A decade or two ago, no one outside of those ‘weird New Agers’ had even heard of essential aromatherapy and its many benefits. But today, you can even find aromatherapy products in ‘establishment’ stores and offices. But make no mistake – reaping the benefits requires high quality aromatherapy oils, not the cheap kinds of junk you can find in tourist traps and roadside stands.
The two main reasons for this surge in popularity are:
1) Many studies showing the health benefits, such as relaxation and relief of stress …
2) Word of mouth …
After all, essential oils are non-invasive and can’t possibly do any hard unless the user is violently allergic to a particular scent or plant.
What Are Pure Essential Oils?
Essential oils are extracted from plants and all their various parts like seeds, bark, leaves, foots and petals. Some essential oils are extracted from fruit {orange and lemon oil, for example} and the process may include even the peelings, rosins and twigs.
Pure essential oil smells wonderful, but it is more than that – it is the essence of the plant, a concentrated source of whatever that plant can offer to the world. This is pretty remarkable, when you think about it. No actually, it’s INCREDIBLY remarkable that plants are so giving of themselves and their properties.
It’s important to understand that aromatherapy oils are not like most perfume, which is synthetically made. Yes, there are perfumes with natural oils but these are quite expensive. Likewise, there are synthetic essential oils but these will offer no healing and don’t even smell the same.
If You Want To Reap The Real Benefits Of Essential Aromatherapy, You Must Use PURE Essential Oils!
This means spending more money and there’s no way around it. However, pure oils vary greatly in price. Lemon oil, for instance, is vastly cheaper than rose oil because it takes a huge number of expensive roses to make genuine rose oil, while lemons are much cheaper and contain much more ‘juice’.
Since these oils are so concentrated, you don’t need to use much to get the benefits you are seeking, whether that’s a fragrant environment or stimulating your immune system.
One last point: organic essential oils are always preferable to those grown with pesticides and herbicides, naturally.
Essential aromatherapy can be extremely health-promoting and since they are so concentrated they are easily absorbed by the body. Pure essential oils help to cleanse the body and devastate germs. Just be cautious and test your aromatherapy oils on a tiny patch of the body before using them liberally.
SCOTT says
I am a huge fan and user of essential oils for mind/body/spirit rejuvenation. I agree that you must have pure 100% essential oils. A lot of the products out there are pathetic attempts to make money off of you and do not really provide any real benefits as they are not pure and not strong enough.
Prince says
I read how candles and fresheners like Glade are really harmful to us and the environment. I asked my sister (since we both live in apartments) how she keeps her place smelling great. She said she puts a large pot of water on the stove on a very low flame and puts in it, a citrus fruit, a tablespoon of cinnamon and nutmeg and the smell permeates the house. I tried it and added almond extract as well. It kept the smell of fish and fried foods at bay. My problem is when the alcohol in the extract was gone, so was that particular scent. I love the smell of almond extract and mixed with a lime is like no other smell on the market. I think that the essential oils would be better than extract and I will be trying that soon. Thanks for the article. Do you know where to buy the oils? I also give massages and I think instead of massage oils, the essential oils would make for a better total experience.
Mitali says
This is really a useful piece of information regarding essential oils. It will definitely help me differentiate between the fake and real ones! Good going!
Prince says
I make my own air freshener at home. My sister taught me that the ones we buy in the stores are harmful to us. She makes a pot of water, a citrus fruit and some cinnamon or nutmeg on the lowest flame and lets it simmer all day. It eliminates the fishy and other food smells that a small apartment can trap. I figure these essential oils will help because I use almond extract in my recipe but when the alcohol is gone so is the almond smell. Where can I buy these oils? I also give massages and I think these oils could replace the ones I currently use on my clients. Any help would be appreciated.
Angelav says
I like aromatherapy but have not tried essential oils. After reading your article I would definitley try them. Thanks for all the great information on them.