Are essential oils safe for the microbiome?
It’s easy to assume that essential oils—seemingly natural and gentle products—are totally harmless to use on the skin. But as we learn more about how our skin’s microbiome responds to certain ingredients, we have to ask the question: are all essential oils 100% safe for our skin, all the time? Here’s what you need to know…
Are essential oils safe to use?
Well, it depends! Many brands and consumers who follow clean beauty trends and natural skincare regimes confidently recommend the use of essential oils. However, when we’re advising our clients about using essential oils in their products, we like to dig a little deeper into the bioscience behind the ingredients we use and how this supports the microbiome.
The three key factors you want to consider when integrating essential oils into your skincare product are:
What essential oil are you using and what purpose does it need to serve?
How will your customers’ skin microbiome react to the essential oil?
Does the product contain a safe and effective concentration of essential oil?
Finding the right balance
First things first, essential oils are not magic elixirs for youthful and healthy skin. In microbiome science, we often talk about supporting microbiome balance and microorganism diversity. That means it’s our job, as skincare brands and product manufacturers, to find that ideal middle ground. Or in other words: using the right ingredients, in the right concentrations for your customers’ specific skin needs.
A balanced approach → When used mindfully and appropriately, essential oils can reduce inflammation, irritation and scaring, as well as improve the skin’s protective barrier, stimulate blood flow, improve skin elasticity and regulate sebum production for oily skin types.
An unbalanced approach → Because essential oils are concentrated plant extracts, they are highly potent. When used without moderation, caution or informed decision-making, essential oils can cause irritation, allergic reactions, disrupt desirable fungal balance and skin pH levels, erode the skin’s protective barrier, react poorly to other skincare products and even kill off good bacteria.
Choose a mindful approach
Know your customer
Not all essential oils will be ideal for your customers’ skin type or needs. That’s why, at BiomeCentric, we study your customers’ skin microbiome using next-generation DNA sequencing technology. The insights we gather from our studies inform our product development and ensure we are selecting safe ingredients and manufacturing methods for your customers. Here are just a few of the skin reactions to essential oils we seek to minimise:
Contact dermatitis, where the skin is inflamed or irritated by the essential oil.
Increased photosensitivity, where the oil contains properties that make the skin more sensitive to sun damage.
Dryness and dehydration, where the oil interferes with the microbiome’s natural ability to maintain soft and supple skin.
Hormonal impacts, where the essential oil triggers a hormonal imbalance—impacting the skin and the body as a whole.
Skin sensitisation, where the skin’s reaction to the essential oil causes severe or permanent damage.
Know your ingredients
When you work with us, you work with highly qualified experts in chemistry and microbiology. Our team brings together decades of industry experience and global research to inform the products we develop and manufacture for our clients. So, any brand that works with us immediately gains the advantage of extremely specialised microbiome product manufacturing. This means our clients are always informed about what is in their products and how they work to beneficially interact with their customers’ microbiomes.
We are continually discovering new microbiome innovations and sharing these findings with our clients to guide optimal product development.
We rigorously research, develop and test new products to ensure they are safe to use and truly beneficial for customers—in the short and long term.
We meticulously select and test the highest quality ingredients and formulations for safe and effective everyday use.
We adhere to strict manufacturing quality standards and mindfully craft our products to raise ethical and sustainable benchmarks in our industry.
Know your manufacturer
When it comes to your customers’ health and beauty, product safety and efficacy should never be in doubt. But the reality is not all manufacturers or skincare brands formulate their products to scientific-based standards. Many brands do not have access to the scientific research or quality control measures we have at our fingertips. At BiomeCentric, our R&D team is your R&D team. All our knowledge, specialised equipment and facilities contribute to delivering your product vision with integrity and innovation.
Go to the market with confidence
When it comes to integrating essential oils in your products, the main takeaway is this:
Highly effective and beneficial microbiome products will contain the right essential oils and ingredients for your customer in safe quantities. They will be thoroughly researched and tested for efficacy. And, they will be manufactured to the highest standards.
Most importantly, you should be informed about how and why your essential oil product works for your customer. At BiomeCentric, science-backed product development and manufacturing are the peace of mind and assurance we can offer you.
To find out more, or to start creating your essential oil product, get in touch with our team for a free consultation.