All mothers want the best for their child, especially when it comes to their health. It is important to understand that a child’s skin is more delicate than an adult, and when it comes to infants and toddlers, parents must take extra precaution when applying topical products onto their skin.
Understanding essential oils is the first step to knowing whether essential oils can be applied onto an infant’s skin. There is no rule on how much or how frequent you should use essential oils on an infant; but knowing the safety, the dangers and the benefits of essential oils can help in providing an improved quality of life for you and your baby. After all, no parent want to see their child fall sick.
If you have been using essential oils on yourself without any contraindications, you might think that it is safe to apply it onto your child too. This is a common misconception that many parents have. Bear in mind that your child might react differently to the essential oils, especially if he or she have never been exposed to essential oils before.
Here are some ways which you can slowly introduce essential oils to your child.
For infants less than 3 months old, it is not advisable to start them on aromatherapy yet as their tiny bodies are still extra sensitive.
Once you child has reached 3 months, you can introduce diluted amounts of essential oils onto their skin. Start with approximately 30ml of carrier oil and add 1 to 2 drops of essential oil into the carrier oil before applying it onto the skin. The areas to apply can be on the sole of the feet, back and chest area. The oils you can use are:
For slight older babies above 6 months, you can increase the essential oil amount to 3 to 5 drops per 30ml carrier oil. The essential oils you can use are:
Babies over the age of 2 can use most essential oils with dilution of up to 20 drops of essential oil per 30ml carrier oil. These oils include: