CURIOUS ABOUT ESSENTIAL OILS?
The definition of curiosity is a “strong desire to know or learn something”.
Children are naturally curious, and then when we grow become ingrained with other peoples opinions, others limiting beliefs.
Everything we are taught is learned from others. First from our parents, grandparents, other family members, then on to teachers, and peers.
As life moves forward we learn behaviours from others in our world. Television, news, radio, books etc.
Unfortunately western medical practitioners are not able to open their minds to be curious about anything other than the pharmaceutical medical model.
Their curiosity is suffocated even when scientific evidence proves that a natural modality is effective.
(Disclaimer) There is definitely a place for the pharmaceutical medical model (Allopathic medicine : relating to or being a system of medicine that aims to combat disease by using remedies (such as drugs or surgery) which produce effects that are different from or incompatible with those of the disease being treated.) I am grateful for this system of medicine when needed although I choose more natural alternatives first.
This became evident to me when I got involved in the world of essential oils. After all it just smells good right?
That is so not true, although they do smell good, there is a whole lot more to essential oils than meets the eye. And having a knowledge and open mind to learning is critical when it comes to essential oils.
For years I was oblivious to the world of essential oils, to me they smelled good and that was that.
I had no concept or awareness of the power and potential of essential oils.
When I learned about essential oils, it totally changed my perspective and opinion of what they are and how they can help support our body and health.
MY FIRST EXPERIENCE ON LEARNING ABOUT THE POWER OF ESSENTIAL OILS
For years I have been facilitating a meditation class called Emotional release with essential oils.
People started contacting me after the class and saying how things had changed for them. I was blown away because I didn’t understand the how and the power of essential oils.
I met Corey Deacon a few years ago and here’s what he had to say, “Our curiosity was peaked, and we embarked on a small trial to measure changes in brain activity before and after inhaling an essential oil. To say the changes were significant would be an understatement!
We were completely floored by the changes that occurred within 3 to 5 minutes of inhaling an essential oil. This was true for almost every oil we tested. Some oils had little effect on a subject while having sizeable effects on others. This is where our approach of bio-individualized medicine jived perfectly with the essential oils. We found that some oils when blended together were providing effects that were comparable to 40 sessions of neurofeedback; a brain rehabilitation technique that acts to effectively condition the brain into a more balanced, functional state.”
Pretty powerful eh?
LEARNING THE QUALITY OF ESSENTIAL OILS
The conditions which a plant is grown and harvested is critical in the potency and quality of an essential oil.
Here’s an example, Peppermint, ideal quality is 38-47%. This is a result of ideal growing conditions, and optimal harvesting time.
If the season isn’t ideal, perhaps to much rain or to little rain, or poor soil conditions, the quality is 24%.
Now both are organic and pure, however the conditions play a huge role in the quality and potency of the oil.
I attended a webinar put on by an aromatherapist who was a distributor for oils to businesses and aromatherapists. She had a brand new facility and a colleague from Europe came to see her new facilities.
She was so excited to show her the plants, she gave her a plant and asked her to smell it. She thought it was Sweet Marjoram and apparently it wasn’t it was another form of marjoram. She had been selling it to her customers for years as sweet marjoram.
She was mortified by her mistake and realized that if she was going to continue selling to her customers, she needed to learn more about oils, their potency and quality. She went to Europe to learn. That is when she discovered the GS-MS (Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry) equipment analyzing essential oils. She also learned about ideal growing conditions for the plants and the best times to harvest the plants. Now she feels confident in knowing that she is not misleading her customers.
It may seem like an extreme process, however when you are applying plants to your skin you need to know the purity, quality and safety.
Did you know that there are two types of Lavender?
One is Lavender which has a sweet floral scent often called English Lavender.
The other is Lavandin which has a more medicinal smell due to its high camphor content often called French lavender. Lavendin is a hybrid between Lavendula angustifolia (female) and Lavendula Latifolia (male)
I learned this when researching about essential oils, I googled essential oils and how to choose a quality oil. An article popped up about a woman who had been told to apply lavender to a burn, she bought a cheap brand from a store and applied. Her burn got worse and she ended up in the hospital. It was there that she learned the oil she used had a high concentration of camphor. Camphor has the potential to burn your skin so when applied to an existing burn it made the burn worse. Lavender however can be applied to a burn directly if the skin is not broken or blistered, and around the burn if the burn is blistered or broken.
Always seek medical attention for a severe burn.
Lesson learned, know what kind and quality oil you are using.
Do you know the difference between these two oils?
Lavandin is cheaper to produce because the plants are much larger and produce more oil, Lavender requires more plants to produce the same amount of oil.
When purchasing any essential oil, be aware the cost. If it’s a super inexpensive oil be very cautious of where it comes from, where it’s grown and if the company has the scientific data to prove its quality and what is being used as a filler. I learned the hard way and spent thousands of dollars on inferior essential oils.
When you pay for quality oils and know who and where they are grown you are less likely to have any issues with the oils.
Cheaper oils are often diluted with other ingredients which may not be good for your body.
Remember that the skin is the largest organ in your body and what you put on your skin, gets absorbed into your body. Make sure what you put on your skin is pure and unadulterated.
It is very important to learn about essential oils and how they can support your body and health.
Don’t settle for cheap imitations that could cause harm to your body and health.
Remember what you put on your skin, absorbs into your body, into your tissues, organs, cells and muscles.
What are you putting on your skin?
If you’d like to learn more, let’s chat.
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