Never use essential oils in an undiluted form. Even though you might find some information online, or perhaps even read on the bottle of your essential oil that lavender oil and tea tree oil can be safely used on the skin without diluting, I highly do not recommend this. For people with sensitive skin this can cause actual burns which take several days to heal and leave ugly scars afterwards. Besides lavender and tea tree oil sandalwood, rose geranium and German chamomile are often considered to be safe when used undiluted.
Never use essential oils if you are pregnant or nursing without doing extensive research if a specific essential oil is safe for you and your baby. Also never use essential oils on toddlers and small children without the proper knowledge.
Essential oils are well absorbed by the skin, however they do not accumulate in the body.
Most essential oils are high in antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties.
Fragrance oils and essential oils are not the same thing. Even if the label says natural fragrance, this is something very different than an essential oil.
From the chemical point of view essential oils are not really oils.
Before using an essential oil for the first time, dilute it and do a small test on your arm to see if you are not allergic or is not skin not sensitive to a specific essential oil.
Essential oils usually have very long shelf lives (about 5 years) so you do not need to worry about not using them too quickly. Just make sure that your essential oil is always stored in a dark glass bottle and away from direct sunlight.
Not all essential oils are the same. Make sure you buy from a reliable source so that you are buying a pure and undiluted essential oil worth its price.
A 2% essential oil dilution is considered safe for topical use for adults.
Be cautious when using essential oils that result in photosensitivity. Bergamont essential oil is a powerful photosensitizer. It may cause skin irritations and even pigmentation of the skin when exposed to sunlight. Also other citrus oils (lime, lemon, bitter orange, and grapefruit) should be used with caution.
Some essential oils such as wintergreen, oregano, cinnamon, clove, thyme and pimento are known to be skin irritating.
Some essential oils can be toxic and therefor should always be used carefully.
Thank you SO MUCH, Anna! Especially for the one about the shelf life - I was just trying to do some research on that on Saturday ( while waiting in line in a grocery store;-) But of course didn't have time to come back to that, so I won't thank you enough for the great info;-)))
I'm unsure about the shelf life for essential oils, I read in a book that tea tree oil expires in 6 months. Also I heard that essential oils should be disposed after one year. Otherwise I agree so much with you about diluting essential oils. I hate it when blog say to apply the essential oil 'clean and without dilution' I made lotion bars and added to much lavender eo and I had an awful rash/burn on my skin for two whole days!
Hi, thank you for your comment! I wonder what book you read this in. Do you remember? I have always find information that EO have a shelf life of several years. I just checked the tea tree oil that I have in my bathroom and its expiration date is 06.2016 and I already bought it some time ago. So to the best of my knowledge EO do have a shelf life of several years.
Thanks for pointing out how important it is not to use diluted EO! I also had some really bad experience with lavender EO where it literally burned my skin in one place and left a scar for about a week. So definitely undiluted EO should be avoided!
Thank you SO MUCH, Anna! Especially for the one about the shelf life - I was just trying to do some research on that on Saturday ( while waiting in line in a grocery store;-) But of course didn't have time to come back to that, so I won't thank you enough for the great info;-)))
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy that you found my post useful Maria! :)
DeleteHi Anna, thanks for this post, I refer to it on my blog (http://curious-soapmaker.com/?p=2020)
ReplyDeleteThank you Evik for the link to your post :)
DeleteDo I still have to dilute the essential oil before I add it to a soap while soap making?
ReplyDeleteIt's necessary to dilute them if you are putting them directly onto your skin. But you do not need to do this when adding an essential oil to soap.
DeleteSweet, thank you for this informational post! :D
DeleteYou are very welcome!
DeleteI'm unsure about the shelf life for essential oils, I read in a book that tea tree oil expires in 6 months. Also I heard that essential oils should be disposed after one year. Otherwise I agree so much with you about diluting essential oils. I hate it when blog say to apply the essential oil 'clean and without dilution' I made lotion bars and added to much lavender eo and I had an awful rash/burn on my skin for two whole days!
ReplyDeleteHi, thank you for your comment! I wonder what book you read this in. Do you remember? I have always find information that EO have a shelf life of several years. I just checked the tea tree oil that I have in my bathroom and its expiration date is 06.2016 and I already bought it some time ago. So to the best of my knowledge EO do have a shelf life of several years.
DeleteThanks for pointing out how important it is not to use diluted EO! I also had some really bad experience with lavender EO where it literally burned my skin in one place and left a scar for about a week. So definitely undiluted EO should be avoided!