Appendix C – Oils and Essential Oils

Aromatherapy is the use of plant essential oils to promote and maintain well-being.

Essential oils are organic compounds (extracts) derived from various parts of flowers, resins, leaves, barks, fruit and roots.

They contain natural chemical constituents , with each essential oil having unique therapeutic properties which can be used to help promote and maintain health and well-being.

The most common methods of application of essential oils include :

Massage / Adding to the bath / Vaporisation or inhalation.

 

ABSORPTION

Essential oils should be used with caution when it comes to working with babies and children, as up to the age of 12, a child’s liver has not properly matured and the child’s emotional responses to aroma’s should also be considered.

Essential oils are absorbed through the skin and into the blood circulatory system via the hair follicles and sweat glands.

For this reason it is always best to consult a qualified aromatherapist before offering any advice regarding essential oils and baby massage.

SAFE DILUTIONS

The use of essential oils before the baby is 12 weeks old is not recommended, as they should not interfere with the smell of the mother and for massage purposes through these first weeks, also only pure organic odour less vegetable/fruit oils are recommended.

Babies

12 weeks – 2 yrs (2 drops essential oil to 3 tablespoons vegetable base oil)

 

BASES

Vegetable/Fruit Base Oils

The skin is the largest living breathing organ of the human body.

Vegetable, or carrier oils, are unperfumed oils and as well as facilitating massage and the dilution of essential oils, vegetable oils also have therapeutic properties of their own with an ability to treat certain skin conditions, especially Olive Oil.

The following vegetable base (carrier) oils are recommended for massaging babies:

Sunflower Seed / Grapeseed / Light Olive Oil / Palm Oil / Fractionated Coconut

Different oils are also used in different cultures for different skin types, for example olive oil is used more for Mediterranean skin, coconut oil is used more for afro-Caribbean skin, and Indian mothers massage their babies with mustard oil.

Always patch test first. Avoid commercial baby oils as these are derived from crude petroleum and as such are ‘indigestible’.

Herbal Oils

Herbal oils differ from essential and vegetable carrier oils in that they are produced through infusing fresh or dried herbs. By soaking the herbal plant material in a vegetable oil, e.g. sunflower oil, for 4-6 weeks, the aromatic and therapeutic constituents of the herbal plant will infuse into the vegetable oil which is then drained and filtered off.

The most common herbal oils include :

Arnica (Arnica montana) and Calendula (Calendula officinalis)

Common herbal oils used to benefit both mum and baby, are;

Calendula- a very healing and soothing oil which is particularly gentle on skin and can help sooth nappy rash and can be used on dry skin as a moisturiser,

Arnica- helps to heal bruising and lime blossom- which encourages sleep.

 

Hydrolats (Flower Waters)

The process of distilling essential oils from plants, usually through steam distillation, also produces hydrolat or flower water from the remaining pure water at the final stage of distillation of the essential oil.

Retaining most of the more gentle therapeutic properties of the oil, hydrolats can be used to treat some skin conditions and as a cooling and refreshing skin toner.

Care should be taken in purchasing hydrolats as many of these supplied are little more than perfumed water.  Organic hydrolats offer the best healing properties and in most cases the distillation process will also have used fresh mountain spring water at source.

Hydrolats can be mixed with water based creams or easily diluted in the babies bath.

The most common hydrolats include:

Lavender (lavandula angustifolia),

Chamomile (anthemis nobilis),

Myrtle (myrtus communis) and

Orange flower (citrus aurantium).

Buying and Storing Essential Oils

Where possible Essential oils should be organic,  pure and natural, so as to reduce chemical interference and undefined risks from genetically modified constituents.

Always store both individual and blended essential oils in a cool, dark, dry environment to lessen the effects of oxidisation.

You must always buy essential oils and hydrolats from a reputable supplier who should be able to supply your oil and information data sheets. Contact the ATC (Aromatherapy Trades Council) for a list of suppliers.

 

 

SAFETY FIRST

Babies respond very quickly to smells and so check that the aroma does not upset the baby. Then complete a skin test to check the baby’s reaction. This can be done on the inside of the upper arm and about 60 minutes observation time should be allowed.

CONTRA-INDICATIONS TO ESSENTIAL OIL AND MASSAGE ON BABIES AND CHILDREN

DISEASED OR DAMAGED SKIN

WEEPING SKIN CONDITIONS

HEAVY BRUISING

EPILEPSY

CANCER

VERY STIFF AND IMMOBILE OR

SWOLLEN JOINTS

ILLNESS FEVER

AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES

SHOCK

HEART AND CIRCULATORY CONDITIONS (CHECK WITH CONSULTANT)

LIVER AND LUNG DISORDERS

ANY OTHER MAJOR DISEASES OR DISORDERS

(A thorough medical history is necessary if massage and essential oils are to be used for a particular problem and under these conditions the consent of the baby’s main medical consultant is essential).

Essential oils may also be used with other complementary therapies like Homeopathy, Acupuncture and Cranial Sacral Therapy.

THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS MAY BE HELPED WITH THE CORRECT USE OF ESSENTIAL OILS.

Use only one of the following essential oils. With the correct dilution no more than once a day :

SLEEP PROBLEMS

Frankinsense/Chamomile

CRADLE CAP/NAPPY RASH

Olive Oil/Ravensara

COLIC

Chamomile

CONSTIPATION

Chamomile

DRY SKIN

Olive Oil/Fractionated Coconut

CHICKEN POX

Luke warm wash of strained Organic Oats / Ravensara / Lavender

COUGHS / COLDS /CROUP

Frankinsense/Myrrh/Pine/Peppermint

TEETHING

Chamomile/Tea Bags/Chamomila homeopathic crystals

 

ECZEMA

Olive Oil/Chickweed Cream/SOS Cream Barefoot Botanicals (if weepy Organic Oats Ravensara/Lavender Emulsifying Ointment)

BURN WOUNDS

Coco Butter

Masssage non affected areas prior to debridement

Ravensara/Lavender

Bicarbonate Soda 3 tablespoons plus two drops lavender oil

Dry and itchy skin

 

To show the effectiveness of essential oils.

Tea-tree oil is surprisingly effective at treating methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, according to research from Australia.

According to Dr Eugene Sherry of the University of Sydney, when applied to the skin of infected wounds, an antibacterial wash derived from Eucalyptus radiata and Melaleuca alternifolia, or eucalyptus and tea tree oils respectively, can work better than some modern antibiotics.

Dr Sherry became interested in the healing powers of essential oils after attending a lecture two years ago. He began researching the subject and discovered that there was a large amount of well-documented research already available, but that most of it had been abandoned with the arrival of modern antibiotics.

Dr Sherry used the combination of oils once a day for several months in a series of 25 patients with MRSA. He said that 22 of the infections disappeared completely, and that 19 of these were without the use of any modern antibiotics. The other three needed antibiotic treatment in addition to the oils.

 

An easy alternative to burning essential oils is to put a few drops of your choice of oil into a spray bottle with purified/distilled water (not tap water) shake well, and spray the room with a little before a session, if you use the same scent every week the baby will come to recognise it and associate it with a pleasant experience, and the same scent could also be use at home when massaging to familiarise the baby with massage. Ensure that you change the mix regularly and keep it out of direct sunlight. Also ensure that you do not leave essential oils in sunlight as they oxidise and go off (when this happens the scent changes and the oil appears cloudy). Be careful when buying bottles to store the mix in ensure that they are properly washed so your oils are unaffected.

If a mum approaches you regarding her baby having particularly dry, flaky skin, look at what oil is being used when massaging, avoid commercial baby oils, clothes fabric and detergent and perfumed soaps. Calendula and camomile can be soothing for dry skin, also camomile tea can be used to wash badly affected areas.