Interesting Facts About Essential Oils

Every once in awhile I run across a fact about essential oil that I find very interesting. I write it down with the hope of sharing it with you.  Sometimes they just don't easily fit into a Blog but I keep saving them.  Today I was thinking it would fun to just share these facts with you and see if you enjoy them as much as I do.

So, here it goes!  Did you know...

1.  When essential oils are applied to the skin, they are absorbed easily and carried by the bloodstream to every cell in the body within minutes. 
2. A single drop of peppermint essential oil is equivalent to 28 cups of peppermint tea. 
3. Each essential oil contains several to several hundred different kinds of molecules, each of which offers benefits in promoting good health, healing and regeneration.  
4.  The doctors in the European medical community prescribe oils to be taken internally, in addition to or in place of pharmaceuticals.
5. There are different strains of plants, as well as different ways of extraction, which can result in a different level of purity, color and the way the oil will work best.
6. When diffused, some oils have the ability to remove any toxins or metallic particles from the air.
7. Sesquiterpenes are found in oils and have the ability to go through the blood-brain barrier which helps treat brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Lou Gehrig’s, Parkinson’s, and even multiple sclerosis.
8. Testing the purity of your oil is best done by placing a drop on construction paper. If there is nothing left behind after 15 minutes, it is pure. If there is an oil ring, it is not pure.
9. Essential oils are not necessarily oils. They are actually concentrated nutrients from plants.
10. The sense of smell is the first of all our senses to develop.
11. Less than 1 percent of the entire plant species population produces essential oil.
12. Diffusing essential oils can actually help increase the atmospheric oxygen in a room.
13. There are five drops of lemon essential oil in one lemon.
14. It wasn’t until the 20^th century that the term “aromatherapy” was used.
15. Early kings and queens hired royal herb strewers to scatter herbs in their path—sweetening the air and warding off bad vibes.
16. Neroli oil, or "orange blossom," is one of the most expensive essential oils on the market. It takes 1,000 lbs. of orange blossoms to make one pound of Neroli oil.
17. Captain James Cook first mentioned tea tree oil in 1772 during his voyage to Botany Bay, Australia. He and his crew made a tea from the leaves to prevent scurvy.
18. Our sense of smell is the only sense directly tied to the limbic area of the brain, which is considered the emotional control center. 
19. During the 17th century, if you were caught using herbs for medicinal reasons, you were hanged as a witch. (Does this one count as a 'Fun Fact?")
20. Essential oils cannot be patented.

The above are quite interesting facts about essential oils, I think. Not only have essential oils been around a long time, they have evolved.  We are no longer hanged for using them for medicinal purposes and we have discovered more about how they can help us use them to heal and stay healthy.  Essential oils have brought years of help to people with the goal of living better and living healthier.

Kris Bitar