There are many different companies selling essential oils these days. So, how can you determine which essential oils are the real deal?
Did you know there are 4 differing grades of essential oils sold on the market today?
Starting from the top:
1) Genuine Grade (100% pure and natural)
2) Manipulated Grade (Natural + Natural)
3) Perfume Grade (Synthetic + Natural)
4) Synthetic Grade (100% Synthetic)
Genuine grade essential oils are the only oils that are therapeutic and can make changes in your body. These oils are produced directly from the plant with no added chemicals, no aroma-enhancing perfume chemicals, and no added natural essential oils or isolates. Genuine means the correct species, correct seed, and you get steam-distilled, hydro-distilled, or cold-pressed essential oils straight from the plant. You don't want to choose anything less than Genuine Grade if your intent is to use the oils
therapeutically, and if you are concerned about your oils being safe for you, your children, and your pets.
Genuine, therapeutic grade essential oils manifest an ability to organize. They bring harmony and balance to body systems. Health is harmony, balance, and order. Disorder is disharmony. The organizing power is what the term "organic" originally meant. The power of essential oils to bring order to our bodies is evidence of their intelligence, vitality and life force from the plant. Genuine essential oils support body systems and body function, helping your body work in the way it was intended.
On the other hand, the powers to bring harmony to the body are absent from oils that are created synthetically and are greatly reduced in natural oils adulterated with synthetic ingredients or diluted with petrochemicals. Artificial oils produce disorder in the body, hence, the reason why they are not effective and can even be harmful. I had a bad experience with one of these artificial oils that was labeled 100% pure, before I discovered genuine essential oils. How can these oils be labeled 100% pure if they are not? You may be surprised to know that federal regulations state that any company may label their products 100% pure and natural if only 5% - 10% of a natural product is in the container. Hmmm, that might explain why that cheap bottle of tea tree oil burned the fire out of my skin.
So, what if the label indicates that the essential oil is "organic"? You might think that would be the perfect label to seal the deal. But, is it? According to USDA standards, "a raw or processed agricultural product sold, labeled or represented as 'organic' must contain...not less than 95% organically produced raw or processed agricultural products." Wait a minute. So, that means that 5% of that bottle of oil can be synthetic? Unfortunately, yes. Even essential oils labeled as "USDA Certified Organic" may vary widely in quality.
So, how do you know which essential oils are safe, truly 100% pure, and of the highest quality? You must look beyond the label on that bottle of oil. You must know your producer and your supplier. Learn about the company, the background and education of the founder of the company, and find out if that company owns their own farms. If so, ask if they will allow you to come to one of their farms to see for yourself how their essential oils are produced. If they are an honest and transparent company, they will happily invite you to come visit and even participate in the process.
So, how did I proceed after my bad experience with a cheap, adulterated essential oil? Thankfully, I had a friend who introduced me to the original essential oil company. I began to do some research on this company and compared it with what I knew about other companies selling essential oils. Frankly, there was just no comparison. The company's Seed to Seal process goes far beyond the organic standard. Their founder has more than 30 years of experience in health and wellness science and has studied worldwide. The company itself has been producing genuine, therapeutic grade oils for well over 20 years. So, our family chose this company over three years ago. We have been using their essential oils daily ever since and with more success than we could have imagined.
References:
The Chemistry of Essential Oils Made Simple, David Stewart, Ph.D., D.N.M.
Exploring Essential Oils, Cole L. Woolley, Ph.D.