Patent Pick: Give Greasy Skin the Slip

Satureja montana is more than an attractive border plant for culinary herb gardens—L'Oréal has found it can give greasy skin the slip, as this patent application shows.

High-geraniol Satureja montana for greasy skin and related aesthetic defects
U.S. Patent Application 20160095812
Publication date: April 7, 2016
Assignee: L'Oréal

This invention relates to the use of a Satureja montana essential oil—in particular, Satureja montana L. ssp. variegata—containing 60% w/w or more of geraniol, and 5% w/w or more of trans-β-caryophyllene. 

According to the inventors, this extract can be used to treat and/or prevent greasy or greasy-prone skin and its associated aesthetic skin defects. The invention also relates to a composition including the oil; to a non-therapeutic treatment process for greasy skin; and also to said essential oil as a dermatological agent.