Uses of Mink Oil

Many leather care products contain mink oil because it nourishes the leather, prevents cracking and makes it more supple. Mink oil contains palmitoleic acid, similar to human sebum, and it is found in some plants, such as macadamia nuts and sea buckthorn berries and seeds. Mink oil manufacturers harvest the fat layer found under the skin to create the oil.

Leather Care

• Owners of expensive leather goods often rub mink oil into the leather to preserve and waterproof it. Without the use of lubricating oils, the leather dries out and cracks. Mink oil works better than petroleum-based oils because it doesn't rise to the surface where it can be washed away or evaporated, according to Mermac, a manufacturer of mink oil products. When rubbed into leather shoes, baseball gloves and leather jackets, it can make the leather more pliable and softer so it molds to the body and stretches where needed.

  Mermac reports that mink oil restores the plasticizer in plastic items and can prevent them from cracking and breaking.

Cosmetics

• Hunters discovered that fat from minks made their hands softer and healthier. The cosmetics industry has rediscovered mink oil and includes it in a number of high-end products. Sun tan products and baby massage oils may contain mink oil, according to Imperial-Oel-Import, a German company that manufactures and sells mink oil to hair care, cosmetic and animal care manufacturers. The process used by Imperial-Oel-Import does not involve killing the minks. The abdominal fat deposits are extracted from live breeding minks.

  Body moisturizers also may contain mink oil. Emulan manufactures mink oil to treat dry, scaly skin. According to Emulan, mink oil remoisturizes skins and reduces moisture loss by trapping moisture in the base layers of skin. It reports that a medical study conducted by Dr. Richard K. Bernstein, M.D., and published in the September/October 1985 edition of "Diabetes Care" showed mink oil effectively treats the dry, cracked feet of diabetics. Acne, eczema, psoriasis and contact dermatitis also may improve when mink oil products are used.

Hair Care

• Some hair care products use mink oil because the palmitoleic acid moisturizes hair and makes it more manageable and tangle-free. It also may appear in some high-end conditioning shampoos. Hair care specialists claim the mink oil also conditions the scalp without clogging the pores, restores the natural oils to hair and strengthens the hair. Some manufacturers pair it with castor oil to treat and condition thick, wiry hair.

Pet Care

• Pet care products, such as shampoos and conditioners, may contain mink oil. The oil improves the health of pet fur much as it does when used in human hair care products.