Using Essential Oils While Pregnant or Breastfeeding

Pregnancy and childbirth are amazing times of great joy and anticipation.  Many women have a heightened concern for wellness during these times and seek natural or alternative treatments in order to maintain a healthy environment for baby.  Aromatherapy, when practiced safely, is an excellent option for enhancing the wellness of both mother and baby.

Typical discomforts often associated with pregnancy, labor, and delivery include: stress, anxiety, insomnia, nausea, and pain.  The appropriate use of carefully selected essential oils has been shown to safely alleviate each of these conditions.  Drops of therapeutic essential oils may be diffused into the air, incorporated into body oil or the bath, or simply inhaled from a cotton ball or other device.  Increased effectiveness is often experienced when essential oils are included in a relaxing massage. 

Essential oils to avoid during pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation include: aniseed, birch, camphor, hyssop , mugwort, parsley, pennyroyal, rue, sage, tansy, sage, thuja, wintergreen, wormwood , Lavandula stoechas, Ocimum basilicum ct estragole.

 Recommended Reading:

Aromatherapy and Massage for Mother and Baby; by Allison England, RN. 2000. Book. ISBN: 0-89281-898-0

 

Essential Oil Safety: A Guide for Health Care Professionals (Second Edition); by Robert Tisserand and Rodney Young. 2014. Book. ISBN: 978-0-443-06241-4