Essential oils pack a powerful punch as they are made from huge amounts of plant materials. Because of this they are highly concentrated extracts, making them incredibly powerful, and must be diluted. Using essential oil’s safely takes knowledge and practice. I’m here to tell you about essential oil dilution. You want to dilute your essential oils to give them the maximum use that they can deliver. Read on to find out about essential oil dilution.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.
Why should you dilute?
Dilution simply means mixing your oil drops with a carrier oil (more about this in a minute). Doing this is for many reasons especially for your health and well-being. Here are a few reasons to dilute essential oils.
- To prevent adverse reactions such as redness, burns, blisters and itching.
- To much of any oils can cause toxicity, so you will want to prevent this by diluting.
- To prevent sensitization. Overuse of an undiluted oil can cause sensitization.
- Dilution with a carrier oil slows down evaporation.
- Increase essential oil coverage over the skin.
- Allows body to absorb more of the essential oil.
What do you dilute essential oils with?
Essential oils can be used to nourish the skin, improve sleep, in cleaning products, support the respiratory system, boost the immunity system and so much more. Essential oils are so strong that they need to be properly diluted. Usually, this mean diluting or mixing them in a vegetable-based carrier oil. There are many different types of vegetable-based carrier oils. Here are a few:
- Coconut oil
- Grapeseed oil
- Jojoba oil
- Olive oil
- Sweet almond oil
You can use other products beside carrier oils to dilute your essential oils in. Some of these type of carriers are lotion, aloe vera, witch hazel and even Epsom salts.
How Do You Dilute Essential Oils?
Proper dilution starts with determining the way you want to use your oil and on who. Special considerations are needed for small children, elderly, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers.
Pregnant and breastfeeding mothers should use a .5 to 1% dilution and never use essential oils in the first trimester. Please be cautious of using essential oils around young babies if you are nursing. Continue reading for more information.
Babies have thin immature skin; this allows essential oils to absorb more easily and faster. This is not always a good thing for babies. It is not recommended to use essential oils on or near infants under six months old due to their immature skin and respiratory system.
As babies age, they can start using essential oils on an as needed basis. Babies and children ages 2 to 6 can use the dilution rate of .25 to .5% dilution. .5% is 1 drop essential oil to one teaspoons of carrier oil. Please do proper research on the essential oil you choose for your baby. You want to use something gentle and safe. Lavender is my only recommendation.
For ages 6 and up you can use a 1-2% dilution.
For healthy adults a dilution of 2% can be used.
For elderly use .5 to 1% dilution. Elderly have thin skin and more likely to cause skin irritations.
Other Dilution Considerations
A 1% dilution is recommended for facial use in creams and serums.
2% for daily use and massage oils and leave on body products.
3% for rinse off bath and body products.
3%-10% for acute conditions lasting up to two weeks.
10%-20% for severe conditions such as wounds, burns and debilitating pain.
Using essential oils “neat” or undiluted is not recommended but on occasion can be used with success. These incidents are to be used very rarely and not to be made a habit of. Bug bites or burns are two examples of situations where you can use an essential oil neat or undiluted.
Low Topical Max Essential Oils
Some essential oils have a low topical max, where using a single drop is still two much. Some of these essential oils are usually considered “hot” oils. Not following topical max suggestion could result in burns, irritation and even blisters. Example of these oils are Cassia, Clove, Cinnamon Bark and Leaf, and Oregano. Other essential oils with low topical max include, but are not limited to, Lemongrass, Melissa, and ylang ylang.
Essential Oils and Bath Water
Never add essential oils directly to the bath water. We all learned in school that oil and water don’t mix. Your essential oils will congregate and float on the top of the water, undiluted. This can be hazardous to your skin causing redness, burns, blisters or itching.
Please read my post of bath waters and essential oils to find out how to dilute your oils into bath water for a safe bathing experience.
Keep Reading: How To Use Essential Oils In Your Bath Water
Important Note about Essential Oil Blends and Dilution
Most essential oil companies do not share their recipes with consumers. This makes it hard to know if the essential oils in these blends are diluted correctly when you add them to carriers. Even using one drop from a blend can contain too much of one essential oil, especially essential oils with very low dilution rates. So, it is even more so important to check the individual dilution rate for each oil in the blend. Then use the dilution for the lowest essential oil in the blend. For instance, if you are using a blend with Lemongrass, which has a 0.7% dilution rate, you would want to dilute your blend using that percentage assuming it had the lowest rate.
Essential Oil Dilution Chart
You can use this essential oil dilution chart to help you dilute essential oils.
Are you in need of some essential oils? Shop with Plant Therapy! I use and recommend them. The offer 100% pure quality essential oils and also provide the GC/MS report to prove it. Just click the logo below to shop.
Sign up for a Free downloadable Lavender Essential Oil Reference Guide Click HERE.
I’d love it if you’d leave a comment below and let me know what you learned! Thank you for reading my blog post!
This information is intended to educate and inform. Please do not replace this information with the advice and guidance from a doctor. This information is not intended to treat, cure, diagnose or prevent any disease. Please consult with your health care professional if you have any questions.