my guess is that it impedes sweating, and so increases the transfer of water to adsorbtion by skin cells? geoff -----Original Message----- From: T. Martin <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sunday, December 27, 1998 5:04 PM Subject: Re: [P-F] skin absorbables; factors beyond diet >>Snow Light, >>a more natural moisturizer would be organic oive oil.. > >The subject of moisturizing skin has always mystified me a >little. How could olive oil be a moisturizer? It doesn't contain >any water (moisture) that I'm aware of. It is more or less pure >fat with some phytochemicals and other trace substances >blended in. If you rub oil into your skin, won't it then repel >water? > >It seems to me that for smooth skin, a reasonable prescription >would be periodic exfoliation combined with a diet adequate >in water, vitamins/minerals, amino acids and EFAs. I haven't >yet encountered a convincing rationale for rubbing a substance >onto dead or dying skin cells, unless the goal is simply to provide >*temporary* smoothness or relief from roughness and itching. >