Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil: Sesame Oil on the Label, SPF 1.7 in the Lab
Last updated November 2, 2026
Lowest of the seven pressed oils in its lab study — at SPF 1.7 it blocks under 45% of UVB.
Sesame oil, also called til, gingelly or benne oil, is pressed from the seeds of Sesamum indicum, one of the oldest oilseed crops. Scientific research indicates an SPF value of 1.7, the lowest of the fixed oils tested, providing virtually no UV protection despite its many other uses.
Names on Labels
- Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil is its INCI name, the one in the EU's CosIng ingredient database, defined as "the oil obtained from the seed of the Sesame, Sesamum indicum L., Pedaliaceae". Many labels add the common name, as the US INCI name recorded in CosIng does: Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil. CosIng lists its functions as emollient, skin conditioning, hair conditioning and fragrance.
- Til, gingelly, gingilli, benne, beniseed and benniseed are common names for the same plant, and teel oil for its oil.
- Unrefined, refined and toasted. Oil from unroasted seed is light yellow; oil from roasted (toasted) seed is brown to dark brown, the colour depending on the roasting temperature. Refined sesame oil has a higher smoke point (232°C against 177°C unrefined) because refining strips out vitamins and other protective plant compounds.
- Cropure Sesame is a trade name Croda has used for a high-purity cosmetic sesame oil. Its product page, live in February 2025 and since removed, listed the INCI name Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil and described a "nearly odourless, water-white emollient" for skin and hair care, available in Asia and North America. Croda describes its Cropure range as "high-purity natural triglycerides", purified by its proprietary UltimoPure process "without altering the fundamental profile of triglyceride".
Sources: EU CosIng database, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil; GBIF Backbone Taxonomy, Sesamum indicum (common names); Oboulbiga EB, et al. Physicochemical, potential nutritional, antioxidant and health properties of sesame seed oil: a review. Front Nutr. 2023;10:1127926 (PMC10292629); Croda Beauty, Cropure Range; Croda Beauty, Cropure Sesame product page (Wayback Machine, 17 February 2025).
Composition
Sesame seeds are about 50% oil, more than most other common oilseeds. Oleic and linoleic acid make up more than 80% of its fatty acids (one analysis found 38.84% oleic and 46.26% linoleic), and saturated fats less than 20%, mainly palmitic (7.9-12%) and stearic acid (4.8-6.1%). What sets it apart is its lignans: sesamin and sesamolin are the two main ones, with sesamol, alongside vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols). Their antioxidant properties may explain the oil's unusual stability. None of that adds up to sun protection, as the SPF result below shows.
Source: Oboulbiga EB, et al. Front Nutr. 2023;10:1127926.
Scientific Research on UV Protection
Kaur & Saraf Study (2010)
The SPF value of 1.771 for sesame oil was established in Kaur & Saraf's comprehensive study published in Pharmacognosy Research. This extremely low value indicates that sesame oil blocks less than 45% of UVB radiation, providing essentially no protection against sun damage.
Reference: Kaur CD, Saraf S. In vitro sun protection factor determination of herbal oils used in cosmetics. Pharmacognosy Research. 2010;2(1):22-25.
Negligible Photoprotective Properties
Despite sesame oil's reputation in traditional medicine, its SPF of 1.771 offers virtually no UV protection. This value is so low that unprotected skin would burn almost as quickly as with no oil application at all. The natural antioxidants that make sesame oil stable do not contribute to UV absorption or reflection.
On Skin and Hair: Tradition and Evidence
Plant oils such as coconut and sesame are commonly used for skin and hair care in India, and hibiscus is traditionally infused into them for hair. Abhyanga is the traditional Ayurvedic practice of anointing with herbal oils to maintain and promote health; the trial below used sesame oil, tila taila, for it. In cosmetics it is simply an emollient and skin and hair conditioner.
The clinical evidence for sesame oil on skin is a handful of small trials. In a 2026 open-label randomized trial (neither participants nor assessors were blinded), 42 male college students who did four weeks of daily abhyanga with sesame oil plus stretching gained more hamstring flexibility and stretch tolerance, and less stiffness, than those who only stretched. A 2024 meta-analysis of four randomized trials found that daily massage of the injured area with sesame oil, on top of standard care, reduced acute limb-trauma pain more than control treatments, but rated the evidence moderate, with only two studies of good methodological rigour. In a 2023 trial of 40 women having breast radiotherapy, those applying a sesame-oil ointment had milder radiation dermatitis in weeks four and five than the placebo group (grade 2 in 5% against 20% by week five); the authors call for larger studies. We found no clinical trial of sesame oil on hair, and none on overnight use on the face.
Sources: Palaniappan V, et al. Cultural competency in sustainable dermatology. Indian J Dermatol. 2026;71(5):392 (PMC13549694); John TJ, et al. Effect of Nitya-Abhyanga combined with stretching. Front Sports Act Living. 2026;8:1800782 (PMC13267105); Razani O, et al. Int Wound J. 2024;21(6):e14907 (PMC11143441); Moslemi D, et al. Asia Pac J Clin Oncol. 2023;19(6):747-751; EU CosIng database.
Sesame Allergy and Your Skin
On April 23, 2021 the FASTER Act made sesame the ninth major food allergen in the US, and since January 1, 2023 all FDA labelling and manufacturing requirements for major food allergens apply to it. That is a food law. On the skin side, allergic contact dermatitis from sesame oil is documented: in a 1975 study of 13 patients with contact allergy to sesame oil, patch tests were positive to its lignans (12 to sesamolin and sesamin, 8 to sesamol), and those lignans were present even in purified (pharmaceutical) sesame oil, not just crude oil. A 2008 case report describes contact dermatitis from the sesame oil in shi-un-ko, a topical Chinese medicine used in Japan. We did not find research on whether people with a sesame food allergy react to sesame oil on their skin.
US cosmetics sold at retail must list their ingredients, and the FDA's advice is to read that list and avoid ingredients you know or think you are allergic to; for sesame, look for Sesamum Indicum. If you have no known allergy, dermatologists recommend testing any new product on a small spot twice a day for seven to 10 days first.
Sources: FDA, Food Allergies; Neering H, et al. Allergens in sesame oil contact dermatitis. Acta Derm Venereol. 1975;55(1):31-34; Oiso N, et al. Contact Dermatitis. 2008;58(2):109; FDA, Allergens in Cosmetics; American Academy of Dermatology, How to test skin care products.
A Brief History
Sesame is one of the oldest oilseed crops. It was among the summer crops grown by the Indus Civilisation, whose urban phase ran from about 2600 to 1900 BC. Where it was first domesticated is still unresolved, because its wild ancestor has not been definitively identified. Finds of charred seed have supported domestication in northwestern South Asia during the Harappan civilisation, while a 2026 genomic study of 927 sesame lines from 14 regions supports East Africa as its centre of origin, with spread through the Middle East to South Asia, Southeast and East Asia, and then the rest of the world. The largest producers in 2020 were Sudan, Myanmar, Tanzania, India, Nigeria and China.
Sources: Petrie CA, Bates J. 'Multi-cropping', intercropping and adaptation to variable environments in Indus South Asia. J World Prehist. 2017;30:81 (PMC6991972), Table 1; Yang W, et al. Insights into the origin and local adaptation evolution of the cultivated sesame. Plant Biotechnol J. 2026;24(10):5372-5391 (PMC13398907); Oboulbiga et al. 2023.
Comparison and Recommendations
Sesame oil's SPF of 1.771 ranks it third from the bottom among the 16 oils Kaur & Saraf tested, above only tea tree (1.702) and rose (0.248) oils. This places it far below even other low-SPF oils like eucalyptus (2.625) and mustard seed (2.105). Its negligible UV protection makes it completely unsuitable for any sun protection purpose.
For Ayurvedic massage, we recommend Banyan Botanicals Organic Unrefined Sesame Oil, an unrefined sesame oil sold as a body and scalp massage oil and labelled for external use only. While excellent for massage, this oil provides no meaningful sun protection.
Our Verdict: 1/5
Sesame oil measured SPF 1.771 in Kaur & Saraf (2010), the lowest of the seven fixed oils tested, blocking less than 45% of UVB. It is valued for cooking, massage and Ayurvedic preparations, but provides no meaningful sun protection.
Pros
- Natural antioxidants sesamin and sesamolin give it exceptional oxidative stability
- Used, as tila taila, for abhyanga, the traditional Ayurvedic oil self-massage
- Commonly used for skin and hair care in India
Cons
- SPF 1.771 blocks less than 45% of UVB - essentially no protection against sun damage
- The lowest SPF of the seven fixed oils Kaur & Saraf (2010) tested
- Its antioxidants do not contribute to UV absorption or reflection
- Sesame is a major US food allergen, and skin (contact) allergy to the oil's own lignans is documented
Recommended: Banyan Botanicals Organic Unrefined Sesame Oil — for Ayurvedic massage, external use only — not a sunscreen
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil?
Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil is the INCI name for sesame seed oil as it appears on cosmetic ingredient labels, sometimes written with the common name added as Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil. The EU ingredient database lists it as an emollient and skin and hair conditioner. In SPF testing it measured just 1.771 - among the lowest of all oils - so it is in formulas as an emollient, not for sun protection.
What is another name for sesame oil?
Til oil (or teel oil), gingelly (or gingilli) oil, and benne or beniseed oil are all sesame oil. On a cosmetic label it is Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, and in Ayurveda it is tila taila.
What is Cropure Sesame?
A cosmetic-grade sesame oil from the ingredient maker Croda. Croda has listed Cropure Sesame under the INCI name Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, describing it as a "nearly odourless, water-white emollient" in its Cropure range of high-purity oils; that product page was live in February 2025 and has since been removed. On a finished product's label you would look for the INCI name.
Does sesame oil have SPF?
Barely. Sesame oil measured SPF 1.771 in Kaur & Saraf (2010), the lowest of the seven fixed oils in that study. It provides virtually no UV protection and should never be used as sunscreen.
Can sesame oil be used as sunscreen?
No. At SPF 1.771 it blocks less than 45% of UVB, so unprotected skin would burn almost as quickly as with no oil at all. Its antioxidants keep the oil stable but do not absorb or reflect UV.
What are the benefits of applying sesame oil on the body or face overnight?
It is an emollient, which is why it is in skin products. Beyond that, the human evidence is a few small trials: massage with sesame oil eased acute limb-injury pain in a pooled analysis of four trials (moderate-quality evidence), and in 40 women having breast radiotherapy it was followed by milder skin reactions than a placebo. No study we found tested overnight use on the face. Patch-test it first, and never count on it for sun protection.
Is sesame oil good for hair?
It is widely used that way: sesame and coconut oil are common skin and hair oils in India, and hibiscus is traditionally infused into them for hair care. The EU ingredient database lists hair conditioning among its functions. We found no clinical trial of sesame oil on hair, so claims about hair growth or greying are untested.
What are the benefits of a til oil massage?
In Ayurveda, oil massage is abhyanga, the practice of anointing with oils to maintain and promote health, and sesame oil (tila taila) is one oil used for it. In a 2026 open-label randomized trial of 42 college students, four weeks of daily self-massage with sesame oil plus stretching improved hamstring flexibility, stiffness and stretch tolerance more than stretching alone. It is one small trial, and neither participants nor assessors were blinded.
Can people with a sesame allergy use sesame oil on their skin?
Be cautious. Sesame became the ninth major food allergen in the US under the FASTER Act (effective January 2023), and skin allergy to sesame oil itself is documented: in 13 patients with contact allergy to it, the allergens were the oil's lignans, which were present in both crude and purified pharmaceutical sesame oil. Read cosmetic ingredient lists for Sesamum Indicum and ask your allergist.
Where does sesame oil come from?
From the seeds of Sesamum indicum, one of the oldest oilseed crops, which are about half oil. Sesame was among the summer crops of the Indus Civilisation, whose urban phase ran from about 2600 to 1900 BC. Where it was first domesticated is still debated; a 2026 genomic study of 927 sesame lines supports East Africa as its centre of origin.
What is sesame oil made of?
Mostly oleic and linoleic acid, which together make up more than 80% of its fatty acids, with palmitic (7.9-12%) and stearic acid (4.8-6.1%). It also carries the lignans sesamin, sesamolin and sesamol plus vitamin E, antioxidants that help explain its stability - but none of these give it meaningful UV protection.