Alkaline Mom's Alabaster Living
Encouraging families in the art of organic and alkaline living!
  • About Me
    • Comment Policy and Disclaimer
  • Recipes
    • Shakes >
      • Awesome Garlic Green Shake (10)
      • Basil-Lime-Mint Frosty (8)
      • Cherry Vanilla (7)
      • RAW Salted Caramel Apple Pie Green Shake (7)
      • Chocolate Superfood Smoothie
      • Coconut Love (9)
      • Daily Green Shake (10)
      • Funky Monkey ((7)
      • Lemon Lime (10)
      • Peppermint Shake
      • Sweet Green Shake (9)
      • Vanilla Blueberry Bliss (7)
    • Salads >
      • Salads
      • Anne's Favorite (8)
      • Arugula, orange, feta salad (8)
      • Camille's Favorite (9)
      • Crimson Salad (7)
      • Date and Fennel Salad (8)
      • Delight of France (8)
      • Easy Salad (10)
      • Favorite Salad (9)
      • Fennel Orange Wanut Salad (9)
      • Hard Salad (9)
      • Heavy Chopped Salad (8)
      • Knock Out! (8)
      • Lemon Maple Kale Salad (8)
      • Mediterranean Salad (10)
      • Not Hot Bacon Dressing Salad (8)
      • Som Tum (9) (Thai Papaya)
      • Thai Fun Cauliflower Salad (8)
      • Thai Satay Salad (8)
      • Waldorf Salad
      • Chili Salad (7)
    • Soups >
      • Tom Ka (Thai coconut and lemongrass soup)
      • Chard Soup (8)
      • Cream of Brocolli (8)
      • Cream of Tomato Soup (7)
      • Cream of Zucchini Soup (7.5)
      • Lemon Ginger Soup (8)
      • Moroccan Tomato Soup, raw (10)
      • Ribolitta (7)
    • Main Meals >
      • Alkaline Pizza (8)
      • B.L.T. (6.5)
      • General Tso's Veg (6.5)
      • Lasagne (6)
      • Lemon Pine Nut Quinoa (6.5)
      • Purslane Falafel, RAW (9)
      • Raw Avocado Pesto (9)
      • Walnut BBQ (7)
      • Wrap (8)
    • Snacks, Sides, and Toppings >
      • Almond Butter Sauce (Satay/Thai Style)
      • RAW Coconut Bacon (Amazing!!!) (9)
      • RAW Cashew Cheese (6)
      • Hummus (6)
      • RAW Kale Chips (9), 3 ways
      • RAW Macadamia Nut Cheese (7)
    • Sweets >
      • Alkaline Mint Ice Cream (7)
      • RAW Chocolate Decadence Pie (2.5)
      • RAW Chocolate Pudding, 2 ways (7 and 5)
      • Green Breakfast Cookies (6)
      • RAW Simple Cinnamon Yogurt
      • Raw, Vegan, Non-fermented Feta (7)
    • Body Care and Miscellaneous Health >
      • Awesome Cream (face, body, diaper, hands)
      • Deodorant Paste
      • Incredible Toothpaste
  • Vaccine Information
  • Alkaline Food Chart
  • Blog
  • Highest Quality CBD Products
  • Remedies That Harm
  • Contact Me
  • Services
  • 10 Day Cleanse
  • Stuff I Recommend

Shocking Truths about Essential Oils…and a little more on Essential Oil Companies!

1/30/2014

14 Comments

 
Picture
 First of all, I mentioned on facebook that there is a particular essential oil company that I truly dislike. I was not sure if I was going to reveal the company by name, but a lot of people have really wanted to know which one, and why. I have to admit, I used to find most, not all MLM (Multi-Level Marketing) companies, well, rather…sleazy. But, there is one company that has offended me professionally AND spiritually.

Would you be offended ???


if a company tried to hijack the healing miracles Jesus performed by the power of God to sell their product? Try this statement on for size and see how it fits: “Even Jesus used essential oils in His healing ministry. “ Offensive. Untrue. To me, truly despicable.

I’ll get back to that…But 1st, lets expose some myths that you might have heard from various representatives from MLM essential oil companies. Everyone that  is in the market to buy oils wants to make sure they get a quality product that will work, but can you really trust what you hear???:



Picture
MYTHS:

1. Only our oils are the best.

This is something that people are told by the company they represent. This is ridiculous. Essential oils contain special properties called active constituents. These properties carry out the intended action of the plant. It is rare to find an oil so badly produced or impure that it doesn’t actually work the way it should, and I will go over how to avoid such oils later in this post.



2. Other’s oils have gases added to keep the shelf life.

This one was actually something that someone posted on a poll on my facebook page. This is not true. I will explain how essential oils are actually made and why some are extracted using a gas. This gas helps extract the oil from certain plants, but is not actually in the essential oil after it is produced. They are not added to keep shelf life, and are not even in the final product.

3. They are not that expensive.

I will show you a price comparison in this post. When you actually know what essential oils should cost, this is clearly a myth.

4. Ours are safe to use undiluted (even on infants) and internally.

All pure essential oils are safe to use IF YOU KNOW HOW. This includes undiluted (referred to as “neat”) and internally, but these applications depend on the oil. I don’t care who makes the oil, there are some that are unsafe to use neat, internally, or even around certain people. This is not because the oils are low quality, it is because they are HIGH quality – meaning they have the active constituents they are supposed to in order to be therapeutic. Using essential oils neat on an infant should almost NEVER be done. Oils are only as safe as the amount of education possessed by the person administering them. Many oil reps are trained by the company for which they are selling oils. They mean well and they want the best for their customers, but it is not a company’s job to educate it’s distributors, it is their job to sell astronomical amounts of their product. From the reps I have spoken to, it is often even dangerous to use essential oils based on their advice.

5. Our oils come from the best farms and have the best manufacturing procedures.

This is something that only a company will boast about. Companies indoctrinate their sellers on their procedures and ingrain into them why and how they are different from the others. When it all boils down to it, there usually is very little difference, and what is actually different is not always as good as they make it sound. I will go into more detail about this and explain why I don’t say this lightly. One example is a certain company boasts that it owns all of their farms. Most of these farms are in the United States, but in order to get the best quality oil, it should come from the part of the world that it is indigenous to or grows the best in. That is how it gets the highest level of active constituents. 




Picture
Lets take a break from the MLM exposure for some Intro to Aromatherapy 101 and then look at a fun little price chart comparing some essential oil prices:


What is Aromatherapy? Essential Oils?... and how are they made?

The most accurate definition I can find is this: Aromatherapy is a branch of herbalism which uses essential oils for therapeutic purposes. Essential oils are extremely concentrated substances, also called volatile oils, which have complex chemical structures and contain many active constituents responsible for carrying out therapeutic actions on the body.

Aromatherapy, contrary to how the name sounds, actually has very little to do with smell.  Aromatherapy is termed because one of the ways that the components of the essential oils enter the body is through the olfactory nerves in the nose going directly to the brain. The oils are highly volatile, making them extremely odorous, but how they smell is secondary to their purpose. They smell like the plant they were derived from. They also enter the blood stream through topical application on the skin, and sometimes taken orally. Oils are chosen by a skilled aromatherapist or herbalist based on their chemical components and desired effect, such as anti-inflammatory or anti-septic.

There are a few ways the essential oils are obtained from the plants and this process requires specialized equipment. Each method has a valuable place in the making of essential oils as some plants yield better results with one method over another. The most common way is by steam distillation. This method is most effective for most plants and the most commonly used overall. There is also cold-pressed, used primarily for citrus plants which have a very high yield and are easily extracted. Third, there is CO2 distillation and supercritical CO2 extraction. These methods are important because they allow the plants to be processed at lower temperatures while giving a higher yield (for many plants, but not all). In CO2 distillation, the end product has no CO2 left behind as it evaporates and you are left with a very pure product which is also very accurate to the original plant state because of the low temperature. Finally, there are absolutes. There are a few plants which do not yield much oil to steam distillation and are extremely expensive to process because they have very low amounts of essential oil in them, such as rose and jasmine. These are often processed as absolutes and are technically not essential oils. They are about 50% essential oil and 50% wax or carrier oil, but still offer therapeutic results.

So what's with all the manufacturer’s hype about processing???

So now that you know how oils are actually produced, why do companies boast with all their might that THEY are in a league all their own because they process them differently? Well, there are some variations in how these processing methods can vary. Different plants need different temperatures and pressures to extract the most oil while keeping it the most true to the original plant. Unless you know what each plant needs (temp and pressure needs) asking company reps is well…futile. Even if you called the company to ask what temps their oils are processed at, they would likely sing you a song about how their unique practices make theirs the best, but each plant is different. So in all reality, they should be making adjustments in processing for each plant. Most companies source out their oils, do tests to ensure quality, and choose which they like the best. Some do process their own plants, but for me, as long as the end product gives me the results I want, it doesn't matter if “Bob” grows his own lavender and extracts the oil himself, or if “Jane” samples 30 different farms’ lavender oils and tests and investigates them and chooses which one she decides is best. When you take the labels off, they are suddenly on equal playing field. I don't have anything against any oil companies oils, just some company politics, if you will.  You might find that you like some oils from company A better than company B and other oils better from company B than company A. And that you might even like some oils even better from C and D.


If you were to do a blind study, sampling various oils from different companies and comparing your results while not being able to see the label, I doubt you choose the same company every time. You probably couldn’t even tell the difference for most oils. In fact, I set out a challenge on social media, having friends that represent different companies. And of course, they have friends that do the same…WOULD YOU BELIEVE NOT ONE person was willing to accept my challenge to a fun little blind experiment??? I was very disappointed, I really wanted to be able to share the results in this post. But, I hope you are learning enough without it. ;)


Picture
SO here is the little price comparison chart I promised, the singles are all 15ml bottles:

                       Young Living                  doTerra                     Mantra

Lavender             $33.22                        $30.67                      $15
Peppermint         $28.29                         $29.33                     $15
Lemon                 $15.79                        $14.67                     $10
Clary Sage          $66.78                        $48.67                     $29
Eucalyptus          $20.07                        $22.67                     $15
Frankincense      $103.29                      $90.67                     $29
Tea Tree              $36.51                        $28                          $15


BLENDS: The following blends are not exactly the same content, but when you are using a blend, you are looking for a specific result that the synergistic effect of the oils is going to have. These blends have similar ingredients and comparable desired outcomes. 

YL: Brain $91.45/5ml                  DT: Peace $40/5ml                    Mantra: Focus $25.99/10ml
YL: Thieves $47.70/15ml.           DT: Breathe $29.33/15ml          Mantra: Breathe $25.99/10ml
YL: Dream Catcher $101.65/15ml  DT: PastTense $37.33/15ml.  Mantra: Sleep $25.99/10ml
YL: Trauma Life $69.08/5ml.       DT: Serenity $42.65/15ml         Mantra: Relax $25.99/10ml
YL: Excite $73.36/5ml                 DT: Passion $56/5ml                 Mantra: Energy $25.99/10ml
YL: Panaway $111.84                  DT: Anchor $26.67/5ml             Mantra: Restore $25.99/10ml


So, can you get bad oils and how do you avoid them?

The only thing you really need are transparent, 3rd party tests on the websites. This should be standard and simple. Some companies boast at the number of levels deep they test. As long as they have all the info, that's all that matters: heavy metals, pesticides, molds, contaminants, solvents, purity, potency...

For many years I have used a wholesale brand. But when my company came out with a brand, all the documentation on the site showing perfect, highest quality attainable at prices that rivaled my wholesale prices, I was thrilled! 


So what about the company I find offensive? The company I admit to dislike: Young Living, and for several reasons. Here are my ramblings on that…

First, that statement using Jesus for sales, yes, that was from Gary Young, the founder of Young Living. This statement was on their website years ago. I feel that the company (not the sales reps) take advantage of people by the way I observe sales and marketing strategies.Their sales reps are often trained by the company which seems to indoctrinate them with a lot of un-truths that they pass on to customers...they boast that YL oils are the only ones that are therapeutic grade, insisting that this is important to look for in an oil to ensure it’s quality. Do you know that YL actually has the term “therapeutic grade” trademarked?  I am unaware if the reps even know this, and assuming the best about people choose to believe that they don't. 

They also boast that their oils are the only ones recommended by the Center for Aromatherapy Research and Education. Really??? That would be pretty impressive...but wait...could that be because Gary Young owns the association? This is not some third party unbiased research foundation. I find that to be a very misleading business strategy to start a foundation with an impressive name that seems to only back your product, which happens to sell for astronomically high prices. And remember back in the beginning of this post when I uncovered some common myths? Well, the one about gases being added, that came from a YL sales associate. Could this company be falsely educating their in order to sell product?  This is a great example of why people should be taught at a college, not a company, if they want a good education on essential oils.


Third: dangers. Gary Young developed Raindrop Technique. This is not only dangerous according to any well-educated aromatherapist, using essential oils in an unsafe manner but equally aggravating, it boasts benefits that are 100% false, including a cure for scoliosis. As an aromatherapist, advanced bodywork practitioner of 25 years and instructor, I can guarantee that there is no amount of oil that you can apply to the spine to correct true scoliosis.   Here is a link to a great article explaining more on that. On the same page, there is a great link to some dangers, too. It was from YL sales associates that I have been told you can apply their oils directly to babies and could not be allergic to their oils.  This is untrue and unsafe information.

The topic of essential oils can get heated fast...

It is interesting to me that like-minded individuals who use essential oils (not a very mainstream practice) can get so angry at each other over something beautiful they have in common…and worse yet, over something as trivial as what brand of product they use. I don’t exclude myself from this entirely. My husband can testify to how agitated I can get about Young Living when I encounter people boasting about it…and now you know why. And hopefully that is not the only thing you learned from this post.

Isn’t it ironic how volatile the topic of essential oils can be?

Summary: Essential oils are awesome. People that use in their business them should be trained...and NOT by a company, by a reputable school. :)

I challenge anyone that uses oils in their daily life to get a few books on the subject, NOT written by a company affiliate. Before using an oil, especially on a young person, check to make sure that you are using the best oil for the intended results and that there are no safety issues. Better yet, if you use them on a regular basis, I challenge you to take a class from a National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA) and/or Alliance of International Aromatherapists (AIA) approved school.


Greater challenge: Anyone using essential oils in their business should be certified.  While writing this post I did some research on schools to include for your benefit. You can learn at home, at your own pace and get certified in aromatherapy. I looked into some schools so that I could recommend one to the readers. I found a favorite! The coursework far exceeded that of others I read about... and the price is fantastic... you can become certified and qualified to use oils professionally. Not a bad investment in your business to keep your clients safe and get them the best results. 

The topic of safety is so important. ..

I have actually known people that may have suffered serious damage from improper use of essential oils. Though the link was never traced back, I know that the people were using large amounts of oils highly contraindicated for their conditions. One example includes pre-term labor (at 26 weeks) and another case that may have lead to an aneurism. One of these people was trained, but poorly (a topic for another post).  

The school I chose is West Coast Institute of Aromatherapy. I get nothing for the referral, I just like the program!


I am eager to hear your comments and engage on the topic of essential oils, aromatherapy, and herbalism!




14 Comments
Kate
2/3/2014 01:57:09 am

Thank you for taking the time to write this. It's VERY informative & thought provoking! It goes to show everyone really should do their own research, & not from just one biased opinion... especially when a profit is to be made.
I looked up "Dr." Gary Young & have found some rather scary stuff on the guy. I mean, he caused the death of a perfectly healthy newborn after a water birth, by leaving it under water for over an HOUR! He has a history of starting companies, getting sued, dissolving the company, then starting another. I could never, consciously, represent a company owned by such a person... even if they really did have a good product.
God bless!!

Reply
Courtney
2/3/2014 05:01:50 am

Thanks, Kate! I did not know some of those things, wow. I'm glad you liked the post and thanks for your comment! :)

Reply
Chandra Walton
9/7/2014 11:27:05 am

Thank you for this post. I was wondering if there are any books that you recommend for learning to use EOs safely?

Reply
Courtney
9/8/2014 04:45:01 am

Hi Chandra,

Thanks for reading the article. The aromatherapy course I have a link to would be awesome, but if you are just looking for some reference material there are lots of good books out there. I would recommend making sure you get a few books from a few different authors so you can cross-reference as some might have conflicting information. Also, I like having the PDR for Herbal Studies on hand as it is very extensive and based on unbiased research. It doesn't specifically have a section on essential oil (at least not my edition) but any plant it references lists the parts used, and if the oil is used it will state that and contraindications associated with it. Personally, I would avoid reading material from anyone affiliated with an EO company (such as Gary Young or David Stewart). Now, you can also perform some pretty accurate web searching to find any safety issues before you use an oil on a particular person or for a particular issue. Hope that helps!

Reply
Adrienne Doughty
10/22/2015 05:28:20 am

Robert Tisserand is the world's authority on essential oils and their safety. His new book is an Aromatherapist's Desk Reference, in my opinion. I have taken a course with him and many others.

Reply
M Huddleston
11/7/2016 08:30:43 pm

Do you not think that YHWH is okay with us using essential oils? I'm unclear on why you think a person eluding the the biblical use of essential oils is the same thing as "using Jesus to make sales"..... if it is in Scripture, then it is safe for us to use and do as well, right? Or did I miss a commandment stating that we shouldn't use essential oils anymore..... besides the one mentioning a particular blend to never make beyond what it was purposed for at the time?? This article is indeed well written but sounds like a personal vendetta between you and a particular company. I always tell people to not support something if they don't want to but keep in mind if the tables were turned. Would I be upset if someone didn't want to do business with me because I'm Torah Observant? Perhaps, but that is their choice. The moment that they begin to ridicule me and pick about me being TO, knowing I have life-saving information and products, is taking it a bit far. We all have choices to make but we should ensure that we aren't crossing the line. If a company puts out pure, therapeutic-grade essential oils and people want to pay $1000 per bottle.... let them do it. In the end, YHWH has the final say so!

Reply
Linda
7/14/2017 05:20:32 pm

So agree with your points M Huddleston.

I am not personally buying from any of the companies mentioned but question that only Aromatherapists schools can teach you about them.

Which model of Aromatherapy is this lady refering to? All three schools of Aromatherapy can not even agree amongst themselves on essential oils so which one do I listen to?

This article has some truths but also some not so accurate points. I have looked up her comment on Theraputic grade. Young Living does not have this as a trademark so not sure where this comes from.

Agree with your comment that it feels like a personal vendetta rather than coming from a place of education.
Thanks for your response

Reply
Courtney
8/6/2017 01:56:10 pm

Hi Linda,

Just to clarify, I didn't say only a school could teach. In fact I suggested reading several books. But I think if someone is selling for profit they should go the extra mile and get professional training so their advice is the safest and most effective. :)

Courtney
8/6/2017 01:53:33 pm

Hi. Thanks for your comment but I'm not sure that you really read the post. I'm a follower of Christ and I use and love essential oils.
Referencing oils from scripture is a great study. That's not what I was referring to. When Gary Young once had published on his website that "even Jesus used essential oils in his healing ministry" is what I have a problem with because that is a lie. Jesus did not need oils to heal anyone! So in this case, there is a misuse. I've heard YL reps (proclaimed Christians, too!) that using certain oils help our prayer life. That is untrue and sickening. In this way, a company and the reps are using people's love for God to sell a product.

The other problem that I have with some MLM companies is that they don't train for safety properly. I have heard dangerous recommendations and it grieves me.

Reply
Courtney
11/9/2016 03:15:46 pm

Hi M,
Thanks for the comment. Let me try to clarify. Of course I believe that He is okay with us using oils. The issue I take is that the company didn't just reference biblical use, they at one time at least, presented it as though Jesus Himself used oils in order to heal people during His ministry. That changes the entire view. If He did it using oils, anyone could have because it wasn't a miracle. It diminishes the power of God and reduces the healing miracles Jesus performed to essential oil practice.

The other issue I take with any company is the lie that their oils are in a class of their own. If a company wants to charge $1000 a bottle and people will pay for it, good for them. But when they lie to do it about their oils being drastically different from other oils it is unfair to the consumer and I'm trying to let people know they don't have to pay a fortune to get the same results. Who actually wants to pay more??? If I'm paying $4 per coconut and a friend tells me the store down the street sells them for $1, I'm thankful. I don't have money to waste. YL oils aren't special, the sales reps are indoctrinated otherwise.

And lastly, being an aromatherapy instructor, I believe safety is just as important as quality. Time and time again I see posts and reps in my Facebook feed giving dangerous advice about oils. If an untrained person is using an oil unsafely it's one thing, but it is the job of people selling a product to know what is safe and what is not. Sadly, I see YL sales reps endangering families with their advice on a regular basis because they are only trained by a company and not a college. The issue here is that the company is training them very poorly and I hold them responsible for the bad information and lies being spread by reps that don't know any better.

Reply
Linda
7/14/2017 05:33:01 pm

Does God not use others and things to heal us?

Why did Jesus put mud on a blind persons eyes to heal them when he could have just said it?

Why does the bible say that he gave us the plants and the trees for our healing?

You state that it is wrong for people to say things just to sell oils.
Do the retailers not sell oils? Every venue you are buying them from sell them. This is such a silly statement.

You mentioned you are concerned that people will be hurt by misinformation.

How long has Young Living been around?
How many have been hurt by their training? Do you have any info on this?

Also if you think price makes no difference then that tells me you probably don't know as much as you claim on distillation. I went to China to source diffusers. Let me tell you they knew the difference with price.

Reply
hong kong company formation link
3/2/2017 04:13:49 am

Thanks for sharing this quality information with us. I really enjoyed reading. Will surely going to share this URL with my friends.

Reply
Linda
7/14/2017 05:36:34 pm

Perhaps you should research the accuracy first before sharing. Never just trust someone else.

Reply
Aline link
11/13/2019 12:20:23 am

I really like this smell very much, it makes me feel relaxed when working or resting

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Click to set custom HTML

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Courtney Charles

    A Holistic Health Practitioner and Instructor since 1997, pH Miracle Certified Nutritional Microscopist, and full time mom of 2 and wife dedicated to raising an alkaline family. Above all of that, my ultimate aim in life is to be a disciple of Christ.

    Click to set custom HTML

    Archives

    February 2021
    August 2017
    July 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photos used under Creative Commons from simpleinsomnia, ka2rina, kuhnmi, Alan Stanton, Big Ben in Japan, ninara, "G" jewels g is for grandma, DaveCrosby, David Paul Ohmer, Wild Tofu, EpicTop10.com, jaredhersch, nick1au, The Meat Case, velacreations, The Meat Case, Axisworks, Trondheim byarkiv, Carly & Art, maf04, AlexanderVisuals, wwarby, Guilherme Yagui, jsj1771, Wendell Smith, Arria Belli, inkknife_2000 (3.5 million + views), Luis Marina, Smabs Sputzer, NIAID, blumenbiene, gbFineArtPhoto, thomsson, foteih, otisarchives4, Fotosafarines, Josh Meek