Essential oil is a reliable medicine that has been used or thousands of years. Essential oil therapy promotes physical and emotional well-being with the naturally extracted plant aromas. The aromatic plant extracts are very useful for treating burns and soothing skin, removing stress and relaxing the mind, etc. You can use essential oils to help encourage sleep, calm anxiety, and even reduce symptoms of colic, if your baby is older than 3 months. You just have to understand the proper application methods and dilution ratios.
To calm baby essential oil is good but oils premixed with alcohol can be irritating. Synthetic fragrances should also be avoided because they carry no health benefits and can be irritating to your baby’s skin. Today we’ll walk you through a list of essential oils that are safe and effective for your baby. You have to use them properly and in moderation. But remember that, applying directly to the skin is not the way. You are required to mix them with a carrier oil. Keep them away from your children so that they never infest or drink them, because it’s not safe to take essential oils orally. Use these oils to calm and comfort your children:
- Chamomile Oil
If your baby has a sleeping disorder, chamomile oil is the best choice for you. It has natural soothing effects. People use it to cure insomnia in babies and adults. It can also relieve the symptoms of colic if you use it with lavender. It significantly helps depression and anxiety and can boost a fussy baby’s spirit.
- Distilled Lemon Oil
Distilled lemon or Citrus limon helps to boost energy and mood. It’s also great for a post-nap wakeup call. It helps your anxious baby to calm down and have a good nap. It’s a potential photosensitizer and it doesn’t cause any skin irritation to your baby.
- Lavender Oil
Lavender essential oil has so many calming and sedative properties. It can help your fussy baby to relax and encourage sleep. It’s the most popular and most used essential oil. The scent of this oil is great to ease anxiety and stress for your baby. If your baby is very anxious and sleeps deprived, use this oil to be hugely benefited.
- Frankincense Oil
This oil is warm and it has rich aroma properties. It works to lift up your baby’s mood and spirit. It increases the oxygen supply to his brain and accelerates the limbic system. If you want to bring your baby’s emotion back into check, then go with Frankincense oil. It can help to relax his body and mind if you add this oil to his bath.
- Rose Oil
Rose oil is rich in calming and soothing properties. It promotes calmness and removes anxiety in your baby. It has a soothing scent which brings calmness to your kid’s mind. You can also use this oil for those who are depressed and grieving.
- Vetiver Oil
This oil extracted from the roots of the vetiver plant. It has a very rich and earthy smell. It’s psychologically grounding and helps your baby to fall asleep faster with its stabilizing and calming properties.
Dilution Recommendation
Essential oils are very strong and powerful, so you have to dilute them with a carrier oil or cream when you use them on skin. Dilution is necessary if you’re using it for infants. It’s not safe to use essential oils on babies who are younger than 3 months because they have more sensitive skin. But, for babies older than 3 months, you can follow a safe dilution ratio of .5 to 1 percent, compared to a 2.5 to 10 percent dilution for adults. Do a patch test before performing on the skin to make sure it doesn’t cause any irritation or itching on your baby’s skin.
- You can try a little amount of diluted essential oil to your child’s leg or arm before applying on the chest or belly.
- See if there any reaction occurs within 24 hours.
- If you see any reaction within 24 hours, then don’t use the oil anymore.
- If there is no reaction, then it’s safe to use the oil.
Suggested Application
Applying essential oil useful but keep in mind that you should let your baby take the oil internally. It’s also better to keep the oil out of the baby’s bath to avoid accidental ingestion. If you follow these applications with proper dilution ratios, then you’re totally safe and sound.
- Mix with a carrier oil
Use vegetable oil, sweet almond oil, or coconut oil as a carrier oil and mix it very well with the essential oil. The carrier oils help to nourish the skin with their moisturizing properties. Dilute your essential oil at 0.5% ratio to carrier oil. Blend them well by mixing or shaking. Once it’s blended well, perform a patch test on your baby’s arm or leg to assure that the formula is safe to use.
- In a baby massage
Rub a small amount of the essential oil between your hands and make it warm. When it’s warm, rub gently to your child’s skin, starting with the leg first. With a little amount of gentle pressure, you can make him feel very comfortable this way.
- In bath water
If bedtime follows soon after, use a few drops of lavender or chamomile oil in baby’s bath water. It helps to calm and comfort the anxiety.
There you go. Now you know what essential oils are effective for your baby and how to use them properly. However, you can always check with a doctor before applying therapeutic oils to your toddler. If you use the oil with the right method and dilution ratio, you can be hopefully able to calm and comfort your children in no time.
