BENEFITS OF ESSENTIAL OILS FOR THE SKIN AND BODY
Essential oils are just oils that are essential, right? Well, they are so much more than that. If you have ever been lucky to smell the sweet scent of a rose flower, or observed the kind of pleasant smell that comes out when you bend the branch/ twig of some flowers, then you have come in contact with essential oils before. Some of you might even have some household products – toilet cleaners, air fresheners, body creams and other beauty products inclusive – that would contain such ingredients as essential oils. What then is this thing that finds such diverse applications?
Essential oils are the integral, aromatic part of most flowers which have been in use for hundreds of years now. They have been medically proven and scientifically backed to be useful in a diverse number of ways, some of which have been generalized above. For centuries, essential oils from different plants and flowers have been used to enhance lives – both physically and spiritually. What makes them very important (and essential, as the name implies) is the fact that they are of pure natural origin – a property which ensures that they operate optimally with no side effects at all.
Beauty Benefits of Essential Oils
Asides from the religious and spiritual uses that essential oils have been subjected to over the years, they have also found good application in improving skin health and beauty. There are a lot of them out there, ranging from the common ones such as peppermint oil, rosemary oil, olive oil and coconut oil to rather rare options such as neem oil. Some of the various benefits of essential oils for skin health includes, but are not limited to
- Improvement of Sleep:
Good sleep is a very good practice if you would maintain healthy skin (and body health too). A simple activity as sprinkling some drops of lavender oil on your bed/ pillow has been proven to improve sleep and alleviate the case of insomnia in patients
- Lip Balm:
For those that are prone to breaking/ chapped lips, they can get rid of this by simply mixing some coconut oil with beeswax and lavender oil. The effect is long-lasting. Furthermore, it gives more lush and color to the lips after healing it.
- Skin detoxification:
To remove the excess toxins and free radicals which cause breakouts and other skin conditions, you can mix some lavender oil with Epsom salt and sea salts. Add these to a warm bath and soak yourself into this little sea of healthy water for a fresher, rejuvenated skin.
- Foot therapy:
Adding a few drops of lemon oil to your bath is a good solution for achieving better foot health. Not only would your foot be more tender, but it eliminates the tendency to get infected with the common foot diseases out there. As an alternative, eucalyptus oil can also be used in this case
- Acne Face Wash:
The mixture of tea tree oil and pure, natural honey has been proven to perform wonders in the treatment of acne. Mix these ingredients together and apply the resulting paste to your face. Leave to set for a while then rinse off with water. Repeat the procedure multiple times for the best results
- Hair Shampoo:
Combine lavender oil with some rosemary oil, not forgetting to add Aloe Vera gel to the mix. In the place of water, use coconut milk to mix the oil mixture, turning it till it becomes an even paste as you would have with your shampoo. Each freshly prepared natural oil shampoo in this form can stay for up to 2 – 4 weeks. You can then go on to use it as you would your normal shampoo
- Body Spray:
Depending on what essential oil’s fragrance you like, add about 5 – 10 drops of it to a few ounces of water and use as a body spray.
- Dandruff remedy:
Take some rosemary oil and mix it with lavender oil. Use any unscented oil of your choice as a carrier oil. Then, massage the mixture into the scalp, leaving it for ten minutes before you wash it off. You can do this multiple times in the same day or the best possible results in the least possible time.
There are still hundreds more uses that one can make of an essential oil. While they could still be applied to the hair as deep conditioner, they find various other applications for the home and as natural medicines. However, choosing an essential oil is as important as any other thing. To get clear on this, what we are going to be looking at next is…
How to Choose an Essential Oil
What essential oil you choose would depend on what purpose you have intended for such oil. Do you want the oil to elevate your mood, improve your sleep, benefit your skin or hair, or for another purpose? Likewise, even though essential oils are 100% natural, there are few people with known allergies to some of these oils. The good news is that if you are one of those, there are other oils that can fulfil the same purpose you want. Thus, you are not stranded on not being able to get a certain result just because you are allergic to the oil involved.
If possible, you should work with your doctor/ beauty specialist to choose the best oil possible for you and your skin.
Essential oils can be used in a number of ways. Some of them are better applied to the skin, others are inhaled/ ingested, while some work best when they are massaged onto the required parts. Once again, it all boils down to what kind of essential oil you have chosen, and what purpose you would like for it to perform.
The kind of application method would also be dependent on the case of irritation the selected oil might have on your skin/ body. From the above list of importance, you could see some of the various ways in which the oil can be used for different purposes. For other types of uses, you can look around for resources to help you on that.
Safety Practices with Essential Oils
As with any other thing, there are toxic essential oils as there are the safe ones. The good news is that these toxic ones are not sold in stores. However, it is still advisable that you take maximum care when you are trying out an essential oil for the first time. It is also worthy of note that even if you are not allergic to any essential oil at all, there are safety precautions that should be put into place. For example, you should never use undiluted oils on your skin, buttressing the need for carrier oils.
Whatever you do, make sure you work with enough information before you delve into the use of essential oils. For more professional help, you can get in touch with your questions.