Can one be allergic to Essential Oils?

1. Sensitivities to Essential Oils
by David Stewart, PhD, DNM

There are a couple of ways one can be sensitive to essential oils, but an
allergic reaction is not one of them. Allergies are erroneous immune
responses to proteins, peptides, and amino acids - all nitrogen compounds,
none of which are found in essential oils.

You can have an allergic reaction to a vegetable oil such as olive, corn,
peanut, walnut, almond, etc., since these are cold pressed and can contain
small amounts of proteins. For example, occasionally a person can develop an
allergy to an oil blend such as Valor, which is sold by Young Living. The
allergy is not due to the essential oils of spruce, frankincense, rosewood,
and blue tansy in the blend. It is due to the almond oil in the blend. So
read your labels. What may appear to be an allergic reaction to a blend of
essential oils may be due to a carrier oil contained in the blend.

You can also have an allergic reaction to citrus oils which are cold pressed
from the rind. However, while we refer to citrus oils such as orange, lemon,
lime, and grapefruit as "essential oils," strictly speaking they are not. By
definition, a true essential oil must be steam distilled, not expressed.

There are also oils extracted by solvents such as onycha, jasmine, and
neroli. Strictly speaking, they too are not true essential oils. Technically,
they should be called absolutes, not essential oils. One can have a true
allergic reaction to these because, like the citrus oils, they have not passed
through a distillation process and can contain traces of proteins, peptides, or
amino acids.

Because of the nature of distillation by heat, steam, and water, that true
essential oils must undergo, they do not contain the necessary compounds to
trigger allergies because these compounds do not pass through the distillation
process.

Hence, sensitivities to essential oils, in the sense of allergic reactions,
are not possible. Allergic sensitivities are due to the body developing
antibodies in response to certain nitrogenous molecules. No one has ever
found antibodies in humans from essential oils. So if one has a reaction
to an essential oil, it is something else. Not an allergy.

Read the article over at Raindrop Training.com

IMPORTANT NOTE:
The information in this newsletter is not meant to diagnose, prescribe, or
substitute for professional medical assistance. It is provided as information
Only for your better understanding of holistic health. In case of medical
need, please consult an appropriate licensed professional.