5 Interesting Things You Might Not Know About Essential Oils

1. 5 Interesting Things You Might Not Know About Essential Oils Essential oils are the foundation of what makes the Zephyr Fresh smart home diffuser so effective as an air freshening and scenting system. Without them, there would be no point to installing a Zephyr Fresh device. To say we are big fans of essential oils is to state the obvious. From a marketing perspective, essential oils have come into their own in the 21st century. They have been around for centuries, but not until recently has modern marketing brought them to the masses. Now it seems like everyone and his brother is recommending essential oils for good health, sound sleep, and more. We love them for whole-home scenting. Why? Because they afford you the opportunity to freshen your home with all sorts of lovely scents that are natural and quite pleasing. With that in mind, we have put together a list of five interesting things you might not know about essential oils. 1. They Aren’t Really Oils Despite their name, essential oils are not really oils. They are actually classified as concentrated hydrophobic liquids containing volatile compounds. What does that mean? First, a hydrophobic liquid is one that repels water. Liquid oils are all hydrophobic, but not all hydrophobic liquids are oils. Volatile compounds are those that easily evaporate into the air. In the case of essential oils, these volatile compounds are what enable the human nose to smell them. Finally, the term ‘essential’ indicates that the extracted liquid contains the fragrance of the plant from which it is derived.

2. 2. Essential Oils Are Not Patented If you have ever wondered why both commercial operations and individuals can freely make and sell essential oils, it’s because they are not patented. Better yet, they cannot be patented. Essential oils are products of nature. No pharmaceutical or biotechnology company can prevent you from extracting essential oil from your favorite plant, bottling it, and selling it. Perhaps this is why pharmaceutical companies have thus far decided to stay out of the essential oil market. 3. Essential and Fragrance Oils Are Different It is easy to confuse fragrance oils with essential oils. The two are not the same. An essential oil is a product extracted from a plant; a fragrance oil is generally synthetic. While both oils may put off lovely fragrances, only essential oils are all-natural. 4. Plant Volume Affects Price Common sense would dictate that essential oils should be relatively inexpensive given that they are derived from plants. Actually, the opposite is true. One of the things that makes essential oils expensive is plant volume. In other words, it takes a lot of plants to produce a significant amount of oil. For example, it has been estimated that creating just one pound of lavender oil requires up to 150 pounds of flowers. The greater the plant volume, the more expensive the oil tends to be. 5. Expensive Oils Are Not Necessarily Better Finally, essential oils are not necessarily better because they cost more. Cost is really a reflection of plant volume, the extraction process, and marketing. As for the oils themselves, their value to you depends on what they accomplish. Lavender oil is lavender oil regardless of who bottles and sells it. It may work wonders for you as a sedative, helping you get a good night’s sleep. It may not have the same effect on someone else. Your neighbor might choose another oil to diffuse at sleep time. The beauty of essential oils is that you have so many choices to work with. And remember, the Zephyr Fresh system works with virtually any essential, so you can even blend your own!