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Essential Oil Safety Tips

Essential oils are very concentrated, so it's important to handle them with care. Please read these cautions carefully.

  • Always read and follow all label warnings and cautions.
  • Keep oils tightly closed and out of the reach of children.
  • Never ingest essential oils.
  • Don't use undiluted oils on your skin. (Dilute with vegetable oils.)
  • Skin test oils before using. Dilute a small amount and apply to the skin on your inner arm. Do not use if redness or irritation occurs.
  • Keep oils away from eyes and mucous membranes.
  • If redness, burning, itching, or irritation occur, stop using oil immediately.
  • 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.
  • Angelica and all citrus oils make the skin more sensitive to ultraviolet light. Do not go out into the sun with these oils on your skin.
  • Sweet fennel, hyssop, sage, and rosemary should not be used by anyone with epilepsy.
  • People with high blood pressure should avoid hyssop, rosemary, sage, and thyme.


© Aura Cacia, used with permission.


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