Bio Gold — Skin Lipid Serum

EVERY INGREDIENT, EXPLAINED

What's in the bottle

• Golden Jojoba Oil (virgin, deodorized)Sebum-mimetic carrier

  INCI: Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil

  Virgin-pressed and deodorized — it keeps the phytosterols and tocopherols, without the nutty smell of the raw oil. Wax-ester structure is a close match to human sebum — the skin recognises this as 'skin lipid' rather than occluding against it. Jojoba is technically a liquid wax, not an oil, and its ~98% long-chain wax ester structure gives it a stability and skin-recognition profile nothing else in the kingdom matches.

• Olive SqualaneBio-identical skin lipid

  INCI: Squalane

  Bio-identical to the squalene your sebaceous glands already produce, olive squalane integrates into the skin's lipid film rather than sitting on top of it. It does not oxidise meaningfully at skin temperatures or under normal light exposure. Olive-derived rather than the sugarcane-fermented squalane most brands use. Chemically identical in the formula.

  Sourcing: Olive-derived.

• Meadowfoam Seed Oil (refined)Stability anchor

  INCI: Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil

  The most oxidatively stable botanical oil routinely available. Approximately 95% of its fatty-acid profile is long-chain (C20 and above), with unsaturations at the ∆5 position rather than the more common ∆9 or ∆12. That geometric detail is why meadowfoam resists oxidation not only by its own chemistry but extends the stability of other oils it is blended with. The reason Bio Gold does not go rancid.

• Prickly Pear Seed Oil (virgin, cold-pressed)Antioxidant concentrate

  INCI: Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil

  The most expensive oil in Bio Gold — a kilo of oil requires a tonne of fruit. It is included for two reasons: it is unusually rich in γ-tocopherol (about 150% the tocopherol content of argan oil, 403 mg/kg), and it carries a small linoleic acid fraction (~60%) offset by the tocopherol and phytosterol content that stabilises it. The ratio matters — prickly pear is oxidatively stable as delivered.

  Sourcing: Moroccan.

• MCT Oil (C8/C10)Base carrier oil

  INCI: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

  Fractionated medium-chain triglyceride — fast-absorbing, odourless, and exceptionally stable. Pulled from coconut, refined to isolate the C8 (caprylic) and C10 (capric) chains. Base oil of the formulation — its tactile smoothness and rapid absorption are why Bio Gold feels like a serum rather than an oil despite being entirely lipid-based.

  Sourcing: Coconut-derived.

• Sea Buckthorn CO₂ ExtractOmega-7 source

  INCI: Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract

  Our source of omega-7 palmitoleic acid — a fatty acid that also occurs naturally in human sebum, which is part of why it sits so easily on skin. Sea buckthorn is one of the few botanical sources rich enough in it to be worth using.

  CO₂-extracted rather than solvent- or hot-press-extracted, because heat and solvent strip out the carotenoids and phytosterols that give the extract its deep orange colour. It is the reason this oil is the colour it is.

  Sourcing: CO₂-extracted.

• Natural Bakuchiol (99%)Seed-extracted botanical active

  INCI: Bakuchiol (Psoralea Corylifolia)

  Bakuchiol is a meroterpene phenol from the seeds of Psoralea corylifolia. The grade in this bottle is 99% purity, extracted from the seed rather than synthesised.

  It is one of the more heavily studied botanical actives in the literature; Dhaliwal et al., British Journal of Dermatology, 2019, is the paper most often cited. We would rather point you at it than summarise it for you.

  It is not a retinoid, and it is not chemically related to one.

  Sourcing: 99% purity, seed-extracted.

• d-alpha TocopherolAntioxidant (vitamin E)

  INCI: Tocopherol

  Natural vitamin E (d-alpha is the naturally occurring stereoisomer, as opposed to the synthetic dl-alpha). Protects the formula's oxidative stability in the bottle and contributes its own antioxidant behaviour on the skin. Works in combination with the tocopherol fraction of prickly pear to give Bio Gold a multi-pathway antioxidant profile without synthetic preservatives.

  Sourcing: Natural d-alpha, not synthetic dl-alpha.

• Bergamot Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil

  Steam-distilled from the fruit of the bergamot orange, Citrus bergamia. Bright, sharp citrus — the smell in Earl Grey tea, which is black tea scented with the same oil.

• Geranium Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil

  Steam-distilled from the flowers of Pelargonium graveolens. Rose-like, but greener and drier than rose — the shape of the scent without the sweetness.

• Rosemary Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil

  Steam-distilled from rosemary leaf. Herbaceous and clean — the kitchen-herb smell rather than a perfume note.