Essential Oils 101 {Guest Post}

I'm delighted to have a friend share today about essential oils.  I met here while living here in Alabama and am so glad I know her! We are a part of a "crunchy" group on FB, both want to homestead one day, and we enjoy all things healthy and "crunchy" like!  She is very knowledgeable on the subject of essential oils so who better than her to share with my readers on the subject.  Thanks Rachel for taking the time to teach us! 

Have you ever wondered if there was a more natural way to handle common health needs without the long-term damage to your body? There are actually LOTS! However, since this is just one article as a guest post for my dear modern hippie friend’s blog, I’m going to focus on an introduction to one of them, essential oils!

Ok, disclaimer time… The product statements in this article have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. dōTERRA essential wellness products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. (Gotta cover the backside, but in reality, if you feel the same way as I do, the lack of approval may just be the best reason to keep reading!)

Since everyone has a different level of understanding about oils, my intention is to give you the basics. Essential oils are volatile compounds found in nature. Volatile simply means that they evaporate or vaporize when exposed to the air. They are found in the seeds, roots, bark, leaves, flowers, and fruit of the plant. The oil is extracted from the plant material by either steam distillation or cold-pressing methods.

dōTERRA oils can be used 3 different ways; diffused aromatically, applied topically, or in many cases taken internally*. When diffusing, using an ultrasonic diffuser is ideal as it atomizes the oils into smaller particles that can stay in the air for up to 8 or 9 hours.  This is an especially helpful method when trying to affect the lungs, mood, or when trying to use with littles.

A few fun facts…

• The pores in your feet are the largest in your body, so oils applied topically on your feet absorb faster into your system. Oils applied to your feet will have spread within your blood stream in a matter of seconds, and throughout your body in a few minutes!

• Your nose is connected via the olfactory nerve to the amygdala portion of the brain, which is where the emotive mood center is. So when you smell a scent. The effect of that scent will reach your brain almost instantly! This can be a good, or not so good thing, but definitely interesting. It does make the aromatic use of oils very effective in helping to manage mood support.  There are studies that have shown that relating a smell to a memory will help burn the memory into the synapse in the brain, and that smelling the same scent will help with memory recollection. Pretty cool huh? There are several oils and blends that are designed with these functions in mind (pun totally intended ;-p) so that they can help when people are upset or stressed, and even help with depression.

• The science of reflexology (ok, look this one up, it is way cool!) combined with the usage of oils and massage allows profound effects on areas we can’t actually reach, like internal organs. Many people have found it helpful in treating things like hormonal balance, and organ detox.

Why dōTERRA? Because you often get exactly what you pay for!

This company is fairly new on the scene being only a bit over 4 years old. It is a fairly young company, but in those 4 short years it has easily risen to the top of the essential oil community. This is because of the quality standards the company has dubbed Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade or CPTG. This means that every liter goes through multiple tests and is independently tested to ensure that not only is it free from contaminants and 100% extracted oil from the correct plant, but also that it carries the constituents or properties necessary to make it safe for use, and more importantly, effective! This is sadly not a standard practice, and many companies use synthetics and fillers to increase profits, and decrease the costs to the consumer. 

While this is definitely nice for your wallet, it may not be as nice when you are trying to avoid those old chemical OTC remedies. Some oils, especially when combined with synthetics can be toxic, and have unfortunate side effects. You may have read of a study showing that Lavender and Melaleuca, AKA Tea Tree Oil were shown to cause breast tissue to develop in adolescent boys. These two oils can be some of the most effective oils for so many needs, but have gotten a bad reputation because of the synthetics that were often unknowingly used in place of the real deal! This is why with anything really it is so important to do research, check out the company, and strive to make the best choices possible.

The world of oils is a vast, exciting, and at times mysterious place full of adventure, and great discoveries! It is really hard to put all of the cool things I have learned in one post, but I would love to answer any questions you may have about what I have written here, or oils in general. Feel free to contact me at freebyhismercy@gmail.com. 

Rachel has a Facebook page, check it out here for more tips + facts on essential oils. For more information on doTERRA products, check out Rachel's website.   

*The oils that I have been talking about are dōTERRA products, and the recommendations made are based on their quality. Please do not use just any oil internally, especially if it is not labeled for dietary use!