Essential oils can offer several benefits to babies when used correctly, but it is important to take certain precautions to ensure their safety. Here are some key points to keep in mind:
Safe Essential Oils for Babies:
- Lavender, dill, and chamomile are a few safe essential oils usually recommended by pediatricians for babies.
- Citrus oils like mandarin, lemon, grapefruit, and bergamot are also considered safe for babies and kids.
Precautions:
- Essential oils should not be used on babies younger than 3 months old.
- Always dilute essential oils with an appropriate carrier oil, such as sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, or coconut oil.
- The National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA) recommends diluting the essential oil to just 0.5 to 2.5 percent.
- Never apply essential oils directly to the skin, always mix them with a carrier oil.
- Babies should never drink or ingest essential oils.
- Keep essential oils away from a baby’s airways.
- Avoid using essential oils that are known skin irritants, such as thyme, oregano, citronella, cinnamon bark or leaf, bay, cumin, lemongrass, lemon verbena, clove bud, and tagetes.
- The topical use or diffusion of birch (sweet) and wintergreen essential oils is not recommended for babies and children across ages.
- Using hyssop and massoia essential oil (massage or diffusion) for children under two years and eucalyptus oil for children under ten years of age is inadvisable.
It is also important to consult a pediatrician before using essential oils for babies, irrespective of your chosen mode of application.
