The Vital Importance Of Carrier Oils In Aromatherapy
Many newcomers to aromatherapy don’t fully appreciate the importance of carrier oils and tend to focus more on the healing powers of essential oils, which is understandable of course, given their reputation.
However, the carrier oils used in aromatherapy have far more to offer than you may realise, and they can greatly enhance your health and wellbeing – even without the addition of essential oils.
These are plant-based oils and mostly derived from nuts, seeds, or fruits, so they provide a natural treatment that is totally devoid of preservatives or harmful chemicals. High quality carrier oils also contain vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and essential fatty acids, which is why they are so valuable in such a wide range of natural beauty treatments.
When you consider that these oils usually constitute 98% of a typical aromatherapy treatment, you may begin to appreciate their true value and importance. Here are just a few of the unique benefits that carrier oils bring to aromatherapy:-
Essential oil dilution
Essential oils are highly concentrated substances, and most of them are much too strong to apply undiluted on the skin. Applied neat, some essential oils may cause irritation, and if applied this way on a regular basis it can result in skin sensitivity that can last a long time. So the primary purpose of carrier oils are to dilute essential oils, making them safe for topical application such as body massage or facial beauty treatments.
There are other carrier mediums used in aromatherapy, such as base lotions, base creams and base gels that can be used to dilute essential oils for aromatherapy treatments, but carrier oils are the most commonly used medium due to their unique versatility.
Easy application
Carrier oils provide the all-important lubrication to allow your hands to move smoothly and easily over the skin without dragging it when you are massaging or applying a facial treatment. For body massage purposes, they should be light and non-sticky to facilitate the process of absorption, which is why some carriers are more suitable than others for massage treatments.
Richer carriers such as wheatgerm, rosehip, borage and unrefined avocado have excellent therapeutic and beauty properties, but are not really suited to body massage due to their thicker consistency. However, they can be easy mixed with lighter oils such as sweet almond, apricot kernel or sunflower so that you can make use of their many benefits for both massage or beauty treatments. Add the richer oils to lighter ones up to 25%, and then finally add your essential oils, if required. Now you have the best of both worlds!
Effective absorption of carrier oils
These versatile oils not only work as a medium to safely apply essential oils to the skin, but they also help ‘carry’ the essential oils down into deeper levels of the skin. They also spread the diluted essential oils over a large area of skin, ensuring that they are applied evenly and can therefore work more effectively.
Once applied to the skin, the essential oils diluted in a carrier will first deliver its therapeutic effects to the local area, and then the oils travel deeper into the dermis where it enters the bloodstream and is circulated around the body.
Carrier oils nourishing to skin and hair
Since carrier oils are so rich in a wide range of essential fatty acids, anti-oxidants, minerals and vitamins it’s hardly surprising they are so beneficial to skin. Without the addition of any essential oils, they can be used effectively to nourish, soften and improve the condition of both your skin and hair as well, due to their natural emollient nourishing properties.
The best carrier oils for nourishing skin include argan, jojoba, macadamia, moringa and rosehip, since they all contain high levels of important essential fatty acids such as linoleic, palmitic and oleic, which can improve skins elasticity and help prevent fine lines and wrinkles. If your hair is dry and brittle, applying a carrier oil and leaving it on to penetrate into the hair for 15 minutes can bring about almost miraculous results, leaving hair soft, moisturised, and manageable.
Carrier oils provide skin protection
During times of the year when the weather outside becomes extreme, aromatherapy carrier oils can be used without any essential oils to form a protective barrier on the skin that shields it from the harsh environmental factors. As well as preventing the loss of moisture, these oils can be used effectively to support the skin’s natural moisture balance all year-round to maintain a healthy skin barrier and prevent a dry, dull complexion.
Remember that any of these oils can be used just for their own specific therapeutic or beautifying properties, therefore you can mix two or three carriers together to make your own customised skin care treatments. There are no rules here – simply mix your chosen carriers together according to your needs. Their skin-nourishing and protective properties makes them ideal for natural, highly effective beauty treatments throughout the year – again highlighting the importance of carrier oils.
Hopefully, you now understand the full importance of carrier oils. There is a wide range of them available for use in aromatherapy, although there is still very little is written about them in most aromatherapy books. To date, only a handful of books are dedicated entirely to teaching about the importance of carrier oils and how to use them, in any depth. For many newcomers to aromatherapy, the range available and their list of uses in aromatherapy for can be totally bewildering.
Choosing which one is for you is not really complicated at all – see our article How to choose carrier oils for in-depth guidance about this important subject.
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