Ayurvedic Essential Oils for Adding Strength to Toddler’s Health

Babies who learn to walk are called Toddlers. What an awesome sight it is to see your little one take up his/her initial steps with interest and adventure!! We being adults have a lot to learn from toddlers who never give up even though they fail hundreds of times, while they are trying to walk. Every single day during this stage, generally when they are 1 or 2 years old, i.e. the time connecting infancy and childhood is incredibly imperative in a child’s life, as it gets to grow in a plenty of ways. What toddlers actually need at this stage is the love, strength and support from their parents along with certain healthy practices that make them grow with a sturdy foundation for their lifetime. Nutritious food, hygienic habits and an energizing massage with Ayurvedic essential oils can give them the real power in strengthening their muscles and nourish their skin.

Ayurveda and toddlers:  Ayurveda states that this is the phase for complete physical, emotional, social and intellectual development for children. A baby is considered as an individual in Ayurveda from its birth itself. Ayurveda treats every newborn as a unique creation with distinctive state of body and mind, known as doshas namely vata, pitta and kapha. Every one of us will have one or two doshas as predominant in our character with the remaining one as less important.

Vata babies are generally lean and find it difficult to gain weight, prone to colic and constipation with dry skin. These fearful babies do not sleep well and can be easily disturbed during sleep. They are extremely brilliant in learning new things.

Pitta predominant toddlers have a good appetite and they may tend to suffer from digestive disorders like diarrhea and heartburn, skin problems like eczema and rashes, due to the imbalance in pitta dosha. With a strong body, these babies have an average weight. Pitta toddlers have a tendency to get angry very easily and are really active during the day with a moderate sleep at night.

Attractive, chubby and mesmerizing babies, often under limelight are all the ones with high proportion of kapha in their constitution. These toddlers are really close and attached to their moms than anyone else. They share things with other babies and are the well-behaved ones unlike the toddlers with vata or pitta predominance. Kapha toddlers are often hungry and have a deep sleep with less response to noise and other disturbances. Kapha imbalance might end up in cold, cough, obesity, sinusitis, sluggishness, lethargic behavior etc.

Identifying the doshas in your children with their behavior will help you greatly for being the best parents in attending to your toddler’s health concerns wisely.

Ayurvedic essential oils for Toddlers: Essential oils are just the purest element of a plant just like a baby who is a purest form of innocence and love. These oils when used with care and precaution will help your toddlers in many aspects while they are still learning to grow in a multitude number of ways. The most appealing and the safest Ayurvedic essential oils for toddlers are:

1. Lavender essential oil: How can someone forget lavender oil, the therapeutic properties and its gentle healing remedies when it comes to babies especially? Diluting 2 drops of Lavender essential oil in 2 tablespoons of Almond oil or Jojoba oil can act as the best massage oil for toddlers. This blend helps in nourishing their skin and augments the strength of their muscles. It induces good sleep and it is a perfect choice for fuzzy toddlers with vata predominance, often having difficulties in sleeping. Few drops of lavender essential oil can also be added to the diffuser mainly before bedtime. Diaper rashes, skin problems, fever and sleep disorders especially during illness can be assisted with the help of lavender oil and its calming aroma.

2. Roman Chamomile essential oil: Most of the mommies might have come across this situation, where you might not know why your baby is actually crying and if it is going to be the nighttime then it’s gone, as it would spoil the peaceful sleep of the entire family. The best Ayurvedic essential oil that can help you in such worst case scenarios is Roman Chamomile essential oil. Add a drop of this oil to your baby’s pillow or to a cotton ball and place it inside your shirt, near your shoulders. When you try pacifying your toddler, the warmth of your body along with the gentle aroma of Chamomile oil will help them sleep peacefully.

3. Tea Tree essential oil: Tea tree oil is extremely good for toddlers, especially at times of treating cold, earache, tonsillitis and other pain related to babies of this stage. You can bank upon this miraculous oil for treating skin problems like itches due to insect bites, diaper rashes, healing bruises and cuts that are common among toddlers who are deeply vested with their journey excavating new things every day. With its effective anti-bacterial properties, one drop of tea tree oil added to baby wipe solutions can protect your baby from harmful germs, bacteria and other infectious bodies.

When your toddler steps ahead his/her life with 1 2 3…… you support them with these oils, 1 for Lavender, 2 for Roman Chamomile and 3 for Tea tree oil. Sounds great to me and it will be spectacular indeed to you also, when you start using these greatest gifts of nature to your loved little ones. Give my love and Muahhhhhhhhhhh…………To the little Princes and Princesses of your families.

Disclaimer: Consult with your Ayurvedic Practitioner before using Ayurvedic essential oils for your toddlers as pure essential oils are highly concentrated and may harm your babies if used without proper consultation.

Thought for the day:

What good mothers and fathers instinctively feel like doing for their babies is usually best after all.                            -By Benjamin Spock

Suggested Reading:

  1. Seven Secrets to Raising a Happy and Healthy Child: The Ayurvedic Approach to Parenting By Joyce Seyburn
  2. Perfect Health for Kids: Ten Ayurvedic Health Secrets Every Parent Must Know By John Douillard
  3. Aromatherapy For Babies And Children By Shirley Price

Reference Links:

  1. Ages & Stages – Toddlers by Urbanext, University of Illinois Extension
  2. Healthy Mother and Baby Through Ayurveda by Green Kiddie
  3. Essential Oil Care for Children and Babies by Abundant Health

Terpinolene

Terpinolene which is otherwise known as δ-terpinene is an organic compound present in the essential oils of apple, hemp, lilac, cumin, tea tree, lemon, sage, marjoram, rosemary, pine and cypress. It is one of the isomers of terpinene.

It is a monoterpene with the chemical formula C10H16. It is also referred by various other names such as iso-terpinene, 1, 4, 8 – terpadiene, etc.

Attributes of Terpinolene:

Terpinolene is colorless clear liquid which is characterised by fresh pleasant woody aroma. It owns fresh pine citrus flavor. Terpinolene present in hemp attribute to the aroma of the plant.

The therapeutic attributes of Terpinolene includes antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antioxidant and sedative properties.

Antimicrobial activity:

Terpinolene show antibacterial and antifungal activities against strains of various bacteria and fungi. A study titled “Essential Oil Composition and Antimicrobial ActivityofDiplotaenia damavandica” was carried out to investigate the antibacterial and antifungal activity of the essential oil obtained from the root, seeds and leaves of Diplotaenia damavandica and their constituents.

It was found that Terpinolene which is one of the main components of the essential oil obtained from the leaves exhibit high antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Further, it was also active against fungi namely Aspergillus Niger, Candida albicans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Anticancer and Antioxidant effect:

Terpinolene exhibit antioxidant and anticancer activities. In 2013, a study titled “Anticancer and antioxidant properties of terpinolene in rat brain cells.” the potential of terpinolene as an antioxidant and as an antiproliferative agent against brain tumor cells in rats was investigated.

When terpinolene was administered to rats with brain tumor, it was found that Terpinolene cause remarkable reduction in the proliferation of primary rat neurons and in N2a neuroblastoma cells.

Further, Terpinolene at concentrations above 50 mg L-1 increased Total oxidative stress and antioxidant capacity in Neurons and in N2a neuroblastoma cells. Terpinolene did not cause any destruction to the genetic materials of the cells in rat neurons and N2a neuroblastoma and so it was not genotoxic in both cell types.

Altogether, it was brought into light that Terpinolene exhibit antioxidant, antiproliferative and non-genotoxic abilities.

AKT or Protein Kinase B (PKB) is a kinase enzyme that plays a vital role in cellular processes, especially in cell proliferation. The activation of AKT is connected with many types of cancers as it increases cell proliferation and suppresses apoptosis.

According to the study “Terpinolene, a component of herbal sage, downregulates AKT1 expression in K562 cells” it was made clear that Terpinolene found in the oils of rosemary and clary sage exhibited potential activity against cancer by hindering the cell proliferation through reduction of the protein expression of AKT1 in leukemia K562 cells.

Sedative property:

Terpinolene is characterised by its sedative property. A study “Sedative effects of vapor inhalation of the essential oil of Microtoena patchoulii and its related compounds” published in 2011 in Journal of natural medicines was focused on the sedative effects produced in rats by inhaling the vapors of the essential oil of Microtoena patchoulii and its constituents, namely Terpinolene, 1-octen-3-ol, patchouli alcohol and methyl salicylate.

It was discovered that the essential oil reduced the locomotor activity of the rats and the same was observed when Terpinolene, 1-octen-3-ol, patchouli alcohol was administered individually through inhalation to the rats. Further, terpinolene also increased the sleeping time in rats by suppressing the central nervous system.

In another research article titled “The sedative effect of inhaled terpinolene in mice and its structure-activity relationships.” it was revealed that Terpinolene when inhaled by rats that have olfactory impairment (adisorder in sensing the smell) produced sedative effects after its absorption through the nasal cavity.

Heart Disease:

Terpinolene together with vitamin A and vitamin E prevent the oxidation of bad cholesterol Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) and thus it is helpful in the treatment of Heart diseases. This is evident from the study “The monoterpene terpinolene from the oil of Pinus mugo L. in concert with alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene effectively prevents oxidation of LDL.”

Reference Links:

  1. Essential Oil Composition and Antimicrobial Activity of Diplotaenia damavandica
  2. Anticancer and antioxidant properties of terpinolene in rat brain cells
  3. Terpinolene, a component of herbal sage, downregulates AKT1 expression in K562 cells
  4. Sedative effects of vapor inhalation of the essential oil of Microtoena patchoulii and its related compounds
  5. The sedative effect of inhaled terpinolene in mice and its structure-activity relationships
  6. The monoterpene terpinolene from the oil of Pinus mugo L. in concert with alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene effectively prevents oxidation of LDL.

 

Best Ways To Use Ayurvedic Essential Oils

Ayurveda is a gift to mankind and it follows the implausible elements of nature. This safe science trusts and believes that human being is a part of nature and his illness should also be treated in a natural way using the gifts of ‘Mother Nature’. Here comes the importance of Ayurvedic essential oils which are derived from the natural plant extracts. These oils have therapeutic properties for which it has been used since ages in traditional medicine and folk medicine.

In the recent times, you might have heard about the essence and effective use of essential oils in Aromatherapy but won’t you get surprised if I say that Aromatherapy itself is one of the ways of healing holistically in Ayurveda? This ancient therapy of curing human beings have suggested numerous ways of using Ayurvedic essential oils and the best ways are here for your guidance.

  1. Aromatic bath: A popular adage goes like this ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’, as Ayurveda insists highly on keeping yourselves and your environment clean, it prescribes taking bath twice daily either with the use of herbs or Ayurvedic essential oils in your bath tub.  Adding few drops of essential oils to your bath tub will give you a refreshing bath, which would be energizing and help you stay calm physically and emotionally.
  2. Essential oils massage: You work all day long all through the week; won’t you feel that your mind and body needs some ‘Quality Time To Rest’? Don’t need to go in search of quality time to rest, instead your life partner can help you discover it apparently with a caring massage with the sweet-smelling Ayurvedic essential oils. You can also try exploring the real sense of relief and peace after a systematic massage by an Ayurvedic expert in a nearby Ayurvedic center if you really feel like having a space for yourself. Ayurvedic massage with healing essential oils are often said to alleviate stress, trigger your olfactory sense, make your skin supple and give a never before newness to your life.
  3. As a vitalizing household cleaner: Home is the best place to give a great start to everything and everyone of your family. Why can’t you try complimenting your home by adding few drops of refreshing essential oils to your floor cleaner, washing machine and at the time of washing your dishes and cleaning your toilets? Lemon essential oil is often recommended for laundry, cleaning dishes and other general cleaning as it has the potential to remove tough, oily and greasy stains. You can also try using essential oils with clean, fresh, flowery and woody aroma to bring the real effects of nature even when your doors are closed.
  4. For skin care: Nothing other than certain selective Ayurvedic essential oils can caress your skin and take better care of them. You can use a wide range of skin-friendly essential oils like lavender essential oil, lemon essential oil, rose essential oil, sandalwood oil, ylang ylang essential oil, palmarosa essential oil, tangerine essential oil, mandarin essential oil, chamomile essential oil, geranium essential oil and few other. You can add few drops of any of the above essential oils in your favorite lotions, creams, carrier oil, carrier lotion, cocoa butter etc, to get set with your ultimate skin care pack.
  5. Diffuser/Air-Freshener: Using essential oils in your diffuser or in your Air-freshener will help you kill germs, bacteria and other harmful viruses in the air while giving you an everlasting aroma especially in the rainy season.
  6. Cold/Warm Compress: Circulation problems, sprains, muscular tension and other pains can be easily treated either with a warm or cold compress. It will be a brilliant idea if you add few drops of essential oils with absolute healing properties like peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil etc to your compress the next time when you feel like getting instant remedy from excruciating pains like menstrual cramps.
  7. Vapor inhalation/ Facial steam: Adding few drops of Ayurvedic essential oils like Eucalyptus oil or Peppermint oil to steaming water and inhaling the steam will help you keep away from the persisting problems like sinus, bronchitis, cold, flu etc. You can also add few drops of refreshing oils like lavender oil or other cleansing oil like chamomile oil to warm water and use it as a facial steam for deep cleansing.

Note: The way of using Ayurvedic essential oils plays a dominant role on its healing potential. Do not use essential oils directly to the skin as more pure the oil, more concentrated it is.

Reference Links:

  1. Essential Oils by Wikipedia
  2. Methods of Application by Nature’s Gift
  3. How to Use Essential Oils Effectively by David Crow, L.Ac. Published in Yogi Times
  4. What is Aromatherapy by National Association For Holistic Aromatherapy