Essential Oils
Essential Oils
by: Jasmine Reed
Essential oils are all the rage nowadays, because of their natural health benefits and more. Maybe this is your first time ever hearing anything about it. If so, we’re going to discuss a few of the essential oil basics, so you aren’t too lost when the topic arises at your next play-date or mom’s day out. According to monq.com, “Essential oils are highly concentrated versions of the natural oils found in plants. These oils are extracted from the plants by the process of distillation, which is done by water or steam from the bark, flowers, stems, leaves, and roots of the plant.” The website also states that the use of essential oils goes as far back as the Egyptians and ancient Chinese.
Many people use essential oils for a holistic approach to their daily routines and regimens, versus going the western medicine route, or using commercial products that can be harmful to our bodies in a number of ways.
The following are a few popular essential oils and their benefits, according to healthline.com:
Peppermint: Used to boost energy and help with digestion.
Lavender: Used for stress relief.
Ylang-Ylang: Used to treat headaches, nausea and skin conditions.
Tea Tree: Used to fight infections and boost immunity.
Sandalwood: Used to calm nerves and help with focus.
A lot of these essential oils, and more, can be found at natural food stores such as Whole Foods, Earth Fare and Sprouts, in their wellness/beauty section. Some brands even have labels such as: “Sleep,” “Energy”, “Focus,” etc. Essential oils can be a little overwhelming, so straight-forward packaging like that makes it so much easier to find exactly what you need.
The benefits of essential oils are so good in fact, that you can even incorporate them into your little one’s daily regimens. For instance, the honest company has a lavender-infused bath-time set that would be great for relaxing and calming your baby, right before bed. There’s also some organic essential oil blends on planttherapy.com that are safe for kids and help with things such as immune support, attentiveness and more. They even tell you how to dilute and apply the oil to your child for maximum safety and effectiveness. There are suggested introduction ages associated with various oils so be sure to check out this article from proverbialhomemaker.com, which does a really great job of breaking all of those down.
We sort of scratched the surface of essential oils with this article, but if you want to dig deeper check out the following articles:
Auracacia.com (for more on essential oil safety for kids)
Momcurls.com (for insight on some of the best essential oil brands)
Goodreads.com (for book suggestions related to essential oils and aromatherapy)
We are also hosting a Young Living Essential Oils class on Saturday, June 8th at 11 a.m. So if hands-on learning is kind of your thing, we’d love to have you join us! Be sure to bring a friend along and RSVP to hello@vinehousenursery.com by Monday, June 3rd.
Here’s to happier, healthier living!