Episode 184: How to Use Essential Oils With Your Children

doTERRA: Parenthood is full of challenges and surprises, and you can use all the tools you can get. And that includes essential oils. Using essential oils with your kids can be one of the most empowering things you can do as a parent. And today, we'll help give you some helpful tips on just how to do it.

Welcome back to Essential Oil Solutions with doTERRA, the podcast where you'll hear exciting, useful, and simple everyday uses for essential oils from experts in the field. If you like what you hear today, rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen. We always appreciate hearing from you.

Today, we're excited to talk to Kim LeMaster about how you can use essential oils with your kids. If you're interested in any of the products we talk about today, make sure to click on the link in the episode description. Kim, thank you so much for joining us today.

Kim LeMaster: Absolutely. I'm happy to join you! Thank you.

doTERRA: This is a topic that I'm very excited to talk about, so I want to jump right in and start with the first question that I think often comes to mind, which is are essential oils safe to use with children?

Kim: Absolutely. But it absolutely depends on the quality of the oil. And as we all know, doTERRA has the quality that we're all looking for to be safe and effective for our kids.

doTERRA: I think that is absolutely key to remember is checking where your essential oils are coming from, making sure you're using the right quality. Now, kind of stepping back into a larger scope of things. Why is it that it's so important to use natural products with our children?

Kim: Well, you know, I have seen—for many years, I've been a teacher. I've been a private tutor, a caregiver. I have two kids of my own. And we see them just bombarded with all kinds of artificial ingredients and unhealthy foods and just so many things in this world that are not healthy for them.

And so when we can make a choice to do something that is natural, safe, healthy, and supportive, I am all for that idea. As a busy mom, I couldn't always, you know, do the best dinners and not go through drive throughs and do all those things, but the things that were in my control, as much as I could, I tried to do the healthiest possible.

And that's why I think it's important that we make that choice to use things that are the most just pure and essential for them as their bodies are growing and they need those healthy components to really help them with proper rest, proper immune system support, and just to really help them to overall grow up more healthy.

doTERRA: Yes, I think that's absolutely right. Now, I think one concern that a lot of people have is that they don't really know how they should be using essential oils with their children, if there's any special precautions they need to take. So what do I need to know to use essential oils safely with my kids?

Kim: Great question! So this is one I address with a lot of parents, and I tell them, “When in doubt, the smallest amount possible and always diluted.”

I think that when we are applying these oils, we know that by diluting the oils, as in just even just a small drop of a carrier oil like an olive oil, grapeseed oil, whichever you are using, coconut oil. By doing that, we're allowing that oil to be applied more safely onto the sensitive skin that children may have.

And also, it allows those oils to really take hold and be very effective for them. And so I always encourage people that—I use an unscented lotion often where I'll just add one drop of the oil that I'm choosing to use that day. I'll add it into a little bit of unscented lotion and apply it, or I will make it into one of our rollers that we do, where we dilute it with carrier oils.

But when in doubt, the smallest dosage possible is your best bet. You can always go up from there if needed. But I always start with the smallest dose possible and always diluted in some way.

doTERRA: Absolutely. I think that's excellent advice. Now, one of my favorite things about doTERRA is that we focus so much about empowering people with oils, so we want to empower our kids the same way that we've been empowered. What do you think is the best way to teach our kids to use essential oils on their own and empower themselves with those natural solutions?

Kim: Number one thing we can do is model the behavior, right? I happen to be obsessed with our Kids line because I think it's both safe and effective for adults and for kids.

And so I love that my kids, when I first started with doTERRA, they were a little like, “Whoa, what are you doing there, Mom? I'm not really sure what you're using.” And as I started to use it around them is where they started to get very curious as to, “Oh, what is that smell?” “What's going on, and what is that?” “Wow, mom, you really slept well last night,” that kind of thing. And it was because I modeled that behavior for them.

And I think that if we set a routine of our own, that we're modeling, in addition to showing them from the earliest possible age that they can easily, safely apply some things to the bottom of their feet, I'd start that with even toddlers. When I'm, you know, changing a diaper or something like that, I show it to them. I show them I tickle their belly or something with it so they can just see these are just normal, natural things that we can use, and I help show them that they can apply it to their feet.

Obviously, we keep them in safe areas away from, you know, their direct use if they're not old enough. But it's something that I think modeling that behavior is the number one best thing you can do for children.

doTERRA: I love that, and like you said, it starts with you. You have to make sure that you're showing them, you know, it's not something you want to do in secret. We want to make sure they see and they learn. I love that.

Now you mentioned routines, setting routines for yourself. What are some of your favorite essential oil routines to use with your kids?

Kim: Well, I happen to think that in the morning, starting off with an upbeat smell, something that really gets that mood in the morning bright.

Morning

It is wonderful, so I love to start the day by setting the diffuser on in the morning with some kind of a citrus oil. I think that's a great thing to run in the bathroom while they're either taking a shower, getting ready, getting dressed, or even just right by their bed as a wonderful way to wake up. I mean, who doesn't want to wake up to like a Wild Orange smell or Tangerine? I think it just gets them started on the right step when they're waking up.

On the Way to School

And then as the day goes through, I use things like the Peppermint, you know, before they go into school, right? Just doing a little bit of Peppermint so that they can smell it on their hands.

And always, of course, doing the doTERRA On Guard®. We all have to do the On Guard or the Stronger™ on our feet, on our spines before we leave the house. So I actually keep mine by the front door. I keep a roller by the front door, so it's easy. We see it as we're walking out, and we see it as we're walking in. And so I think those are kind of my go-to things first thing in the day to get started.

End of the Day

And then again, of course, I think placement throughout the house and my car are my number one tips. I keep rollers in my purse.

I have reused several of my or made new spray bottles from my On Guard hand sanitizer, where I have put in there a little bit of Spearmint. And I've put in there some Wild Orange or any kind of citrus. Lime is a great one. And I use that actually, I spray the car before they get in it at the end of the school day.

It is amazing the difference that it will make just in that frame of mind when you change the mood of, “Ugh, my day is over. I had the worst day at school!” And instead, they open the door, and I've sprayed just a little bit in the car of some Spearmint and a citrus oil. My goodness, what a change that makes.

Nighttime

And then, of course, you know, our nighttime routine setting up our Lavender in our diffuser or something there just really helps them. I'm a big fan of Cedarwood, just really kind of helps set the mood while they're bathing, while they're getting ready for bed.

And so I think that placement throughout your house, placement in your purse, in your car, things like that really help them to have a good routine of that.

Study Time

My number one thing I should say about study time is set a diffuser on the table. What a difference that makes, because again, we're helping them to focus. So whether we're using Peppermint and Wild Orange to really kind of help support brain function or help support focus.

And so those are some of the routines that I used on a regular basis, not only with my own kids, but like I said, in my private tutor business, it's been awesome to be able to use the oils and to really help other families to have that exposure to oils that they might not have seen before.

doTERRA: Kim, I think my favorite part about all of that is that it's nothing overly complicated. It's nothing super time consuming. It's just these simple, easy things throughout your day to incorporate those essential oils in.

Kim: Absolutely. Like I said, single moms, super busy running a business, having charity work, things like that, I don't have time for complicated.

As a matter of fact, at the beginning of each month, I get a large jar to put unscented lotion in. I add in the oils my kids use daily. Mix it up. And then that jar is already ready, and they just have it on the bathroom counter, and they can just quickly use it, and it's already diluted, it's already set. Things like that make it easy, and you'll be able to repeat it.

If we make it complicated, we're not going to do it. Let's just be honest.

doTERRA: Absolutely. Kim, it has been wonderful to talk to you today and learn a little bit more about these easy, simple ways to incorporate essential oils into our routines with our kids.

Kim: Thank you so much! It's a passion of mine to help families and to help children, especially. It's a huge focus of my life, of my businesses. And I have been more than happy to share this with you. Thank you.

doTERRA: Thanks for joining us and congratulations on living a healthier lifestyle with essential oils. If you want to try any of the products you learned about, click on the link in the episode description or find a Wellness Advocate near you to place an order today. And remember, if you liked what you heard today, rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen.