EO Basics

Have you used an essential oil before? Essential oils are a great way to support your whole-body wellness and enhance every aspect of your life.

The next time you drive by a field of fresh lavender or hike through a pine forest, breathe deeply—you’re experiencing the soul-soothing power of essential oils. Essential oils are more than nice scents; these powerful plant extracts are your path to the lifelong wellness we are committed to helping you discover. Essential oils are useful, powerful allies in your quest for wellness!

The more you learn about essential oils, the science behind them, and how they interact and support the body, the more confident you will feel in using them yourself and sharing them with others.

Essential oils are aromatic, concentrated plant extracts that are lovingly harvested from farm-grown and wildcrafted plants, herbs, and trees. They are carefully obtained through steam distillation, cold pressing, or resin tapping. These pure essential oils are more potent than dried herbs and far more powerful than the botanicals from which they are extracted.

Essential oils are stored in small, glandular like sacs found on the plant’s surface or the inside of the plant material. For example, the lavender oil sac is found on the surface of the lavender petal, while citrus essential oils are found on the inside of the fruit’s peel.

Young Living offers hundreds of single oils, blends, and oil-infused products, each containing the optimal levels of specific, naturally occurring constituents to maximize their potency. Whether you use oils for aromatherapy, personal care, or household solutions, every aspect of daily life can benefit from a drop or two of essential oils!

Each essential oil contains hundreds of constituents which make them very diverse in their effects. Each constituent offers its own unique health benefits. No two oils are alike.
Essential oils are fat soluble, this means they are attracted to fat and mix readily with other oils.
They are a highly concentrated form of the source plant. Essential oils are 100 to 10,000 times more concentrated than the herb.

What makes essential oils special?

What makes essential oils unique and different from herbs, is that they are potent, volatile, and versatile.

When you dry an herb, most of the essential oil is dried out of it. The essential oil is what contains molecules that support your whole body wellness.

Did you know that it takes 75 lemons to make one 15ml bottle of lemon essential oil and it takes 1 pound of raw peppermint to make one 15 ml bottle of peppermint essential oil? Oils are extremely potent and concentrated, this makes them very powerful and able to provide rapid benefits. Over 5,000 pounds of rose petals are required to distill 1 pound of pure rose essential oil, making it one of the most expensive oils on the market. The amount of plant material required for distillation differs from plant to plant and this is why some oils are more expensive than others.

Essential oils are also volatile meaning they quickly change from a liquid to a gas. Try putting a few drops of oils in your hand, rub your hands together and cup them over your nose. Take a few deep breaths and notice how the aroma can help help positively impact your mood and environment.

There are endless ways to use essential oils! Essential oils enhance wellness in ways that we are just beginning to understand!

Lavender is a great example of how highly concentrated our oils are. Did you know that Young Living uses an average of 27 square feet of lavender plants to make one 15ml of lavender oil?

There is a common misconception that essential oils were only recently discovered and that they are a new health fad. This is far from the truth, essential oils are nothing new. Essential oils have been enhancing lives for thousands of years in many different cultures, offering a variety of benefits from cosmetic and dietary purposes to spiritual and religious uses. Essential oils were used by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Europeans and the Chinese. In fact, oils are mentioned in many historical texts and are well documented for their uses and benefits in ancient times. Young Living has always been at the forefront of bringing this ancient tradition to modern times and has introduced millions to life-changing emotional, physical, and spiritual wellness.

Essential oils come directly from plants. Each essential oil is extracted from different parts of the plant. Some essential oils are found in the flowers, while others are found in the leaves or stem. This is also a contributing factor to each oils’ unique benefits.

There are four ways to extract our essential oils from the plant.

Steam Distilling | Used to extract delicate materials in a heat and pressure controlled environment.

Depending on the oil, different parts of the herb or plant are used – Flower, flowering tops, grasses, leaves, roots, seeds, wood, bark, needles.

Cold Pressing | Used to extract fatty oils and citrus essential oils.

Just as it sounds, the product is pressed to extract the oil.
We use this process for our citrus oils because using other methods can break down the delicate citral molecules and cause the oil to become bitter.
Fatty oils such as Olive, almond, jojoba, coconut are also extracted this way even though they are not “essential” oils.

Resin Tapping | Pulling resin from trees and taking it to be distilled.

This is accomplished by cutting the external plant parts, causing distress to the tree which then secretes a resin.

Essential oil is steam distilled from resin
Resins can also be chewed like gum

Absolute Oils | When oils are in very delicate material, solvents must be used to extract essential oil

The only essential oil we extract this way is Jasmine

Steam distillation is the most common way to extract essential oils and Young Living is an innovator in essential oil distillation. Gary Young’s years of research and innovation have led Young Living to their delicate distillation process which sets us apart from all the other oil companies. Young Living uses an innovative, gentle, and proprietary steam distillation process that involves using just the right amount of heat and pressure to extract each essential oil. Distillation has to be done correctly and very carefully to ensure each oil has the proper chemical constituent profile. The essential oil constituents are easily destroyed by too much heat or pressure, therefore we use gentle techniques to extract our oils without causing any damage or loss. Variation in temperature or pressure alters the oil. The beneficial compounds are just as potent and powerful in the essential oil bottles as they are in their plant source when distilled properly.

The most common way to obtain essential oils is through steam distillation, and it has been practiced for over 5,000 years! In steam distillation, freshly picked plants are suspended over boiling water. The steam from the hot water rises through the plant material and subsequently pulls the oil from the plant. As the steam and oil mixture rises, it gets captured in a vessel; it then travels through the condenser and is rapidly cooled. This causes the steam/oil mixture to condense back into water. Since water and essential oil do not mix, the two separate, and the essential oil is then collected. If you visit our farms, you can see this process firsthand!

Cold pressing is how we extract citrus essential oils like lemon, grapefruit, lime, orange, and tangerine. Historically, cold pressing was done by hand. People would press down with their bare hands on presoaked citrus rinds until a mixture of water and oils was obtained. Thankfully, a more modern method of extraction (and less labor-intensive!) allows us to obtain our beloved citrus oils. During cold pressing, the rind of the citrus fruit is placed in a container with spikes that puncture the peels while the device is rotated. The puncturing of the rinds allows the release of essential oil, which is then collected and separated from the natural juices. The rind of the fruit is pressed and the essential oil is separated from the fruit.

We use this process for obtaining citrus oils because using other methods can break down and damage the delicate citral molecules. Steam distilled citrus oils may have a bitter aroma because the heat breaks down the delicate citral molecules.

Other fatty oils like olive, almond, and coconut oil are cold pressed from the plant to obtain the oil.

This method is used to extract oils such as Frankincense, Myrrh and Copaiba. This is accomplished by scraping the external plant source, causing distress and damage to the tree. Over time, the tree produces a sap like substance to heal the wound. The sap hardens into a resin which is then collected and taken to be distilled. If done properly, tapping trees causes no harm to nature, and with our Seed to Seal® promise, we make sure to comply with the most responsible and scalable sourcing practices available.

Absolute oils are obtained from the grain alcohol extraction of a concrete, which is a solid, waxy residue derived from the extraction of plant material, usually flower petals.

Simply put, absolute extraction requires a solvent to extract the oil because the plant material is so delicate. The essential oil would not be able to be extracted without the use of a solvent. Young Living only uses absolute extraction to distill Jasmine essential oil.

Essential oils are powerful and can provide your body with many benefits, but how do you use them?

Have you ever wondered how and why essential oils work? There is a common misconception that essential oils work only because of the placebo effect, but this is far from the truth! The more you learn about the biology and chemistry behind essential oils it makes sense why they are so effective.

You can access the power of essential oils many ways! There are three ways to use essential oils: aromatically, topically, and internally. Each method benefits our body in different ways.

Do you love the way the fragrance from a fresh orange peel brightens your day? Each essential oil’s complex, pleasant, and unique scent triggers memories and moods, which can help your search for a more fulfilling and balanced life.

Using essential oils aromatically is a great way to create a specific atmosphere in any of your spaces. They can help create an atmosphere that aromatically sparks a sense of peace, concentration, creativity, joy, or any other mood your home or office could benefit from. Essential oils also help eliminate odors in the home.

Try putting a few drops in your palm, rub your hands together, and cover your nose while taking a few deep breaths. This is one of the quickest ways to experience the benefits of an aroma. When you need a boost of energy, try inhaling a few a drops of peppermint.

You can also enjoy the aromatic benefits of essential oils through diffusion. Simply add a few drops of oil to your diffuser. Diffusers create a fine aromatic mist that allow you to create a spa-like atmosphere and enjoy the benefits of essential oils in any environment. Young Living offers a wide variety of diffusers!

Aromas can have an extremely powerful impact on the body. Using oils aromatically is an excellent, plant-based way to reap the benefits of essential oils and positively impact your emotions and mood.

Grab your Lavender essential oil and put three drops in your hand. Rub your hands together and cup your nose while you take five deep breaths. How do you feel?

Imagine you are walking through the mountains or a lavender field. What does it look like? How do you feel? What does it smell like? Notice how your body reacts when you think of the smell. Do you have memories associated with this smell? Be aware and conscious of how your body starts to feel when you breathe in the essential oil. Notice if your body begins to relax or your mind begins to clear; notice if you start to feel different—maybe calm, balanced, or centered.

Many times your body can react to the scent of an oil without your conscious awareness. By simply inhaling or diffusing a scent, you can evoke your desired mood or emotion through the limbic system.

Now grab your Peppermint essential oil and take 5 deep breathes. Notice the difference in how your body reacts. The Lavender aroma has a more calming effect, while peppermint inspires more energizing and uplifting feelings.

To learn more about the science behind how essential oils work, check out the “Science Behind Essential Oils: How They Work For Beginners,” course.

Essential oils can also be applied to the skin, this is known as topical application.

You can use oils during a massage, apply to desired areas after exercise, smooth the appearance of wrinkles, support healthy skin, and endless other ways! Try applying oils to your feet, adding them to a foot bath, massage oil, or adding them to your beauty products.

Remember to incorporate a carrier oil because they will ensure that essential oils applied topically are comfortable to the skin. Diluting with a carrier oil does not dilute the effect of the essential oil, it allows the essential to go farther. Look for specific dilution ratios on Young Living essential oil bottles.

The Vitality line offers over 40 essential oils that you can use in your cooking, to flavor your favorite beverages, or even to create your own veggie capsules. Vitality essential oils are a great way to keep yourself healthy!

You can also use essential oils internally. Young Living’s line of Vitality oils are specifically labeled for internal use. Taking oils internally is a great way to support your different body systems. Try adding a few drops of essential oil to a glass of water, veggie capsule, or try baking with them to enhance your favorite recipes.

Essential oils’ rich, bright aromas can add a delicious kick of flavor to your favorite recipes. Try adding a drop or two of lime to fresh salsa or to your favorite Mexican-inspired marinade, lemon to grilled fish, peppermint to hot cocoa, or basil and oregano to homemade pasta sauce. Get creative and enjoy all the culinary possibilities of essential oils. Remember essential oils are potent, one drop goes a long way when cooking.

If adding oils to a drink, be sure to use a glass or stainless steel bottle because oils will eat away plastic. Use caution when using an oil on any soft, plastic surface.

These are just a few of the many ways you can utilize Vitality to support your body.

DiGize Vitality was specially formulated to support your digestive system. Try putting a few drops in a glass of water and drinking before large meals.
Incorporate Grapefruit Vitality into your weight management routine. Put a few drops into a veggie capsule and ingest daily. Don’t forget to follow label instructions.
SclarEssence™ Vitality can be used for mild mood changes and cramps associated with the menstrual cycle.*

Lemon Vitality has antioxidant properties and provides immune and circulatory support.*
German Chamomile Vitality provides mood support and can help calm occasional nervous tension.*
Nutmeg Vitality supports cognitive function.*
Peppermint Vitality supports normal digestion.*

Adding essential oils to your everyday routine can help you live a happier and healthier lifestyle!

Essential oils are great option to support your families’ wellness and use in your everyday life because they are:

Fast acting- support the body in seconds.
Effective
Simple to use- use topically, aromatically, or internally.
Convenient- small and easy to take everywhere. Essential oils are also versatile, one oil can help in many ways.
Affordable- a little oil goes a long way! There are approximately 250-300 drops in a 15ml bottle. A typical application is around 2-5 drops or less!

Essential oils have the unique ability to help balance and calm the body, mind, and spirit. Discover how Young Living’s pure essential oils and carefully formulated blends can help you maintain normal balance and peace in your life. Through diffusion, direct inhalation, and massage, our products can become an affirming part of your day with the beautiful scents of botanicals from all around the world.

Essential oils have been used for centuries to support the appearance of radiant-looking skin, lustrous hair, and an ageless-looking complexion. Young Living’s pure, carefully distilled essential oils and essential oil-infused products are free from harmful chemicals and are formulated to help you reveal your most confident self.

Young Living’s wide range of carefully formulated products offer crucial support for individuals in every stage of life and for every wellness goal. No matter what your specific wellness goals are, essential oils and other natural, wellness-supporting ingredients are ideal for transforming the way you feel every day.

Try using essential oils like Lemon, Purification, Lavender, and Tea Tree to keep your home fresh! There are countless ways to add essential oils to your favorite DIY recipes.

Young Living also has many oil infused products that can support your entire lifestyle and help you experience wellness from the inside out.

Modern lifestyles don’t always create optimal conditions for physical wellness. Poor diet, lack of exercise, and an overabundance of environmental toxins can leave the body unbalanced and diminish energy levels. From weight management to supplemental support, our essential oils and essential oil-infused products can provide the targeted solutions you need to restore balance and feel your best. Young Living’s essential oil infused products offer wellness solutions that empower you to avoid harmful chemicals, energize your life, eliminate negativity, and reclaim your natural radiance.

Essential oils are powerful and provide the body with many benefits and because essential oils are so potent, it is important to know how to use them correctly.

How often can essential oils be applied? How much do I use?

Always follow label instructions and remember to start low and go slow. Each person reacts differently to essential oils and what works good for you may not work for someone else. Remember that essential oils are very concentrated and more is not always better. 1-2 drops may be more than sufficient to meet your needs.

If you have sensitive skin, are new to essential oils, or are worried about how your skin may react to an essential oil, do patch test prior to use.

Why should you dilute an essential oil and how do you do it?

Dilution recommendations can be found on the back of each essential oil bottle and should be followed, especially by those new to essential oils and when using on children. Diluted means mixing an essential with a carrier oil. Carrier oils ensure that essential oils applied topically are comfortable to the skin. Dilution with a carrier oil does not dilute the effect of the essential oil, it allows the essential to go farther.

It is important to remember that oils are fat soluble. This means they are attracted to fat and repel water. The skin is made up of fat which essential oils are attracted to. If an oil causes any type of discomfort on the body, washing the skin off with water will only drive the oil deeper into the skin.

A carrier oil is a fatty oil that gives added benefits to your skin and can be used to dilute essential oils. Good carrier oils are organic unrefined coconut oil, olive oil, or any of the fatty oils above. Young Living’s V-6 Vegetable Oil Complex is an excellent carrier oil for diluting and massages. It contains coconut Oil, Sesame Seed Oil, Grape Seed Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Sunflower Seed Oil, and Olive Fruit Oil.

Oils like canola oil, baby oil, or any mineral oil derived from petroleum by-products are not considered good carrier oils because of their negative health affects.

You can also add essential oils to plant butters before application.

Plant based butters are a great option to use when wanting to dilute an essential oils. Butters are not technically an oil, but they are fat-soluble and can provide many additional benefits for your skin. Make sure to look for organic, unrefined butters to work the most synergistically with your oil.

What is the difference between an essential oil and other plant oils like coconut and almond oil? The graph above compares the two types of oils side by side.

Some oils are more “hot” than others. “Hot oils” are oils that may cause a hot or burning sensation when applied to the skin. For those with sensitive skin, Young Living recommends doing a patch test prior to first use. Examples of “hot” oils include Cinnamon, Clove, Peppermint, Oregano, Thyme, Thieves, and blends that include these oils. Be sure to dilute hot oils with a carrier oil before applying and continue to dilute if discomfort occurs.

Avoid using essential oils in the eyes, ear canals, and mucous membranes. When applying essential oils to sensitive areas, it may cause a more intense reaction.

We recommend that you avoid applying essential oils to sensitive areas like the eyes, ear canals, and other mucous membranes. Use caution if you choose to apply essential oils to sensitive areas and be sure to heavily dilute. These areas of the skin are more sensitive and more prone to discomfort.

What is photosensitivity?

Citrus essential oils contain molecules that can cause a sensitive reaction to the skin when exposed to direct sunlight. Citrus oils like orange, lemon, grapefruit, lime, tangerine, bergamot, and blends containing these oils may cause discomfort to the skin if you are exposed to the sun within 12-48 hours of application. All Young Living essential oils and essential oil blends that contain these compounds are labeled with a warning to avoid sun/UV light for 12 to 48 hours after applying.

If you are planning on going out in the sun, the best way to apply citrus oils is to dilute and apply the oil to area of the skin that are protected from sun/UV exposure to reduce the risk of sensitivity.

Can you use essential oils while pregnant or nursing?

Pregnancy and nursing is a time when you should take caution in everything you are using. Always consult your health care provider and follow label instructions. Listen to your body and use what you are comfortable with. Be smart, make empowered decisions, and use common sense.

It is recommended to avoid the over and excessive use of Clary Sage, Sage, Idaho Tansy, Hyssop, Fennel, and Wintergreen as well as the blends and supplements that contain these oils.

Essential oils can be used with children.

Essential oils are a great way to enhance your entire family’s wellness. Essential oils also make great plant-based options for children, just make sure to dilute. If an adult uses 2 drops of an essential oil, a child will only need a fraction of that. By diluting an essential oil with a carrier oil, you can dilute it properly for a child.

Lemon, Frankincense, Tea Tree and Lavender are great examples of gentle and family friendly essential oils.

Oils will contain maximum potency for many years if stored in a cool, dark place.

What’s the difference between Young Living essential oils and all the other essential oil companies? All oils are not created equal. Young Living has something that no other company can claim: our Seed to Seal® quality commitment.

Seed to Seal is supported by three pillars.

Pillar 1: Sourcing
Young Living’s essential oils are sourced from our corporate-owned farms, partner farms, and Seed to Seal-certified suppliers. This empowers us to source conscientiously and with sensitivity to local communities and ecosystems.

Pillar 2: Science
While product quality starts in the fields, it’s proven in our state-of-the-art labs. Our Research and Development and Quality teams are staffed with more than 50 highly trained, highly skilled scientists, who use advanced testing methods to help ensure that all products meet our lofty standards.

Pillar 3: Standards
Inexpensive essential oils are often synthetic, adulterated, or unethically sourced, which is why we choose partners who produce pure essential oils and ingredients ethically and legally. This practice sets a top-tier standard for legal and ethical sourcing. Our efforts also go beyond a conscientious supply chain. Young Living’s commitment to sustainable business includes reforestation of harvested trees; recycling at Young Living offices; and the construction of our brand-new, LEED-certified headquarters in Lehi, Utah.

Why do we uphold these rigorous Seed to Seal standards? Because they result in a superior quality product, providing you and the Young Living family with quality beyond anything else on the market.

https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/company/about/younglivingfarms

Young Living farms stand apart in the essential oil industry and set the standard for cultivating and distilling essential oils. That’s why our essential oil farms play such an integral role in our Seed to Seal commitment. We’ve invested unprecedented time and resources to ensure that these standards are prioritized at each of our corporate-owned farms, partner farms, and Seed to Seal-certified suppliers, so your home and family get the very best nature has to offer.

With Young Living, you can support your own health and well-being. Essential oils can enhance so many areas of your life, are you ready to be empowered?

Young Living Blog

Get the inspirational tips and essential oil ideas on our fun and shareable blog. YoungLiving.com/blog

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Millions around the world have discovered that a drop of pure essential oil can change everything for the better. Discover what makes Seed to Seal® the ultimate, industry-leading standard in essential oil products, so our work can keep changing lives as it has for two decades.

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