Are “Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils” A Bunch Of Crap?

Essential oils are all over the place these days. Each company has its own claim to fame, their own fancy label to say their oils are pure and high quality.

No company is going to say, “Hey, buy from us, we have synthetic, low grade essential oils- because we want to save you money!” Every company says they have high quality oils- in fact, most claim they have “therapeutic grade essential oils.”

I hate to break it to you, but that doesn’t really mean a dang thing.  Unfortunately, you have to do a little digging.

Here's the problem...

This means that, for the most part, essential oil companies can slap whatever label they want on their bottles.

The term therapeutic grade was created by essential oil companies to set them apart as having higher quality essential oils than much of the crap that’s being sold out there.

So, while “therapeutic grade” isn’t regulated by any standard organization, that doesn’t mean there’s no credence to the term. Do you really believe that just because the FDA or some other such organization deems a product “approved” that it’s actually safe and/or beneficial?!

It’s not really a governing organization that we can always trust to tell us what’s good and what’s not. What this really comes down to is trusting a company’s claims on their oils.

This is one reason why it’s so tricky to find good oils. It doesn’t really matter what the bottle says. “100% pure” doesn’t necessarily mean anything, since there are no rules to essential oil labeling.

Then how do you find good oils??

• Don’t trust the bottle- it doesn’t matter whether the bottle says “100% pure,” “organic,” “therapeutic grade,” or anything else.

• Don’t go cheap- essential oil testing and quality control is expensive. Naturally, that extra cost gets passed to the consumer. Expect to get what you pay for. If you find a bottle of frankincense essential oil for $10, don’t touch it with a 10 foot pole. Take notice if there’s a huge price difference between companies… you get the idea.

• Only buy after you research testing of a brand- never just go purchase a random brand of oil. Look them up online and see what tests the oils have gone through, where they source oils, etc- here are tips to find actual therapeutic grade essential oils.

Hopefully, eventually there will be a defining standard for therapeutic grade essential oils so it will be easier to find high quality oils. I know I don’t particularly have the time to sit and research all the products I buy. Luckily, I've found a brand of oils I trust and will stick with for my own family. I encourage you to do the same.

Questions? I'd love to answer your questions one-on-one. Contact me here.