even bother to mention a reference.

I looked up a couple of scientific papers on lipid analysis of various oils. The percentages listed are:
rice oil-- ~1% ceramide
walnut oil-- ~2.3% sphingolipids (wich are mostly but not totally composed of ceramides)
almond oil-- Looks like 22% ceramide out of 10% polar lipids in the total oil sample (90% neutral oils) which represents a correction: ignore this--->ceramide<---- sphingolipid concentration of ~2.2 % and a ceramide concentration of %60 of that for ~1.32% ceramide in the total oil amount (someone check my math):

"Lipid classes of almond oil
The analysis of oil A showed the presence of five lipid classes (Table I). Neutral lipids were found in high amounts (89.9% of total lipids) and the predominant lipid class was the triacylglycerides (84.7%) while the polar lipids represented 10.1% of total lipids. The polar lipids were found to be consisted of 22% sphingolipids and 78% phospholipids. Further analysis of sphingolipids presented two distinctive groups of which type III and type IV ceramides were 60% of total sphingolipids. In the phospholipid class the predominant phospholipid was phosphatidylethanolamine (37% of phospholipids)."

Here's the links to the original research articles:

almond: http://www.znaturforsch.com/ac/v59c/s59c0330.pdf
rice: http://www.journalarchive.jst.go.jp/...om=jnlabstract
walnut:http://www.znaturforsch.com/ac/v57c/s57c0051.pdf

Click to expand...

Fhrizzball said:

does anyone know the thread that has a list of ceramide oils and tells which oils has the highest percentage? I'm thinking of incorporating some ceramides but I'm unsure which oil will give the biggest bang for my buck so to speak.

Click to expand...

halee_J said:

^^^That was the reason I didn't include those other oils in my OP. I think all oils are beneficial ; but to date I haven't come across any literature supporting any other oils apart from hemp, wheat germ, walnut, rice bran and barley malt and eucalyptus extracts containing ceramides.

Click to expand...

msmurray said:

Hello Ladies! Im new in my hair journey.I thought joining a challenge will give me a handle on all the info perhaps. Unfortunately I do not have the hair lingo down packed. What is a pre-poo, and can anyone possibly suggest a good place to find a regimen? Thank you for the help!!!!!!!

Click to expand...

coconut said:

never mind i remembered lilikoi post about percents on the ceramides


Long Hair Care Forum - View Single Post - Official 2010 Ceramides Challenge


i will be adding a couple tablespoons of WGO to this infamous eco styler gel i keep hearing about

Click to expand...

Aireen said:

lilikoi said:

Hello Aireen,

You're not bothering me--it's a nice surprise to hear from you since I'm actually a fan of your hair and usually agree with, and like, your posts.

Your questions are very good and both easy and difficult to answer. Here's the easy answers: Yes, sun, saff, and grape oils contain ceramides. The percentages (of ceramides) for most oils are less than 5%, yet, as low as 1% should be enough to give benefits (L'oreal has a research paper out on this). Just use what you hair (and your nose!) likes.

The difficulty in answering arises from the fact that, as a technical person (read: science nerd) I finding hard to state facts without backing them up with either references or my own research. I'm very interested in the potential benefits of ceramides for both skin and hair but never officially joined the ceramide challenge because I was not convinced the benefits touted by some of the participants were from the ceramides, the products, or the oils! Some of the products identified as containing ceramides in the challenge post only listed some ceramide-containing oil as an ingredient (way down the middle of the list) so I couldn't see how such a low concentration could be responsible for the effect. A confounding factor with most oils is that they would probably be very beneficial even without the ceramides (either as penetrating oils or moisture sealants) so it's hard to tell what's the 'magic ingredient'.

This brings us to linoleic acid: it is essential for healthy skin and hair, so high linoleic acid oils are also very good for you, with or without ceramides, but it seems like the two go hand in hand (i.e., you usually find them together).

I've read a couple of research papers on ceramides and linoleic acid and I'm convinced they're good for hair and skin. When I have time I'll pull them out and summarize them and post them. I'm also experimenting with a non-hair care product that has ceramides listed as 5th ingredients. If I experience benefits I will share.

Hope this answers your questions!

P.S. Can I quote your questions if I decide to post this answer?

Aireen said:

Hi, sorry to bother you. I'm in the ceramides challenge for 2011 and I just wanted to know if sunflower, safflower, or grapeseed oil had a high amount of ceramides or a sufficent amount to see benefits for my hair? I stumbled upon a list in the 2010 ceramide challenge thread that said safflower oil's content was 78% in ceramides but you corrected this by saying the list is actually stating the percentage of linoleic acid. I also wanted to know if you knew what linoleic acid does for the hair and if the benefits are similar to ceramides? Again, sorry to bother you and thank you for your reply in advance. My questions are in bold and if there's any further information you can provide me, it would be appreciated.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the compliments and for answering my questions. I was sort of confused before but now you cleared my head. I'm very interested about the products since I too look at ingredients and usually I'm not convinced the product will do what it or other people state if the key ingredient is after 5th place; hopefully I'll catch your post when you decide to share. You may certainly use my questions if you decide to post your answer. Thank you so much for taking the time out to post your response, you really helped me out!

Click to expand...

After I replied to Aireen, I found this article that further supports that (1) ceramides are essential for proper skin (and by default hair) health (but we already knew that) and (2) that linoleic acid content is a good indicator of ceramide (specially ceramide I) content in a specific oil.

Lita said:

Put JBCO mix that contains Eucalyptus on my scalp & spritz my ends with water & added the Soy Butter on the length/ends....




Happy Hair Growing!

Click to expand...

halee_J said:

lilikoi I'd agree with this. Although that section of the article (about linoleic acid deficiency affecting ceramide I production) references skin; ceramide biosynthesis in plants and animals are largely the same. So yes, high linoleic acid could mean presence of ceramides. I am always checking the literature looking for new potential ceramide sources Maybe we should collaborate and publish a few articles ;I'm looking to come into some grant money soon .

ETA: I will be adding this info to the OP thanks so much for the info lilikoi!

Click to expand...

Aireen said:

LITA YOUR HAIR IS GORGEOUS! I wish mine were THAT thick!

Click to expand...

lilikoi said:

Research? Publishing? Count me in! (PM me)

I've been really wanting to research this more extensively because it's super-interesting! So I just look up info whenever I remember/have time. I'm grateful to Aireen for re-kindling my curiosity. I'm interested in the improvement of both skin and hair with the aid of ceramides. And I'm beginning to realize that increasing ceramide production internally might as important as topical application. So I've been reading about that. Hope to report back soon!

Click to expand...

Lita said:

Awww Thank you,but my hair isn't as thick as I like ...I'm still working on it ...We can work on thickening our hair together ....

*I wish my hair was as thick as CelinaStarr


Happy Hair Growing!

Click to expand...

Aireen said:

Yes I'm trying to achieve thicker hair too! Working together is a lot more encouraging. :hugs:

I'll admit though that thickness is taking a backseat to length but I should probably work harder for both.

Click to expand...

cch24 said:

I'm not a member of this challenge but I have added hemp oil to my mix (1/3 hemp, 1/3 olive, 1/3 castor) and I can tell a difference in my hair after only a month. It is so much smoother and stronger. I can't wait to see how it feels 6 months - a year from now!

Click to expand...