Essential oils are not just for massage therapists, hippies and burning. We overlook the benefits of these powerful oils & we shouldn’t.

In Little Saturday’s ESSENTIAL Guide I will educate you on my top 10 essential oils that I believe to be beneficial to our health, wellbeing & some fantastic uses for your skin concerns. 

Your collection of oils has no doubt lived in your bathroom cabinet or on the shelf next to the oil burner for years & years. Do you even remember when you brought it or was it a gift? Your knowledge probably goes as far as a cotton swab and a bottle of tea tree oil in your hormonal teenage years or a few drops of lavender to help you sleep. 

So what are essential oils? They are oils extracted directly from the fruit, flower, nut, bark, leaves, root, or resin of a plant or tree. What is SO amazing is that with just one drop you can experience the entirety of the plant and all the healing and wellbeing powers it has to offer and even better, essential oils work to support the body’s own healing systems – no shock to the system, just a helping hand.

Most essential oils should never be used undiluted on the skin. Instead, they should be combined with “real” oils, called carrier oils – I use coconut oil. Because essential oils are so concentrated if you don’t dilute them you could end up with unhappy skin. A few drops into your favourite cream or oil is all you need. 

Please note: Use your essential oils according to manufacturer’s guidelines; they are concentrated and very powerful. Please be aware that several oils should be avoided during pregnancy. You must check this prior to using any oil and always inform your therapist if you are pregnant or trying. If in doubt – don’t use them.


Lavender
No doubt the most common essential oil and almost everyone loves the smell of lavender. It is one of the most versatile oils and is fantastic to have around the house, as it can be used for a variety of problems. 

Who hasn’t done this….hot bowl of water a few drops of lavender oil and towel over head (don’t drip nose in!) relax, inhale, unwind. 

Lavender oil tones and revitalizes all skin types. Extremely soothing and calming. Add a few drops to your normal moisturiser at night or use as a spot treatment for inflamed breakouts.

Benefits:
• Antidepressant
• Relief from anxiety and stress, just the smell of lavender is calming
• Analgesic
• Antiseptic
• Anti-bacterial 
• Aids in relaxation and sleep – a few drops on your pillow works a treat
• Defends system against airborne viruses.
• Good for aches and pains and muscle stiffness 
• Healing of wounds including all types of burns
• Treatment of eczema, dermatitis, scabies and psoriasis
• Relief from headaches and migraines


Chamomile 
This oil has a gorgeous scent! The absolute ultimate in calming and soothing and a must have for winter skin concerns such as dry, red, itchy skin and sensitivity. If this is you, add a few drops to your moisturiser (look for body creams that include colloidal oatmeal & NO fragrance). 

Benefits:
• Powerful anti-inflammatory 
• Treatment for inflamed acne – much better to use chamomile than tea-tree as it is very gentle on the skin
• Bactericide 
• Any skin condition that is red and inflamed
• Calming and soothing
• Promote repair of damaged, aging or irritated skin


Rosemary
Rosemary oil has a pronounced action on the brain and central nervous system and is wonderful for clearing the mind and mental awareness, while having excellent brain stimulant properties, as well as improving memory…...what?

On the skin, it helps to ease congestion, puffiness and swelling and can also be used for acne, dermatitis and eczema, but a very popular use of this oil is the use in hair care products, as it has a positive effect on the health of the hair and scalp.

Just sniffing it will help but it also works when blended with a carrier oil (coconut!). Mix with Dead Sea salts to make a body scrub that will put a real spring in your step! Homemade scrubs…. Watch this space. SUCH FUN! 

Benefits – where do I start!
• Improve memory and clarity
• Relieves headaches & migraines
• Helps hangovers – so do cheeseburgers
• Relieve aches and pains
• Mental fatigue
• Improves circulation problems – varicose veins
• Skin and hair booster from the stimulating action. 
• Fantastic for oily, congested skin
• Tightens pores – smoother skin
• Antiseptic
• Relief from intestinal infections and diarrhoea
• Diuretic properties – reducing water retention, improves cellulite…did you just say “PAA LEESSSSE nothing improves cellulite”......ok, in a nut shell, cellulite is hard fat and hard to move, stimulation and increase in circulation of any kind helps to break it down. So here’s where I can personally help - regular massage with rosemary essential oil. Simple homecare tips and you will see improvements.


Orange
Orange! My favourite essential oil, it just sounds sunny and happy. This cheerful oil delivers a dose of vitamin C, which can be used to great effect on dull skins. It brings happiness and warmth to the mind and helps people to relax and helps children to sleep at night. Orange oil can be used effectively on the immune system, as well as for colds and flu and to eliminate toxins from the body. Aside from orange oil – orange lighting is amazing on the mind too.

Benefits:
• Diuretic, balances water retention
• Lymphatic stimulation - helps to balance water processes, detoxification, aiding the immune system
• Improves digestion - helps with constipation
• Anti-depressant
• Relief from nervous tension and stress
• Uplifting properties
• Refreshing and relaxing
• Anti-inflammatory
• Anti-septic
• Promote the production of collagen and increasing the blood flow (increasing blood flow brings nutrients to the skin = glowing skin)
• Soothes dry, irritated skin as well as acne-prone skin


Sandalwood
Men love this – surprisingly it smells of wood. It also has been used for centuries for boosting sexual energy…..what more could a man want! A fantastic skin moisturiser that locks in moisture, ideal for winter. Sandalwood oil can be helpful for the nervous system, for chest and urinary tract infections and excellent in men’s skin care – guys, look out for this ingredient when choosing your skincare or shaving products.

Benefits:
• Soothe and heals a sore throat
• Dramatically increase moisture levels within the dermis, so great for dehydrated skin
• Gentle bactericide 
• Relaxing 
• Harmonizing and calming 
• Relieves fear, stress, nervous exhaustion and anxiety
• Boosts sexual energy 
• Relieves itchy and inflamed skin


Grapefruit
My dad Lew LOVES grapefruit juice and so do I and the love doesn’t stop at fresh juice! Grapefruit oil is gorgeous especially in summer, it’s so refreshing and energising. It helps to boost digestion, benefits the immune system by helping to clear the lymphatic system and is fantastic to give your skin a brightening boost, add a few drops to your body cream in summer and your skin will be zinging!!! 

Benefits:
• Stimulates the lymphatic system and is also a diuretic
• Renowned for its effectiveness in treating obesity and cellulite
• Rich in vitamin C - therefore valuable to the immune system
• Uplifting effect on the mood and helps with stress and depression
• Energising
• Relieves muscle fatigue and stiffness 
• Great congested, oily skin and also assists with acne
• Brightens and revives skin


Ginger
My mum Sally should be writing this – a serious ginger lover! Do you regularly feel just a bit off balance? Ginger is great for you. This oil is incredibly warming and can increase circulation especially when blended with lemon. 

Benefits:
• Warming and increases circulation
• Aids in digestion 
• Helps with nausea 
• Relief from colds and flu
• Motion sickness – I get this badly. Just say boat or swing and I feel sick
• Muscle aches and pains
• Arthritic pain
• Hungover again! Try ginger this time
• Period pain – kick back cramps with ginger! 
• Assist in bruising – massage gently in circular motions


Eucalyptus
I clean my house with eucalyptus oil as it is the anti-bacterial queen & it the scent lingers for days. In skin care it can be used for burns, blisters, herpes, cuts, wounds, skin infections and insect bites. Is also effective against bacteria – especially staphylococci, and has a refreshing and stimulating action on the mind, helping to improve concentration. 

Benefits:
• Anti-bacterial
• Warming 
• Improves circulation
• Muscle aches and pains
• Is refreshing and stimulating on the mind and improves concentration
• Relieves headaches & migraines
• Anti-inflammatory
• Calming


Ylang Ylang
How did you just say it?! Who cares, this oil is awesome! Great for reducing feelings of anger and as you probably know holding on to anger for short or long periods can have devastating consequences on health (see Bad Vibes post). Just sniffing this oil can help. 
Used in skincare, ylang ylang balances the sebum glands (oil glands) and is used to great effect in blends for combination skin, as it helps to bring oily and dry areas into balance. 

Benefits:
• Euphoric and sedative effect on the nervous system and helps with anxiety, tension, shock, fear and panic
• Aphrodisiac – so many naughty oils! 
• Calming and soothing
• Balancing the skin and MIND
• Reducing fear and anxiety – relaxing the breath and heartbeat.
• Reducing high blood pressure
• Helpful in treatment of intestinal infections
• Reducing nervous tension


Peppermint
Peppermint oil can assist in nervous disorders and is dramatically effective in stimulating the mind and focusing concentration, for treating the respiratory tract, muscular aches and pains and for some skin problems.

Benefits:
• Excellent for the treatment of mental fatigue and depression
• Refreshing and stimulating mental agility and improving concentration. 
• It helps for shock, headaches, migraine, nervous stress
• Vertigo and faintness 
• Respiratory disorders
• Relief from toothaches
• Aching feet – soooo good for this
• Muscular aches and pains
• Painful periods
• Relieves skin irritation and itchiness
• Reduce skin redness, where inflammation is present
• Treatment for dermatitis and acne
• Great for sunburn and inflammation of the skin, while at the same time having a cooling action


So there we go – your personal Essential Guide. 

The best place to find these and many other oils:

www.gonative.co.nz