06/27/2021
Newsletter 431: Essential Oils for Summer
The sun is shining, beaches and pools will soon be crowded, backyards will be filled with the smell of BBQ grilling, and memories will soon be made. With all the activities that will commence don’t forget to smell the geraniums—or the peppermint, the lavender, the lemongrass, the clove, the orange, or many others.
What do these scents have to do with summer? Actually, there are many summertime uses for essential oils that can help your summer memories be filled with sweet scents—whether being diffused, in spray form, or used directly on the skin.
Peppermint and Spearmint
Peppermint and spearmint are natural refreshers. Combine a few drops of either one with Renew Lotion and apply it to the bottom of your feet to soothe hot, tired feet after a day at the beach or pool. Or better yet, make a homemade peppermint or spearmint foot scrub: Mix ¼ cup sugar, ¼ cup baking soda, ¼ cup carrier oil, and 10 drops of peppermint oil in a glass container. Rub onto your feet to remove dry skin and give your feet a spa treatment.
Problems with insects outdoors and indoors? Medline Plus warns that breathing or swallowing DEET bug spray can cause poisoning. And even pyrethrin bug sprays can cause problems. We also learn that DEET is especially dangerous to small children.
Melaleuca's Natural Insect Repellent is formulated with Peppermint, Cinnamon, Lemongrass, Thyme, and Geranium oils. It is non-sticky and 99% effective against mosquitoes and ticks. This study found thyme oil extremely effective at repelling mosquitoes.
As The Melaleluca Wellness Guide suggests combine a few drops of peppermint or spearmint, clove, lemongrass and geranium in a glass spray bottle with water and spritz onto your skin before going outside. You can also use this blend in your diffuser to rid your house of those flies and mosquitos that seemed to have snuck their way inside. For other great repellents using essential oils check out the Essential Oil chapter or sections entitled “insect repellents” or specific pests in The Melaleluca Wellness Guide.
Too much sun or summer fun? Mix peppermint or spearmint with a carrier oil or Renew Lotion and rub onto sore muscles or temples to help with headaches.
Lavender
Lavender is the first "go to" essential oil when sleep evades us, but this essential oil can also be calming to the skin besides the mind. After a day in the sun, blend a few drops each of lavender, Roman chamomile, and spearmint with Renew Lotion or aloe vera gel and use to help with over-heated or sunburned skin. You can also put these three essential oils into a glass spray bottle with water and spray onto to your skin to help promote healing of sunburns.
Lavender essential oil has long been used to repel insects. This study found that lavender compared well to DEET for repelling ticks.
Eucalyptus
Due to the anti-inflammatory properties of this essential oil, eucalyptus is a great alternative to, or combined with, peppermint or spearmint oils. It can be used on sunburned skin, and the effects of too much sun such as headaches and sore muscles.
Blend a few drops of eucalyptus oil with Renew Lotion or a carrier oil and rub onto hot, sunburned skin. Or mix 2 to 4 drops in a glass spray bottle filled with water and spray onto the skin to relieve the heat. One study found that eucalyptus combined with peppermint oil proved to be a significant analgesic in relieving headaches. When combined with ginger and rosemary, eucalyptus oil aids in relieving sore muscles.
Eucalyptus oil is also a natural insect repellent by itself or combined with peppermint, geranium, lavender, or rosemary. It can be used in a diffuser or as a spray. The Melaleuca Wellness Guide states that eucalyptus oil can be used as an environmentally friendly house fly insecticide.
Geranium
Summer is generally thought of as a fun time, but it does bring a change in schedules, which can then upset sleep or your natural rhythm. Diffusing geranium essential oil by itself or mixed with lavender can help be a great stress reliever and mood booster.
Adding a few drops to Renew Lotion or a carrier oil and applied to sore muscles aids in overuse done by hiking those long trails during the day or just throwing too many horseshoes.
As mentioned previously, geranium in combination with other oils is also a great insect repellent inside and outside.
Orange
The smell of oranges always brings to mind the bright summer sun and freshness. However, this essential oil can also be used as a natural insecticide for mosquitos and flies according to this study, which found it be useful when used as a spray. In a glass spray bottle combine several drops of orange essential oil with water, shake thoroughly before spraying a mist into the room or area you want to rid flying pests. If desired, other insect-repelling essential oils such as cedarwood, patchouli, peppermint, geranium, lemongrass, or ylang-ylang can be added.
According to The Melaleuca Wellness Guide the essential oil orange helps reduce pain and improve function with moderate-to-severe knee pain. Combine a few drops of this oil with carrier oil or Renew Lotion and massage into the joint.
Summer Smells
You don’t have to lose the smell of summer once it ends. You can recreate the memories of summer as suggested in this study that showed that scents, our emotions, and memory are intertwined. Some oils to blend together in a diffuser to bring back the smell of the ocean or beach are: lime, lavender, eucalyptus, and rosemary; or geranium, ylang-ylang, cerdarwood, and rose. To remind you of the crisp outdoors: lavender, grapefruit, lemon, and spearmint; or orange, ginger and patchouli. There are an infinite number of blends that can remind you of the summer—just put a few drops of your favorite essential oils into a diffuser and sit back to reminisce.
There are many more essential oils that can be used to help make summertime fun and memorable without the memories of aches, pain, and sunburn. To find out more check out the chapter Essential Oils in The Melaleuca Wellness Guide and then go have fun in the sun!
~ Richard M. Barry
