Myth No. 2 - Drawing a bath with a few drops of essential oils can’t hurt.

There’s no easier way to invoke a home spa experience than to draw a nice hot scented bath. Hey, a few drops can’t hurt, right? Didn’t we just go over the recommended concentration amounts in the first myth we busted? There’s no way a few drops of EO in a whole tub full of water will exceed the recommended concentration of 2.5% for adults! 

Err...not exactly.

To bust this myth, let’s fall back to basic science - oil and water don’t mix. Essential oils are oils too, even if they are only used a few tiny drops at a time. Added neat to a tub full of water, they will transform into a thin shimmery film of oil that floats to the top. As you dip your skin into your bath, you are exposing it to near 100% concentrated EO. The effects are much more adverse if you have broken skin or wounds on your body.

So what is the safe way to draw a nice hot scented bath? As we learned, as long as the EOs are diluted in appropriate concentrations, they can be enjoyed safely. Solubilisers are the hero agents here that will enable water and oil to mix together. But we know that’s not a practical everyday ingredient every household has. So the other method we recommend is to dilute the EOs with other oils before adding them to your bath. These oils can be your typical avocado oil, sweet almond oil, olive oil etc. that are in a common household pantry. As a bonus, these oils are also nice emollients that will help moisturize and soften your skin! Just be careful when stepping in and out of the bath as the oils can make the tub surface quite slippery.