Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) is a plant whose berries and oil are used in supplements; the oil contains omega-3 and omega-6 fats and antioxidants. It has been studied for cholesterol and other metabolic syndrome factors and for dry eyes.
Also known as: Hippophae rhamnoides, sea buckthorn oil, seabuckthorn.
A 3-month dry eye trial used 2 g of sea buckthorn oil a day (Larmo 2010). These are study protocols, not a recommendation.
It is sold in the US as a dietary supplement. Under the 1994 dietary supplement law (DSHEA), FDA does not approve dietary supplements before they are marketed, and the maker, not FDA, is responsible for safety and labeling.
What studies show: a 2022 meta-analysis of 15 trials found that sea buckthorn lowered triglycerides, total and LDL cholesterol and raised HDL, but only in people with abnormal blood fats, and had no effect on blood sugar, blood pressure or BMI; the studies varied a lot (Geng 2022). In a placebo-controlled trial of 100 adults with dry eye symptoms, 2 g a day of sea buckthorn oil for 3 months through fall and winter limited the rise in tear saltiness (osmolarity) and eased redness or burning, with mixed results between analyses (Larmo 2010).
Safety: the sources here do not describe side effects or drug interactions.
We could not find a single published half-life or time to peak for sea buckthorn that applies to a supplement dose, so we do not list one. Plant and bee products are mixtures of many compounds, so no single figure would describe them.
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