Essential Oils & Hydrosols, 101

This post is extensive, and you may find these links useful to jump ahead to specific parts of this post.

• What is special about these aromatic remedies?
• What are essential oils and hydrosols?
• Preciousness of essential oils and hydrosols
• Why work with essential oils?
• The power of essential oil qualities
• Why less is more with essential oils
• Aromatic remedies and consumerism
• Hydrosols: gentle resources
• Safety & therapeutic notes for aromatic resources
• Is it safe?– Going beyond this question
• General safety notes for essential oils and hydrosols
• Safety notes for inhalation and diffusion of essential oils
• Safety notes for topical applications
• Safety notes for babies and children
• Safety notes for pregnancy and lactation
• Safety notes for pets

 

 

What is special about these aromatic remedies?

 

 

 

I teach people who are looking to improve their sleep and self care to work with a variety of botanical resources, including essential oils and hydrosols, because these aromatic resources can offer expedient help for a range of care needs and can be grounding, relaxing, and aromatically pleasureful while providing intriguing and personalized responses.

I think of essential oils as potent and use them when potency is called for. This means not every day!

 

What are essential oils and hydrosols?

 

 

Essential oils are concentrated volatile aromatic compounds that are often distilled from a large quantity of plant material. The volatile aromatic compounds are extracted out of plant material with steam. The steam condenses and accumulates in a collecting container. Since essential oils are light, they float to the top.

The water remaining below the distillation process for essential oils is a hydrosol. It’s a byproduct of distilling essential oils. While essential oils are extremely concentrated, hydrosols are very dilute.

Essential oils can also be extracted from plant material through various processes including cold press, solvent extraction, macertation, CO2 extraction, enfleurage, or water distillation. The method of extraction is usually chosen based on the plant material to render the highest quality.

Citrus peals, leaves, roots and barks are examples of plant material types that offer essential oils. Consider how they are structurally very different. Their structural differences mean specific extraction methods are best for the highest quality essential oils.

 

 

Preciousness of Essential Oils & Hydrosols

 

 

Although I don’t want to be too precious about many things, essential oils, and hydrosols are simply precious!

• These aromatic resources can only be sourced from about ten percent of plants.
• Essential oils require a massive amount of plant material to produce.
• Hydrosols exist because they are byproducts of essential oils.

So, if we care about conservation, we don’t want to overuse them!

 

 

Essential oils are also precious because they are part of plants’ immune systems. For example, they assist plants in attracting pollinators and making themselves offputting to predators.

I like knowing these facts because they enhance our understanding of why essential oils are therapeutic. Humans, like plants, need to adapt to our environment and utilize mechanisms to provide what our systems need.

 

 

 

 

Why work with essential oils guidelines to avoid overuse

 

I could simply write this as a list of reasons. And I have one below. But I want to encourage you to think of these ideas so that you can come up with your own guidelines. I teach about specific scenarios for essential oil use to help people learn about therapeutic aims and avoid overuse.

But then there are always reasons to break out of the usual reasons for something! Essential oils present a plethora of such reasons. It’s important to raise awareness that some essential oils come from overharvested plants, and some essential oil companies encourage people to use them in risky ways.

Essential oils look deceiving in their miniature bottles! They are distilled from a massive amount of bark, pine needles, flowers, leaves, stems, or roots.

Some reasons (but not all) to choose essential oils are:

• when the nervous system needs immediate calming
• there’s potential for an infection and that’s what’s available
• when traveling or on a hike or somewhere with limited resources
• during times of grief or acute emotional distress
• on special occasions with intentions to honor
• in preparing for transitions (life transitions or transitions during your daily activities)
• to assist with physical pain
• when there’s a need to comfort hard or stressful experiences
• to cleanse the air when someone is ill (some essential oils are antimicrobial)
• when it’s difficult to sleep

While many botanical remedies and other sources of support could be fitting for the above reasons, choosing essential oils in limited circumstances avoids excess or wastefulness.

Essential oils are powerful for the following qualities:

 

Therapeutic and Other Qualities of essential oils:

• Quickness of affecting the limbic system to calm you
• Capacity to relax muscles and ease pain
• Help to open up airways and ease breathing
• Support focus
• Tend to grief, a broken heart & sadness, and other acute emotional states
• Create an ambiance that matches a variety of intentions, such as a:
  • sensual atmosphere
  • buoyant mood enhancer, or
  • grounded space for pondering, relaxing, or meditating.

 

 

Imagine how essential oils may be supportive in caring for yourself and your sleep!

 

Less honors their power. (Why less is more)

I think about essential oils as dosed drop by drop.

Aside from the caveats below, I mainly choose essential oils when there is something special, acute, or out of the ordinary going on. Most of the time, I try to work with another remedy that may offer similar benefits but requires fewer botanical resources. Infrequent use just feels nice. It honors essential oil potency and the extensive labor and plant material required to produce them.

Aromatic Remedies & Consumerism

While I feel quite passionate about aromatic remedies because they are sensual and provocative, I also want to hone a conscientiousness that defies unfortunate consumerism, which can be hard to avoid.

Most of us are used to buying things rather than sourcing resources. The difference lies in mindset, intention, and impact. We can buy and accumulate with little thought, but when we source, we try to acquire with thought.

We can source resources with an awareness that they’re resources and consider where the resources come from, the labor involved, and the impacts on the natural world if we over-source.

There can be an absentminded push to overuse essential oils. Examples of excessive use would be putting essential oils in cleaners and body products and indiscriminately gifting them, perhaps to people who won’t know how to use them.

Yet I have used essential oils to clean, enhanced some of my body care with them and absolutely love offering aromatic gifts, but I don’t do it without discernment! I amp up aromatherapy when there’s something happening that can be quelled by them and gift to folx who I know have aromatic affinities.

If an essential oil or hydrosol is about to turn, I’d also be creative or more free in their use. These are times that may be the case:

• You’ve had the essential oil for 1 or more years (see general safety notes below)
• Your essential oil or hydrosol was accidentally exposed to direct light or heat or left uncapped for some time, reducing its shelf life.
• You’ve had a hydrosol for close to 8 months (approximate shelf life, which may be longer if stored in the fridge and depending on how long ago it was bottled)

Hydrosols are gentle, gentle resources.

Yes, I wrote gentle twice! I want you to know they are diluted to a high degree, meaning they are very safe when used externally. I use them in spray bottles to spray on myself (or a delighted child ), into the air, or around my sleep area. Also, sometimes I add them to lotions or baths. They may support sleep by:

•  Easing the heat of hot flashes or intensity of summer temperatures
•  Promoting relaxation
•  Freshening up your bedding
•  Offering a mild remedy for children who need care to relax and rest
•  Providing a soothing remedy for minor skin irritation

So when heat, fussiness, skin discomforts, or a need to refresh your atmosphere keeps you from resting, consider hydrosols as potential support!

Or when a safety consideration rules out an essential oil, hydrosols may be your friend!

 

 

Safety & Therapeutic Notes for Aromatic Remedies *

(Please read the disclosure at the bottom of this post)

If you choose to use essential oils, they have some safety considerations. Although I’m offering you a thorough base of knowledge about what to consider to obtain therapeutic benefits while minimizing risks of unfavorable outcomes, only so much can come from a blog post!

To avoid all potential harm from these precious resources, a nuanced thought process in real-life is important. So consult with a practitioner, and check out books and other resources as you learn.

 

Is this safe?– Going Beyond the Question

While there are many safety considerations for aromatherapy applications, attaining therapeutic significance with essential oils can happen without adverse effects. Especially when you know how to minimize risks, there are a range of ways you can work with essential oils and hydrosols with confidence in gaining a therapeutic results and avoiding hazards. Often, this involves thinking through details.

If we take safety topics away from black-and-white thinking and into expansiveness, something more fortified emerges.

If we simply ask, is it safe?, we may miss the mark on discovering therapeutic resources and having experiences of pleasure and awe that botanical remedies make possible.

Perhaps a more multifaceted and fruitful question is, what are the potential qualities of this remedy and possible negative outcomes to be aware of? 

Sometimes, people seek direct advice from an authority or in research. While it’s certainly true that consulting knowledgeable people and resources can be informative and useful, it’s also true that this is never the entire picture.

Research has to rule out certain factors to control study conditions, and authorities are often tasked with the responsibility of making broad recommendations for a spectrum of people and circumstances. So, neither can account for all the factors that might be needed individually.

Additionally, research and institutions most often lack the wisdom from practices and traditions with thousands of years of history, observation, and thought behind them.

I do consult recommendations from people who have training and research, but I also recognize that sometimes caution can be taken too far. In this case, a person may rule out working with a remedy that, if used diligently, is unlikely to cause harm, missing a potential therapeutic outcome.

Similarly, sometimes experimentation can lack some guardrails and whoa— that’s not wise either!

Please understand this as one potential starting point for working safely with aromatic remedies. There’s so much to learn about working with them conscientiously for therapeutic and enjoyment purposes. Please do your own further investigation.

 

General Safety Notes for Essential Oils & Hydrosols

• If you have allergies, take medications, or have health conditions, research safety guidelines and potential interactions before using any essential oil or hydrosol
  • The internet isn’t the place I’d recommend because it’s difficult to vet sites and info when you’re getting started.
  • Alternatively, look for learning resources that teach methods of applications, consult a trained practitioner, find books by herbalists who work with essential oils, find articles.
  • There are aromatherapy journals and as far as I know at this time only one reference book on essential oil safety by Robert Tisserand & Rodney Young.
  • Some essential oils promote blood thinning, so should not be used when someone is on a blood thinning medication.
  • Some essential oils can complicate blood clots, so research or consult a practitioner if someone has clotts.
• Anyone can have an idiosyncratic reaction:
  • an individualized, unexpected, rare, or unpleasant response to essential oils or hydrosols.
  • test with a small amount before exposing yourself to large doses of these resources.
• Start low and go slow as you discover how you respond to aromatherapy.
  • You want to determine your therapeutic window, meaning the lowest amount that offers a therapeutic benefit
• Elderly folx may be more sensitive to essential oils, so you want to work with a low amount and discover what the therapeutic window is, using only as much as needed.
• Ensure you are working with essential oils from trusted sources (ask an herbalist for suggestions and check back here for a future blog post on assessing essential oil quality).
  • the labeling of them is not regulated
  • even if it claims to be “100% pure” or “therapeutic grade,” there could still be synthetic or other ingredients that create irritation
  • know that expensive essential oils do not necessarily mean they’re high quality, and very inexpensive ones (especially if the line of them has the same price for different types of essential oils) are almost always low quality
• People who have scent sensitivities and/or allergies may need to avoid certain (or all) essential oils and hydrosols
  • this varies from person to person and can change over time
• Know that essential oils oxidize (the equivalent of food that goes bad)
  • oxidization can happen anywhere from 1 to 8 years, depending on the type of essential
  • or quicker if not stored in a dark, cool environment and capped
  • oxidized essential oils can cause negative effects and should be discarded
  • If the bottle formed crystals around the mouth, the aroma has changed, it becomes more viscous, or the color is different or cloudy, it likely has oxidized

• Hydrosols also have an approximate 8-month shelf life because they also go bad
  • they have less shelf stability than essential oils because they don’t have as much volatile oil and a good amount of water content
  • best to store them in the fridge
  • If they’ve gotten cloudy or have particulate matter floating in them, discard them

 

Safety Notes for Inhalation & Diffusing of Essential Oils

• Diffuse in an open space (as opposed to a tiny, unventilated area) to see how your system reacts to diffusion
  • especially if you have asthma or a respiratory condition
• Intermittent diffusion of a subtle aroma is better than constant diffusion of a strong scent
  • People can get overstimulated if there are too many aromatic molecules in the air (which is literally taken into the body through the blood-supply-rich nasal tissues)
  • You can limit inhalation by taking gentle, quick whiffs and diffusion times to 20 minutes
  • Look for diffusers with an intermittent setting

See further safety notes for babies, infants, children, and pets

 

Safety Notes for Topical Applications

• • Dilute!
    • Unless you learn the limited reasons for applying an undiluted essential oil, most of the time it’s not worth the risk of an adverse reaction to use it full strength
    • High concentrations of essential oils are more likely to create a negative reaction
    • Dilution rates alone are not sufficient to rule out risk in all situations nor with all types of essential oils
    • 1% to 3% dilution will work well for massage and relaxation. For example, 2% in 1 ounce of massage oil would be about 12 drops of essential oil.
    • 1% to 4% for body care, like an aromatherapy shower gel. For example, 2% in an 8-ounce liquid soap would be about 96 drops.
    • You can dilute into vegetable oils, liquid soaps (like castile or shower gels), or body lotions, but not into water.

• If someone has a skin condition, like eczema, psoriasis or previous allergic reactions, they’re more likely to have a negative reaction. Go low and slow.

• Overuse of essential oils, meaning very frequent application onto the skin (especially if not well diluted) can cause contact dermatitis, which is red, swollen skin that may be itchy or irritated
  • limit to irregular applications or short periods of time for regular application
  • switch the types of essential oils you apply
  • If you develop an allergic reaction to an essential oil, you may not be able to use that particular oil for a lifetime (sometimes, a break from it will reverse that, but it’s not a given). So don’t ruin the magic with excess use!
• Some essential oils have phototoxicity, and if applied to the skin and then exposed to UV light, can cause damage to the skin that may look and feel like a sunburn or a rash.
  • If you don’t know if a particular essential oil can cause a phototoxic reaction, fully cover the area where it was applied before going out into the sun

 

Safety Notes for Babies & Children

• Hydrosols, since extremely dilute of aromatic molecules, are a good and safe aromatic resource for babies and children
• Newborns and up to 3-months old babies should not be exposed to essential oils
• Peppermint should be avoided for children up to 3-years old
• Eucalyptus can be used but is limited to diffusion
  • 1 drop for children
  • Instead of the essential oil for eucalyptus, consider the hydrosol form for small children and babies. Adding a tablespoon of eucalyptus hydrosol to a bath for congestion would be even less risky.
• For other essential oils and especially with infants, please check with a practitioner
• Essential oils should be stored away from children and babies

 

Safety Notes for Pregnancy & Lactation

• There is not a lot of research on pregnancy and essential oil use, but most herbalists and aromatherapy practitioners recommend waiting until after the third trimester to work with essential oils and to not use them undiluted.
  • You may want to consider hydrosols or herbal oils as alternatives
  • You can consult a practitioner about massage oil with sufficiently diluted essential oils

• Some essential oils are contraindicated for use in pregnancy 

• Peppermint essential oil may reduce milk supply during lactation

• • This doesn’t mean all other essential oils are fine and wouldn’t disrupt lactation
• Essential oils should not be used on the nipples during lactation, including lotions, salves, balms and diluted massage oils (anything with essential oils in it)
  • In addition to exposing a baby to what isn’t safe for their developing systems, it can also affect how the baby interacts with the chest
  • Calendula herbal oil, can soothe nipples during lactation and is considered safe for nursing babies. Herbal oils are entirely different than essentials. They are oil that has herbs infused into them, as opposed to the highly concentrated extractions that essential oils are.

 

Safety Notes for Pets

• Pets, especially cats, should not be exposed to essential oils
  • An herbalism-trained veterinary practitioner, or an herbalist with specific knowledge of animals may have information about therapeutic use of essential oils for animals besides cats. This is specialized information and not easily researched.
  • Cats don’t have the enzymes needed to break down essential oils. For more info on this, check out Rosalee De La Forte’s podcast, Herbs with Rosalee, episode #128 with Dr. Laurie Dohmen and go to minute 31 where essential oils and cats are discussed.
• If diffusing in a home with other pets, ensure your pet can leave the area/room where you are diffusing
  • Please do further research about specific essential oils and the type of pet you have
  • Diffusing essential oils releases the tiniest of droplets into the air, which can land on the surface of your pets cat’s fur, which they may then ingest so you want to be sure it’s safe for your pet

 

Oh my, with all these safety notes and things to learn, some readers may be overwhelmed!

Almost any botanical resource comes with a slue of considerations. Start simple. This will bring down the number of saefty considerations, especially if you begin with diffusing or personal inhalers.

Think of a specific way you want to work with aromatic resources, such as relaxation before bed or focus during work. Your knowledge base will grow as you look into essential oils and hydrosols and then try them out.

It’s as much about aromatic preference as it is about learning about the therapeutic qualities of each essential oil and hydrosol. Let your senses guide you!

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* The information provided here is intended for basic, general essential oil and hydrosol information purposes only. It does not include all possible precautions, side effects, or interactions that may occur. You should conduct thorough research with multiple sources. Additionally, this is not medical advice or information. Please consult directly with a qualified doctor related to medical conditions. Also, please do not use this post as a substitute for care by a skilled practitioner.