essential oils

Essential Oils 101 Vol. 1 – What are Essential Oils?

Swathy · December 5, 2014 · 2 Comments

Since my love for Essential Oils is growing day by day, I thought I would do a series of posts on the topic starting from the very basics. Some of the things have already been covered in the previous essential oil posts. So, would you like to check out some of them?

Read:

Essential Oils and Plant Oils

How do Essential Oils affect our Health?

With their growing popularity, essential oils have become common household items now a days. And, with the entire world going natural, many are resorting to essential oils as the most preferred alternative medicine. Essential Oils usage is versatile. One can get rid of mosquitoes as easily as heal the burn on the skin with them. And, no more than a few drops are needed for it. Yes, pure essential oils are expensive but then they have longer shelf life.

What are Essential Oils?

An essential oil is an aromatic concentrated essence of a particular part of the plant like a bark of the stem or the flowers or the leaves or the root. The chemical composition of different essential oils depend on how and from where the essential oil was extracted. Different parts of the plant yields different compositions and, hence, different fragrances.

According to Dr. Brian Lawrence “for an essential oil to be a true essential oil, it must be isolated by physical means only. The physical methods used are distillation (steam, steam/water and water) or expression (also known as cold pressing, a unique feature for citrus peel oils). There is one other method of oil isolation specific to a very limited number of essential oil plants. This is a maceration/distillation. In the process, the plant material is macerated in warm water to release the enzyme-bound essential oil.”.[1]

Essential Oils 101 series at perfect skin care for you

The essential oils are for plants what blood is for human bodies. They can ward off the pests or the insects for protection, attract pollinators or prevent the growing of weeds or other plants to protect the parent plant [2].

Scientific Research on Essential Oils

Though there is not much scientific evidence on the effectiveness of the essential oils, various essential oils when studied in isolation have given assuring results. For example, Eucalyptus essential oil has been found to be a natural pesticide [3] and has been tested for antibacterial and antiviral activity against the pathogens in the respiratory tract [4].

Similarly, another study asserts that smelling lavender and rosemary helps in destroying free radicals in the body [5]. In another controlled single blind study, lavender has been found to have beneficial effect on insomnia and depression on women college students. Limonene, one of the nature’s most powerful cancer fighting constituents, has a ~97% of concentration in Orange Essential Oil [6].

These are just a few inconclusive studies. The research in essential oils is also limited because of the quality of the product. Each essential oil is different because every time it is produced, a plethora of factors affect the plant which in turn changes the composition of its constituents and, at the end, of the product itself. This is also the reason for lack of regulation and standardization of the quality of essential oil.

Hope you are interested in the series!! Do let me know you thoughts about it 🙂

References:

[1] Lawrence, B. (2000). Essential Oils: From Agriculture to Chemistry. NAHA’s World of Aromatherapy III Conference Proceedings, pp. 8–26.
[2] http://www.naha.org/explore-aromatherapy/about-aromatherapy/what-are-essential-oils/
[3] Batish, Daizy R. (2008). Eucalyptus Essential Oil as a natural pesticide. Forest and Ecology Management , Vol. 256, Issue 12, pp. 2166-2174.
[4] Cermilli, Claudio (2008). Effect of Eucalyptus Essential Oil on Respiratory Bacteria and Viruses. Current Microbiology, Volume 56, Issue 1, pp. 89-92.
[5] Atsumi T, Tonosaki K. Smelling lavender and rosemary increases free radical scavenging activity and decreases cortisol level in saliva. Psychiatry Res. 2007;150(1):89-96.
[6] Introduction to Essential Oil Basics – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h3B7RepW5E&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Tea Tree Oil for Lice and Dandruff {Hair Care}

Swathy · February 11, 2014 · Leave a Comment

A few days back I mentioned that my dandruff and hair loss both are in control or let me say less considerably. But, I forgot to mention about Tea Tree EO. Well, it works amazingly for scars and acne and other breakouts as reported by those who tried it so I thought I would give a try on the scalp.

Since tea tree oil is an antiseptic, it is able to fight the infections and the bacteria. And, thus, an amazing deterrent for lice and dandruff. Tea Tree EO can be applied directly on the skin as well which is why I use a couple of drops (2-5) on the scalp and the hair length.

The fragrance of the oil is enough to keep away the adult lice and kills the young lice when the eggs hatch. Also, it controls the oil production on the scalp and keeps it moisturized. Tea Tree Oil is best for oily scalp but dry scalp can also benefit from it. Mixing tea tree and lavender EO’s, both of which can be directly applied to skin, will help with hair growth and stimulate the blood circulation.

But, be cautious in the amount of EO’s used as they are ultimately pure essences and can cause irritation if used in excess. Also, people with eczema and psoriasis and such skin disorders should never apply any essential oil on the skin directly.

Have you use tea tree oil for hair problems?

Soulflower Grapeseed Oil {Product Review}

Swathy · January 22, 2014 · 4 Comments

I have been using this oil since quite long. Earlier I had been using it just for the hair as a leave-in serum but in December and Jan, I had been using it as a moisturizer as well. So, how did this work out?

Price : Rs 350 for 30ml

Availability : Amazon

Ok, let me first talk about the texture of this oil. Grapeseed is supposed to be one of the best oils for the oily skin because of its lightness. Thus, it works amazingly as a leave-in serum without weighing the hair down. I had also put couple of drops of rosemary essential oil into the oil.

Since my hair is dry in texture, I can say it worked fantastically for me and there were lesser hair splits than normal. Just a drop or two of the oil rubbed on the palm and finger tips helps control the dryness of the scalp and hair!! And, it also helps with controlling dandruff and stimulates hair growth which was my main motivation to buy it!!

Regarding how it works on skin, I used it in the months of winter so it was absorbed quickly into the skin. And, needless to say, it was quite non-greasy and it did keep my skin moisturized all the time. In the harsher winters, one might need a layer of another moisturizer to keep the skin from drying but for Hyderabad, this oil sufficed quite well.

Also, I have noticed now that I have stopped using the oil, my skin has become dull. I have not been using sunscreen since almost three months and this oil had protected my skin quite well against the sun damage. My skin was bright enough and did not look dry or aged. But, now it has started looking a bit like that and the lines under the eyes have deepened as well. So, yes, it does protect the skin pretty well.

Have you used this oil? Did you like it?