What are Essential Oils?

There are so many oils available, how do we know if what we are buying is actually an Essential Oil?  In fact, what are Essential Oils? 

Essential oils are liquid extracts from aromatic plants.  The aromatic plant contains potent chemical compounds and are capable of synthesising oil.  The oil that is extracted from the plants capture the flavour and aroma of the plant, in effect the essence, and is referred to as Essential Oil.  Each plant has unique aromatic compounds that give each essential oil its individual essence and properties.  So in summary Essential Oil is the flavour and aroma that is extracted from the aromatic plant. 

In their book “Essential Oil Safety” Robert Tisserand & Rodney Young advise that

plants that produce essential oils belong to many different botanical species and are found throughout the globe.  It is estimated that there are 350,000 plant species globally, and that 5% of these (17,500 species) are aromatic. 

Essential oils are harvested by extracting the compounds from the plant.  This is generally through distillation (via steam and/or water) or mechanical methods, such as cold pressing.  The way the oils are made is important, as essential oils obtained through chemical processes are not considered true essential oils. 

When buying Essential oils it is important to check if they are pure.  There are many oils for sale that are not pure, and this can be due to the way that the oil has been harvested or in some cases mixed with a carrier oil. 

Here are some tips for buying pure oil:

• Check purity – Pure oils usually has the plant’s botanical name on the bottle e.g. Lavandual Officinalis (Lavender).
• What out for wording like “essential oil of Lavender” or fragrance – this may indicate that there is some lavender in the oil but does not mean that the oil is pure.
• Country of origin should be listed on the label.
• Essential oils are sold in dark glass bottles – this is to protect the oils from light. Essential oils do not like exposure to light.  Always store away from light.
• Orifice reducer in bottle. This is help with application but also as a safety measure to stop oil spilling out unnecessarily.  This can also help to stop oil being drank accidentally.  Always keeps oils out of reach to children. 
• Check on the distillation process. Look for a chemical-free distillation process to ensure that the oil has not be adulterated.  If in doubt ask the seller.
• Avoid oils that have been diluted with synthetic fragrances, chemicals or other oils.

TIP:  On a training course a tutor shared the following tip which I use to check to test the purity of essential oils:

• Get a white piece of paper, like printer or copier paper.
• Put a couple of drops of oil on the paper.
• Let it dry out (overnight) – if a distinct oily stain remains then the oil has been adulterated.

Hope the above helps.  If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact me and I will do my best to help.

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