"You shouldn’t think about using an essential oil on a baby until it is at least twenty-four hours old, and then there has to be a good reason."
~ Valerie Ann Worwood, The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy
Beautiful babies! It seems these last few months have been filled with these precious little bundles! A few women in our community have recently given birth and here is the wee-gift-set I prepared them. I am hoping these will be nice and convenient for the new mothers. I am also sharing the recipes and printable I made for this little project in case it is of any interest to you (though I printed the exact ingredients on our bottles, I removed it to make it customizable and more generic to your blends).
How to prepare the blends:
(1) First and foremost, a carrier oil should always be used and the essential oils should be diluted heavily for the tender skin. Sweet almond oil and fractionated coconut oil would be the gentlest of choices. The conservative ratio I used was 1 drop of essential oil to every tablespoon of carrier oil. Using the safe list of essential oils which I found for baby here and in this book here, I prepared these four blends which I thought would be the most useful. While I haven't seen an exact age in which you can safely administer essential oils to baby, I would personally (and I am not a professional) suggest waiting until at least 3 - 4 weeks old (and that is at an as needed basis only*).
(2) I reused our empty essential oil bottles (15 ml size) from ones that were safe for baby (such as my discarded lavender and chamomile bottles; never re-use strong oil bottles like peppermint or eucalyptus on baby as any residue oil will absorb into the blends and will be too harsh for them). I didn't wash them out first since I didn't want to introduce moisture, I simply emptied every last drop from the bottles knowing that if a bit remained, the oil inside wasn't harmful. Once the bottles were filled, I pasted on my instruction labels. I also placed a piece of tape over the labels to protect them from oil drippings and/or wet hands, etc. The inexpensive roll-on bottles would be perfect for this project too!
Note: Each 15 ml bottle holds a scant 2 tbsp. of oil blend.
(3) Prepare the recipes.
Cold and Cough ~
- 2 drops of lavender essential oil (tree tea or lemon may also be used)
Colic ~
- 2 drops of dill essential oil (lavender oil may also be used)
Constipation and Diarrhea ~
- 1 drop of dill essential oil (Roman chamomile may also be used)
- 1 drop of lavender essential oil
Fussy Baby ~
- 1 drop of geranium essential oil (Roman chamomile may also be used)
- 1 drop of lavender essential oil
Directions ~
Add essential oil drops directly into a 15ml essential oil bottle, fill the remaining with carrier oil, cap firmly and label. Alternatively, you can cut the recipe in half and store in a 10ml glass roll-on bottle.
The reason I like pre-made blends is that in the heat of the moment, rare-a-mother has an extra hand (or second) to walk to the cabinet, find the right oil for the right problem, dig up the proper carrier oil and steadily measure out the exact one drop increments. Usually it is a frazzled moment that needs quick action! If you are interested in preparing these, you will find our printable {here}. Happy blending!
* Disclaimer: I am not a certified herbalist, aromatherapist or doctor but a homemaker interested in the arts of natural healing. While I do seek scientific confirmation of the safety and effectiveness of the herbs and remedies I use, remember that using remedies is a personal decision. Nothing I say on this blog is approved by the FDA or intended to diagnose, treat or prevent disease. All things on this blog are my opinion or the opinion of others. Also, if you have a medical condition, are taking pharmaceutical drugs, or are pregnant, please consult your physician prior to taking herbs or using essential oils.
"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee..."
~ Jeremiah 1:5a
I don't want to be a bummer and I do love your blog. It's truly one of my favorite things to read, but coconut oil is not the benign substance the natural health community wants everyone to believe. I have a child that breaks out in a rash if it touches her skin. She and I are sensitive to orally consuming it. It causes an itchy inflamed throat in both of us. That being said, sweet almond oil seems like a great alternative.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, many are allergic to coconut (or nut products in general). In fact, it seems everyone has an allergy to something these days! Just what is going on is a great question... but another topic for another day :) Sweet almond is wonderful too! Hazelnut has also been suggested in the aromatherapy book but I have no experience with it... You aren't a bummer, you are just sharing your experience and we can all learn from each other. Our family doesn't seem to have any coconut allergies but it is wise to be aware. Thank you for taking the time to share! :)
DeleteJES, you are lovely and gracious. Thank you. Lisa
DeleteHow refreshing to see the above kind of exchange of comments! "Be ye kind one to another".
DeleteAnd thank you for adding your encouragement! :)
DeleteGreat tutorial, as always, JES. Have you ever tried Blue Tansy for calming? I've had really good results for myself and my dogs want to get close when I use it on myself ;) They seem to love it, too!
ReplyDeleteFYI I use Young Living oils mostly. X
I haven't tried Blue Tansy yet but it sounds wonderful! We love the calming blends in our home! :) Young Living were the oils I started out with 15 years ago during my home birth... Great oils! Then my mother became a doTERRA rep and I switched over. Both are excellent products! Nice hearing from you Mary. I hope your summer is going well!
DeleteJES, this is a great resource- thank you so much for sharing it! I look forward to using your ideas when our new baby arrives :-)
ReplyDeleteI am so excited for you! Almost there :)
DeleteWhat a great and helpful idea! Pinning now :)
ReplyDeleteThank you! I appreciate the pin :)
DeleteI love the idea of recycling empty jars to make different blends! Thanks for sharing that tip.
ReplyDeleteYes, I actually made little labels to recycle mine. Perhaps I will share those in a future post :) Nice to hear from you. I hope you got my email the other day. The computer kept freezing and I had to resend it at least 20 times before it finally went through! :) Happy Wednesday!
DeleteThank you this was a good resource!! Please come share this if you want at our blog hop that we have Wed- Sun https://www.floydfamilyhomestead.com/!! We would love to have you!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information. I did not know that essential oils are also for babies.
ReplyDelete