Essential Oil Basics for Beginners
What Are Essential Oils?
Essential oils are highly concentrated plant extracts capturing the "essence" or aromatic compounds of a plant. The term essential comes from the idea of carrying the plant's quintessence. These oils are produced in special structures within a plant, such as glands or resin ducts, with their type and location varying by species. Why plants create these oils is a fascinating topic of its own, tied to their survival and reproduction.
Essential oils are made by distilling volatile compounds from aromatic plants, resulting in a potent product. It’s important to distinguish these from herb-infused oils, which are created by soaking herbs in carrier oils like olive or coconut oil. While different, the two can work together harmoniously to enhance their effects.
A Rich History
The use of aromatic plants and their oils dates back millennia. Historical texts, including the Bible, reference plants like frankincense, myrrh, and cedarwood. However, it’s unclear if these were used as distilled essential oils, incense, or infusions. Distillation methods have evolved, but the tradition of using aromatic plants has an undeniable place in human history.
How Essential Oils Work
When diffused, essential oils release particles that interact with your olfactory bulb, part of the brain’s limbic system—key to emotions and memories. This is why essential oils can influence mood and well-being even without conscious recognition of their scent.
Tips for Getting Started with Essential Oils
Tip #1 - Less is more
The really neat thing about essential oils is that you do not need much; a little goes a long way. When you think about the fact that it takes 30-50 roses to make a single drop of rose otto essential oil, that drives home the point about how concentrated these oils are. There will be times when one drop will be enough to have the desired effect, most especially with topical use. When using a diffuser, please read the manufacturer's recommendations for the maximum drops that can be used, but do not feel that you always need to use the max; play around with using just a few drops and see how that works before using more. When you are shopping for a 5mL bottle of essential oil and you find yourself in sticker shock, please remember that there are roughly 20 drops per mL, so you have about 100 drops in that 5mL bottle, so it can last quite a while when you practice the "less is more" method.
Tip #2 - Always dilute your essential oils for topical use
Using essential oils undiluted (neat) can irritate the skin. A general guideline is a 1% dilution—1 drop of essential oil per 5mL (1 teaspoon) of carrier oil. Popular carriers include olive, jojoba, and sweet almond oils, each with unique benefits. Diluting ensures safe application and enhances the oil's effectiveness. Here is a quick reference for dilutions.
Tip #3 - How to pick a carrier oil
A carrier oil is the base oil (the vehicle) for topical use, whether you are diluting essential oils or creating an herbal infusion. Carrier oils can be nut and seed oils such as avocado, olive, and almond, or from animal sources, such as lard and tallow. Each carrier oil has its own qualities and benefits. Feel free to use an herb-infused oil, such as calendula-infused or trauma oil as your carrier oil topical use of essential oils for extra effect. For more information on carrier oils, check out this blog.
Tip #4 - Topical use
Remember to dilute first before using topically. There are a variety of ways to use topically: massage oil, salves, balms, lotion, bath salts, and soap. When using the essential oil in a carrier oil, you can use a roller bottle to make application easier and portable. If you have an unscented lotion, you can add essential oils to that to create your own scented lotion (be sure that you blend/mix well). You can make your own soaps at home and can add essential oils at the end of the process to bring a special aromatic touch to your cleanliness. When mixing essential oils with bath salt, it is a good idea to first add the essential oil to a small amount of carrier oil or liquid Castile soap to disperse the essential oil safely in the water. My favorite topical use of essential oils is in salves.
Tip #5 - Internal use
Avoid using essential oils internally unless guided by a trained professional. Inhalers, however, are a safe way to enjoy the oils' benefits without direct ingestion.
How to Find Quality Essential OilsLook for reputable suppliers that:
Transparently detail their sourcing and production.
Provide GC-MS reports (quality and purity analyses).
Use clear labeling with both common and Latin names.
Avoid requiring membership or upselling schemes.
Learn More
Explore courses like Aromahead's Aromatherapy 101 for in-depth learning. For quick reference guides, I have a variety on the forum page.
Comments