How Healthy is Almond Oil?

Commonly used for its flavor (but also found in skincare and haircare), almond oil actually carries with it many nutrients that are great for your health!

First, What is Almond Oil?

Did you know that almonds come from trees? These medium-sized seeds are delicious, multi-purpose, and rich in healthy fats. They can be ground up into almond flour, eaten on their own as a snack, made into almond milk, and they can also be made into almond oil.

Almond oil comes in two types: refined and unrefined. Refined almond oil is made by putting almonds through high heat, along with a chemical process used to separate the fats from the seed. The heating process reduces the nutritional value of the almond oil itself, but it also gives the oil the ability to withstand much higher temperatures during cooking. 

But as we mentioned, the refining process involves chemicals and high heat, and it strips the almond oil of many of its beneficial nutrients. For this reason, we don’t recommend using almond oil for cooking, but we’re huge fans of using unrefined almond oil for cold uses! When it comes to higher heat cooking, opt for ghee, coconut oil, or pasture-raised animal fats.

Unrefined almond oil is made using a much more simple process — by pressing raw almonds! This helps maintain a lot of the nutritional value that almonds hold, which includes high amounts of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, plus the added bonus of vitamin E! How great is that?

But what are the health benefits of unrefined almond oil?

Great for Your Cholesterol

Since almond oil has a high amount of monounsaturated fats, it’s been shown to help increase the “good” cholesterol (HDL), and decrease the levels of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) in your body. This is great for preventing things like stroke, and decreasing the risk of heart disease.

In fact, according to one study, “a diet rich in almond oil significantly lowered both LDL and total cholesterol levels, while raising HDL cholesterol by 6%.”

Rich in Antioxidants

Because almond oil has so much vitamin E, it’s great at protecting your cells from harmful free radicals. Vitamin E has also been linked with a decreased risk of heart disease and cognitive decline.

Helps Manage Blood Sugar

As we’ve talked about before, healthy fats are great for helping manage and control blood sugar levels, effectively lowering blood sugar for people who have diabetes. 

What’s your favorite way to use almond oil? Let us know in the comments!