Have you ever smelt a lavender on a distressed day and felt better? Ever taken that romantic, aromatic rose water bath and felt the magical freshness of the fragrance lingering all around you?
Different fragrances evoke different emotions in one’s mind. Ever wondered why smelling some lovely flowers makes you feel better? These plants are known to carry properties that can positively influence your mental, psychological and physical well being. But, how can you use these plants to heal yourself? Well, you won’t really use the plant but its properties present in essential oils.
What are Essential Oils?
Essential oils are based on the age old principle that claims if something smells good, it is good for you. The natural oils are nothing but essential ingredients present in the plants that carry magical healing properties. These extracts can be taken from the leaves, the bark, the shoots, the petals or any other part of the plants and are extracted by the process of distillation or evaporation.
In simple words, essential oils are the concentrated version of the healing properties a plant carries and they are powerful health and vitality boosters. These natural extracts are rich in fragrances and have proven to work on the health and mental faculties for thousands of years. From haircare to skin to nails and distressing, essential oils can relieve it all. Moreover, essential oils are generally used in aromatherapy.
How do you use Essential Oils?
- Diffusion: This is amongst one of the best ways to use essential oils. You can opt for candle diffusers or electric heat diffusers. These are very easy to use and come with minimal maintenance. The heating chamber in these diffusers allows the aromatic compounds present in the essential oils to evaporate in the air adding perfumed fragrances to your surroundings.
- Ingestion: Essential oils are natural extracts of plants and herbs. These natural ingredients can be added to tea, lukewarm water, or to the food during the process of preparation. However, it is highly recommended that you do your research before ingesting an essential oil. Not all oils are meant to be ingested. Please do your research from reliable sources.
- Topical: Another common way of using essential oils is by applying them topically on the skin. This is best suited for headaches, muscle pain, and sprains. A few drops of oil can be rubbed onto the skin over the forehead, near the nose, on the neck, on the chest, at the back of the neck and at the palms and wrist. While applying essential oils topically, it is important to use them in limited quantity or mix them with a carrier oil and dilute them.
- Bathing: Those seeking relaxation and relief should go for this method. Drop in a few drops of your choice of aromatic oil in lukewarm water in your tub and you are all set for a relieving bath. One can add to the environs by adding a diffuser alongside the bath tub for a completely relaxing atmosphere.
- Massage: Nothing heals a tired and stressed body better than a massage. And it gets even better when the right oils are applied to soothe your stress levels down. Book yourself an aromatherapy session at any of the spas near your and go for a massage. Based on your stress levels you can opt for full body aromatherapy massage, face cleansing and nourishing massage, full back stress buster massage or foot massage.
Why do you need Essential Oils?
These magical ayurvedic medicines have been used in Asian countries for thousands of years. Harness the power of these age old formulations and find out the amazing changes they can bring to your life. Here’s a list of the most amazing benefits of using essential oils:
1. Uses of essential oil for health:
Relief from Headaches: Undoubtedly, this is amongst the most well known benefits of using essential oils. Essential oils can help in significantly reducing mild headaches to cure something as severe as migraines. Click here to read more about natural remedies for curing headaches using essential oils.
Soothes burns, bruises and bug bites: Another popular use of these natural oils is to apply them on the wounded area. A few drops of lavender oil with aloe vera helps in treating burns, bug bites and stings.
Reduces cough, relieves sinus, bronchitis, and asthma: These oils are extremely effective on the respiratory system. Diffuse a few drops of eucalyptus oil and inhale the same to clear the nasal passage. In case of extreme cough, combine eucalyptus oil with a few drops of peppermint oil and two teaspoons of coconut oil and rub it on your chest, neck and back.
Improve sleeping patterns: Lavender oil is known to alleviate insomnia. Inhale the oil using a diffuser or sprinkle a few drops over your pillow every night before you go to sleep.
Aids in improving digestion: Ingesting ginger and fennel oil can help cure the leaky gut and support the digestive system.Also, inhaling cinnamon oil can help in balancing blood sugar. These oils also help in maintaining weight.
Reduces muscle pain: Apply a mix of peppermint, ginger and cypress oils with coconut oil and apply it on the affected area. These oils help in relieving muscle pains.
Helps repair broken bones and aids in healing arthritis: Wintergreen, cypress, helichrysum and fir oils are known to be effective on the broken bones. These oils can be mixed and applied to arthritis prone areas to reduce inflammation and pain.
Relieves PMS: This possibly is a cure most women are looking for. Mix a few drops of basil, rosemary and sage oil and apply the formulation to the lower abdomen. Cover your abdomen with a moist warm towel for a quick relief.
Relieves nausea: If you suffer from nausea especially while traveling, breathe in peppermint oil to alleviate the same.
Improves in relieving tension, depression and reducing anxiety: Essential oils can be used to boost mood and relieve tension and depression. Add a few drops of rose oil to baths, or inhale lavender oil using diffusers to uplift your mood.
2. Uses of essential oil for skin & hair:
Helps in treating skin allergies: Essential oils have been used in many cosmetic brands and are known for their antibacterial properties. Oils like chamomile, lavender, rosemary and frankincense can help in relieving skin allergies. You could also mix tea tree oil with raw honey and apply it on your face. Rinse it off with cold water.
Use as a natural cologne: Pick the fragrance you like and apply a few drops of the essential oil on your wrist and at the back of your neck for a fresh natural perfume. You can also add these aromatic oils to a few ounces of water and use them a natural body deodorant.
Freshen your breath: Mix a few drops of peppermint essential oil with water. Use this mixture to rinse your mouth to freshen breath.
Increase volume and thicken hair: Mix a few drops of rosemary oil with coconut oil and apply this mixture to the scalp. Leave it for an hour and wash it off with cold water. You can also apply rosemary oil to the split ends a night before you wash your hair.
Natural scrubs: From facial scrub, to sugar scrub to bathing scrub, essential oils can be used to make amazing scrubs. They help in both cleansing the body of the dead cells and moisturizing the skin. One can use almond oil, lavender oil, grapefruit oil, or lime oil and mix it with rock salt and sugar to make natural scrubs.
Reduce wrinkles and age spots: Essential oils of sandalwood, lavender and frankincense mixed with almond oil or an unscented lotion can be used for nourishing the skin, helping in diminishing age spots and sunspots. These oils should be applied at night.
Use them as a teeth whitener: Make a formulation using lemon oil, coconut oil and fresh strawberries. Rub this mixture on your teeth and rinse it after two minutes.
3. Uses of essential oil for household purposes:
Using essential oils as all-purpose cleaners: Lemon oil or lemongrass oil are known to naturally disinfect.
Clean air & pleasant surroundings: Detoxify the air in your house by diffusing cinnamon, clove and orange oils in your surroundings. They leave your home smelling absolutely fresh.
Wash vegetables and fruits: To clean the fresh produce of unwanted microbes and germs, add a few drops of lemon essential oil to a large bowl of water and then wash your fruits and vegetables in it.
There are many more surprising benefits of these magical oils. Which ones would you use and why?
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