Essential oils are increasingly recognized for their benefits on well-being and health. But how to use them? Find our expert articles to advise and guide you in their use.
Essential oils have always been recognized for their benefits on well-being and health. But how to use them? Find our expert articles to advise and guide you in their use.
What are essential oils?
Essential oils are concentrated liquid extracts obtained by steam distillation of aromatic plants, flower, leaf, wood, root, bark, fruit, etc. An essential oil is therefore defined as the distilled essence of the plant designated on its label. The essential oil is made up of around a hundred molecules that are particularly active on the human metabolism.
How to Select High Quality Essential Oils ?
Its name: It must be identified by two Latin names. The first name designates the genus and the second the species: Thymus vulgaris = Common thyme.
The oil-producing organ: Quality essential oils must be chemotyped, in other words, the plant organ must appear on the bottle.
Geographical origin: The label must also include the biotype, the terroir, but also the country of origin of the plant.
The method of cultivation: The method of extraction allowing to preserve the activity of the components can also appear there.
Who can use an essential oil?
Children and babies have “their essential oils” and “their dosages” all to them: do not treat them with those recommended for adults. They will instead use aromatic hydrosols. Pregnant women, apart from the formulas specially dedicated to them, refrain from taking any essential oil on your own. For the rest, you can benefit from the benefits of these oils.
How is an essential oil used?
Whether in the field of cosmetics, by the cutaneous, respiratory, oral, anal, vaginal or balneotherapy route, essential oils can be used as long as the different dilutions are respected. Some of them have contraindications. Organic and Natural Essential oils should never be used pure. They should always be diluted and by drops.
Tarragon, whose botanical name is Artemisia dracunculus, belongs to the Asteraceae family. Its producing organs are its aerial parts. The history of tarragon Tarragon was introduced to Europe during the Crusades. But it has a long tradition as a medicinal plant and spice in Asia and Siberia. As well as being used in cookery books, … Read more
Black spruce is native to Canada’s boreal forest. For centuries, Indian peoples have passed on orally from generation to generation the use of this conifer for its therapeutic virtues. It is remarkable to note that very early on, these peoples used the different parts of the plant perfectly and with great discernment, whether applied locally, … Read more
Since ancient times, frankincense, along with myrrh and other aromatics, was among the drugs burned in temples during religious ceremonies. These odoriferous fumigations are also currently still in use and are part of the rites of current religions. A mythical and ritual plant of all civilizations of the Mediterranean basin, incense has therefore been the object of all desires. of the … Read more
Cypress was part of the medical material of the ancient Egyptians, as evidenced by various papyri. Its reddish yellow wood, practically incorruptible, was used to make sarcophagi to keep mummies. Tradition has often dedicated this tree to the cult of the dead and to the ornamentation of cemeteries because of its dark foliage and its eternally green color ( semper … Read more
Cilantro is one of the oldest aromatic herbs in the world . In Antiquity, the Romans were keen on it. The spice appears in more than 70 dishes from the collection of recipes of the gastronomic Roman Apicius . It is mentioned in Sanskrit writings, the Ebers papyrus , the Old Testament … without forgetting its use in China, more than 2000 years ago … This plant, in … Read more
Ceylon citronella oil is a natural product that has been used for centuries for its medicinal and aromatic properties. It is known for its mosquito-repellent properties and its lemon balm-like fragrance. Its use dates back to the 17th century, when the military surgeon Nicolas Grimm experimented with it as an antiseptic. Ceylon citronella essential oil … Read more
As everyone knows, lemon is a citrus fruit, a word whose etymological roots directly refer to its pungent and sour flavor . In the fifth century BC, Sophocles referred to the orange and the lemon under the same name of “golden apples” ( which for a long time suggested that these two fruits could indeed have some relation with apples. from … Read more
Cistus has been used in medicine, cosmetics and aromatherapy for centuries for the quality of its gum. 25 centuries ago, Theophrastus referred to this plant by the Greek word kistos, which simply means capsule. The scent is reminiscent of ambergris. While the resins and essences they release protect the leaves from drought, the plant is … Read more
Dated from the XXVII century BC. JC, the oldest written record mentioning cinnamon, comes to us from the Chinese, who already knew this medicinal plant very well in their time. In ancient China, cinnamon was considered to be a tonic , a material capable of regenerating vital energy, that is to say Qi … Due to its undeniable tonic properties , … Read more
The virtues of chamomile flowers have been known since the dawn of time. Although not of Roman origin, tradition has it that it was named so because a German botanist and physician Camerarius rediscovered it in the 16th century in Rome. The flower head is used in herbalism, traditionally to facilitate digestion . In liquorice, it gives a bitter flavor to aperitifs. The … Read more
Discovered by botanists in 1925 in the Juriti Velho region (States of Para), this tree was named “rosewood” because of the delicately scent of its wood . The study of this tree revealed that it contained an essential oil of an exceptional richness in linalool , an odorous substance precursor of the perfume of lavender. A thriving extractive industry developed in the Amazon … Read more
In the citrus tribe, bergamot stands out, not only because it is a funny phenomenon full of sparkling and charming, but also because we wanted to attribute several places of birth and equally numerous parents. Indeed, some say that it comes from the west: they claim that it was Christopher Columbus who discovered the bergamot tree in … Read more