Technical: Formulation

Natural plant oils have been used for thousands of years, dating back to early civilizations that used them to enhance and soothe the body and spirit.

However, from the 1920’s alchemy gave way to chemistry, and interest in oils faded.  Scientists started developing synthetic counterparts of the various components of the oils, and the modern skincare industry was born. 

Dieter Beier, a German scientist living in the South African outback, was a close spectator to some of the most profound changes unfolding in the skincare industry.  

Dieter’s father, a sheep farming magnet and a pioneer in the use of Lanolin in skincare, had co-developed Oil of Olay in the 1960’s. Dieter spent much time in his father’s laboratory, analysing vitamin-enriched creams and oils. He was a firm believer that the millennia-old folklore exalting the skin benefits of natural plant oils should not be cast aside. Simultaneously, he was excited by the advances made in skincare, and passionately pursued the development of a product that could merge old traditions with new technology. 

His philosophy in developing Bio-Oil was simple. Firstly, natural plant oils were a nonnegotiable and secondly the product had to contain vitamins. In combining these two components, he knew that he would have some of the most important skincare ingredients in one product. There was an added advantage – as oils contain no oxygen, they provide an exceptional storage environment for vitamins, ensuring their efficacy is not impaired prior to application. 

“In formulating Bio-Oil I wanted the best of both worlds. I had to have an oil base as all my key ingredients for the Bio-Oil formulation were vitamins and natural herbal extracts, but I also needed the finished product to absorb in order to maximize its efficacy.” recalls Mr Beier. 

The breakthrough came when Mr Beier discovered that PurCellin Oil™ (a laboratory copy of the preen gland oil of ducks), when added to his formulation, reduced the thickness of the oil, giving it the skin-friendly properties of a cream. 

In 1986, almost a decade after research commenced, the Bio-Oil formulation was finally completed and, after a year of finished product testing, was made available to consumers in 1987.

Please click on the diagram below.

 

1.

Bio-Oil successfully combines two of the most established ingredient categories – natural plant extracts, used for centuries to maintain skin condition; and vitamins, vital elements in the promotion of healthy looking skin.

2.

The vitamins and natural plant extracts are combined in an oxgen-free oil base to ensure that they maintain their potency prior to application.

3.

PurCellin Oil™, Bio-Oil’s breakthrough ingredient, is then added to the mix.

4.

PurCellin Oil^™ reduces the viscosity/consistency of Bio-Oil, ensuring that it is light and easily absorbed. Without the addition of PurCellin Oil^™, the vitamins and natural plant extracts would remain on the skin’s surface as an oily residue.

PurCellin Oil™
PurCellin Oil™ is a laboratory recreation of the preen gland oil of ducks. During preening, a duck secretes oil from its preen gland and distributes it over its entire plumage in the familiar twisted-neck action that one often associates with ducks. This oil creates a thin, non-greasy layer on the surface of the feathers without which water would not pearl off and the bird would struggle to swim.

It is interesting to note that water birds, which inspired the development of PurCellin Oil^TM have been repaid the favor…

PurCellin Oil^TM forms the basis for the method recommended by the National Wildlife Health Foundation for rapid restoration of oil-soiled water birds.

Read more about Bio-Oil's ingredients