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Peach kernel oil is the cold-pressed plant oil from the kernel of the peach, Prunus persica, a tree of the rose family and of the same genus as the almond, the apricot, the cherry and the plum. On the label of our peach kernel oil the ingredient reads Prunus Persica (Peach) Kernel Oil, cold-pressed and made in China, as a cosmetic oil for hair and skin; there is no second ingredient. It is a light, thin, light yellow oil with a faint almond-like smell, sold in a 30 ml and a 100 ml bottle with a pipette.
Many people search for 'peach kernel oil benefits' or search for 'peach oil for skin'. We make no claim about what this oil does in or under the skin, around the eyes or to the hair: the label says nothing about that, and neither do we. What you can check yourself is what the label says, where the oil comes from, how it feels and smells, and how to use it, in what amount. That is what this guide is about.
Peach kernel oil at a glance
- Label: Prunus Persica (Peach) Kernel Oil, the only ingredient; cold-pressed; made in China.
- Plant: the peach, Prunus persica, of the rose family; the oil comes from the kernel inside the stone of the fruit.
- Colour and smell: light yellow to golden yellow; faint and slightly almond-like, fading soon after applying.
- Texture: light and thin; absorbs fast and leaves little shine.
- Use: face oil, also in the daytime under a cream; around the eyes; body and short massage; carrier for essential oils; hair ends; external use only.
- Patch test: the peach is related to the almond, an allergen, and a peach allergy exists on its own; anyone who reacts to peach, nuts or stone fruit tests first.
- Bottle and storage: 30 ml or 100 ml in dark glass with a pipette; cool, dark and closed, finish within a year.
Where the oil comes from
The peach is a stone fruit: juicy flesh around a hard, grooved stone, and inside that stone the kernel, from which the oil is pressed; the stone itself gives no oil. The kernels are what remains when peaches are processed to tinned fruit and juice. The species name persica means Persian, because the Romans came to know the fruit through Persia, but the peach comes originally from China, and China grows by far the most peaches in the world today; the label says the oil is made there. Anyone who knows apricot kernel oil recognises peach kernel oil at once: as light, as thin, from the same family.
How the oil feels and smells
Light and thin, light yellow to golden yellow, and quick to absorb without a greasy layer or much shine. It smells faint and slightly of almond, like most oils from the kernel of a stone fruit, and that smell fades soon after applying; the smell of a peach sits in the flesh and the skin of the fruit, not in the kernel. That lightness is the reason it is bought first of all for the face and for the skin around the eyes.
Why it stays a cosmetic oil
Peach kernels contain, like apricot kernels and bitter almonds, amygdalin, a substance from which hydrogen cyanide can be released in the body; that is why you never crack a peach stone to get at the kernel. The same substance is, after breakdown, the source of the light almond smell of the oil. Whether and how much amygdalin ends up in a pressed oil we cannot say without an analysis certificate, and that is exactly why this peach kernel oil is a cosmetic oil: external use only, not to be swallowed, not for the kitchen. The label says the same in the words cosmetic peach kernel oil, use: hair and skin.
On the face
Cleanse the face and leave the skin lightly damp. Put two to three drops of peach kernel oil in the palm, rub the hands together so the oil warms, and press it onto cheeks, forehead and neck with flat hands; rubbing is not needed. Wait a minute and then apply your day cream or make-up, or leave the oil on as the last step in the evening. Because the oil is thin and leaves little shine, it suits the daytime. More drops do not make the skin softer, only greasier. The first time, use one drop on one cheek and look at the skin the next day. Other oils for the face are in the face oils collection.
Around the eyes
One drop of peach kernel oil is enough for both eyes. Spread it over the tips of your ring fingers and tap it in gently along the bone under the eye and under the brow, not on the moving eyelid and not up to the lashes, because oil creeps into the eye from there. The oil is light enough not to feel heavy there, which is why people choose it for this. Do it in the evening, so no oil sits under make-up in the daytime. If oil does get into the eye, rinse with lukewarm water.
On the body, for massage and as a carrier oil
On the body use about a teaspoon, 5 ml, per arm or leg, on lightly damp skin straight after showering; the oil absorbs fast and does not leave the skin shining. For a short massage of hands, feet, neck or shoulders it glides softly and does not stick; for a long massage of the whole body, sweet almond oil is the cheaper choice, because it glides longer and costs less per millilitre.
As a carrier oil, an essential oil never goes on the skin neat: at most two to three drops of essential oil per tablespoon of peach kernel oil, half that for the face, mixed in a dark bottle with the ratio and date on it and used within six months. The oil itself smells faint, so it hardly gets in the way of a scent. Essential oils are in the essential oils collection.
On the hair
In the hair, peach kernel oil goes only on the ends: one or two drops rubbed between the palms and smoothed over the dry ends, not on the roots, because even a light oil weighs fine hair down. As a pre-wash treatment you can spread a teaspoon over the lengths, leave it half an hour and then wash as usual. Because the oil is thin and absorbs fast, it is less visible in the hair than a thicker oil; anyone who wants to leave an oil in overnight picks a fuller one from the hair oils collection.
Peach, apricot and sweet almond: three oils from one genus
Peach, apricot and almond all belong to the genus Prunus, and the oils from their kernels resemble each other in colour and feel. Sweet almond oil is the best known and the fullest of the three: it glides long, which makes it the classic massage oil. Apricot kernel oil and peach kernel oil are both thinner and absorb sooner; in feel they are nearly impossible to tell apart on the skin, and anyone who uses one can use the other the same way. Cherry kernel oil is the fourth of the genus and the only one with a clear smell of its own, of marzipan. Anyone who wants an oil without this family relation picks jojoba oil.
How much you use and which bottle to choose
Face: once or twice a day, two to three drops. Three drops is about 0.15 ml, so a 30 ml bottle gives about two hundred applications: more than six months at once a day, more than three at twice a day. Around the eyes: one drop a time, so six hundred times from 30 ml. Body: a teaspoon of about 5 ml per arm or leg, so twenty times from 100 ml. Carrier oil: a tablespoon of 15 ml per blend. Hair ends: one or two drops a time, which you hardly notice on the bottle. For the face and the eyes, 30 ml lasts for months; for the body or as a carrier oil, 100 ml is cheaper per millilitre. Both bottles hold the same oil, in dark glass with a pipette.
How to store it
Cool, dark and tightly closed, preferably not in the bathroom, and finish an opened bottle within a year, because the label gives no shelf life. The smell should be faint and slightly of almond; if the oil smells sharp or rancid, do not use it any more.
What to watch out for
External use only: this is a cosmetic oil, so do not swallow it and do not use it in the kitchen, and that applies to this oil in particular because peach kernels contain amygdalin. The peach is related to the almond, an allergen, and a peach allergy exists on its own: anyone who reacts to peach, nuts or stone fruit tests first and asks a doctor when in doubt; the peach is not on the European list of fourteen allergens, but that is not a promise. Apply one drop to the inside of the wrist first and wait a day. Avoid contact with the eyes and rinse with lukewarm water. Keep out of reach of children. Other single-ingredient oils are in the pure oils collection.
Frequently asked questions
Is peach kernel oil the same as peach oil?
In practice yes: the flesh of a peach gives no oil, so what is sold as peach oil is the oil from the kernel.
Can I use it around the eyes?
Yes, one drop for both eyes, tapped in along the bone under the eye, not on the lid and not up to the lashes.
What is the difference with apricot kernel oil?
Hardly any in use: both are light and thin, from the same genus. The difference is the fruit and the price.
Can I swallow it?
No. It is a cosmetic oil, and peach kernels contain amygdalin.
