THE WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHY OF ESSENTIAL OILS FOR HEALTH AND BEAUTY!

With the abundance of stressors in everyday life, we are constantly searching for a way to connect the body and mind to achieve physical and mental well being. The allure of essential oils is often caused by that desire to find inner peace with a connected mind, body and spirit. Let's examine some of the ways to incorporate essential oils into the daily routine.

What Are Essential Oils Where Do They Come From?

Essential oils are extracted from plants capturing the scent from each plant. These aromatic compounds are found in the seeds, bark, leaves, stems, roots and flowers of a plant and are unique to individual plants. They are obtained by distillation via steam or water or by cold pressing. It is important to note that essential oils obtained through heavy chemical processing are not true essential oils. In summary, essential oils are concentrated plant extracts that retain the natural essence of the plant.

How Do Essential Oils Work?

Essential oils may be inhaled as part of aromatherapy or diluted and applied to the skin via a lotion or cleanser, for example.  Scents may be inhaled via diffusers or used to scent homes via candles, and also as scents in laundry products. Aromatherapy has been widely used to stimulate emotions that trigger a pleasant memory that creates happy feelings and controls some physiological functions.

For example, the scent lavender may invoke a feeling of calm creating emotions that allow you to feel relaxed.  Inhaling aromas via the sense of smell may stimulate the part of the brain that controls emotions, behaviors and memories.  In addition, this part of the brain also controls breathing, heart rate and blood pressure, so regular aromatherapy triggering happy memories and emotions may lower heart rate, breathing and blood pressure creating a happy mental and physical state of relaxation.

When choosing essential oils look for purity and quality.  For purity, look for plant containing compounds only without any additives.  For quality, look for oils that have been extracted via distillation or cold pressing rather than chemically processed.

What Are The Benefits Of Essential Oils and Why Use Them?

There are over 90 essential oils with each having a different aroma and health benefit.  The most popular used oils are lavender and peppermint. Some of the possible benefits of essential oils include assisting in reducing stress and anxiety alongside other traditional therapies.  This effect lasts during the time of use and with long term use, there may be additional effects even when not using aromatherapy.  For example, you feel stressed and use a diffuser with lavender to help calm you along with deep breathing.  If you practice this often enough, you may be able to recall the smell and feeling in stressful situations where there is no aromatherapy available.  The memory of the scent and the feeling may accompany the deep breathing and it is possible to have the same effects as if you were smelling the scent with the diffuser.

In addition to helping with stress, lavender oil is used prior to sleep to increase sleep quality.  It is known that creating a good sleep routine is essential for repairing cells.  For example, not using computers and phones a couple of hours before bedtime, having a set bedtime and wake time, keeping the temperature in the bedroom cool and the room dark, avoiding caffeine and alcohol close to bedtime are all examples of creating a good sleep routine that is beneficial to health.  Now with multiples studies stating that breathing lavender oil prior to sleeping helps with sleep quality, this is just another ritual to help create better sleep habits.  We regenerate physically and mentally during sleep and that is why it is so important to do everything possible to create the best quality sleep for 7-8 hours per night. 

With the research conducted and positive effects many achieve with essential oils, Timeless Organics in addition to using essential oils in it’s 100% organic skincare line, is now offering an essentials line that includes the following organic essential oils to be used as part of aromatherapy:

• Lavender – used to relieve stress and anxiety, and promote good sleep
• Lemon – used for mood and headaches, and is antibacterial and antiseptic
• Lime – has purifying properties, improves mood
• Cedarwood – deodorizes indoor properties, insect repellent, enhances concentration, relaxes the body and mind and improves sleep
• Peppermint – used to boost energy and relieve tension headaches
• Tea tree – used to fight infections and increase immunity and used to fight acne
• Sweet orange – reduces anxiety and increases feelings of happiness
• Rosemary – is a stimulant that increases brain activity and immunity, and decreases the stress hormone cortisol
• Eucalyptus – anti-inflammatory and boosts immunity, and clears nasal airways
• Lemongrass – is antibacterial, antifungal, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory

There are numerous aromatherapy recipes for blending essential oils used with cool air diffusers.  Here are some examples:

• Calming Recipe
  • 3 drops lavender oil
  • 3 drops lime oil
  • 3 drops orange oil
• Energy Recipe
  • 3 drops peppermint oil
  • 3 drops rosemary oil
  • 3 drops lemon oil
• Stress Relief Recipe
  • 4 drops lavender oil
  • 3 drops cedarwood oil
  • 2 drops orange oil
• Focus Recipe
  • 1 drop rosemary oil
  • 2 drops lemon oil
  • 2 drops peppermint oil
  • 2 drops lavender oil

In summary, essential oils have been used for a very long time with proven effects in aromatherapy and skincare.  Understanding how to choose the purity and quality of an essential oil is imperative for success and safety.  The researchers at Timeless Organics Skincare ensure the safety and quality of essential oils used in skincare preparations as well as offered in the new Timeless Organics Essential line.  For more information on skincare and essential products visit Timeless Organics Skincare.