Essential Oils – What Are They And Why Are They Good For Us?
10,000 Rose petals are distilled to make 1 drop of Rose Essential Oil
In this blog, let us consider the Plant Kingdom and how much humanity has relied on, and still relies on plants in order to live. Plants have been used in every conceivable manner that we can think of. Humanity has used plants for shelter, tools, food, medicine, beverages, worship, pleasure, cosmetics, cooking containers, storage, education, and clothing. Paper products are made from trees and bamboo fibers as are fabrics like Tencel and bamboo yarn. Wherever plants have grown, we human beings have discovered the uses of plants in all of their forms to nourish, protect and sustain us. As our tools advanced, so too did the use of plants expand, and their products were refined. Essential oils were a result of the distillation process that first appeared in ancient records in ancient Egypt and China. Queen Cleopatra, herself, was known to have had an extensive knowledge of essential oils and their uses!
What are Essential Oils? Essential oils are the result of a steam distillation method which uses water and plant material heated together to create steam. The steam is then separated into 2 products, essential oils, which are the pure, concentrated, liquid chemical components from the plants, and hydrosol, which is the water from the steam and some very diluted chemical components from the plants. When we say that essential oils are very concentrated, it should be noted that it takes 10,000 rose petals to create only 1 drop of essential oil. The amount of plant material varies from plant to plant, but the chemistry is always very concentrated. When working with essential oils, we need to remember just how strong they actually are when we formulate with them! Another interesting point about essential oils is that not every plant contains them. Out of the multitude of plants that exist on our beautiful world, only a small percentage of them have essential oils in them. Some 3,000 plants are known to have essential oils in them and an even smaller percentage - about 400 plants – are used commercially.
As stated above, essentials oils are liquid chemical components in high concentrations. When we look at the makeup of an essential oil, there are many chemical components in them that have been researched by scientists for their effects on the body and their potential uses in medicines, cosmetics, perfumes, and skincare. An accredited Aromatherapist is trained in the various applications of these components and their contraindications for use. Babies, for instance, should not receive any direct application of essential oils on their bodies. Essential oils are much too strong for a baby. It is safest to use specific, gentle, hydrosols, on their bedding only - not essential oils. It is also best to ask an accredited Aromatherapist how to use them safely, especially with small children, the elderly, and the unwell.
Evolve Aromatherapy is created by Jean Oristano, an accredited Aromatherapist who studied at the Internationally recognized Aromahead Institute – the first school established in the United States for the study of Essential Oils by its founder, Andrea Butje. Each of our products at Evolve Aromatherapy is carefully formulated for the specific actions of each essential oil and its components for every skin type. The base oils and butters used in each product are researched carefully for their active qualities for the specific results needed for the specific product and required results. Please note that Wink eye moisturizer does not contain any essential oils as the eye area can be too sensitive for them. Precious, base oils with wonderful properties for the eye area were selected for this product instead.