Essential Oils in Skincare: Are They Harmful? (What You Need to Know)

There’s a small but growing movement against essential oils in skincare. If you’ve been immersed in the natural skincare world for the last few years, you’ve probably noticed commentary surrounding the dangers of essential oils. 

These claims include risky side effects, allergies, and reports of skin conditions worsening. All because of essential oils in skincare. 

You may have even seen some brands completely remove essential oils from their products. So, what’s the real truth in the matter? We’re here to talk through many of these common questions like:

→ Are essential oils dangerous?

→ Is this something I should really be concerned about?

→ Are the side effects of essential oils rare situations? 

→ Why does Primally Pure proudly formulate products with essential oils?

It’s fair to ask these questions! Many companies hide critical details (and ingredients) behind the veil of a “clean” claim. Verifying what’s marketing vs. honest information is difficult. In light of this, our goal with this post is to stay true to the values Primally Pure was founded on. We always want to be completely transparent about our products, current trends, and, ultimately, your safety. 

We spoke at length with our formulator, Tommi Hutchins, who has over 20 years of experience as a consultant and formulation chemist for natural brands. She has extensive knowledge of the safe use of essential oils. Tommi has also worked with countless brands overseeing the safe production and development of natural products. 

Our conversation with her helped clarify:

• Why this movement came about
• The benefits of essential oils
• Why essential oils can be dangerous in certain contexts
• How essential oils can be safely used in products
• Why Primally Pure has rigorous checks and balances to ensure the safe use of essential oils in skincare

Curious? Great! Let’s talk about essential oils + essential oils in skincare.

Are Essential Oils Bad For Skin? Addressing Concerns

There are lots of rumors or information taken out of context with essential oils in skincare. Many of these statements on essential oils in skincare *could* be true, but with an important caveat: they only pose threats when used improperly. 

But first, let’s touch on what essential oils are + why they've found a home in many skincare lines.

What Are Essential Oils?

Plants hold powerful medicinal properties. We know this from a long history of ancestral wisdom and support from modern-day research. One of the best ways to access these medicinal properties is in the form of an essential oil.

Essential oils are concentrated extracts of certain parts of (or sometimes whole) plants. Typically, they’re created through distillation or a physical pressing process. 

Essential oils contain natural chemical compounds present in plants that serve various purposes like:

• Attracting pollinators
• Protection from predators
• Keeping other competitive plant species at bay
• Anti-microbial protection

When we take the “essence” of this plant in safe ratios, we can also take advantage of the extensive benefits of its medicinal properties.

But just like any medicinal product (natural or synthetic), it’s important to follow safety guidelines and understand the dangers of misuse. With that in mind, let’s address a few of the most common misconceptions and myths you might have heard concerning the dangers of essential oil products. 

→ “Just because it’s ‘natural’ doesn’t mean it’s good for you (or your skin).”

Even as a natural skincare company that harnesses the power of nature in our products, we’re not afraid to agree. It’d be naive to assume all “natural” ingredients are good for you – or safe! 

The main benefit of essential oils in skincare is that you experience the synergy of all the medicinal components naturally found in a plant. 

We love how our formulator, Tommi, summed up her thoughts on the existential question, “Is natural always good?”: 

The effects of essential oils can be incredible for supporting healthy skin or healing specific ailments. But, some essential oils shouldn’t be used by pregnant women, nursing mothers, babies, or those with highly sensitive skin.

So yes, there are scenarios where essential oils in skincare (or otherwise) could be unsafe. (More on that later!) 

→ “Some essential oils in skincare are too strong and can cause you to develop a reaction or allergy.”

Truthfully, many essential oils would be hard to “overdose” your system when formulated + used correctly. But it’s possible if an oil is used:

• In extreme excess
• Directly without proper dilution of a carrier oil
• For ingesting inappropriately 
• In products where the exposure exceeds a safe threshold 

Using essential oils in skincare should follow specific safety guidelines for exposure. Exposure refers to the percentage of oil within a product or appropriate dilution. 

Tommi spoke to this in the formulation of Primally Pure products:

Let’s look at an example of a (somewhat rare) scenario where someone could overuse essential oils: 

→ Imagine a massage therapist uses lavender oil at an unsafe dilution level (also called a “high load”) for over eight hours a day with bare hands. They do this five days a week. 

In a scenario like this, too much exposure over time could cause an adverse reaction. But when used appropriately, essential oils in skincare can be an incredibly effective addition to encourage healthy, radiant skin.

→ “Some essential oils can cause skin irritation – or even acne.”

Because we all have a unique genetic makeup, it’d be irresponsible to claim that someone couldn’t have a reaction (or sensitivity) to essential oil in skincare. Our bodies are highly individualized. But for most people, essential oils in skincare pose no issues.

Conditions like dermatitis and eczema can be linked to allergies, but there’s a wide range of possible root causes. Honestly, acne and other inflammatory skin conditions are far too complex to pin blame on essential oils. There are many other factors + situational details to consider like: 

• Systemic inflammation or internal imbalances (like in the gut microbiome) are often associated with inflammatory skin conditions.
• Products with essential oils can also contain other ingredients that contribute to breakouts (like comedogenic oils which can clog pores).
• Excessive manual or chemical exfoliation can disrupt the oil balance in your skin.
• Endocrine-disrupting ingredients like “fragrance” can contribute to the development of inflammation like acne.

As Tommi put it:

“I wouldn’t necessarily demonize the essential oils at first. I would look at the rest of the formula because it might simply be one their skin can’t handle. Maybe the base oils are too comedogenic.”

The bottom line? Our bodies are highly complex and individual. Inflammatory skin issues are often more than skin-deep.

→ “Essential oils in skincare can affect your hormones and/or be dangerous in pregnancy.”

There are compounds in some essential oils that could potentially impact your body’s processes. This is why some essential oils aren’t verified as safe during pregnancy. As you might guess, it affects your hormones. 

Here’s Tommi’s take on it: 

(Are you sensing a theme here? ;))

To address the pregnancy concern, Tommi explained that when an essential oil is on a "no-go" list for pregnant women, it's usually because of the potential to impact implantation of the baby to the uterine lining or cause fetal toxicity at any point during the pregnancy. 

At PP, we’re diligent in avoiding any oils with contraindications in pregnancy. We even provide a pregnancy-safe version of our Fancy Face Serum out of extreme caution.

→ “Some essential oils are phototoxic.” (Aka: increase your risk of sunburn.)

It’s true that some essential oils in the citrus family can be phototoxic. They often contain compounds called furanocoumarins. But here’s the context missing in some of these arguments: furanocoumarins aren’t necessarily a reason for concern if they’re handled appropriately. A responsible formulator knows to pay attention to these concerns and account for them.

For example, one of the furanocoumarin compounds, bergapten, is found in high concentrations in bergamot oil. We use bergamot oil in many of our products. 

The solution: We source bergapten-free (aka furanocoumarin-free) essential oil. All it takes is another distillation process in production that safely removes bergapten from the oil at any meaningful level. This allows us to use bergamot in topical skincare products without concern.

This goes to show why responsible formulation + transparency is essential. 

→ “One of the dangers of essential oils is that they oxidize too easily, making it unsafe to use essential oils in skincare.”

Okay, here’s the deal. Essential oils do oxidize easily – especially citrus oils. They’re natural compounds that age. 

Even if you put practices in place to protect them, they’ll oxidize over time to some extent. 

This is the natural aging process of oils. So, formulas must be protected to prevent the natural domino effect that occurs with oxidation.

Oxidation can be counteracted in a few different ways: 

• A good antioxidant added in helps slow oxidation. (We add vitamin E to help scavenge up free radicals that perpetuate oxidation.)

• Painted glass bottles block excessive light since UV light perpetuates oxidation. (The reason all of our bottles are packaged in painted glass.)

• Small containers with pumps limit oxygen exposure. (Plus, keeping them closed until use is recommended.)

• Lower temperatures in storage to support stability. (Our oils are stored at proper temperatures while in production + warehouse waiting for shipping.)

• Use oils by the “best-by” date to get the freshest product + the longest shelf life possible.

• Protect the oils from certain metals since they can promote oxidation.

Hopefully, this sheds some light on a few of the biggest arguments around essential oils in skincare. Many of these are simply misconceptions or missing important context – many to no fault of the user. 

But to dig a little deeper, let’s discuss the factors we personally view as the biggest issues with essential oils in skincare (and otherwise).

The Real Issues With Essential Oils in Skincare

All the opinions around essential oils in skincare can feel overwhelming. To simplify the conversation, here are our biggest takeaways. 

These are the factors we believe contribute to negative press and misunderstandings around essential oils in skincare products. 

1. Large companies + corporations spread unsafe guidelines to the masses

There are true dangers of essential oils when used incorrectly or without consideration for safety guidelines. 

To us, the problem starts at the top. Many companies and large corporations are not adequately advising or communicating appropriate usage guidelines to their consumers or sellers. And because these large companies dominate much of the market, accountability can be lacking.

As you can imagine, misinformation trickles down. One customer (who thinks they use the essential oils safely) shares with friends and family – quickly spreading by word of mouth. Soon, masses of people get incorrect (or incomplete) information.

While there are real issues, we believe they’re mostly due to misinformation, which leads to incorrect/unsafe use. There needs to be more education on the safety of essential oils in skincare – and otherwise.

2. Some formulators/brands aren’t following essential oil safety guidelines

It’s essential that formulators thoroughly understand how to use these potent oils. Formulators should never turn a blind eye. They have a responsibility to protect consumers from the negative effects of essential oils just as much as brands do.

Essential oils all have chemical compounds that can pose risks at certain concentrations. Our formulator, Tommi, looks at it this way: 

When combining essential oils in a formula, they have a compounded effect that must be considered under appropriate safety guidelines.

3. It’d be hard to identify true “allergies” to essential oils without the guidance of a medical professional

Many automatically blame essential oils when their skin doesn’t agree with a product. While this makes sense in some regard, it may not be the root cause. (Remember how we referenced this concept earlier?)

Signs of an allergic reaction to a skincare product could include symptoms like irritation, redness, rash, or itching. But it might not be caused solely by essential oils in skincare.

Lots of people are allergic to many different things. So yes, some people may be allergic to essential oils –  just like some people are allergic to things like synthetic fragrances. While it could be an essential oil causing a reaction, you have to consider the effects of the other ingredients as well.

When we discussed this concept with Tommi, she reminded us that all skincare products are highly complex. Even the most simple formulations contain many plant components. 

So, to identify a true allergic reaction to an essential oil, you’d want to consult a professional allergist. Another option would be to try removing all products from your skincare routine for a few weeks and slowly reintroduce them to see how your skin responds.

4. Production, sourcing, and processing are critical in the safe use of essential oils in skincare

In formulation, dilution should comply with the safety guidelines of each specific essential oil. This includes considering + calculating the compounded exposure.

With sourcing and processing, companies should take proper precautions to prevent premature oxidation of essential oils. This includes dark glass bottling, added antioxidants, minimal oxygen exposure, and temperature-controlled storage.

While it may not seem like organic oils should be a priority, we believe this is key to proper sourcing. Non-organic essential oils could be exposed to a long list of harmful chemicals and toxins in the growing process and production. 

Considering these things, let’s look at Primally Pure’s process. We want to communicate how all of this knowledge and education is carefully applied to our products. Our process goes to great lengths to safely use essential oils in skincare. 

How Primally Pure Safely Uses Essential Oils in Skincare

We exist to create safe, non-toxic, and natural personal care products. So, while it’d be easy to write this off with a simple claim that our products use essential oils safely, we want to stand by our mission to be completely transparent. 

We’re going to show you HOW the intentional steps we take to protect you from any potential negative side effects of essential oils make us the number one option for so many people.

• Asking the right questions during formulation. 

• Considering the potential for negative side effects of essential oils in skincare.

• Being intentional with sourcing.

• Storing and handling responsibly.  

• Ensuring the aromatherapy benefits are within safe exposure + ratio guidelines.

Essential Oils + Responsible Formulation = Transformational Products

These natural compounds we know and love as essential oils have been used for thousands of years. As Tommi puts it, “Yes, we know they impact the body. Why else would we be using them?”

So maybe the argument shouldn’t be around the potential for negative reactions. 

In our opinion, the angle that really needs to be taken is this:

Learning and understanding how to use essential oils in skincare appropriately and safely so we can benefit from their healing + powerful capabilities. And always communicate appropriate usage to the customer. 

We hope this post has set your mind at ease, allowing you to enjoy the endless benefits of essential oils in skincare that PP products offer.

So, while we can’t speak to what other companies are doing, here’s our honest truth about essential oils in skincare: We wholeheartedly believe ours are beneficial – for your skin, body, and well-being. 

Your safety is always our priority. 

XO

Pin This Post: Save for fresh inspo on your fav Pinterest board.