If you are feeling tired and you need something to boost your energy, or you are trying to purify the air in your house and create a more holistic and pleasant place for living try diffusing essential oils around. Do the same to create a more pleasant atmosphere for business meetings and social gatherings or to create a romantic atmosphere for the special person in your life. Add just a few drops of your favourite oils into the diffuser and reap off the benefits breathing in the fragrance.

Our mind builds powerful connections between fragrance and our emotions, surroundings and memories. By diffusing oils we aid those connections. This can also help us create new positive memories and experiences.

The process of diffusion consists of distributing essential oil molecules through the air.  Once in the air they are gently absorbed into our bodies through the respiratory system and they come into contact with the limbic system in the brain –the part responsible for emotion and memory. The brain responds by initiating different psychological functions.

Here are some of the benefits from diffusing essential oils

  1. Clean air

When essential oils are diffused in the air, they can:

  • destroy mold microorganisms in the air
  • provide fresh and aromatic air
  • elevate negative ions and ozone in the area and prevent growth of bacteria
  • make chemicals non-toxic by fracturing their molecular structure
  • elevate atmospheric oxygen
  1. Help you relax

At the end of the hard day we are all looking forward to relaxation. Essential oils are well-known for their ability to help you unwind at the end of a hard day. Place a diffuser in the room that you are spending most of your time. If relaxation is your aim, use lavender, neroli, mandarin, Roman chamomile, spikenard, or sweet marjoram in the diffuser and relax on your sofa reading your favourite book or watching your favourite movie.

  1. Restful sleep

According to a systematic review research on essential oil’s effect on sleep, published in 2014 in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, lavender is the best essential oil that you can use if your aim is deep sleep. Lavender essential oil works just fine on its own, but it’s even better combined with valerian or certain other oils. In an article published in 2012 in Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, it was reported that breathing in a mixture of essential oils that contained more lavender than any other essential oils can lower the blood pressure and the production of cortisol- a hormone produced as a response to stress. This way you’ll feel more relaxed and you’ll fall asleep more easily and soundly.  

  1. Improve your mood

Diffusing essential oils around you will also improve your mood. So, next time when you are feeling down or sad and you need something to cheer you up, combine some clary sage essential oil and any citrus in your diffuser.

You can also make a romantic atmosphere using some essential oils like jasmine, rose, patchouli or sandalwood. Sooth nervousness with frankincense, neroli, melissa, petitgrain or chamomile essential oils. 

Boost the holiday spirit by diffusing pine, spruce or fir with a bit of spice like cinnamon or nutmeg.

  1. Improve cognitive function

Super-charge your brain cells by using essential oils in a diffuser. Use peppermint, lemon, pine or eucalyptus to soothe your brain when you are stressed and also give you a pick-me-up when you are feeling sluggish. Inhaling essential oils will help you focus and concentrate and even balance the body’s hormones. If you use them regularly, these oils can actually help you to heal the underlying causes responsible for hampering cognitive function.  

  1. Reduce congestion

If you are suffering from allergies or other breathing disorders try diffusing essential oils in the rooms where you spend most of the time in. They are great for reducing inflammation and congestion in clogged airways, and will help you breathe more easily. Use rosemary, peppermint, eucalyptus and lemon essential oils to fight congestion.

  1. Help you get rid of the pain

Although you can use essential oils directly on the painful spot through massage, you can extend their effect by putting them into a diffuser and inhaling the scent. This way you’ll fight constant pain caused by sore joints, headaches and overworked muscles. Use chamomile, lavender, ginger, eucalyptus, rosemary, bergamo and clary sage essential oils.

  1. Protect you from illness

Inhaling essential oils can also protect you from cold and flu. They work in three levels. First, since many essential oils are antimicrobial when they are introduced into the air as vapor, the organic compounds from the essential oils directly come into contact with airborne pathogens before the pathogens can attack your body. Second, also the essential oils boost the immune system. And third, there are diffusers which work as humidifiers and will keep your airways moist and healthy and you’ll be less prone to any microbes that are trying to invade your body. Tips: use sage, grapefruit, lemon, thyme, tea tree, rosemary for this purpose.  

  1. Reduce food cravings

Appetite and the sense of smell are closely related. Our sense of smell actually triggers feeling of fullness before our stomach does. When you breathe in an essential oil, its microscopic molecules directly affect a part of the brain called the hypothalamus. There is an area inside the hypothalamus called the “satiety center” which controls the feeling of hunger and fullness.

This center receives some essential oil molecules as a signal that you are full and you need to stop eating. Luckily the brain gets those signals first so you would stop eating before your stomach is actually full.  

Inhaling essential oils through direct inhalation

If you don’t have a diffuser you can inhale essential oils by direct inhalation. Inhale the essential oils directly from the bottle or put a few drops on your hands, rub them together and cup your palms over your face and breathe in the benefits.