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Kernel, oil — Origin: Oceania, Polynesia, and Africa

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Calophyllum inophyllum

THE PACIFIC TREE

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Calophyllum inophyllum is a large tree from the Clusiaceae family with opulently green foliage, native to the coasts of East Africa, Southern India, and Australia. After the hundreds of clusters of flowers it carries have bloomed, its branches are covered in round, smooth, pea-green fruit, or drupes. Inside each of these, a kernel contains all the benefits of the tamanu, a sacred tree in Polynesia.

TEACHINGS FROM TIME IMMEMORIAL

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Also known as the “Alexandrian laurel,” the tamanu tree is planted within Polynesian places of worship, because of the traditional belief that gods like to come and rest in its cool shade. The tree’s ritual use was highly codified: its wood, for example, was used for the creation of tiki—anthropomorphic statues, statuettes or amulets. In the traditional pharmacopeia, it is considered a ra‘au tahiti—a medicine and a panacea. The leaves help cure skin conditions, while the blossoms (along with Tiaré flowers) are a constituent part of monoï. The juice from its fruit is prescribed as a cure for headaches, and Tahitian mothers have always cared for their babies by massaging them with tamanu oil. Western science is still investigating and uncovering the oil’s numerous and mysterious powers.

PREPARATION

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Once the ripe drupes have been harvested, the nuts are separated from the pulp and laid out to dry in the sun for several weeks. This drying treatment causes the oil concentration to rise. The nuts are then cold-pressed, releasing a yellow-green substance with an almost spicy scent. Those who have a taste for it find this aroma incomparably delicious.

THE BENEFITS

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Tamanu oil has a high concentration of linoleic acid—an omega-6—which acts as a protective agent for the skin, and vitamin E, which skillfully prevents cell oxidation. It’s exceptionally rich in oleic acid—omega-9—and in aminophylline, calaustraline, and inophyllolide, which help the scarring process of skin and heal small flesh wounds. As for the lauric acid, it fights inflammations and decongests the skin, while polyphenols enhance microcirculation.

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A FEW DROPS

This efficacious oil is imbued with so many benefits that it could become an everyday treatment and an essential addition to any beauty kit. Because of its potency, try one drop on the inside of your arm prior to use.

Gently dabbed under the eyes, it alleviates dark rings, bags and signs of fatigue; applied topically, it treats irritations as well as the skin’s driest areas; used as an ointment on the scalp it soothes irritations, and balances and reinforces the hair.