There are so many ways to use citrus essential oils. Our favorite is lemon as it’s great for cleaning and lifting your mood.
There are so many wonderful benefits of using citrus essential oils but there are also some extra safety precautions that need to be taken into consideration when using them!
How to Use Citrus Essential Oils
Cleaning:
Lemon has wonderful cleansing and purifying properties, making it a wonderful essential oil to use in your natural cleaning solutions! You can simply mix 4 drops of lemon essential oil with 2-4oz of water and use this solution to clean your counters in both the kitchen and bathroom! You could also swap lemon for orange in this cleaning recipe (or even do half lemon and half orange)! Be sure to use a glass spray bottle for this solution as essential oils can react negatively with plastic.
When diffused in the air, lemon has wonderful cleaning and purifying properties. Not only will your air be cleansed, your home will also smell amazing and best of all, it is natural! To see more benefits of using lemon, check out this post!
Uplift Your Mood:
Pretty much every citrus essential oil is perfect for lifting your mood! You can put 3-4 drops of the essential oil of your choice in the diffuser so that your whole family benefits! Or you could put 1-2 drops of essential oil in a diffusing necklace so you can enjoy the uplifting aroma anywhere you go. Finally you can apply these oils topically. For suggestions on how to safely apply citrus essential oils, please see the safety section below.
Citrus essential oils which help to lift your mood include:
Lemon
Orange
Lime
Grapefruit
Citrus Blend
Citrus Passion
You can learn more about each of the oils by clicking the links above. To learn more about essential oils to lift your mood, check out this post.
Safety & Citrus Essential Oils:
With citrus oils there are some extra safety precautions that you need to take into consideration as citrus essential oils are photosensitive. This means that if you apply a citrus oil to your skin and then that area of skin is exposed to direct sunlight (within 12 to 24 hours of application) it will cause a reaction, creating a burn on your skin.
If you are creative with your application methods, there are still ways you can benefit from citrus oils even if you are in sunlight regularly. Here are some ideas:
- Apply you citrus oils to an area which will be covered by clothing in order to reduce the risk of getting a burn/reaction.
- Apply your essential oils to the soles of your feet. I have done this before even when wearing sandals as the areas with the oil (bottom of your foot) is protected by the sole of your sandal.
- Consider getting an essential oil diffusing necklace. This way you can benefit from the aroma of citrus essential oils all day (even outdoors) without worrying about a potential skin reaction.
- You can still use these oils in your home! Place 3-4 drops of your favourite citrus essential oil in your diffuser.
Using lemon essential oil will not only help to lift your mood but it will also cleanse and purify the air in your home!
Another Safety Precaution:
There is some research that suggests that grapefruit essential oil may react negatively with certain medications. Please consult your doctor before using any essential oil.
While there are a few safety precautions that need to be considered when using citrus oils, I believe the pros far outweigh the cons! I recommend that every home have at least one citrus essential oil!
With all of these great ways to use citrus essential oils, they have become very popular. What is your favorite citrus essential oil?
