3 Essential Oils and Their Uses for Seniors

Essential oils have gained a lot of attention recently, partly because of the claims of the benefits they can offer us. Essential oils are concentrated plant extracts used in the practice of aromatherapy, the art of which goes back thousands of years. It’s believed that even the ancient Egyptians made use of burning incense bundles made of aromatic herbs, woods, and spices in the same way we use essential oils today.

Today it’s a lot more convenient, with essential oils readily available. Here are three of these essential oils and their uses as you head into your senior years.

Lavender Oil

Lavender oil is the perfect oil for use in aromatherapy, either with a diffuser or even in a room spray. It’s reported to help with pain relief associated with those senior ailments like arthritis as well as reduce stress, and even promote good sleep. There are even some reports that it was used as an antiseptic before modern antiseptics were discovered. It’s cheap and readily available too and used in a wide range of body products, bath additives, and creams, all important for good skincare for your older skin.

It produces a wonderful floral scent in any space. If you’re a senior looking for an assisted living facility, it might be worthwhile getting more information about the rooms they offer and finding one with a bath, so you can take a bath with some added lavender oil, which is very beneficial to your skincare routine.

Tea Tree Oil

Tea tree oil is a fantastic antiseptic and antifungal. It has many different uses, and many of them are even reported to produce the same effect as western medication, like in the creation of an ointment for use in treating ringworm or athlete’s foot, by blending it with a carrier oil like coconut oil. For cracked and dry skin that seniors often face, it can be a fantastic way of adding some life back into the heels and hands. For the clumsy amongst us, it can be used as an effective burn treatment when applied to burns.

It works better as oil for application rather than one for diffusing. It’s also reported as being neurotoxic when inhaled, so it’s best to avoid this one with the diffuser.

Lemon Oil

It might not be the first essential oil you think of, but lemon oil has many different uses. This oil, which is extracted from the rind of lemons, is versatile and can be used both as a diffused oil and applied to your skin with the help of carrier oil. It’s said to help with anxiety and depression, as well as reduce pain and help with nausea. Some of the more interesting studies have found a possible link between the use of rosemary oil and lemon oil and improving cognitive function in Alzheimer’s patients, so there’s no harm in adding it to your life if your memory isn’t what it once might have been.

While the healing and benefits of some essential oils are still a hotly debated topic, it is difficult to deny that they can fill a home or room with the most amazing scents, and that alone can be a mood booster. Other essential oils, like tea tree oil, are proven to be effective. Why not give them a try around your home?