This year’s allergy season has been brutal for many, and it comes as a tease, considering when the weather is nice many of us prefer to be outdoors. However, being outside can cause your allergies to flare up and can quickly turn a good day into a bad one. It’s natural to want to reach for an antihistamine when your allergies flare up. However, depending on the type you take, it can come with a host of unwanted symptoms, so, understandably, many are attempting alternative treatments for relief. One alternative treatment method is using essential oils for allergies. While essential oils cannot completely take the place of allergy medication, they might offer you some much-needed relief.
How Can Essential Oils Help?
Since many essential oils have antiviral, antifungal, and antimicrobial properties and can help fight off inflammation, essential oils may help support the healing of the immune and respiratory system. So using essential oils for allergies can result in an improvement of symptoms.
How Do I Use Essential Oils?
Unless already diluted, you must never use essential oils directly on your skin. Generally, essential oils need to be mixed with a carrier oil, and then it can be rubbed into your wrist and neck, or even behind the ears and onto the nose. Essential oils can help freshen up the air and offer relief from nasal congestion when diffused, inhaled through steam (placing a few drops into hot water, placing a towel over the head, breathing in the steam), or direct inhalation.
Before you give essential oils a try for the first time, test your oils before using them on your body or breathe them in at full strength. Please do so by diluting the essential oil in question and then test it out through inhalation or by applying some on non-sensitive skin. Also, unless you have consulted with your doctor, do not take essential oils internally. Most essential oils are for external use only.
Try These Essential Oils for Allergies
• Frankincense
• Clove
• Cinnamon
• Tea tree
• Peppermint
• Black cumin seed
• Lavender
• Thyme
• Ravensara
• Rosemary
• Lemon
• Oregano
• Eucalyptus