Base/Carrier Oils
Base oils, (Natural and vegetable oils) act as carriers, and they play an important role in cosmetics and soap manufacturing industries. Most of these good substances are great for cooking and enjoy great therapeutic properties of their own.
Essential oils being such highly concentrated substances dissolve well in fat, which allows the carrier oils to extend and stretch small amounts of essential oils, to spread over larger area of the human body when used on the skin.
It is believed that the human skin which is permeable to fat soluble molecules and impermeable to water and salts, and because sebum seeps between cells and cell membranes have a lipid bilayer, it seems possible that the fat soluble molecules can pass through.
Viscosity and degree of saturation of the vegetal oil play an essential part in the ability of the oil to penetrate the skin.
Massage, now an integral part of so many modalities like Aromatherapy, acupressure, physiotherapy and the new athletic regimen from sports medicine clinics to college training rooms and Olympic training. Practitioners now believe that massage encompasses physiological and psychological benefits that make it ideal complement to body conditioning programs.
The basic goal of Massage is to help the body heal itself and to increase health and wellbeing. Touch is the core ingredient of massage, as it conveys a sense of caring , and helps improve the circulation increasing the blood flow, bringing fresh oxygen to body tissues, eliminating waste products such as lactic acid that can accumulate in the muscles causing soreness stiffness and even muscle spasms.
Massage has been shown to affect the autonomic nervous system, and calm the “fight or flight” response, reducing the level of harmful stress hormones in the body.
Essential oils are selected for the appropriate effects by the professional Aroma therapist (or for that matter an educated or adventurous end user) then they are blended together according to the required purpose as a special formula geared towards relaxing, stimulating, energizing, uplifting the mood,….etc. This Aroma therapy blend is then blended with the Base/carrier massage oil (That itself could be one vegetable oil or a blend of so many base oils according to a formula based on the art and science of blending carriers to match the type of skin and other conditions related to the required massage ). The combination of the Massage Therapy with the use of Essential oils increase synergistically the beauty and health benefits of the massage.
There are so many suggestions related to the level of concentration of the Essential oils versus the Carrier oils. Common ratios range between o.5% to 3% of essential oils to base/carrier oils depending on many factors such as the purpose of the use, area of application (whether a local body area or full body),…etc.
In topical use (like in Acupressure) 50-60 drops of essential oils is mixed with 30ml / 1 oz of carrier.
Vegetable and Carrier Oils used in the market by different manufacturers are so great in their number, their varieties and Subspecies, their source and origin, methods of extraction for each. Accordingly they have such a wide range of different and varying degrees of quality. Each can be extracted and processed by distinct and various methods.
- Cold Pressed, the extraction method of choice for people seeking quality (Though not possible or practical method for so many plant materials). It is a mechanical method of extraction where heat is at a minimum during the whole processing time which generally helps the oil to maintain its constituents, depth and original state. (Heat doesn’t exceed 32 degrees C or 90 degrees F)
- Expeller Pressed, a natural and mechanical method of extraction and processing of base oils where a small amount of heat is produced through the frictional heat created by the hydraulic presses (usually not exceeding 95 degrees C or 200 degrees F). This method allows the oil to keep an undisturbed molecular state making it economical and suitable for fine food grade oils and high quality cosmetics.
- Refined Base oils, where the raw material would be fully exposed to high temperatures (As high as 250 degrees C or 482 degrees F) for processing then through more refinement that includes winterization at a very low degrees (-10 degrees) then deodorization to remove the contents which give the oil its natural scent, also altering the oil color,…etc. (Sometimes such refined oils would require the use of solvents, extracting mediums or other chemicals). This process is usually used to supply the cosmetics industry with an economical oil to use for the manufacture of different personal care products and it is not as healthy and high quality as the food grade oils.
- Unrefined Base Oils, where another mechanical extraction method where the oil is screen filtered without the use of the additional refining method used with the refined oils. This method usually ensures a higher quality product which usually makes oil as exquisite as possible for the use in cosmetics and food products. The unrefined extraction method allows the oils to keep more of their natural characteristics like the darker color, strong scent and rich flavor.
- Solvent Extracted Base Oils, which constitutes the largest part of the commercial market for base oils. This method of extraction using chemicals and extracting agents usually yield higher amounts of oils at a lower cost from the same amount of raw materials unfortunately without the same levels of quality required for a great massage experience or good beauty and health products.
LIST OF MOST COMMONLY USED BASE OILS
| A to F | G to Q | R to Z |
|---|---|---|
| Almond Oil Aloe Vera Oil Andiroba Seed Oil Apricot Kernel Oil Argane Oil Arnica Oil Avocado Oil Babassu Oil Bitter Cherry Kernel Oil Black Cumin Seed Oil Black Walnut Oil Blackcurrant Seed Oil Blue Passion Flower Seed Oil Borage (Starflower)Seed Oil Camellia Oil Canola Oil Castor Oil Chaulmoogra Oil Chia Oil Chufa Oil Coconut Oil Coffee Beans Oil Comfrey Oil Corn Oil Cottonseed Oil Cranberry Seed Oil Crisco Oil Echium Seed Oil Emu Oil Evening Primrose Oil Flaxseed Oil | Glycerin Gold Of Pleasure Oil Grapefruit Seed Oil Grape Seed Oil Hazelnut Oil Hemp Oil Horseradish Tree (Moringa) Oil Jojoba Oil Kiwi Seed Oil Kukui Oil Lime Seed Oil Linseed Oil Macadamia Nut Oil Meadow foam Oil Mobola Plum Oil Neem Seed Oil Ngali Nut Oil Olive Oil Olive Pomace Oil Palm Oil Palm Kernel Oil Papaya Seed Oil Passionflower Oil Passion Fruit Seed Oil Peach Kernel Oil Peanut Oil Pecan Oil Pequi Oil Perilla Oil Pistachio Nut Oil Plum Kernel Oil Poppy Seed Oil Pumpkin Seed Oil | Rape Seed Oil Raspberry Seed Oil Rice Bran Oil Rose Hip Oil Safflower Oil Sea Buckthorn Oil Sesame Seed Oil Sheanut Oil Soybean Oil Squalene Oil Sunflower Oil Sweet Almond Oil Sweet Cherry Kernel Oil Sweet Orange Seed Oil Tamanu Oil Tung Oil Turkey Red Oil Vitamin E Oil Walnut Oil Watermelon Seed Oil Wheat Germ Oil |
| Butters & FATS Aloe Butter Avocado Butter Cocoa Butter Cupuacu Butter Illipe Butter Kokum Butter Mango Butter Mowrah Butter Murumuru Butter Shea Butter Shorea Robusta Butter |