Many essential oil recipes use essential oil blends, so is it better to dilute and mix several oils in proportion and use them, or to apply them one by one? Will mixing them first make them less effective?
Strictly, it is better to apply in layers than to mix beforehand (especially when doing a spinal aromatic massage), apply coconut oil first for the base, then put in X drops of the first essential oil, massage until the skin absorbs, and then put in the second oil and continue to massage. Add all essential oils in sequence.
But if it is more frequently used formulas such as beauty care or skin inflammation, etc., several times a day, each time you have to open a bottle a layer of application is not too much trouble? And dilution ratio and the amount of essential oils is not easy to grasp, it is more convenient and more accurate to match in advance.
Why use essential oils blending or layering?
According to scientists, there are four possible interactions that occur when essential oils are blended.
- Synergistic effect (that is: the utility of two essential oils when blended is higher than the sum of their utility when used alone, i.e. 1+1>2)
- Antagonistic effect (1+1<1)
- Enhancing effect (1+1=2)
- No interaction (> antagonism, < enhancement, i.e.: 1<1+1<2)
Therefore, it is difficult to tell whether several essential oils mixed together have a synergistic or antagonistic effect, and it is only through experiments and advanced instruments that we can detect it more accurately.
But the good news is that 75% of the investigated essential oil blends showed synergistic or enhancing effects.
In other words, the probability of negative effects (antagonistic or non-interactive) of essential oil blends is low.
Even so, for a fuller therapeutic effect, it is recommended to use a layered application (close to individual application), after all, it is definite that 1+1=2.
Ultimately, then, it is a case-by-case analysis, weighing the effect and convenience for yourself.