What Is the Best Tamanu Oil?
So, what is the best tamanu oil? You find yourself wondering on some tropical night as you contemplate life’s biggest questions. Let me start by admitting something that might get me kicked out of the clean beauty club: I didn’t know what tamanu oil was until it came for me— via the suggestions of many friends with promises of skin so clear I just had to give it a try.
Naturally, I bought it.
What followed was a spiral (me, Googling “can tamanu oil give you a personality?”) and then a rabbit hole (the difference between cold-pressed vs. virgin tamanu oil is apparently my entire Sunday now), and then—spoiler—I emerged on the other side with a shortlist of the best tamanu oils and a renewed sense of self-worth. Or at least, better skin, which is honestly kind of the same thing.
But before we get into answering “what is the best tamanu oil?”, let’s take a moment to address the elephant in the glass dropper bottle:
What is the Best Tamanu Oil: The Basics
What Even Is Tamanu Oil?
Tamanu oil is pressed from the nuts of the tamanu tree, which sounds like a made-up plant from an herbal wizard’s guide to “glow magic,” but it’s very real and very beloved in places like Polynesia, Southeast Asia, and French pharmacies that smell like lavender and eternal youth.
It’s been used for centuries for its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and skin-regenerating properties, which is skincare speak for: “Put this on your face and watch it get weirdly better.”
It’s especially good for:
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Acne-prone skin
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Scars that won’t shut up
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Eczema
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Stretch marks
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That one mosquito bite you can’t stop scratching even though you’re a grown adult
But Seriously, What Is the Best Tamanu Oil?
This is where things get trickier. Not all tamanu oils are created equal, and if you’re putting this on your face (your face!), you want to make sure you’re not accidentally buying a bottle of diluted sadness.
Here’s what makes a tamanu oil worth it:
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100% natural oils — no additives, tamanu oils with some extra natural oils (think coconut oil-yum) can be great
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Dark glass bottle — to protect the oil from turning into a sad soup of oxidized disappointment
So, Which Tamanu Oil is the Best?
The short answer: whichever one you’ll actually use. The long answer: The one with the best ingredients, the one made by people who know what they’re doing and want to give you the highest quality, best made product because they care not just because it moves product off the shelves.
So what are we saying? The best tamanu oil is the one that reminds you to slow down, touch your own skin like it’s worth nurturing, and maybe—just maybe—believe that healing doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive or smell like peaches.
Maui Miracle Oil
Here’s what makes Maui Miracle Oil from Island Essence the answer to “what is the best tamanu oil?” Their Tamanu oil is rich in fatty acids, and many beneficial compounds, which enhance skin and offer many potential health benefits including:
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Healing—calophyllic fatty acid helps skin regeneration, excellent for treating scars, stretch marks, sunburn, blisters. Penetrates all three layers of skin for maximum effectiveness.
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Antibacterial—numerous beneficial acids in tamanu oil can help acne and skin infections. Can improve complexion with regular use.
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Anti-inflammatory—calming properties can help rashes, sores, allergic reactions and swelling.
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Hydrating—will moisturize skin without greasy residue, very quickly absorbed into skin.
What’s even better is their list of ingredients which include other oils that have a range of benefits for health and wellness (it’s pretty close to perfection in a bottle, if that were a thing).
List of Ingredients: Proprietary Blend of Natural Oils including Organic Tamanu Nut Oil (Big Island, Hawaii), Safflower Oil, Organic Coconut Oil, Hawaiian Macadamia Nut Oil (Oahu), Vitamin E, Organic Jojoba Oil, Avocado Oil, Tamanu Fragrance Oil
Getting You All the Benefits with the Best Tamanu Oil
Tamanu oil isn’t going to fix your love life, make your boss appreciate your brilliance, or convince your roommate to stop using your expensive shampoo. But it will help your skin bounce back from breakouts, soften old scars, and give you one more reason to touch your face gently instead of aggressively popping something at 11:30 p.m.
And that feels like progress.
So now that you know the not-so-complicated answer to “what is the best tamanu oil?” go forth, my shiny, green-tinged angels. Get thee a bottle from Island Essence, patch test like a responsible adult, and let tamanu oil do its ancient, nutty magic.