There is a lot of hype around essential oils these days. I personally have some concerns that I share with my colleague, Jennifer Steinbachs, ND. We are both members of the Indiana Chapter of the American Herbalists Guild and have been studying natural medicine for many years. I asked Jennifer to share her thoughts on the matter with you today. We would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below and don’t forget to share the post.

Essential oils are very concentrated extracts from whole plants or parts of plants (tree resins, flowering shrubs, peels of citrus fruits, seeds, grasses, etc.). Essential oils have only some of the actions of the whole plant and only contain the aromatic parts of plants, primarily terpenes and terpenoids. Plants have many other compounds that may be helpful in restoring health that cannot be found in essential oils.

 

In the case of rose essential oil, it takes approximately 50 roses to make a single drop of essential oil. Some estimates suggest that it can take 2,000 pounds of plant material from the cypress tree to get a single pound of the essential oil. In other words, essential oils require vast amounts of plant material to make just a small amount of the oil. In my mind, this is not environmentally sustainable for long term, frequent use.

 

Clearly, essential oils are highly concentrated products. In fact, one drop of peppermint essential oil is equivalent to 75 cups of peppermint tea. So, a single drop in a glass of water could be the equivalent of drinking many boxes of tea made from the same herb. We wouldn’t readily and knowingly do that, so why are some people so willing to drink several drops of essential oils?

 

I hear many clients’ frustrations about conventional medicine approaches using a drug to address this problem or that, without figuring out the underlying cause. Using essential oils (or any other plant product, really) to care for your symptoms really isn’t much different than taking a pain killer for a headache – those essential oils don’t get to the root cause of your complaints. To use any plant product effectively, one really should have a basic understanding of physiology and pathology. If someone suggests that you drink your essential oils, ask if that person is trained in physiology, biochemistry and pathology. Where did they learn their essential oil usage and, more importantly, essential oil safety? Did they learn everything from an essential oil distributor’s sales materials? Or did they study independent material from an aromatherapy expert?

 

There is big money to be made in essential oil sales if one is promoting frequent use. If you have a new unopened bottle of lavender essential oil in your home, you have access to approximately 300 drops of that essential oil. If you store it properly (in a cool, dark space), the bottle should have a shelf life of about 5 years (about 60 drops of essential oil per year). You could use that bottle for a lovely monthly lavender bath all year long (for 5 years!), or you could make four 1oz massage oil blends per year, for 5 years. On the other hand, if you’re putting 1 drop of essential oil in a glass of water, you could go through that bottle of lavender essential oil before the year is up.

 

Essential oils don’t mix in water — they need a dispersant. When using them in the bath, mix them in a dispersant first (e.g., a shot glass of milk or a few tablespoons of sea salt or epsom salt), so that the oil isn’t floating on the top of the water. If it floats, it could be quite irritating when you sit down. Similarly, when you add a drop of essential oil to a glass of water, that droplet doesn’t mingle with the water like a drop of an herbal tincture. The essential oil floats on top, then you take a big gulp. If you have mouth and throat irritation (and you’re drinking your essential oils frequently), it is entirely possible that these delicate tissues have been damaged by this concentrated plant oil; repeated use exacerbates the situation. After some time, other foods become problematic, stinging or burning in the mouth or throat. Keep this ingestion up long enough and you risk becoming sensitized to the chemical components in this essential oil – when you come into contact with ingredients that share one of those components you might break out in hives, or trigger a migraine.

 

So what to do instead? First, go see someone who can help you understand the root cause of your symptoms. Second, herbal tea and, with some guidance at first, herbal tinctures can be very effective at addressing those underlying health concerns. Why would you want to do all this research in your not-so-spare time? Seek out someone who has already done that work and who can be your guide in your wellness journey. Someone knowledgeable might even save you money from expensive essential oils that just end up sitting in your cupboard because you can no longer use them.

 

Jennifer Steinbachs, ND is a Certified Traditional Naturopath who helps fatigued people feel energetic and pain-free, using food, homeopathy, herbs, and integrative bodywork. With offices in Bloomington and Nashville, Indiana, you can reach her at http://naturopath.pro or by phone 812-266-0692.