Replace mineral oil with _______ ?

[jtbuko]

We have already switched from baby oil to mineral oil for moisture in winter baths and for use in homemade wipes. We just ran out of mineral oil. Is there something more natural I should switch to next?

[rainbowmoon]

I like apricot oil for baby and jojoba/avacado for me. also olive oil if I don't have anything else. coconut oil is really great too! I don't use mineral oil because It's made from petroleum. I think anything you switch to will be better!

[mamangazelle]

I love coconut, olive and grapeseed oil.

[Rebecca]

Baby oil and Mineral oil are the same, are they not?

We use olive, grapeseed (less greasy for faces) or sweet almond oil for regular use, coconut or shea butter for heavy duty (like dry feet).

[Ruthla]

Baby oil is mineral oil with synthetic fragrance added. So switching from baby oil to mineral oil means getting rid of the synthetic fragrances- certainly a step towards being more natural.

[artemis33]

Jojoba oil if you want it liquid

Coconut oil if you want something to spread or rub on (it does get liquidy when it is hot out, but around here that isn't often!)

Apricot oil is another nice one

[jtbuko]

Thanks for all the helpful replies!

[jtbuko]

A follow up question - will switching to a more natural oil affect the shelf life of our wipes? Are some of the oils listed above better than others in this regard?

[jtbuko]

bump

[texaspeach]

I'm curious about a replacement for mineral for oiling wooden things in the kitchen. you're supposed to oil wooden spoons and cutting boards. I think olive oil would go rancid wouldn't it? any ideas?

[AngelBee]

We use olive oil for face washing and as bath oil.

Good question about the wood kitchen items. :

[AJP]

Coconut oil is good for wooden kitchen items. It's very stable and very safe. Get the food-grade kind, not the cosmetic-grade (which may have been extracted with solvents or have traces of chemicals from the processing). Most natural food stores have it. It's also wonderful for skin and for cooking.

[Robert Goodman]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

Baby oil is mineral oil with synthetic fragrance added. So switching from baby oil to mineral oil means getting rid of the synthetic fragrances- certainly a step towards being more natural.

What keeps it from being completely natural? MO is just oil from the ground, distilled.

[jtbuko]

Thanks all. I think I am going to buy grapeseed oil. Any more comments on oils?

[kalisis]

I believe your skin cannot absorb mineral oil - it really just acts as a protective layer, not letting anything in and keeping the skin from breathing. Here's a link

I thought this was a good article, too.

And here is EWG's report on it.

[momto l&a]

Originally Posted by texaspeach

I'm curious about a replacement for mineral for oiling wooden things in the kitchen. you're supposed to oil wooden spoons and cutting boards. I think olive oil would go rancid wouldn't it? any ideas?

castor oil is what I read was to be used for oiling wooden items.

[L&IsMama]

Originally Posted by texaspeach

. you're supposed to oil wooden spoons and cutting boards.

: I never knew this. Although I do not have many wooden kitchen utensils.

[L&IsMama]

Originally Posted by Robert Goodman

What keeps it from being completely natural? MO is just oil from the ground, distilled.

I think it is the ethical/environmental issues for some people, considering that it comes from petroleum. :

[Adasmommy]

Originally Posted by texaspeach

I'm curious about a replacement for mineral for oiling wooden things in the kitchen. you're supposed to oil wooden spoons and cutting boards. I think olive oil would go rancid wouldn't it? any ideas?

Walnut oil is awesome for oiling wood. We oiled our whole dining room with it (wooden floors, walls, and ceilings) instead of any other finish.

I use walnut oil on wooden surfaces (butcher block), utensils, and cutting boards too. No rancidity problem.

[Robert Goodman]

Originally Posted by L&IsMama

I think it is the ethical/environmental issues for some people, considering that it comes from petroleum. :

That's what "petroleum" means -- rock oil. Environmental issues I can understand -- presumably side effects from recovery of oil from the ground -- but ethical??

So what you really want are replacements that don't have as much in the way of environmental side effects in their prod'n as does recovery of mineral oil. That's going to be hard, because mineral oil is a small-demand byproduct of other products sought from petroleum. The lighter fractions are valuable for gasoline, the heavier ones for heating & diesel, and mineral oil is in the middle; it comes almost "for free" as the others are separated. Typically, however, it is purified further, and that adds some cost, but it doesn't seem to produce environmental side effects to a greater extent than the purif'n of animal & vegetable oils. The animal & vegetable oils are in some cases byproducts of food prod'n (which of course burns up some petroleum fuels), and in other cases are from crops raised primarily for that purpose.

Robert