Aromatherapy 101 (Guest Post!)

The following educational explanation of Aromatherapy was kindly submitted by a dear friend as a guest post. The author is a wife, mother of three darling children, and has her masters degree in Chemistry.  Please enjoy and we hope you can glean some helpful information for you and your family! Happy Healthing!

 
Aromatherapy is defined as “the skilled and controlled use of essential oils for physical and emotional health and well-being” (Valerie Gennari Cooksley “Aromatherapy: A Lifetime Guide to Healing with Essential Oils” pg. 3).

The Making of Essential Oils:

Essential oils are derived from various parts of plants. They are generally created by distilling (boiling) the parts of the plant that contain the oils, such as the leaves or flowers, in  water and capturing the vapor that results. This vapor is cooled and the oil is separated from the water layer. Some essential oils can simply be expressed, or squeezed, from the plant such as limonene from orange rinds. Cooksley explains that “plants contain from 0.01 to 10% essential oil content… the average amount found in most aromatic plants is about 1 to 2%” (pg. 5).

Essential Oil versus Tincture – Concentration is Key:

A tincture is made using a similar distillation process as an essential oil except that a solvent other than water is used to extract the oil. This causes the tincture to be less concentrated than an essential oil. To give you an idea of how concentrated an essential oil is Cooksley states that “one drop of essential equals about thirty cups of herbal tea” (pg. 4). Also, “sometimes these oils can be 75 to 100 times more concentrated than the fresh herb” (pg. 5).  

So Why Are Essential Oils So Expensive?:

The process of extracting a pure essential oil, free from any other solvents, is not very complicated. The reason that certain oils are more expensive than others has to do with how much plant material it takes to produce the oil. “Bulgarian Rose oil takes approximately four thousand pounds of hand-picked flower petals to make 1 pound of oil, making it one of the most expensive oils that can be purchased. In comparison, Lavender, French fine, yields one pound of essential oil from about one hundred pounds of plant material” (Cooksley, pg. 9).

Finding Pure Essential Oils Without Breaking the Bank:

Making sure you are getting a pure essential oil and not paying too much at the same time can be difficult. The only way to be sure that it is a pure oil is to have it tested by a big fancy machine called a gas chromatograph and have a chemist (that’s me!) verify that there are no impurities. Short of that, remember you want organic plant material that was raised without the use of pesticides. You want to make sure that the company is using water to extract and not another solvent. You also need to make sure that you are getting natural essential oils and not synthetic ones – chemists can mimic certain compounds, but creating a synthetic composition of compounds that truly mimics the natural substance is next to impossible (trust me!).  “If they are labeled ‘perfume’ essential oils, ‘fragrance’ or ‘potpourri’ essential oils, they are of synthetic composition” (Cooksley, pg. 9).

After looking through many companies, I settled on purchasing my first oils from an Oregon-based company called Mountain Rose Herbs (www.mountainroseherbs.com). They had the highest quality oils for very reasonable prices and they also sell a plethora of carrier oils, supplies such as vials, and other fun things such as teas and bulk spices.

Starter Essential Oils:

So now that you have decided to start a collection of essential oils, what ones do you purchase first? Cooksley recommends starting with a few common, affordable, and safe ones such as Lavender, Geranium, Peppermint, Lemon, Eucalyptus, Tea Tree, and Cedarwood. What oils you decide to purchase will be based on what you intend to use them for. Do you have an illness you are specifically treating? Do you want supplies for pregnancy or children? Are you simply using the oils to make bath products?

In my case, I was pregnant and had two little children at home so I was specifically looking for oils to assist in childbirth and with problems for tiny ones. I settled on purchasing 3 essential oils: Peppermint, Lavender, and Chamomile (Roman). I paid $13 for one ounce of peppermint, $10.25 for half an ounce of lavender, and $27.25 for 1/8 ounce of roman chamomile. I decide on sweet almond oil as a carrier oil for some of  the recipes and purchased 16 ounces for $9. I also purchased a few sizes of amber bottles for storage, droppers, and a 4 oz cobalt glass bottle with spray top. This put my total at around $75 for my starter kit (again, everything was purchased at www.mountainroseherbs.com).

Storing Your Oils:

Essential oils need to be protected from light. Storing them in an amber or cobalt colored bottled is essential. Light breaks down the compounds in the oils rendering them impotent. It is also essential that they be kept cool – at least room temperature. Some carrier oils keep longer if stored in the refrigerator, but your essential oils can be kept in a cool, dark cabinet or cupboard. Be sure you keep the lids screwed on tightly and do not use eye dropper lids with rubber bulbs to store your oils long term as the oils can break down the rubber. When your oil bottle gets below half full it is best to re-bottle as these oils are sensitive to oxidation when exposed to air. Cooksley states, “When these guidelines are kept and storage is ideal, you can expect most of your oils to last 2 to 5 years” (pg. 12).

How Are Essential Oils Absorbed by Your Body:

“Essential oils penetrate the body in two ways: through the nose and the skin” (Cooksley, pg. 12).

Through the nose, you are not actually absorbing most of the compound into your system. Instead, breathing in the oils stimulates your olfactory bulb and your brain to have specific reactions, such as the release of endorphins. The aromatic compounds in essential oils will also stick to the tiny olfactory hairs in your nose, which allows you to continually breath these healing compounds.

Absorption through your skin happens very easily through the pores and hairs on the surface of your skin. These oils are usually low in molecular weight and are easily excreted by your body. Cooksley says that “it takes anywhere from 15 minutes to 12 hours for these essences to be fully absorbed. It takes about 3 to 6 hours to expel or metabolize them in a normal healthy body, and up to 12 to 14 hours for an unhealthy, obese body” (pg. 15). Using carrier oils can increase the absorption rate as some vegetable oils are higher in weight and thus take a longer time to be absorbed by your skin.

Safety With Essential Oils:

There are certain oils that are not advised for personal use and are considered toxic, carcinogenic (cancer causing), cautionary (only use with professional help), phototoxic (increase the reaction of skin to sun), or dangerous to use during pregnancy. Here area few quick lists of oils to avoid for these situations (Cooksley, pg. 19-20).

Hazardous Oils:

Ajowan, Arnica, Bitter Almond, Boldo Leaf, Buchu, Calamus, Camphor (yellow or brown), Caraway, Cassia, Cinnamon, Clove, Elecampane Root, Horseradish, Jaborandi, Mugwort, Mutard, Parsley Seed, Pennyroyal, Peru Balsam, Rue, Sage, Santolina, Sassafras, Savin, Savory, Southernwood, Tansy, Thuja, Tonka bean, Wintergreen, Wormseed, and Woormwood.

Phototoxic Oils:

Angelica Root, all absolutes and concretes, Bergamot (expressed), Cumin, Ginger, Grapefruit, Lemon (expressed), Lemon Verbena, Lime (expressed), Mandrin, and Orange (expressed).

Avoid During Pregnancy Oils:

Aniseed, Armois, Basil, Birch, Cornmint, Fennel, Hyssop, Lavender stoechas, Lavender Cotton, Marjoram, Myrrh, Oregano, Pimenta racemosa, Plecanthrus, Star Anise, and Tarragon.

Please be sure and review the proper use of each essential oil before you use it. Be sure to research how you should dilute it, how it should be absorbed, what it treats, and what side effects it might have.  Cooksley’s book has many wonderful recipes as well detailed instructions on using oils the three main ways – in an aromatic bath, as an application to the skin, and as an inhalant therapy.