A neem buying guide- A few pointers to help you find quality neem oil products
Looking for neem? Have you ever been searching for good quality neem products but did not know what to look for? Neem products are slowly becoming more widely available, but as of now are usually only found on the internet or in health food shoppes and specialty stores. Since these are hard to find items it is easy to grab the first thing you come across just because it says neem on it. So here are some tips that will help you make an informed decision before you stock up on the wrong stuff-
Know How The Neem Oil Was Removed From The Neem Seeds There are a couple of methods that are used to extract the oil from the neem tree seeds. As you may have guessed, not all extraction process were created equally. The method that produces the highest quality neem seed oil is called cold pressing. Cold pressed neem oil is the best, because most active compounds remain intact. Cold pressing is also the first and most accepted extracting process. It is done with a mechanical device that squeezes the oil from the dried seeds. Always try to get cold pressed neem oil where possible.
The next extraction technique uses superheated water and high pressure. Though this method retrieves a larger quantity of oil from the neem seeds than cold pressing, a lot of the active compounds in the neem oil can possibly be made useless by the exposure to high heat.
This next process is the most preferred one that most processors use because it gets the greatest quantity of neem oil. The method is called chemical solvent extraction, and in most cases hexane (also known as gasoline) is the chemical used. Even though this technique extracts just about all of the oil from the seeds, the harsh chemicals kill many of the active compounds in the neem oil. To add to this and the fact that the chemical being used is poisonous, it is preferable that you look for neem products that do not contain neem oil that was extracted using them.
Be Sure The Products Do Not Contain Additives Most cosmetics and bath/shower products today contain chemicals to "enhance" them, so to speak. But keep in mind that some of these additives are known to actually cause adverse side effects. Two of the most common compounds that may be in a lot of bath bath products are Lauryl Sulfates (SLS) and Parabens. SLS's are commonly used as foam enhancers, because they are not very costly and work particularly well. A lot of inexpensive neem oil and soap products use these additives too. However, these chemicals have proven to cause allergic reactions in some people. The US Food and Drug Administration asks developers of these products not to use them.
Parabens are common preservatives, and though there has been no scientific evidence that they are harmful, they are becoming more and more controversial. Some organizations feel they should be avoided for the sake of precaution.
Be Sure To Look For Certified Organic Ingredients Quite obviously, organic ingredients are better than non-organic ingredients. These are natural substances, and have not been exposed to man-made chemicals, synthetic fertilizers, plant growth regulators, pesticides or similar chemicals. Look for labels that list certified organic ingredients. If a vendor uses them, they will always state this (it's a selling point) on the label.