Using Aromatherapy to Care for Your Skin and Hair
By April | September 7, 2007
Essential oils are becoming increasingly more popular in beauty products which is great for many reasons. You’re skin and hair isn’t just benefiting, you’re also reaping the benefits of aromatherapy.
Each essential oil has its own benefits so it’s important to understand what type of skin and hair you have before making your purchase.
Moisturizing your skin is as easy as adding suitable carrier oil into an essential oil that’s appropriate for your skin type and then massaging the combined treatment into your skin.
It’s important to remember that if you have sensitive skin or allergies you can just as easily suffer a negative reaction from natural products as you do synthetic. If you notice any itching or scratching then discontinue using the product immediately. If you’re unsure how you will react to an essential oil, test it on a small area first for a few days and see what happens.
If the problem you’re trying to alleviate isn’t going away, the products may not be working. If necessary, consult with a specialist for advice on how to proceed.
Which aromatherapy ingredients to use for skin/hair care and how?
Tee tree and lavender oils are fantastic for with acne. A good carrier oil to mix with these essential oils is grapeseed. Alternatively you can mix several drops with rose water to create a toner.
Sandalwood oil is effective at reducing some visible signs of aging such as wrinkles and dry skin. Rose oils, neroli, frankincense and geranium oils are also effective in treating mature skin.
For normal skin, try using rose or chamomile essential oils. If you have dry or sensitive skin, try some chamomile. You can add theses oils to you normal fragrance-free and use it as normal. You might even like to add a few drops to your bath water.
Palmarosa oils are commonly used in both skin and hair care products. These oils have moisturising and hydrating qualities and they stimulate cell regeneration.
Used neat or combined with carrier oil, the essential oils mentioned above can be massaged into skin or added to bath water. In addition to mixing essential oils into carrier oils, you can also mix them into creams and lotions containing lanolin as long as these products don’t contain a fragrance. Simply gently massage into skin.
When excess exposure to the sun is a problem, massage affected areas with lavender or chamomile oils blended with carrier oil.
A good final rinse for hair is a mixture of apple cider vinegar, lemon essential oil and water. In a container, mix 4 teaspoons water, 2 teaspoons vinegar and 3 drops lemon oil. Massage into hair and rinse well.
One-half cup dry rosemary leaves mixed with 1/2 cup olive oil makes a good hot oil treatment for hair. Mix ingredients in a pan and heat. Strain. Coat hair with mixture then wrap in plastic for 20 minutes. Wash thoroughly.
Topics: Beauty |