Is ignoring essential oil guidelines really that dangerous?
I hear this all the time “Well I did that and I was fine” as if this is saying that you don’t need to follow general safety when it comes to using essential oils. I’m not sure why this is the attitude regarding essential oils. You would never consume a bottle of shampoo (no matter how naturally it was made) and you would never use the entire bottle on your hair. Not only is that a huge waste of product, it’s probably not great for your hair either. I wouldn’t actually know on the shampoo front but still, I’d imagine you don’t want to blow through your bottle of shampoo as fast as you can. Same rules apply to essential oils. These little bottles are highly concentrated and you don’t need to keep 5 bottles of the same oil on hand so you can open a new one every week. You just don’t. But consumerism has won over the world and with it a rise in misinformation with a side of insistence that “oils are natural therefore they are safe” has gripped the natural world tightly. Just because something is natural does not mean it is 1.) safe or 2.) safe to overuse/incorrectly use.
So what can happen if you misuse essential oils? A lot actually, sometimes you might not even notice. Sometimes you could have lifelong problems. Sometimes nothing can actually happen, and as awesome as that sounds these kinds of experiences only work to belittle those who have had reactions to essential oils. While true allergic reactions are not that common, they do happen and often it is due to the misuse of them.
Using essential oils undiluted:
Using essential oils undiluted can cause irritations and rashes. They can burn the skin, in my case they discolored my skin. This can happen within a matter of minutes to days even weeks. Depending on the severity. If you were predispositioned to be more sensitive to an essential oil this could be avoided or lessened simply by diluting the essential oil appropriately and/or doing a patch test.
To do a patch test with essential oils, dilute to 1% (.5% with kids 2 and up) then apply the oil to the inner crook of your arm. Allow to rest 20 minutes to 24 hours and monitor the area. If there is a reaction, wash with a mild soap and/or plain carrier oil and take necessary precautions as necessary. I have personally never seen or heard of anyone having a reaction to essential oils when they were appropriately used, however I have seen and heard of multiple cases when they were overused or incorrectly used. I myself get headaches when I am smelling straight oils for too long or when I diffuse to much.
Ingesting essential oils:
It might be cool to add the oils to your water or to consume products with essential oils but what the companies don’t share are the risks to doing this. The medical interactions that you need to consider with ingesting. They do not disclose the percentage of essential oils the products contain and they don’t disclose how they are ensuring the product properly emulsifies the oil. They also encourage over consumption (intentional or not) by having purchasers and sellers of their product encouraging the ingestion of multiple oils several times a day. They also fail to do their due diligence and see which oils would interact with medicines or conditions as well as seeing which oils should never be consumed due to a larger risk. Most immune blends on the market contain eucalyptus which has the potential to damage your liver/cause liver failure.
All in all, when companies tell you that this is something cool to do all they care about is getting your money. When aromatherapists and chemists who study essential oils tell you no to do so unless being directed by someone appropriately trained this isn’t to be a party pooper. This is because they have seen the negative effects of consuming something so potent it is equal to hundreds of the single plant. It is so easy to be safe when using essential oils, so if someone is telling you anything about using them definitely question it and look into it. If the advice is coming directly from a company and has no backing with aromatherapists or the NAHA then I probably wouldn’t trust it.
Over Diffusing:
This one might not seem like a big deal but when you have been in aromatherapy groups you like I have you tend to see a thing or too. Ever diffused and gotten a headache? Ever purchased a house and had to scrape gunk off the walls? Yes, I have really seen pictures of someone who diffused SO much it looked like they had chained smoked in their house for 30 years. Have you ever gotten itchy around a diffuser, maybe the smell began to overwhelm you and your brain did that thing where it goes fuzzy and you can’t seem to think? All of these are reactions and no they are not normal. You shouldn’t be getting a headache from essential oils, if you do stop using them. If you are getting a headache ask yourself; how long have you been diffusing? How much oil did I use? Is there another issue that could be causing this?
You shouldn’t be diffusing so long that your walls become coated. There should never be enough drops in the diffuser for that to happen either. 3-5 drops per 100ml and diffuse for 30 minutes at most. Less oil and shorter time with kids or pets but see my post on diffusing for more information. You shouldn’t be diffusing to the point you get a headache, and you definitely shouldn’t have so much oil in your diffuser that it clings to your skin and makes you react.
Conclusion:
Basically, the risk of a reaction is always there. There are a lot of things in life that hold risk that never come to pass. Like driving without a seatbelt. Sure 99 times on the road you can be fine but all it takes is one time to ruin your life. Why take the risk? Same with essential oils. Why would you take the risk? Why waste product and money? There isn’t a point to do so because essential oils work just as well, if not better, when they are appropriately used.
I like to recommend to people with Netflix to watch the first episode of [un]well which covers essential oils. As someone who uses them, I actually really enjoyed the information and they had so many valid points in that documentary. They showed the good, the bad and the in-between with essential oil usage. They exposed the lies of companies, and one of the most prominent cases was a woman who followed the teachings of a company and had such severe reactions she will probably never be able to use essential oils again. This happened after she used oils undiluted and ingested them several times a day. It’s worth the watch if you have Netflix and very eye opening on appropriate aromatherapy.
Thank you so much for reading, your support means a lot. If you have any questions feel free to email me at holisticary@gmail.com or call/text me at 641-631-6355This blog post was meant to educate and entertain, it is entirely my opinion and not meant to treat or diagnose anyone or to be taken as absolute unwavering fact. Please seek proper medical care and advice. Some links might contain affiliate links, this is at no cost to you and helps the blog.