Essential oils have a long history of use in natural skin care –These wonderful phytochemicals provide a great breadth of natural medicinal components well-known for healing damaged skin, as well as reducing the appearance of old scars from trauma and surgical wounds, acne and other incidents. Recipes Essential oil blends for these applications are gentle, safe for regular use, and have a wonderful aroma to boot. The blends are easy to make, and simple to customize for your particular needs.
Essential Oils for Healing the Skin
There are a few primary essential oils used in skin care which offer their regenerative properties; these oils can be used in low concentrations, and are generally well-tolerated — certainly more so than many synthetic ingredients. The most important of these may be Helichrysum italicum, also known as Everlasting oil. This wonderful oil is distilled from the daisy-like flowers of the herb. It has a lovely earthy aroma and, despite it’s apparent expense, works in very low concentrations (only a few drops per tablespoon of your total blend). Helichrysum is strongly anti-inflammatory and contains powerful regenerative molecules unique to this oil only.
Helichrysum, the Healing Foundation
Helichrysum essential oil is the cornerstone for many blends for healing the skin, and is the only one truly necessary for supporting currently healing skin damage – it should be used at appropriate concentrations with Rosehip Seed, Tamanu and Hazelnut oils, as mentioned later in this article. As noted by well-known aromatherapist Kurt Schnaubelt, “The triple unsaturated fatty acids (of Rosehip Seed oil) strengthen the cell membranes and, combined with the regenerative qualities of Everlasting oil (Helichrysum), heal wounds with minimal or no scarring”.
Synergy with Lavender
As noted above, Lavender oil is often used for skin healing. In a 50/50 blend with Tea Tree oil, it is commonly used on small cuts and scrapes to sooth and prevent infection. Lavender has anti-inflammatory properties along with tissue regenerating effects, albeit a bit more mild than Helichrysum. It does, however, have the important added benefit of a well-liked aroma that can ease anxiety for many people.
Salvia Officinalis: Sage for Old Scars
The essential oil distilled from the leaves of common Sage is included in blends where the wounds are old – where the healing happened some time ago and has left some unsightly scarring. This can work on keloid scars, acne scars, etc., though application need be regular and should continue for 3 to 6 months. The sage oil is included in essence to break up the scar tissue and to stimulate regeneration with it’s powerful components. Sage oil should be used with great care and in small amounts. While it is called for in formulas for stretch marks, it should only be use after pregnancy, and not during by expectant mothers. Sage is best used for wounds and scars that have already healed to reduce appearance.
Rosemary Stimulates Healing
Rosemary of the Verbenone chemotype (rather than Cineol, which does not have the same properties) contains regenerative ketones like Lavender and Helichrysum, plus has the added benefit of stimulating the skin’s metabolic process. This oil can bring greater circulation to skin tissues, delivering nutrients and eliminating cellular waste and toxins — functions which are crucial during the healing process. Rosemary Verbenone can be used for healing new or old wounds.
Carotenoid Containing Essential Oils Speed Healing
Certain essential oils can offer important nutrient that may speed the healing process. Most importantly, they offer carotenoids and carotenes — molecules closely related to vitamin A. This vitamin and its precursors are considered very important to normal skin development and wound healing. Carotenoids are also potent antioxidants, which can oxidative compounds at the healing site. Two essential oils can be chosen from: Sea Buckthorn and Carrot Root (sometimes found as ‘Helio-Carrot’). These are both Carbon Dioxide extracts with deep red and orange colors, displaying their high carotenoid content.
Tea Tree: Nature’s Finest Antiseptic
For wounds that are currently healing, a small amount of an antimicrobial oil can help the process. It can prevent redness and irritation that is the result of your body dealing with bacteria at the sight of the injury. Between 8 and 40 drops of Tea Tree per ounce of your complete formula can be added if you feel a stronger antiseptic action is necessary (Lavender and Rosemary do have moderate antimicrobial properties). A second formula without Tea Tree can be used once the wound is completely sealed.
The Carrier Oils: Diluting and Delivering the Essential Oils
Finally, these essential oils need to be diluted carrier oils, which are seed or nut oils made up of fatty acids. These oils help the skin absorb the essential oils, and provide important nutritive oils to help the skin heal and look its best. The most important is Rosehip Seed oil, cold-pressed from Rosehip Seeds native to mountainous regions of South America. In addition to its unsaturated fatty acids, this oil contains natural vitamin A compounds similar in effect to the pharmaceutical preparation Retin-A but without the over drying or redness that often accompanies its use. Note that Rosehip seed should NOT be used for acne scars where acne outbreaks are still likely to occur. Tamanu Nut oil — or Callophylum — is a little known oil that actually lies somewhere between a ‘fixed oil’ and ‘essential oil’ in its chemistry. Tamanu is an excellent choice for healing all types of wounds. Finally, oils containing high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids can help healing by providing important nutrients while reducing inflammation.
Choosing Your Recipe
And now for a few recipes – a few simple mixtures can cover several skin-healing conditions, both for recent wounds and older scarred tissue. For the support of recent wounds, use one ounce Tamanu and one ounce Rosehip seed oils. To this, add 25 drops each of Helichrysum and Lavender essential oils, plus up to 75 drops of your choice of either Sea Buckthorn or Carrot Root – apply twice a day once the wound can get moist (wait until there is no chance of bleeding). For the improvement of appearance of old scars, keloid scars and acne scars, try the same base oils, replacing the Lavender with Sage essential oil. Use Hazelnut instead of Rosehip seed if you are still prone to an acne outbreak. Apply regularly for 3 to 6 months for best results. For the post-partum reduction of stretch marks, again to the same base oil formula, add 25 drops Sage essential oil and 25 drops Rosemary verbenone. Use this formula again for several months for best results.
This is a summary of a particular aspect of using essential oils for natural health, wellness and beauty. These are effective, tried and true recipes used for their specific, wound healing applications. You can certainly further customize the formulas to suit your needs, or even add additional oils of your liking. As with all aromatherapy use, go slowly, watch for any (rare) skin reactions, and remember that less is more with essential oils – almost all have been noted to work in very low, well tolerated concentrations.
The author the owner of Ananda Aromatherapy online, found at www.anandaapothecary.com. Find more resources are available on aromatherapy and essential oils through the website.