For parents looking to enhance their child’s well-being naturally, essential oils can be a wonderful addition to your toolkit! Essential oils offer a variety of benefits that support calmness, focus, better sleep, and overall wellness. Many parents have used essential oils for years, both personally and professionally, and found that with care and moderation, they can be incredibly beneficial for school-aged kids.
Must-Have Essential Oils for Kids
Lavender, Frankincense, Lemon, and Peppermint are essential oils that are not only effective but also versatile, allowing you to address multiple needs in one small bottle. Let’s explore how each of these oils can support children in their daily lives:
1. Calming Overwhelm and Worry
Starting a new school year, meeting new friends, or facing daily homework can be a lot for young kids. Essential oils that are known to calm and ground, like Lavender and Frankincense, can help kids relax and settle into their routines.
- How to Use: Add a drop of Lavender to your child’s palm and let them inhale deeply. For Frankincense, mix with a carrier oil and apply it to the soles of their feet in the morning.
2. Boosting Focus
For kids who may struggle to concentrate, especially after a long day, Lemon essential oil is a great choice. Known as “the oil of focus,” Lemon has an uplifting and refreshing scent that helps clear mental fatigue.
- How to Use: Diffuse Lemon essential oil in the room where your child is studying, helping them stay focused and alert.
3. Promoting Restful Sleep
Many children resist bedtime, but a calming routine with essential oils can help prepare them for restful sleep. Lavender is renowned for its soothing properties and is effective in managing sleeplessness due to stress or anxiety.
- How to Use: Diffuse Lavender oil in their room before bed or apply a diluted drop to their chest or the soles of their feet.
4. Supporting Immunity
To help keep germs at bay, Lemon essential oil has natural cleansing properties that can purify the air and surfaces.
- How to Use: Diffuse Lemon oil around the home or mix it with water and a little alcohol to create a natural surface spray.
Essential Oils for Kids with ADHD and Speech Challenges
For children who face unique challenges like ADHD or speech difficulties, essential oils can offer gentle, non-intrusive support. Both Frankincense and Lavender are known to support cognitive function, calmness, and focus, which can benefit children with ADHD or those working on speech.
- Frankincense for Cognitive Support: Frankincense is known for its grounding qualities and can help kids feel calm and centered, which is beneficial for those with attention struggles.
- How to Use: Apply a diluted drop of Frankincense on the soles of their feet in the morning or diffuse it at home during study time.
- Lavender for Calming and Focus: Lavender’s soothing scent can help reduce anxiety and boost concentration, making it easier for children with ADHD to engage in focused activities.
- How to Use: Have your child inhale Lavender directly from their hand or diffuse it before activities that require concentration.
Safety Tips for Using Essential Oils with Kids
- Dilute Always: Essential oils are powerful! Always dilute essential oils with a carrier oil (like coconut or jojoba) when applying them to children’s skin.
- Diffuse in Small Doses: When diffusing, keep sessions short, around 15–20 minutes.
- Avoid Ingestion: Essential oils are not for internal use in children.
- Patch Test: Test diluted oil on a small area of skin to check for any sensitivity.
Obtaining High-Quality Pure Essential Oils
For those looking for expertly blended essential oils, doTERRA offers a range of high-quality options tailored to support various wellness needs for kids. doTERRA Breathe® is a remarkable blend that combines Peppermint, Eucalyptus, and Lemon, crafted to promote easier breathing and respiratory support. Perfect for those times when your child has a slight cough or seasonal discomfort, Breathe can be applied (diluted with a carrier oil) on the chest and upper back, or simply diffused in their room to help them breathe easier, especially at night.
doTERRA On Guard® is another fantastic choice for keeping germs at bay. This blend, featuring Wild Orange Peel, Clove Bud, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary, is designed to provide immune support and protection against environmental threats. A drop diluted with a carrier oil on the chest or back of the neck can help kids stay healthy during peak cold and flu seasons, or you can diffuse it to keep the air fresh and clean.
For more information on how doTERRA Breathe® and On Guard® can support your family’s wellness, visit this link.
Disclaimer
While essential oils can provide gentle support, they are not a replacement for medical treatment. Always consult with a healthcare provider if you have questions about using essential oils for your child, especially for specific conditions. This article is intended for informational purposes and is not a substitute for professional advice.
Enjoy exploring the gentle benefits of essential oils for a healthier, happier home!
