Everybody seems to respond well to the uplifting scent of Lemon Essential Oil. One of the most invigorating, cleansing, and purifying oils, it’s often found in household cleaners, and is one of the most popular citrus oils to be found in a wide range of cosmetics, commercial aromatherapy products, and more. The humble lemon’s healing benefits include anti-inflammatory, pain relieving and antiseptic, and inhaling the sharp aroma can have both soothing and energizing effects on the mind.
Properties
Lemon Essential Oil is typically used to fight mental fatigue and insomnia, while also being an excellent stress relieving oil. Studies suggest that Lemon Essential Oil may help reduce anxiety and potentially had anxiety-reducing and pain-relieving properties.
Medically, it has many benefits in skin care and can be used for conditions as varied as acne, athlete’s foot, and warts. Used in aromatherapy, Lemon Essential Oil may be able to relieve fever and flu symptoms, throat infections and coughs. Inhaling the fresh scent of Lemon Essential Oil promotes easier breathing when you’re suffering from respiratory problems and infections.
What to use Lemon Essential Oil for?
Diffuse some Lemon Essential Oil around the home when it needs an uplifting scent or a freshen up. The oil eliminates toxins on surfaces if it’s used as a cleaner and can freshen the air as you go, giving everyone a mood-elevating, revitalizing effect at the same time.
Lemon Essential Oil can give your complexion a boost – add it to massage blends or sprinkle a few drops in the bath to moisturize dry and chapped skin. Added to cosmetic products, Lemon Essential Oil is said to reduce appearance of cellulite, and in face washes it can act as a toner – if you have oily skin it’s a great astringent oil. To balance oil production on your scalp, dilute Lemon Essential Oil with Apple Cider Vinegar and use it as a natural hair rinse.
Diffuse some Lemon Essential Oil when you have a cold or cough to help clear your nasal passages and boost energy levels. For allergy relief, combine Lemon, Lavender, and Peppermint Essential Oils and rub the blend on the bottom of your feet and behind your neck every morning.
If you’ve had a bad day, you can also diffuse or just inhale Lemon Essential Oil neat (without a carrier oil), and it should help to perk your mood up again.
Safety and precautions
- Ingestion of Lemon essential oil isn’t recommended.
- Pregnant and nursing women and those taking prescription drugs should not use Lemon Essential Oil without medical advice.
- Lemon Essential Oil should not be used topically neat, and it’s best to carry out a patch test before using it on your skin, even if you use it diluted in carrier oil. Once applied sun exposure should be avoided as Lemon Essential Oil can be phototoxic. To prevent photosensitivity, wait 72 hours after topical treatment before spending prolonged periods in sunlight.
- Lemon Essential Oil should never be used near eyes, inner nose, ears, or any other particularly sensitive areas.
Fun Facts!
- During the European Renaissance, women often used lemon juice to redden their lips. This was a very bad idea.
- In the Middle Ages, it was believed that if you ate lemon with fish, the lemon juice would dissolve any fish bones that were accidentally swallowed. That’s how the tradition of eating fish with lemon began.
