Detoxifying with Essential Oils

Interviewer: One of the things I read about was the use of essential oils in detoxifcation. Can you talk about that a little bit?

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): Yes. Well, detoxification can be had on many levels. But just talking from an external standpoint, a lot of essential oils, especially from the citrus family, are used to detoxify the lymphatic system. And if you have really greasy skin on the face . . . 

Interviewer: Mm-hmm.

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): . . . they can be used to cut down on sebum production, and things like that. But detoxifying the body through a massage oil - the citrus oils are very popular - that kind of therapy is done in spas. Europe is very big on that. And a lot of companies that process or formulate their products through the system of anthroposophy, they often use these citrus oils, because the citruses are the skin of the fruit.

Interviewer: Mm-hmm.

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): And from a doctrine of signatures perspective, they would affect our skin beneficially.

Interviewer: Can you talk about how that would work? How do those oils actually work?

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): Well, they work through moving lymph in the body.

Interviewer: Okay.

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): Yeah. And some claim moving fat in the body as well. But definitely moving lymph, and especially if you combine it with a lymph kind of massage. It can be very beneficial and very detoxifying. It may take a series of . . . you know, let's be realistic, it may take a series of massages . . . 

Interviewer: Mm-hmm.

Mindy Green, RA, RH (AHG): . . . and a long-term use of a body oil with that ingredient in it. And, of course, it requires many other modalities of changing diet and lifestyle and things like that.

Interviewer: Mm-hmm.