Summary
Dr. Marisol Teijeiro joins Felicia on the Hi Felicia Podcast to discuss castor oil as both a holistic health tool and a clean beauty staple. They bond over their shared Latina heritage and childhood memories of grandmothers using castor oil for tummy aches, connecting the ancient remedy to modern self-care practices. Marisol covers the importance of castor oil quality, sharing that she tested 13 brands on Amazon and found many were oxidized, rancid, or not even real castor oil. She explains that castor oil should always be extra virgin, hexane-free, pressed, and stored in glass because it will leach toxins from plastic containers. The oil's ricinoleic acid makes it the master carrier oil with superior absorption. The episode details Marisol's complete daily beauty ritual: morning dry brushing with castor oil followed by a shower, evening face wash with castor oil and a steamed cloth, castor oil eye serum with a beauty sleep eye mask for lashes, brows, and fine lines, weekly hair treatments with a hair wrap, and nightly liver pack. She clarifies the myth that castor oil grows hair, explaining it actually nourishes and hydrates the scalp and follicles, allowing hair to do its natural thing without breakage.
Key Points
- Testing 13 Amazon castor oil brands revealed many were oxidized, rancid, or not real castor oil; quality and third-party testing matter
- Castor oil should be extra virgin, hexane-free, pressed (cold or expeller), and always stored in glass, never plastic
- Castor oil does not grow hair; it deeply nourishes and hydrates the scalp and follicles, reducing breakage so hair can naturally thrive
- Use golden castor oil for skin, face, eyebrows, eyelashes, and lighter hair types; use black (burnt) castor oil for darker, kinky, curly, coily hair
- Less is more with castor oil for hair: a dime to quarter-sized amount is sufficient
- Evening beauty ritual: wash face with castor oil and steamed cloth, apply around eyes for fine lines and dark circles, use spoolie on brows and lashes
- Weekly hair wrap treatment acts like a heatless hot oil treatment, trapping body heat to enhance nourishment
- Castor oil on the belly button is a traditional soothing practice for digestive comfort
Key Moments
Testing 13 Amazon castor oil brands revealed alarming quality issues
Dr. Marisol tested 13 castor oil brands from Amazon and found many were oxidized, rancid, contained false label claims, or were not even castor oil at all, highlighting why quality sourcing matters.
"on the table. So many were oxidized. So many were rancid. So many weren't even castor oil. So many had false label claims. So you really need to know your manufacturer of castor oil. And especially because it is the most deeply hydrating, deeply hydrating and richly nourishing oil that exists. And that's why..."
Evening castor oil beauty ritual for face, eyes, and lashes
Marisol describes her nightly routine: wash face with castor oil and a steamed cloth, apply extra around eyes for fine lines and dark circles, then use a spoolie to apply to eyelashes and eyebrows before putting on a beauty sleep eye mask.
"I will take a steamed cloth. I'll steam my face. Then I'll take a dime-sized, quarter-sized amount of castor oil. And then I'll put it in my hands and I'll rub all of that on my face."
Golden vs black castor oil for different hair types
Marisol explains the distinction between golden and black castor oil: golden for skin and lighter hair types, black (which contains ash from burning) for darker skin tones and kinky, curly, coily hair types due to its slightly more alkaline nature.
"But this is also why you also want to make sure that castor oil is never sitting in plastic. Very, very key because oils in general should never be mixed with plastic because oils are how things get carried into our body from the outside world. And toxins are what's called as lipophilic. So they're actually oil-based toxins."
