Interesting Uses for Essential Oils

Believe it or not but there are more uses for essential oils than an essential oil diffuser! Essential oils have a whole range of applications from being used in food, soap making, and even as a component in shampoos and conditioners. They are very versatile (and potent) liquids which can completely transform a product into something truly wonderful.

Essential oils are not called “essential” because they are must-have products, either. They are called essential oils because they have raw “essence” of a scent in them. So, lemon essential oils would have the essence of lemon in them, whereas minty essential oils would contain the essence of real mint. This is a fun fact to know as not many people are aware of it!

An essential oil is basically a concentrated hydrophobic liquid which contains aroma from plants and other natural sources. Although they are very versatile, and they have uses in the home, in cooking, in production, and for health, they are very potent products and the utmost care should be exercised when they are used, especially if you are using them around children or are pregnant. If you want to apply essential oils to the skin for health and aromatherapy benefits, then it is important to dilute the raw essential oils with a carrier oil prior to doing it.

Here are some of the more interesting uses for essential oils.

#1: Aids to Meditation and Respiration

Some essential oils such as frankincense oil can be used to help calm your mind and center it on something important. It is often used to help build spirituality and life awareness, and to help reach inner peace during the meditation process. As an oil, frankincense contains sesquiterpenes, which are compounds that influence the brain’s limbic system. This is where our memories and emotions are controlled.

It also aids respiratory problems such as asthma when diffused into a room either through heat or as a mist. It’s always best to avoid using heat and instead opt for a misting device because the use of heat can reduce an oil’s potency.

#2: Calm Down bites from Insects and Sunburn

Lavender essential oil is famous for its potential to help calm down bug bites and stings. It stops the pain and itching, reduces swelling, and helps the bites and stings heal much quicker. You can keep reapplying lavender oil as necessary to help speed up the recovery process, and if applied immediately, lavender oil can work straight away.

Putting a couple of lavender oil droplets on a minor burn such as sunburn can help alleviate pain when it’s applied soon after exposure to the sun. Not only this, but it prevents blistering, speeds up the overall healing process, and can reduce the severity of peeling which occurs as a result of the burn. For bonus points, combine some lavender oil with aloe vera for double the sunburn fighting action.

#3: Kill Bacteria and Treat Cold Sores

Clove oil is a natural anti-bacterial substance which is a powerful cleanser of many powerful strains of bacteria. It helps kill harmful bacteria such as Helicobacter, pylori, E. coli, Salmonella and many others without causing any side effects to the surfaces it is used on. To get the most of its antibacterial effects, just add a drop of it to a cloth of kitchen sponge and then rub it over your surfaces, chopping boards, and washing areas to naturally deter bacteria. You can even use it in other places such as toilet seats, doors and keyboards without causing any damage.

If you thought taking medication like valtrex is the only way to treat cold sores around the mouth, clove oil is too, as it has anti-viral benefits, especially against the virus which causes cold sores, herpes simplex. You can just dab a little clove oil over the site of the cold sore to decrease the pain and speed up the overall healing process. Clove oil even has anti-fungal properties. However, this issue is not usually too prevalent in the home.

#4: Ease Your Hangover and Overcome Sugar Cravings

Grapefruit essential oil can naturally stimulate the process of synthesizing and passing urine by hurrying the gallbladder along, and it also helps clean the liver of all that nasty alcohol after a particularly heavy night on the town. You can either diffuse grapefruit oil or add a couple of drops to your drinking water and slowly sip it to get the oil into your system and benefit from its hangover-relieving benefits.

Breathing in grapefruit oil mist and essence can help you whenever you feel sugar cravings coming on. This is why people use essential oils for weight loss and they can work really well if used correctly. It is best to breathe it in immediately prior to something which may trigger a sugar craving, such as heading out to the grocery store to do your weekly food shop or heading out to a coffee shop where you might just give in to temptation and buy a muffin you don’t really want or need. This is great, as it means that essential oils can help you with things like weight loss as well. So if this is something that you are interested in, then these essential oils can help you out.

#5: Other Uses for Essential Oils

The applications of essential oils are virtually endless. They can help anxiety, banish musty scents, help disinfect wounds, heal mouth ulcers, make the skin look brighter and more radiant, help clean dishes perfectly, make fresh food last longer, and even treat naturally oily hair.

When you research essential oils properly and see that they have a range of applications outside of making your home smell nice, you may just find yourself heading out to buy some. They have positive effects and benefits which have been scientifically proven, and because they are so strong and potent, a little goes a very long way and a small bottle of essential oil could last you many months to a year or more.

Essential oils are not called such because they are “must-have” commodities. Rather, it is because they contain pure natural essence which has been extracted from fruits, herbs, and plants. They have a vast range of uses, uses we are constantly learning more about, and have benefits to overall health and wellbeing. It’s worth researching the various oils out there and seeing how they could help you.