Baobab oil to reduce pigmentation spots?

Baobab: a lightening oil?

The baobab is an iconic African tree that yields an oil known for its skin-nourishing properties. It is also sometimes cited for its ability to brighten the complexion. Myth or reality? Read on to learn more.

Published on January 9, 2024, updated on January 28, 2026, by Marie, Scientific Editor — 6 min of reading

Does baobab oil possess any skin-lightening properties?

Baobab vegetable oil is a natural ingredient that has been used for its cosmetic and medicinal properties for several centuries. It appears on the INCI list of various skincare or haircare products under the name Adansonia Digitata Seed Oil and boasts numerous virtues: moisturising, nourishing, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory... It is also credited with a baobab oil also a skin-brightening effect on the skin. Several studies have investigated this potential capacity of Adansonia Digitata. Among these, two principal studies can be cited.

Focus on the study by LTEIF & al. (2016).

A preliminary study investigated the anti-tyrosinase activity of various plant extracts derived from species cultivated in Senegal, including Adansonia digitata. The aim was to assess, in vitro, the ability of these extracts to inhibit fungal tyrosinase, a commonly used model to screen for compounds capable of interfering with melanogenesis. The authors tested fifteen extracts obtained from different plant parts (pericarp or pulp and seeds for baobab), using several extraction solvents (methanol and 2-propanol) to compare their efficacy. This highlights the role of plant secondary metabolites, such as flavonoids and tannins, known to interact with tyrosinase.

The results show that 5% baobab extracts exhibit tyrosinase inhibitory activity, with variable efficacy depending on the part of the plant used and the extraction solvent.

Part of the plant extracted	Solvent used	Tyrosinase inhibition (%)
Epicarp	2-propanol	77%
Epicarp	Ethanol	88.5%
Pulp and seeds	2-propanol	91.2%
Pulp and seeds	Ethanol	74.2%

Anti-tyrosinase activity of baobab extracts expressed as percentage inhibition.

Source: LTEIF R. & al. Phytochemicals screening and anti-tyrosinase activity of Senegalese herbal extracts. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology (2016).

The authors emphasise that the choice of solvent strongly influences the nature and quantity of the bioactive compounds extracted, and thus the intensity of the observed enzymatic inhibition. These data confirm that baobab contains compounds capable of biochemically interacting with tyrosinase. However, this study remains limited to an enzymatic model in vitro. It therefore suggests a the theoretical lightening effect of baobab oil, but it does not prove it.

Focus on the study by LTEIF & al. (2019).

Another study examined the depigmenting potential of various plant extracts and oils, including oil derived from baobab seeds, in order to seek plant-based alternatives to depigmenting agents classic agents. The authors used a reconstructed pigmented human skin model, which replicates the interactions between keratinocytes and melanocytes. This model allows assessment not only of tyrosinase inhibition, the key enzyme in the melanogenesis, but also the overall effect on melanin production. The results show that baobab seed oil (8 µL) applied over six days induces a reduction in melanin production of approximately 20.6%, a value comparable to that obtained with 1 g/L kojic acid (24.58%), used here as a reference.

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20.6%

reduction in melanin production after using 8 µL of baobab oil for six days.

24.58%

reduction in melanin production after using 1 g/L of kojic acid for six days.

The authors attribute this effect to the richness of baobab oil in unsaturated fatty acids, particularly oleic acid and linoleic acid.

These lipids are indeed described as capable of interfering with melanogenesis through various mechanisms, by inhibiting tyrosinase activity and disrupting the transfer of melanosomes to keratinocytes. Nevertheless, it should be emphasised that these results were obtained in vitro, on a reconstructed skin model. Thus, while this study suggests a mechanistic skin-lightening potential of baobab oil, it does not allow a firm conclusion on a skin-lightening effect when applied topically.

These studies suggest that certain extracts and oils derived from baobab possess a potential inhibitory effect on melanogenesis in vitro, notably via an interaction with tyrosinase, but these results remain experimental and do not, at this stage, allow any conclusion regarding a lightening effect when applied in a cosmetic context.