I get lots of questions about carrier oils and dilution ratios for essential oils, so we are going back to basics today. In general when using oils topically, always dilute even if the bottle says dilution not required.
Why? There are three reasons for this:
1. Helps them last longer: Essential oils contain volatile organic compounds*, which essentially means they evaporate quickly – that’s where you get the smell from! Carrier oils, by contrast, are fatty oils and don’t evaporate quickly. So mixing your EO with a carrier stops it from evaporating before it can do its job.
2. Helps them soak in better: We have lots of fat cells just under our skin. Carrier oils, because of the fats, help the EO better absorb into your skin so they are more effective.
3. Helps you save money!: Carrier oils help add volume so it’s easier to spread out over the area you want to treat, so you can use less EO.
Don’t be fooled into thinking using them neat is stronger – chances are they will just evaporate more quickly and/or could cause some sensitivity! So, essentially by diluting you save money by allowing you to use less EO in a more effective way. Pretty cool, right?
Bonus: Some carrier oils have benefits on their own. Coconut oil has an SPF of about 4. Jojoba is great for hair and skin. Sweet Almond oil is great for aging skin.
And, of course, V-6 Young Living’s carrier oil blend is a non-greasy blend of all the best carriers, including Coconut Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Grape Seed Oil, Sesame Seed Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Sunflower Oil. Have you tried V-6? What’s your favorite carrier right now and why?
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Now if I’m out and about, and don’t have carrier with me, I sometimes use them undiluted so don’t get too panicky about it, but in general carrier oils are your friend.
SKINCARE BONUS TIPS: We all want gorgeous skin, and here are some tips for picking carrier oils to go with your essential oils blends (whether in a roller, direct application, or in a DIY item).
If you have sensitive skin, pick a carrier that has a low comedogenic rating. And if you are looking for more carrier tips, this post about Facial Serums has some good suggestions for both EOs and carriers for all skin types whether dry, oily, normal, mature, or sensitive. https://www.facebook.com/
* Note – these are not the bad VOCs you might have heard about. “Pure essential oils are free of aromatic compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which may be linked with cancer, but they do contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) — otherwise, they could not be smelled” Gerhard Buchbauer, Professor of pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of Vienna in Austria.
