# What is mineral oil? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 15, 2006, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467 "2006-11-15T00:23:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![copperwindow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@copperwindow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/copperwindow)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/1 "2006-11-15T00:23:00Z")
I justb bought a wooden cutting board and they recomended I wipe it with mineral oil, which I have no problem with, but I would like to know exactly what it is. How is mineral oil made? ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/2 "2006-11-15T00:45:04Z")
It’s a byproduct of the crude oil-to-gasoline refinery process. Because the gasoline industry is so enormous, a great deal of mineral oil byproduct is produced. Baby oil is the same thing, except a lighter weight and has fragrance added. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/3 "2006-11-15T01:09:35Z")
And they recommend it for seasoning cutting boards, salad bowls, and the like, because it won’t go rancid like vegetable oils. My mom told me that when she was a teenager, she and her friends used to make “diet mayonnaise” using mineral oil. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/4 "2006-11-15T01:49:06Z")
[QUOTE=freckafree] My mom told me that when she was a teenager, she and her friends used to make “diet mayonnaise” using mineral oil. :eek: [/QUOTE] Mmmm - now THAT’s good eatin’ :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Sonia\_Montdore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Sonia\_Montdore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sonia_Montdore)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/5 "2006-11-15T01:54:46Z")
I have a diet book that recommends cooking your meat in mineral oil because the oil passes through the body without adding any calories. I never tried it; it just seemed too weird. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/6 "2006-11-15T02:03:20Z")
We use it at the museum where I work to keep cast iron from rusting. After cleaning, apply a thin coat and then buff well. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/7 "2006-11-15T02:09:36Z")
[QUOTE=Sonia Montdore] I have a diet book that recommends cooking your meat in mineral oil because the oil passes through the body without adding any calories. I never tried it; it just seemed too weird. [/QUOTE] The good part is you’d never squeak again in your life. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/8 "2006-11-15T02:34:59Z")
[QUOTE=Sonia Montdore] I have a diet book that recommends cooking your meat in mineral oil because the oil passes through the body without adding any calories. I never tried it; it just seemed too weird. [/QUOTE] Ok, there’s a few smilies that apply here but is there any harm in doing this? Thinking about that mineral oil mayo is making me sick to my stomach. ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/9 "2006-11-15T02:56:50Z")
Mineral oil is made by refining crude oil > **[Mineral oil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral_oil)** > > Mineral oil is any of various colorless, odorless, light mixtures of higher alkanes from a mineral source, particularly a distillate of petroleum, as distinct from usually edible vegetable oils. > The name 'mineral oil' by itself is imprecise, having been used for many specific oils over the past few centuries. Other names, similarly imprecise, include 'white oil', 'paraffin oil', 'liquid paraffin' (a highly refined medical grade), paraffinum liquidum (Latin), and 'liquid petroleum'. > Most often... pretty much says it all. I could see that it would function as a diet food given that it has laxative properties. It is used as a base fluid for oil well drilling fluids and I can say that it generally has bad effects on elastomers and rubber material, exacerbated by temperature and pressure conditions. When people are exposed to mineral oil for extensive periods it can casue a rash and dermatitus, so I would recomend keeping it away from all mucous membranes and delicate areas. You may apply the above information to other applications of mineral oil as you see fit. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/10 "2006-11-15T03:04:58Z")
[QUOTE=copperwindow] I justb bought a wooden cutting board and they recomended I wipe it with mineral oil… [/QUOTE] No problem with that, but you might want to try walnut oil instead. It tends to cure (slowly), and so gives a more durable finish. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/11 "2006-11-15T03:17:35Z")
[QUOTE=Beware of Doug] The good part is you’d never squeak again in your life. :dubious: [/QUOTE] But you might splurt. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/57b2e6/32.png) [@Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Random)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/12 "2006-11-15T03:20:44Z")
I wonder what they use it for in prisons? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/13 "2006-11-15T03:31:42Z")
[QUOTE=freckafree] And they recommend it for seasoning cutting boards, salad bowls, and the like, because it won’t go rancid like vegetable oils. My mom told me that when she was a teenager, she and her friends used to make “diet mayonnaise” using mineral oil. :eek: [/QUOTE] So _that’s_ what they mean by “an edible oil product”. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/14 "2006-11-15T17:41:03Z")
[QUOTE=Joey P] But you might splurt. :eek: [/QUOTE] Yep. Constipation emancipation. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/15 "2006-11-15T22:42:35Z")
Yeah, I once read that mineral oil should be used on wooden cutting boards. I had always used olive oil for that, and it never got rancid. I went looking for mineral oil anyway. Gordon Food Service, where you buy a box of 100 chicken breasts and 50 pound bags of flour, didn’t have it. Neither did a big drug store. I got a tip that I could find it at a cake decorating supply store. Nope. I’m back to olive oil. In the early 1960s, my brother was on the swim team. He’d put a drop of mineral oil in each eye before going into the pool to ward off the chlorine redness. Back then, you could buy it in a drug store. ---
**Author:** ![Encinitas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Encinitas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Encinitas)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/16 "2006-11-15T22:51:19Z")
Butcher Block Oil can be purchased at most home centers (i.e. Home Depot, Lowe’s). It is found in the paint section near the linseed oil. ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2006, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/17 "2006-11-15T23:38:01Z")
You can still purchase mineral oil at any pharmacy. While just the thought of drinking oil makes me want to vomit, it’s used for … aggh… constipation relief. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2006, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/18 "2006-11-16T01:41:51Z")
So why is mineral oil clear and nearly odorless, while machine oil isn’t? Or for that matter, why is petroleum jelly so much cleaner than axle grease? ---
**Author:** ![copperwindow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@copperwindow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/copperwindow)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2006, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/19 "2006-11-16T07:52:15Z")
If crude oil and gasoline are so poisinous, why is mineral oil edible? ---
**Author:** ![GiantRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@GiantRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GiantRat)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2006, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467/20 "2006-11-17T02:50:36Z")
[QUOTE=Common Tater] You can still purchase mineral oil at any pharmacy. While just the thought of drinking oil makes me want to vomit, it’s used for .. aggh.. constipation relief. [/QUOTE] I’ve actually used it for just that reason; I was a wrestler back in the days when they actually encouraged “sucking” (or losing) weight; apparently that’s a lost art these days, and for some good reasons. I had one particularly bad experience with mineral oil: I was about three pounds overweight for a tournament and didn’t really have much more weight to spare on my body. But I knew that there’s always some excess in the ol’ colon, so I hit the milk of magnesia (MOM was always there to help) in conjunction with the mineral oil. Unfortunately, I think both hit a bit late - I ended up having to run for a few hours to make weight and then, just as my name was being called to go to the mat, I felt my insides wanting to get outside! I raced off the mat and just _barely_ made it before the referee declared me a no-show. Mineral oil and MOM - you’re the devil! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-mineral-oil/380467.md?page=2)