So what's the deal with Rosa Mosqueta, and why do we talk about it so much?
First for the basic stuff. Rosehip seed oil isn't made from rose petals or any other parts of the rose. It's literally the edible, wild fruit from the vine that grows before the roses bloom. Isn't that kind of gorgeous?
Rosehips grow on all bushes but the vitamin content differs from species to species and they look pretty different from each other. Some are teeny tiny and others are big and gorgeous. And boy are there a lot of rose species!
Second, what surprises many folks is that Rosa Mosqueta - Chilean Rosehip - is a completely different species than European rosehip, from the Rosa Canina bush, a much more common species that grows in yards and gardens everywhere. Chilean rosehip tends to be from the bush Rosa Rubiginosa.
Rosa Mosqueta/Rubiginosa usually has more vitamin content because Canina is usually bred for its flowers.
Chilean señoras have been using rosehip seed oil for centuries to heal their skin. Rosa Mosqueta oil comes from the seeds of a wild rose that grows in the Andes. Rich in vitamins A, C and E, rosehip oil was discovered by Araucanian Indigenous people for its regenerative properties.
The fact that it's wild makes this a major natural alternative to the typical rosehip, because it's not "grown" or even farmed. It's simply harvested wild in the Andes, wherever it is growing.
This is why folks in Latin America have been using rosa mosqueta for dark spots and manchase, for Hyperpigmentation and even for scarring, for many many years.
In 1974, a Chilean engineer named Carlos Amin “discovered” Rosehip oil through his work with pigs. While pigs have surprisingly soft and healthy skin, Carlos noticed his pigs had particularly luscious skin. Through analysis he discovered that the pigs were chomping on the fruit of Rosa Mosqueta plants!
Carlos and his team researched the properties of this plant and found that the oil was regenerating their skin tissue. Of course Carlos did not “discover” rosehip oil because Mapuche people and Chilean families had been using this for centuries. However, modern research has consistently backed up these findings, with multiple studies showing that the vitamins and fatty acids seem to regenerate cells, to help with collagen production, and to regulate moisture.
Growing up, señoras like my grandmothers and tias (aunts) swore by rosehip oil to treat skin wounds like small burns, discoloration, and chicken pox scars. It’s great for hair and nails. It helps minimize the appearance of stretch marks and fine lines. It also fights infections, stomach issues, and inflammatory diseases.
But its most popular use when I was a kid was for manchas, or what we now call hyperpigmentation. Daily application on dark patches evens skin tone over the course of several months. It has even been studied by Universities to treat eczema, neurodermatitis, and cheilitis, and the results have been extremely promising. This wild rose is truly a genius botanical.
This is why rosehip is being touted as a retinol alternative - or a bioretinol, which means a natural alternative to retinol, which is harsh on your skin.
Rosehip oil is soft, absorbs super well, and even feels like it adds a layer of protection once you apply it to your face. It feels like it instantly refreshes the skin in your problem areas, and after a couple of weeks you’ll feel a noticeable difference in your skin texture.
It’s the ultimate señora self-care because it gives you an incredibly soothing, nourishing feeling on your skin before you go to bed, and will put you right to sleep.
Try out our delicious wild harvested Rosa Mosqueta here.
References:
Mármol I, Sánchez-de-Diego C, Jiménez-Moreno N, Ancín-Azpilicueta C, Rodríguez-Yoldi MJ. Therapeutic Applications of Rose Hips from Different Rosa Species. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 May 25;18(6):1137. doi: 10.3390/ijms18061137. PMID: 28587101; PMCID: PMC5485961.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5485961/
Lin TK, Zhong L, Santiago JL. Anti-Inflammatory and Skin Barrier Repair Effects of Topical Application of Some Plant Oils. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Dec 27;19(1):70. doi: 10.3390/ijms19010070. PMID: 29280987; PMCID: PMC5796020.
