Just as in other posts I want to mention that I only use Young Living Essential Oils. Young Living is the only company that makes PURE, THERAPEUTIC GRADE essential oils in a completely transparent way that they guarantee their "Seed to Seal" process. If you plan on using any recipe that uses essential oils, please note that the $4.00 bottle of lavender or the $6 bottle of tea tree you find at the drug store or the health food store is not the same thing. The quality, purity, and grade of oils is not the same. Please do your research and know what you are breathing into your body,putting on your body, or ingesting into your body. To get your own Young Living products click HERE! (If you choose to click there and get your essential oils, be sure and let me know. For the last week of March I have super duper deal you don't want to miss out on.)
In my last post, I mentioned lots of Spring ideas you can do with essential oils. I thought I'd add to that to close out March. April is going to be rocking with The Well Oiled Family, so now is the time to jump on board with these ideas.
Let's talk about diffusing some good smelling stuff first. One of the easiest ways to use your essential oils is to use the diffuser that comes with your starter kit. You simply fill it with water, drop a few drops of oil in and off you go. You may be wondering why you can't just light your favorite candle and forget all this noise about essential oils.
Sometimes, one of the simplest pleasures in life is coming home from a stressful day of work, filling the bathtub with warm water, and lighting an aromatherapy candle with a special scent that—as the label claims—will make you feel calm and relaxed. Unfortunately, that seemingly harmless candle could be filling the air in your home with carcinogenic soot and lead emissions.
“Oh, no,” you say, clutching your Calming, Sensual, and Invigorating candles to your chest, “you’ll take these away from me when you pry them from my stressed out, soot-stained hands.” Fortunately, the solution to the candle pollution problem doesn’t have to be that extreme. Alternatives to toxic aromatherapy candles abound—from natural beeswax and vegetable wax candles to candle-free aromatherapy techniques. With very little effort, you can fill your home with soothing scents without filling it with toxins.
I know you are thinking that a something as simple as a candle can in no way be harmful to your health. Well, think again! If your candle wick has a metal core, chances are you burning and putting of lead by-products into your home. You say you don't burn candles, but instead use a wax burner. Ok, no problem! If the product you are using contains paraffin, you might as well be making a fresh squeezed juice and add gasoline to it. It's just that not so good for you! Paraffin releases carcinogenic soot when burned, which aggravates conditions such as lung problems like asthma, and also heart problems. You don't believe me? Look it up for yourself. I did my research and I now know why every time i smell a candle burning or a wax burner going, my head goes nuts. As a disclaimer, I will add that not every single candle or wax burner on the market is evil. There are some that are 100% beeswax, but beeswax is so expensive, it's usually cut with this harmful, cheap toxins.
You can put anything in your diffuser that you want to, but here are some great Spring choices! In addition to diffusing, try making your own room freshener spray with distilled water, 12 drops citrus fresh essential oil, and a pinch of epsom salt to keep the oil and water mixed in a spray bottle! According to the same website listed above, Febreeze air freshener released 89 toxins! Wow! That's all I know to say- WOW! It's super easy to do your own.
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Something else we all like to do in the Spring is spring cleaning. I cannot wait to get in the girls' closets and cull their clothes. Deep cleaning is generally not my forte, and I'm sure it's not your favorite thing to do either, but if you have to do it, you might as well do it safely. Safely, you say? Other than running the risk of fatigue and needing an afternoon nap, what could be harmful about spring cleaning? Did you know that Spic and Span, Scrubbing Bubbles, Mop and Glow - the list goes on and on-all have been banned in other countries? You can visit here to see all the data, but Lysol rates as an F when it comes to safeness by the Environmental Working Group. Citing things such as moderate concern for asthma and allergies, high concern for developmental and reproductive toxicity, and some concern to the environment, skin irritation, and cancer, this product is just not one you need under your kitchen sink. Has it been under mine? Well of course it has, along with every other product listed with it that rates an F for various reasons. I bet you probably didn't know that there is not federal regulation of chemicals household products. Why would you need to know that information? I didn't know it until I started researching for myself. But what I did know, like with candles, is that cleaning with household cleaning products that we bought at Wal-Mart made me feel awful. On a side note here, I have a damaged nerve in my face from sinus surgery that effects my nose and ear. It has a name and I'll write about that later, but in doing my research it made total sense to me why these products bothered me. Since I've started using essential oils for all things smelly and cleaning, my TNhas been completely under control! AH-mazing!!!! Anyway, back to business....
Rebecca Sutton, PhD, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group (EWG), explains, “In terms of household cleaners, neither ingredients nor products must meet any sort of safety standard, nor is any testing data or notification required before bringing a product to market.”
The average household contains about 62 toxic chemicals, say environmental experts. We’re exposed to them routinely — from the phthalates in synthetic fragrances to the noxious fumes in oven cleaners. Ingredients in common household products have been linked to asthma, cancer, reproductive disorders, hormone disruption and neurotoxicity. (source)
This Spring, try some of these cleaning tips to for safe, non-toxic alternatives.
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I have made up my own wipes with the Thieves cleaner and wipe down everything in may house. I put a cap full in a spray bottle and keep handy, as well. If you don't have the cleaner, oils from your kit will work just fine. Just add 10 drops of Thieves, 10 drops of lemon, and a squirt of organic witch hazel to a spray bottle. It's that easy! Drop a few drops of purification in a bowl of baking soda, sprinkle on carpet before vacuuming. I also add thieves cleaner to my wash. I put a few drops of purification in a water bottle and spray our fresh fruit. I even take these products to school and have the lady who does the mopping use Thieves cleaner in the water.
I mentioned this in my last post, but one thing we are all doing as the weather turns warmer is going to ball field or the soccer field. Mainly, just being outside period, and we also all know that with that comes bugs, bugs, pesky bugs! According to this site, a research article done in 2009 "found that DEET can interfere with the activity
of enzymes that are vital for the nervous system to function properly. In the study, the researchers found that DEET blocked the enzyme cholinesterase, which is essential for transmitting messages from the brain to the muscles in insects. The researchers noted that DEET may also affect the nervous systems of mammals, and that more research in this area is needed.
of enzymes that are vital for the nervous system to function properly. In the study, the researchers found that DEET blocked the enzyme cholinesterase, which is essential for transmitting messages from the brain to the muscles in insects. The researchers noted that DEET may also affect the nervous systems of mammals, and that more research in this area is needed.
The study, conducted by the Institute of Development Research in France, and published in the journal BMC Biology, found that chemicals that interfere with the action of cholinesterase can cause excessive salivation and eye-watering in low doses, followed by muscle spasms and ultimately death." So, yum, yea....I'd take from this that bug spray, although it protecting us from bugs that carry diseases, are probably something we should find alternatives to if we can. I think I will be trying this.
We already use peppermint oil in a spray bottle for indoor bug spray, which comes in the kit. Purification, Mel A (Tea Tree) and Lavender also come in the kit. There are many recipes on the internet for bug spray and the good thing about these is that they area safe for your skin. In a spray bottle, fill with distilled water, add about 2 tablespoons of witch hazel (to keep the oils mixed) and 10 drops of each of these oils. Spray as needed. You don't even have to have all of these oils for it to work. Just pick 2 or 3 if that is doable for you and go with it!
Along with all this being outside during all this pretty Spring weather (well if you live where I do we haven't seen much of it yet) comes the pollen and other allergens that causes us to get those Spring time sniffles. I don't think anybody needs me to add research on how harmful spring time sniffle medications can be. I mean, you have to show your ID to get most of it. THAT should be our sign. One of our favorite go to uses for the essential oils is the lemon, lavender, peppermint combo. I posted about it last week and we also made it at the make n take. Just add lemon, lavender, and peppermint to some carrier oil and massage on your neck, over your sinuses, behind your ears, even your chest.
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RC is one of my top 5 FAV oils. It's a blend of some good stuff and some say it has a light Vick's Rub smell to it,in a non-toxic way of course.
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To shut down those sniffles, diffuse, add to a drop of honey and take, add in a roller bottle and roll it on, make a capsule, use an already pre-made roll on called Breathe Again (GOOD STUFF, people, GOOD STUFF). I posted last week about an stick you could make.
The possibilities are just endless, but the best possibility of all is that you are using something that you know is safe and I can almost guarantee that by weeding out those chemical laden products that we use every day without even thinking you will feel better. After the Make N Take last week, I had a lady message me and say that she used her thieves spray to clean up after everyone has been out in the chicken houses that afternoon. She stated not only did her house smell wonderful, but she could tell a difference in the overall feeling of her well being. Just think about what we may be coming in contact with that we don't even know. Is it time for you to make a change? No better time than Spring cleaning. Clean out -out with the old- and in with the new.
Happy oiling from The Well Oiled Family!
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