essential-oils

Essential Oil Uses for Natural Therapy

The practice of incorporating essential oils into various forms of therapy is thousands of years old and even the ancient Egyptians had many essential oil uses. Most people rely on science to make them feel better and fill their prescriptions or buy over the counter medications for various ailments. However, many essential oils have therapeutic qualities that could also be great for treatments.

Popular Essential Oils for Common Ailments

There are quite a few essential oil uses and most are very beneficial for common ailments, first aid, emotional well-being and even sensual massage. In terms of first aid, lavender, thyme, tea tree oil, chamomile and basil are all excellent for treating insect bites, ant bites, small cuts and scraps.

Common ailments like a cold, flu, core throat, sinus problems and other related illnesses benefit from a variety of essential oils. Orange, peppermint, tea tree oil, basil, thyme, lime and cedarwood are all beneficial and even have other essential oil uses other than the common ailments listed above.

As far as sensual massage is concerned, the essential oils used for this particular activity also work to calm stress levels and help maintain an emotional balance. Essential oils such as peppermint, cinnamon, lavender, ylang ylang and jasmine are a just a sampling of the many oils that can be used.

Essential Oil Uses in Everyday Life

As mentioned above, among the many essential oil uses are for common ailments such as respiratory problems. By dropping some essential oils in a bowl of steaming water or even a humidifier, you can breathe in the vapors produced for easy relief of symptoms. Adding essential oils to a hot bath works in a similar manner only you have to be sure the essential oil is mixed with a carrier oil to avoid skin irritation.

Other essential oil uses include freshening up a room through aromatherapy and even regular household cleaning. The steam method of infusing essential oils works great at freshening up a room and even a diffuser made especially for essential oil uses works. Add a few drops of essential oil to a napkin or rag and place it in a trash can or anywhere else that can get particularly smelly.

One of the most popular essential oil uses has to be bug repellant. With all the smelly DEET based sprays and lotions, the use of essential oils is a godsend! There are many essential oils that work at repelling biting insects. Citronella, lavender, peppermint and even geranium are all possible contenders for bug repellant of the year. For personal applications, you must mix your essential oil with carrier oil or even an unscented lotion to avoid skin irritation. You can even sprinkle these oils onto cotton balls and place them in strategic places where insects like to enter the home.

There are probably thousands more essential oil uses and while you may be leery of some of them, you will at least be treated to a variety of wonderful aromas while you experiment. You can usually find these essential oils at whole foods and organic health food markets and pharmacies.