Essential Oils
Essential oils are concentrated materials extracted from plants.
Since they are so concentrated they should not be used "neat"
or undiluted. Martin Watt, Essential oils Educator, has graciously
shared the following information.
ESSENTIAL OILS AND OTHER AROMATIC EXTRACTS FROM PLANTS.
Most essential oils are perfectly safe and produce few allergic
reactions if they are correctly used with appropriate safety advice.
Many essential oils are in fact used in perfumes and food flavors.
However, when used in commercial products, the volumes of the
concentrated oils used are extremely low. Completely different safety
aspects occur if those same oils are applied to the skin neat, or in
some cases even if greatly diluted. For example, it would be fine to
use 1-2 drops of thyme oil as an inhalant from hot water for head colds,
but this same oil should never be applied to the skin neat, or even more
than 1-2 drops in a bath is unwise, as it can cause severe skin
irritation.
Below are some essential oils that are NOT recommended for home or
professional use in any kind of skin application including in the bath.
Most of these are not easy to find, but you may occasionally see them.
ALANT ROOT (Inula helenium)--Strongest skin sensitizer with no known
antidote.
ALMOND (bitter)--very toxic indeed unless specially processed.
BERGAMOT(EXPRESSED)--This oil is a powerful photosensitizer and any
ultra violet light exposure can cause permanent skin damage. F.C.F or
bergaptene free bergamot is processed to make it completely safe.
BENZOIN--A potent skin sensitizer, should not be used in cosmetic
products.
BIRCH sweet and BIRCH TAR oil--Both skin sensitizing agents. (most oil
is totally synthetic).
BOLDO (leaf)--A very toxic oil.
CADE--a powerful skin sensitizer.
CALAMUS--Tests indicate it may be a carcinogen and in Europe it is
banned in cosmetics.
CAMPHOR (brown, yellow or unrectified)--Some of these cruder grades are
dangerous.
CASSIA--Treat as cinnamon bark, very powerful skin irritants and
sensitizers.
CINNAMON (bark )-- A skin sensitizer at all levels of use.
COLOPHONY--Skin sensitizer.
COSTUS root --An extremely powerful skin vesicant (causes blisters) and
sensitizer.
FIG LEAF absolute--An extremely powerful skin sensitizer/irritant.
HORSERADISH--An extremely powerful skin vesicant (causes blisters).
LIME (EXPRESSED). Similar photosensitizer to bergamot. Distilled oil
is safe.
MUSTARD (volatile) An extremely powerful skin vesicant (causes
blisters).
OPOPONAX. Powerful skin sensitizer.
PERU balsam--The crude RESIN is a powerful skin sensitizer. The
essential oil may be OK.
RUE absolute--Powerful photosensitizer and irritant.
SASSAFRAS--The oil is banned in cosmetics in Europe because tests show
it may be carcinogenic.
TANSY--Some tansy oils are extremely toxic, even inhalation could cause
problems.
TEREBINTH--A fairly powerful skin sensitizer.
TOLU balsam--A skin sensitizer.
TURPENTINE (unrectified)--A skin sensitizer.
VERBENA (Lippia citriodora.) Extremely powerful skin sensitizer and
irritant.
WINTERGREEN--Can cause toxicity if incorrectly used. Most is in fact
just the synthetic chemical methyl salicylate.
WORMSEED (Chenopodium). Very toxic and has killed children.
The above information is drawn from sound scientific research from the
fragrance trade.
Even some oils that are perfectly safe in routine use, can cause
problems if they are used in high humidity when the pores are open, or
perhaps in bright sunlight. So it should never be assumed that because
they are natural they are safe. That is far from the truth.
An increasing problem is the use within aromatherapy of essential oils
that have never been submitted to any kind of safety evaluation. While
90 percent of common oils are well tried and tested, these 'new' oils
have unknown effects. Detailed information on the safety of essential
oils is available in publications written by: Martin Watt, Essential
oils Educator.
In Europe martin@aromamedical.demon.co.uk
Sylla Hanger-USA SyllaH@aol.com
Lynn Bosman-Canada AromaNet@classic.msn.com
The information contained on this site has been compiled by
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Site last updated: 03/05/00