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Always keep a bottle of mixing oil or any pure vegetable oil handy when using essential oils. Vegetable oils dilute essential oils if they cause discomfort or skin irritation. -
Keep bottles of essential oils tightly closed and store in a cool location away from light. If stored properly, essential oils will maintain their potency for many years. -
Keep essential oils out of reach of children. Treat them as you would any product for therapeutic use. -
Essential oils rich in menthol (such as peppermint) should not be used on the throat or neck area of children under 30 months of age. -
Direct sunlight and essential oils. Lemon, bergamot, orange, grapefruit, tangerine and other citrus oils may cause a rash or darker pigmentation if applied to skin exposed to direct sunlight or UV rays within 3 to 4 days. -
Keep essential oils away from eye area and do not put into ears. Do not handle contact lenses or rub eyes with essential oils on your fingers. Oils with high phenol content (oregano, cinnamon, thyme, clove, lemongrass, bergamot) may damage contacts and irritate eyes. -
Pregnant women should consult their health care professional before using essential oils and avoid Idaho tansy and oils containing constituents with hormon-like activity, such as clary sage, sage, and fennel. -
Epileptics and people with high blood pressure should consult a health care professional before using essential oils. Avoid hyssop, fennel, and Idaho tansy oils. -
People with allergies should test a small amount of oil on a small area of sensitive skin, such as the inside of the arm, before applying the oil on other areas. The bottom of the feet is one of the safest, most effective places to use essential oils. -
Before taking GRAS essential oils internally, always dilute with an oil-soluble liquid like honey, olive oil, or soy milk. Essential Oils NOT Recommended For Personal Use:
Bitter almond, Boldo leaf, Calamus, Yellow Camphor, Horseradish, Jaborandi Leaf, Mugwort, Mustard, Pennyroyal, Rue, Sassafras, Savin, Southernwood, Thuja, Wormseed, Wormwood The two books quoted below for general information are:
"The Encylopaedia of Essential Oils" by Julia Lawless, 1992, ISBN# 1-85230-311-5 and "Rodale's Encyclopedia of Herbs" published by Rodale Press, 1987, ISBN# 0-87857-699-1. "Avoid use of these oils during pregnancy: bitter almond, basil, clary sage, clove bud, hyssop, sweet fennel, juniper berry, marjoram, myrrh, peppermint, rose, rosemary, sage, thyme and wintergreen. These oils can be especially irritating to the skin: allspice, bitter almond, basil, cinnamon leaf, cinnamon bark, clove bud, sweet fennel, fir needle, lemon, lemongrass, melissa, peppermint, tea tree, wintergreen. Anyone with epilepsy should not use Sweet fennel, hyssop, sage, and rosemary. Hyssop, rosemary, sage, and thyme should be avoided by people with high blood pressure. These statements have not been reviewed, approved or dissaproved by the FDA and are offered only as information and not as any diagnostic tool or form of treatment."  Back Next 
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