Are you a therapist, natural health practitioner, or wellness professional? Our selection of bulk essential oils meets the demands of daily use: pharmaceutical-grade quality, strict traceability, and optimal effectiveness. Ideal for your preparations in your practice or workshop, they ensure a safe and professional approach to aromatherapy.
More detailsAromatherapy, like pharmacology, is inextricably linked to toxicology. Toxicology is the science of poisons; it can be summed up in a single sentence: “It’s all about the dose!”
When using active substances, it is important to keep in mind this precept from Theophrastus von Hohenheim, known as Paracelsus (1493–1541): “If you want to explain precisely the action of every poison, you must then ask yourself: What is not a poison? Every substance is a poison, and none is harmless. It is the dose that determines whether a substance is toxic.”
Every substance is therefore potentially toxic, and this toxicity depends on the dose administered. The validity of this reasoning, however, depends on the dose reaching a given organ—that is, on its toxicokinetic profile (the substance’s behavior within the body) and toxicodynamic profile (its effect on its target).
This result is the combination of:
As the use of essential oils has seen a definite resurgence in popularity among the general public, the risk of poisoning has increased accordingly.
Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils for therapeutic purposes. It involves the use of aromatic compounds extracted from plants for medical purposes. This distinguishes it from herbal medicine, which uses the entire plant.
A concentrated plant extract is used; this is not “alternative medicine”; there are numerous contraindications and precautions for use.
Essential oils are complex compounds containing volatile active ingredients found in plants. To obtain them, two methods are currently recognized by the French Pharmacopoeia:
Note: Depending on the part of the plant processed, a single plant can yield different essential oils. Analyzing an essential oil by chromatography reveals its compounds. The main ones are terpenic and sesquiterpenic hydrocarbons, alcohols, mixtures of esters and alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, ethers, etc.
Each essential oil must be identified based on three criteria:
Examples:
This is why only an essential oil clearly defined by these three criteria can be used safely for therapeutic purposes. Essential oils are not harmless products. They are lipophilic and, as a result, are rapidly absorbed, whether through inhalation, the skin, or the digestive tract.
Essential oils used therapeutically must meet strict physicochemical standards published in the French Pharmacopoeia. A reputable supplier must provide the following for each essential oil:
Essential oils are volatile, light-sensitive, and heat-sensitive substances. To preserve their effectiveness, it is essential to store them:
Essential oils used for therapeutic purposes must be listed in the French Pharmacopoeia, where their physicochemical standards are published. The supplier must be able to provide, for each essential oil, a chemical profile obtained by gas chromatography (GC) that defines the ranges of constituents considered important for a given essential oil. Essential oils are highly volatile, oxidize easily, and are both light-sensitive and heat-sensitive. For this reason, they must be stored away from light, heat, and, above all, oxygen in the air.
Aromatherapy is based on the careful use of essential oils, whose therapeutic properties stem from their complex biochemical composition. However, their potency requires extra caution, as their toxicity depends on many factors, including dosage, route of administration, and the user’s profile. A high-quality essential oil must be accurately identified and properly stored to ensure its safety and effectiveness.
Aromatherapy is not a trivial practice. It requires professional guidance to ensure safe use and optimize its therapeutic benefits.
Soin-et-Nature offers a wide selection of essential oils tailored to various health and wellness needs. Here are the available subcategories:
These essential oils, available on Soin-et-Nature, offer natural and effective solutions to care for your health, well-being, and comfort every day.
