Are Oils Good for My Skin?

OILS

With the craze of essential oils sweeping the nation, the question about oils is a common and complex one that I often receive. Because of the complexity, this post will only touch the basics.

Essential oils have been around for decades, but only more recently DoTerra oils have entered most of our homes. Essential oils can be applied to the skin, diffused, or taken orally. While not all therapeutic claims are backed by extensive scientific research, we all have probably used them and seen some positive results.

HOW COMEDOGENIC IS MY OIL?

Let’s talk specifically about skin. Most essential oils are mixed with a carrier oil. When considering the safety of any oil for the skin, the first thing I consider is comedogenicity. When we talk about any skin product, we want to make sure it won’t cause clogged pores or comedones. The type of carrier oil can depend on the type of product. Below is a helpful list that ranks oils in terms of how likely they are to cause clogged pores or comedones. The table below and rankings are adapted from an independent site (www. Holistichealthherbalist.com). While I cannot verify the accuracy of all this information, this is the only site that I have been able to find that has such a complete and exhaustive list.

TESTING OILS

Since everyone’s reaction to oils is unique, I will offer one last bit of advice; start slowly! In dermatology, when we are determining a reaction to something we often encourage patients to do what is called a ROAT (Random Open Application Test) which means that we apply the agent in question to a very small area in the inner part of the elbow for 5-7 days before proceeding to a larger area.

FABULA NEBULAE

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In the office, we sell the Fabula Nebulae natural line which includes a number of essential oils. Fabula Nebulae is a family-owned company. Many of the plants from which the oils are derived are grown on a family farm in West Virginia. The products are then handmade in by other family members in Maine. These products are a nice, natural complement, but we generally only recommend them for the body, not the face. The products make great teacher and hostess gifts as we approach the holiday season.

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