Where to Buy Essential Oils

The use of essential oils is an interesting topic. If you decide that you want to begin using them, you might have trouble finding them. You may need a bit of help determining where to buy your essential oils. After all, you won’t find bottles of essential oils on the shelves of your grocery store or your local discount store. At least, if you do, they won’t be of good enough quality to use. If you are living in a city, or even in a health-conscious town, you might have other choices locally.

There are stores that cater to aromatherapy practitioners who use essential oils. These store-owners will be glad to sell to people who wish to try small amounts of the oils, as well. One advantage of dealing with someone locally is that you get to sample the products or at least see the condition of the bottles before you buy. If they are covered with dust, you might suspect that the essential oils are old. They might have lost some of their potency.

If you have no such stores near you, you will probably have to buy from a catalog or an internet company. The problem with catalogs is that it is often difficult to get good customer service from a company that deals primarily through catalog sales. However, there is often a good variety of essential oils to be found in catalogs.

Internet companies, on the other hand, usually have staff devoted to handling customer questions and complaints. Many of these companies give detailed information on how the essential oils are used. Some companies help you to identify your particular complaints and tell you which essential oils work best for them. Furthermore, these companies often will focus on safety issues. For example, they might steer you away from essential oils that interfere with medications you are currently taking.

Local, catalog, and internet companies may all try to sell you blends of essential oils. These can be very effective, but it is important to know what exactly you are getting. Internet companies are notorious for selling blends without explaining their ingredients. However, if you bother to ask the question, you can usually find out.

If you are going to the internet anyway, take the time to comparison shop. Notice the differences in the descriptions of the essential oils. Do they claim to be therapeutic grade? Look also at the prices. Look for higher prices for more exotic essential oils. If not, something is wrong. Also, some internet and catalog vendors give different types of discounts. Some are seasonal sales. Sometimes, you can get free shipping if you order a certain amount of the essential oils. Note these price reductions and take them into account when choosing your vendor.

Buying essential oils requires some thought and study. You should never rely totally on the information given to you by a seller of essential oils. After all, they want to make money like anyone else. However, if you research carefully, you should find a good place to buy your essential oils.

What Are Essential Oils?

Maybe you have heard the term “essential oils” but didn’t know what was meant by it. Perhaps you had a vague idea that it was connected in some way with aromatherapy, but didn’t know how. Now is as good a time as any to learn what essential oils are. Essential oils are made from different parts of plants. They can be made from leaves, like peppermint oil. They can be made from petals, like rose oil. Some are made from bark or wood, like sandalwood.

Others are made from other parts of plants. If a so-called “essential oil” has any animal products in it, it is not truly an essential oil. Also, true essential oils do not contain synthetic ingredients.

Essential oils are usually made by distillation to make the natural oils in a plant substance very concentrated. It takes an enormous amount of plant material to make just a small amount of essential oils. For this reason, they are very expensive. It only takes a few drops of these essential oils to have a powerful effect. Most essential oils are not used directly on the skin. Most are either inhaled or applied in a carrier oil. Sometimes the oils are put into a bath.

You can buy individual essential oils or you can buy blends. If you buy blends, it’s up to the maker to decide what oils to mix together and in what proportions. You can save money this way, because you only have to buy one bottle of a blend rather than several bottles to mix yourself. If money is no object, you might like to have the choice.

Essential oils have been used for centuries to promote physical and mental well-being. There are many varieties of essential oils and there are different ones for almost every ailment out there. There are several choices of oils for many of the conditions. Essential oils enter the body through the sense of smell. This is why they are often inhaled in some way or another. However, they are also absorbed into the tissues of the skin and into the bloodstream. This is especially true when they are used in baths or massages.

When essential oils are inhaled, they reach the limbic system of the brain and go on to affect all the systems that it interfaces with. These include the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the endocrine system, and memory. In the bloodstream, they affect the organs as well. When you have had a massage treatment with essential oils, it is wise not to bathe or wash it off for a couple of hours. This is because the systems of the body take time to absorb the oils from the skin.

Both psychological and medical conditions have been treated with aromatherapy through the use of essential oils. Some can be very expensive, especially those that come from exotic plants. However, by using the few drops as recommended, a small bottle can last a long time. Essential oils are effective tools in controlling uncomfortable symptoms.

Tips on Buying Essential Oils

If you have learned a little something about essential oils, you probably want to try them. Perhaps you’ve never bought them before. You probably need a few tips on buying essential oils.

Possibly the most important thing to remember is that anyone, no matter who they are, trying to sell you essential oils, is trying to make a profit. That’s okay, as long as you get what you pay for. The problem is that some unscrupulous vendors will try to sell you substances that are not truly pure essential oils. The labeling may tell you what you’re actually dealing with. If it says “natural identical oil,” then it clearly is not the actual essential oil you are looking for. When the label tells you it is “fragrance oil,” or “perfume oil,” you can be sure that it is not one single essential oil. It is at best a mixture and at worst a chemical concoction.

The containers your essential oils are bottled in are important to consider. Plastic containers can melt into the oil, destroying the effectiveness and sometimes the safety of the oils. Clear bottles let the light ruin good essential oils. Try to get essential oils in dark glass bottles.

One thing to look for in a vendor is good customer relations. If a seller gives you a chance to try their items before you buy, it gives you peace of mind that they are offering a quality product. When they are happy to communicate with you to answer questions and give information, it only shows that they are more reputable. You should be given information about the particular essential oils you are looking into before you buy. You should know where they are from and what distillation method was used. If you know all that, you will have an idea of what to expect the price to be.

When a vendor sells all of their essential oils for the same set price, you will know something is wrong. The oils made from more exotic plants, or plants with little oil, should cost more. Either the vendor is charging too much for some of them, or he/she is not supplying a quality product in all cases.

Essential oils used in the food and beverage, or the fragrance industry are treated differently from pure essential oils. They usually undergo more processing. This often lessens their effect for physical or psychological healing. Ask if this is the source of the essential oils you are buying. When you are fairly well satisfied that a vendor is offering a good product along with good customer service, you will probably be ready to buy. Take it slow. Don’t buy very much on your first order. That way you can make sure this is a company you want to do business with.

Whether you buy your essential oils online or at a local aromatherapy store, you will need to exercise good judgment in making your purchases. The most important things are to get a good quality product and to deal with a company that gives good customer service.

The Use of Essential Oils for Pets

When people have success using essential oils for healing and rejuvenation, they automatically assume they can use them on their pets as well. Sometimes this is indeed true. However, it takes special knowledge of animals to know when and how to use essential oils for pets. With many pets, you should avoid the use of essential oils altogether. Birds especially are susceptible to severe reactions to essential oils. You should not even diffuse these oils in the air near birds. They can have respiratory problems that can be deadly.

Cats are another subject. There is much controversy over whether you can use essential oils with cats. Many purveyors of these oils recommend frankincense for ear mites and peppermint for respiratory troubles. These are just a couple of the remedies suggested for the ailments of cats. Veterinarians, though, explain that essential oils do more harm than good to cats. Oils like peppermint are too “hot” for cats. Their sensitive skin will burn. Also, any essential oils that a cat takes in, whether it be through the air or through the skin, must be eliminated. This is done through the cat’s liver.

The problem is that a cat’s liver is more delicate than a human’s or that of other animals, as well. It takes some forty eight hours for the cat’s liver to process and expel the essential oils. This can lead to a build-up and finally to liver damage.

Dogs are more suited to the use of essential oils, but you should still never use them without diluting them. If you use a reasonable amount of caution, you can use essential oils to help dogs with many common problems. You can massage the essential oils mixed with carrier oils into the dog’s skin. Use an area of the skin that is the least hairy. You can also use a diffuser in a room twice a day and let your dog breathe the air from it. Since a dog’s liver is hardier, this will not damage it. You can use a mister to spray around the areas where the dog stays, too.

Many dogs will develop arthritis as they get older. Sometimes owners will even euthanize their dogs just so they won’t have to suffer with this ailment. However, there are essential oils that can help your dog live a more comfortable life. Some are juniper, pine, rosemary, and birch oils. When your dog becomes ill, it can mean damage to your flooring and furnishings. Besides that, you don’t like to see your dog suffering. For vomiting, you can use essential oils of lavender, tarragon, or peppermint. You can use a cinnamon oil massage for diarrhea.

Dogs often get what are known as “hot spots.” These are raw areas of skin where the fur has either been chewed or worn off. They can be very difficult to treat, and vets have several antidotes for them. If you want to try essential oils, try Melrose and lavender. They both clean the wound and reduce inflammation.

Care should be taken when using essential oils on or around animals. Some pets just can’t take it. Yet, for those pets that are able to tolerate them, they can be a great help.