Can I use essential oils on my baby?

Essential oils are very popular for lots of uses. They are advertised to help with everything from sleep to immunity. They are sold in everything from specialty herb shops, to grocery stores, to MLMs. They even appear ont he labels of baby products as super effective natural ingredients. While essential oils do have a lot of good and very beneficial properties, they can be very powerful so they must be used correctly.

This means for babies, none to very little essential oil use is recommended.

Because everything in babies are still developing, (including their lungs) many experts recommend absolutely no essential oils for the first few months, and after that, only used very mildly and very diluted. Less is better if essential oils are going to be used.

Despite all the good benefits of essential oils, strong smells can be overwhelming to a baby's still developing system. Additionally, babies, who are still developing eyesight and the ability to recognize voices to distinguish between people, already have a very strong sense of smell that is keyed in to their mother. Extreme smells can interfere with this and cause baby confusion and stress.

Essential oils need to be cut or diluted with a carrier oil to be used correctly and safely or else they can cause irritation or even burns on the skin, and even if being diffused into the air, the oil particles can be irritating if baby's eyes or skin is too young to adapt and react. So while there are some methods and ways to utilize the benefits of essential oils for babies and very young children, don't rush to use them, and if you do, make sure they are diluted properly, and diluted even more than you think they should be. Once baby is a few months old, essential oils will be one of the greatest tools for caring for your baby.