10 Essential Oils You Should Have at Home
If you just started with essential oils, welcome to our community! It’s a fun one to be in, and it’s not that exclusive. We can learn together more about the benefits and uses of essential oils, what exactly an essential oil is, and which oils are important for getting started.
There’s a wide variety of oils out there ranging with different prices, but you may not need all of them. It might be a little blurring to make the choices initially, so here we listed top 10 important essential oils which can be your starter kit. These oils are versatile, easy to use, smell great, and provide tons of benefits for health and home. Let's start now..
No. 1 Lavender
If you only want one essential oil at home, please choose it without hesitate. Lavender has been used for medicinal and home care purposes for thousands of years, and is one of the most versatile essential oil.
When it comes to therapeutic uses, lavender can be applied topically to alleviate: Skin rashes, Acne, Insect bites, Minor burns and It’s also an effective disinfectant for cuts and scrapes.
A few drops of lavender oil in a bath or diffuse via ultrasonic diffuser or nebulizer can help to soothe frayed nerves and help you get a good night’s sleep, and rubbing the oil into your temples and forehead can relieve headaches. Add lavender oil to the water you use to wash the floor to freshen up your living space, and a drop
No. 2 Lemon
Lemon is one of the best essential oils for home use, as it has too many home applications than most other oils. You can add a drop or two to a mixture of coarse salt and baking soda and then use that as an antibacterial scour for wooden cutting boards. A few drops of lemon EO added to olive oil makes a gorgeous furniture polish, and Lemon EO can be used in dish detergent, homemade laundry soap, floor cleaners, and spray cleaners. For therapeutic uses:
- Diffuse lemon EO to get a refreshing, clean atmosphere and boost your immunity
- A few drops added to shampoo can alleviate dandruff.
- Lemon oil added to a bath an alleviate anxiety.
- Blended with aloe gel, it acts as an anti-microbial hand sanitizer.
One thing should be kept in mind is lemon essential oil can make your skin photosensitive, so please wait 12 hours before exposing lemon-daubed skin to sunshine.
No. 3 Tea Tree
It is often been called “a medicine cabinet in a bottle,” as it can be used to treat almost any common ailment. it topically to treat the following: Athlete’s foot, Dermatitis/eczema, Acne, Cold sores, Nail fungus, Insect bites.. You can add a few drops of it to unscented shampoo to alleviate dandruff and psoriasis, and a few more drops in that same shampoo will treat head lice as well.
For use around the home, you can add a teaspoon of tea tree oil to the water in a misting bottle to create a disinfectant spray for counter tops, door handles, etc., and a few drops of undiluted oil around your pet’s bed basket will keep fleas at bay.
No. 4 Eucalyptus
Sourcing most from Australia, this essential oil can be recognised easily by scent. eucalyptus EO is great for alleviating chest congestion (either blended with other oils or alone), and a salve made with it can also ease asthma attacks when spread on the throat and chest. That same salve may help to alleviate the pain of fibromyalgia if rubbed into the affected area a few times a day. A few drops added to a compress and placed on skin affected by shingles can ease the pain associated with that condition, and may speed the healing process. Eucalyptus’ disinfectant properties make it ideal to use in a spray for your kitchen and bathroom, or diffuse the oil in your bathroom to eliminate germs and odors.
Eucalyptus have 3 varieties： Globulous, Radiata and Dives
Eucalyptus Globulous is the most well-know essential oils to help with the respiratory problems. It's also effective as a support to aching muscles or joints from occasional overuses. Eucalyptus Radiata is a similar but milder eucalyptus as it's slightly smoother than Eucalyptus Globulous and has softer scent. Eucalyptus Dives is the optimal choice for any household with small children. It has strong herbaceous, woody, minty scent that is stimulating and uplifting. Use it to help clear up sniffles and ease congestion. It can also provide a helpful mental boost when you need a pep or want to freshen a stale room
No. 5 Chamomile
Gentle and soothing, chamomile has been used as a calming herb since the Roman era, and a cup of chamomile tea can work wonders to quieten frayed nerves. Used topically, chamomile essential oil can be used either diluted or neat (full strength) for: Dry skin, Eczema, Dermatitis, Acne, Bee and wasp stings, Bruises, Cuts.
You can also diffuse it to alleviate insomnia, stress and anxiety, depression, especially when associated with PMS or menopause. Around the house, you can diffuse the oil to calm children who may be hyperactive or argumentative, and it can be dribbled near open doorways to repel mites and fleas
No. 6 Frankincense
Frankincense has endless variety of applications. It’s a fabulous therapeutic oil, and it smells wonderful. It makes a good candidate for some aromatherapy and stress-relief. Unlike many essential oils, you probably don’t recognize what plant it comes from! Frankincense oil is derived from the resin of the Boswellia carterii or Boswellia sacara tree, commonly grown in Somalia.
This oil is a powerhouse for keeping the skin healthy. You can use it as part of a DIY anti-aging face serum by mixing it with some jojoba oil which increases its absorption as a topical treatment.
It’s antibacterial and antiseptic properties make it cleansing for the skin, too. It can help clear up cuts and acne, and even reduce the appearance of stretch marks. Consider this your one-stop-shop for a safe and non-toxic beauty routine.
No. 7 Peppermint
Most people have probably taken a cup of peppermint tea to alleviate nausea or an upset stomach, but you can also massage your abdomen with a carrier oil that has a few drops of peppermint essential oil added to it to relieve stomach cramps and queasiness.
If you or your pet has a tick under your skin, a drop or two of pure, undiluted peppermint EO will draw the insect out so it can be eliminated. Blended with pine and eucalyptus and added to a carrier oil, peppermint is great for applying to the chest and throat to calm coughing fits and help relieve bronchial congestion, and a drop or two added to cool water can make a great foot soak to soothe tired, overheated feet.
No. 8 Grapefruit
Grapefruit is bright and cheery and uplifting. In our opinion, there is no better oil than the “sparkle” of Grapefruit Pink to lighten up mental fatigue and moodiness. Grapefruit Pink oil can be used in a 1% dilution as a purifier of congested, oily and blemish prone skin and is sometimes added to carrier oil or creams and lotions as a natural toner.
In the home, you can sprinkle a few drops around your dog’s bed to repel fleas (but keep the oil away from cats), and use it in the same way as lemon for anti-bacterial cleaning sprays. You can even sprinkle an old sock or handkerchief with grapefruit EO and then toss it in the dryer with your laundry to give it a fresh citrus scent without the use of any harmful chemicals.
Note: like lemon, grapefruit can make your skin photosensitive, so stay out of the sunshine for 12 hours after applying it.
No. 9 Oregano
With its anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic, anti-microbial, and antiseptic properties, oregano essential oil is as great to use around the house as it is on the body. It should never be used undiluted, however, and pregnant or nursing women should avoid using it.
Diluted in water, it makes a fantastic anti-bacterial spray for counter tops and high-traffic areas in your house, and you can use the undiluted oil around your bed to repel bed bugs, mites, lice, and fleas. The undiluted oil can cause skin irritation, so wear gloves if you’re going to use it full strength for home cleaning purposes.
No. 10 Rosemary
The scent of this oil is a lot like the herb you put in your food. It’s commonly found in skin care, especially natural products, because it not only has topical benefits but also will extend the shelf life of a product exponentially.
Rosemary oil is a stimulant. When inhaled, the aroma of rosemary has been shown to increase heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate and boost your immune system. It has also been shown to increase brain wave activity and aid the part of your nervous system that controls organ function. But while it stimulates many bodily systems, it also decreases levels of the stress hormone cortisol. And it does all of this while airborne, so you can simply diffuse it and gain these health benefits. If you like the scent of eucalyptus, you can combine it with rosemary to make your space smell like a forest.
Keep in mind that :
- All essential oils except few EO such us lavender and tea tree ( can use in small area without dilution) should be diluted by carrier oil or unscented cream before applying on the skin. Always start from a small area to test on skin and then expand to large area. After applying diluted EO with carrier oil, gently messaging until it's fully absorbed by skin to prevent skin pores clogging
2. the quality of oil you get will determine efficacy as well. If you plan to use these oils mostly for health care, first aid and such, it’s worth investing a few extra dollars on high quality or even organic essential oils. If you’d prefer to use these in cleaning products and the like, the standard EOs that you can find in pharmacies and health food stores should be just fine.
Before using any essential oils, please do your research on it to educate yourself thoroughly on their uses and possible toxicity (i.e. lemon or other citrus essential oil should be kept away from cats), and employ common sense when using them.
