What is essential oil and how to use it?

What is essential oil and how to use it?

Winter with long dark evenings has arrived and now is the best time for aromatherapy experiences. Essential oils and aromatherapy at home help keep the mind positive and relieve physical ailments caused by winter. Many essential oils are antibacterial and antiviral and help to prevent various health problems. Practicing aromatherapy at home is something that everyone can handle.

What are essential oils and aromatherapy?

Aromatherapy is a gentle but effective way to heal and take care of your soul, body and mind, using natural oils from aromatic plants, trees and herbs. Essential oils can be found in different parts of the plant – from flowers, fruits, leaves, berries, resin, cones, charcoal, rhizomes and roots.

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Because essential oils smell so sweet, it is easy to assume that their value lies solely in the odor. This is wrong because these substances are very complex and represent a powerful way to heal our inside and outside. It is important to use only pure essential oils because they are the ones that have a healing effect.

Essential oils are mainly used for massage, bath, spraying, and inhalation. Massage is the most effective way to use essential oils. For massage, essential oils are always mixed with base oils (eg almond oil, avocado oil, coconut oil).

There are several ways to spray rooms with essential oils – aroma lamps, diffusers, humidifiers, etc. In our selection, you will find several diffusers with different designs that can be used with essential oils. Just add a few drops of your desired essential oil to the water and the diffuser will transmit it into the air. The cold steam method makes the odor molecules finer, and when inhaled, the effects of the oils are the greatest. In addition, the use of a diffuser is safe because the possibility of overdosing is small. It should be noted that undiluted essential oils should be used within one year after opening the bottle and it should be stored in a cool, dark place.
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Which oils to choose for different situations?

Anxiety Disorders

It is normal to worry a little when faced with surprises and problems. However, worrying becomes a problem when it is exaggerated, causing abnormal anxiety with physical ailments – headaches, indigestion, insomnia, muscle fatigue, etc. For anxiety, use ylang-ylang essential oil, which lowers adrenaline levels, calms the nervous system and relieves anger, shock, panic, and fear. Bergamot, grapefruit, and patchouli essential oils also have similar effects and are recommended for anxiety.

Stress

The first sign of stress is fatigue, and when we work against our body’s desire to rest, it affects our mental and physical well-being, leading to anxiety, depression, palpitations, and panic attacks. Grapefruit essential oil is the best choice for stress because it has a balancing, uplifting and refreshing effect. Lavender oil is also recommended when dealing with stress.

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Insomnia

Insomnia makes it difficult to fall asleep and often affects your daily routine. In case of insomnia, it is recommended to use lavender essential oil. Spray a few drops on a pillow, make a warm bath or use it for a massage. Lavender calms and tones the nervous system and has a sleep-promoting effect. Grapefruit essential oil also has a calming effect and is recommended before falling asleep.

Cellulite

Cellulite is an accumulation of water and waste, often caused by poor blood circulation, stress, an unbalanced diet, excessive consumption of coffee and tea, and so on. Grapefruit and juniper berry essential oils help to fight against cellulite. Grapefruit is a lymphatic stimulant and, due to its excellent fluid-excreting effect, it helps to remove water and toxic residues from the body. Juniper berry oil is also known for its detoxifying effect, cleansing the body of toxins, especially when an excessive amount of alcohol or rich foods have been consumed. Add oils to your bath water or have a lymphatic massage on a regular basis.

Indigestion

Peppermint relieves acute diseases of the digestive system – abdominal pain, heartburn, constipation, and diarrhea. Peppermint essential oil has a beneficial effect on the function of the stomach, kidneys, and intestines. Cinnamon essential oil also relieves gastrointestinal spasms, bloating, diarrhea, and nausea. Gently massage your stomach or use oils in a relaxing bath.

Skin problems

Essential oils can also be used effectively for problematic skin. Essential oils are antibacterial, help to stimulate blood circulation and cleanse the skin and help balance sebum secretion. When dealing with problematic skin, it is recommended to use basil or lemongrass essential oils. Basil is a revitalizing tonic that stimulates the skin, cleans clogged pores, and leaves the skin feeling fresh. Lemongrass is effective for open pores and good for balancing oily skin. Juniper berry and orange essential oils are also good tonics for oily skin, they help to cleanse the skin and relieve acne. For dry skin, use patchouli essential oil, which promotes skin cell regeneration. You can use the aforementioned essential oils for steam cleansing your face or once a week in a clay mask.

Cold hands and feet

Cold hands and feet are a very common wintertime problem. Essential oils with a warming effect, such as clove, ginger, juniper berry, and rosemary essential oils, help to stimulate blood circulation. The most effective way to warm your cold hands and feet is to mix a few drops of the aforementioned essential oils into your cream and massage your hands and feet with it. Moisturizing with a cream or oil that has a warming effect, also relieves joint pain and tenderness. You can also make a warm hand and foot bath.

Nurme eeterlik õliRespiratory diseases

Eucalyptus, peppermint, pine, and tea tree essential oils are perfect for opening a stuffy nose, runny nose, and airways. These essential oils have antiviral properties and are therefore best to use when you are suffering from a cold. Old-fashioned hot steam inhalation is the most effective way. To do this, choose suitable oils, add 1-2 drops of essential oil per liter of hot water and inhale the hot water vapor (this method is not suitable for asthmatics).

Alternatively, a very small amount of essential oil can be mixed with, for example, olive oil or your daily body care oil and you can spread it under your nose, on your cheekbones, or on the tip of your nose. With small circular movements, start rather gently. In the case of having a cough, the same mixture can be applied to your breast.

If any of your family members are already infected with the virus, a good tip is to clean the air with juniper berry essential oil. Add 10-12 drops of juniper berry essential oil to the aroma lamp. This will help to keep the virus away from other family members.

Strengthening the immune system

If it is not necessary to directly repel diseases, then all citrus oils (eg grapefruit, mandarin, lemon, orange, bergamot) basically act as vitamin C through aromatherapy. Citrus scents always give positive energy and are good to use when you are recovering from an illness.
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Better training results

The next time you are leaving your house to go workout, add a new essential into your sports bag – a handkerchief dripped with rosemary essential oil. Aromatherapists claim that sniffing the invigorating scent of rosemary repels fatigue. The camphor-like aroma promotes light and deep inhalation, which allows more oxygen to flow through the body. However, if the scent of rosemary is not one of your favorites, then eucalyptus and peppermint oils, for example, also support physical and mental performance.

Against pain

Many essential oils also have pain-relieving effects. Lemongrass essential oil is known to be the best natural painkiller, anti-inflammatory, and muscle tension reliever. Mix lemongrass oil with any base oil and rub the mixture to the sore area. In addition, in folk medicine, clove essential oil has been used for toothache and sage essential oil for abdominal pain. Mix sage essential oil with a base oil and massage the abdomen with circular movements.

Home fragrance

The scent of your home is very important – it can be creative and complement the colors and style of your home, and also affect the guests’ understanding of your nature. The choice of a specific scent depends on your preferences and mood – for example, grapefruit lifts the mood and relieves depression, in summer, lemongrass is an excellent insect repellent, eucalyptus helps with headaches. Spray your carpets or textiles with essential oil, or add a few drops of essential oil to the floor cleaning water or a few drops to your laundry detergent. Then you will be surrounded by the wonderful smell of your favorite essential oils.

There are many different essential oils and finding your favorites is a time-consuming process. But we invite you to try and experiment.

All Nurme essential oils are 100% pure, do not contain parabens, prohibited preservatives, dyes, or UV filters. Check out Nurme essential oils HERE! For convenient use, we have also added a large selection of aroma diffusers with different designs to our shop.

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