Tips on How to Buy the Best Essential Oils

Essential oils are all the rage right now, and there are many to choose from. We wanted to make a simple guide on how to buy the right natural wound healing oil for therapeutic use (meaning to treat or prevent a condition). These are things to think about if you want to breathe it in, put it on your skin, or, in rare cases, put it in your body. If you buy cleaning products, which are a great use for essential oils, the rest isn't as important.

• Always learn about the plant part and how it was made. Sometimes, you can get more than one thing from the same plant. For example, cinnamon comes in two forms: the leaf and the bark. These will give your creation very different tastes and smells. In the same way, Citrus aurantium, also known as the bitter orange tree, can be used to make three different oils.
• At first, buy small amounts. One drop of pure inflammation reducing oils goes a long way, so a 1/2 oz. or 1 oz. bottle will last for a long time. Plus, essential oils can be expensive, so it's good to try out a few and see which ones you use the most before buying a lot of them.
• Amber bottles, which are made of dark glass, are the way to go. Keep your essential oils in a cool, dark cabinet away from heat and light.
• Don't store the bottle with the glass and rubber top together. Essential oils are very strong, and over time, they can break down the rubber. Take the glass dropper off and use the screw cap instead. The drop-by-drop reducers that come in small bottles are fine and don't need to be taken out.

Are Essential Oils Safe?

Well, it depends. We like to say, "Less is more, and be aware!"

These highly concentrated aromas get into our bodies through our noses and skin and go straight to our brains and bloodstreams. This means that the properties of the plant can change how we feel and how our bodies work. Excellent, right? Yes, but our liver and kidneys also have to get rid of toxins from essential oils, and some plant scents are hard to process. Even when used in larger amounts, "safe" essential oils can hurt children, the elderly, and people with liver or kidney problems, animals, and women who are pregnant. In these situations, we strongly suggest getting help from a trained medical professional. Before using an oil, you must find out everything you can about it to make sure it won't hurt your health.

Should I Use Essential Oils Internally?

So much bad information is out there about whether or not you can eat essential oils. We agree with the rest of the world's aromatherapy community that you should never take essential oils by mouth without the advice of a trained, certified medical professional. Essential oils can be very acidic, which means they can burn your skin and irritate the lining of your digestive tract.