I have been semi-interested in essential oils for about 5-6 years. Originally I just wanted a few of them to use for various homemade bath supplies (such as bath salts and lotions). However, considering that I hardly ever use these products, the price for the oils just wasn't justified. When I was pregnant with my first son I started looking at various ways they could be used as home health remedies. In my own research I came to the conclusion that they were probably pretty effective when used correctly. I decided that one day I'd like to try them out, but they have always been too expensive for my tightwad self to be willing to try them out (again considering the fact that we rarely use medications anyway). Within the last year and a half I have had many family members and friends jump on the essential oil bandwagon and begin endorsing them.
Now lets go ahead and make a little side note here. I am a nerd. In particular I am a nerd from a family of doctors and nurses. I have always been interested in bodily functions and anatomy. I did not choose medicine as a profession, and I did not study it in depth in college. However I did excel in my anatomy class in high school and again in the 200 level anatomy classes in college (I later tutored for them for 3 years). So I am not an expert on all things medicine, but I do consider myself to be relatively well versed on the subject, especially compared to the average Jane or Joe.
That being said, I have been extremely skeptical concerning many of the claims and recommendations being made, and that are so widespread on the internet and social media sites. Among many various claims, there have been two that are the most irritating to me. The first is that essential oils are all natural and therefore safe. Umm...no, there are lots of "natural" poisons. Didn't our ancestors have to learn how to tell the difference between safe and poisonous berries? Just off the top of my head the pits from peaches and cherries, apple seeds, and tomato leaves are all poisonous. Heck, what about poison ivy? It is natural, but I sure wouldn't want to rub it all over my body.
The second thing that annoys me is when a person will say how one essential oil can have dozens of uses and then in the next breath say that they have ZERO side effects (because they are all natural!!). Excuse me, but how can something have a multiple uses and yet have no side effects? Now perhaps you mean to say that the side effects are all positive, but that is an individual matter. For example, lets take marjoram. Marjoram is effective in treating asthma as well as for lowering blood pressure. So lets say that we recommend that Jane Doe take it to help with her bronchitis. But what we don't realize or think about is that Jane also happens to have moderately low blood pressure to begin with. Add in the vasodilating properties of marjoram and all of a sudden Jane begins to suffer from dizziness and fainting spells. Whoops....but it is supposed to be all natural and safe, with zero side effects!!
That being said, I have recently been introduced to Plant Therapy while they were having a fun sale for Christmas. I am super excited because I finally found a source for essential oils that I can afford!! So naturally I went ahead and bought several (after all I've been wanting to for 5 years!) The more that I have seen from Plant Therapy over the last two months I am beginning to like them even more. Not only do they have pure essential oils for a quarter of the price of doTerra or Young Living (sometimes even less), but they also have much safer recommendations.
Here is a recent post from them concerning essential oil safety. Finally a company that advocates intelligence and isn't just looking out to make as much money as possible.
http://essentialoilblogging.com/2014/01/14/can-essential-oils-be-ingested/
*Note: I am not being paid (or receiving any other form of compensation) for this post. I just happen to like this post and the company in general.
No comments:
Post a Comment