Essential Oils are a vast subject and there is a lot of information to take in, especially if you are new to it. Learning about the sheer variety of oils and benefits they have can be overwhelming if you are just getting started. In this blog, we will take you through some of the basics so you can start enjoying the many benefits of essential oils with confidence.
Where do essential oils come from
Our planet is filled with a variety of plants that play an important role in our lives and ecosystem by providing food, and oxygen, creating habitats for wildlife and regulating water. Essential oils are found within these plants in their leaves, barks, roots, seeds, flowers and or fruits and can be extracted through distillation.
For centuries humans have been using plants and plant extracts for numerous reasons ranging from health and beauty remedies to religious /spiritual ceremonies. As history shows plant extracts have been an important part of our lives throughout the centuries and possibly from the dawn of time.
Why are some oils so expensive?
You may be wondering why some essential oils are so very expensive, whilst others are more affordable. Pricing varies depending on how easy the oil is to obtain. The extraction of essential oils can be affected by the type of plant, time of day the extraction is done and climate. Some plants are easier to grow and others take more time and effort.
Rose essential oil is a great example, it is one of the most expensive oils because of the huge amount of rose petals needed for extraction. It roughly takes about 10,000 pounds of petals to produce one pound of rose oil, in addition, the roses must be harvested by hand ideally before sunrise for obtaining the best quality and quantity of oil.
How are the oils obtained?
There are many different methods to separate the essential oils from the plants, today many oils are obtained through cold pressing (expression), and steam distillation where heated steam and pressure are used to separate the oils, or CO2 Extraction which produces oils that are similar to the oils produced through distillation in that they can be used in aromatherapy and natural perfumery.
Historically enfleurage was used, this is no longer a commonly used method as it implements the use of fat. Either vegetable fat or animal fat is used in this method to obtain the oil.
Great care must be taken to use the right method to ensure that only the highest quality of essential oil is extracted and its natural benefits are preserved. Producing a high-quality oil begins with the extraction being done at the right time.
For example, to obtain a high-quality Jasmin absolute, the plant must be harvested during the early hours of the morning before the buds have fully opened as once they have blossomed the flowers rapidly lose their aromatic compounds.
Why is it important for oils to be tested
Every batch of essential oil once extracted should ideally go through a quality check to verify potency and ensure purity. Two of the most common tests the oils should go through are gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. This helps producers analyse the composition and chemical makeup present in the essential oils. Gas chromatography identifies which chemicals are in each essential oil and mass spectrometry analyses the makeup to identify the different aromatic compounds of the essential oil.
