Carrier Oils

What Is A Carrier Oil?

Understanding your carrier oils can go a long way to helping you with your therapeutic creations. Often overlooked, these oils form a prime ingredient, that while they have no inherent properties like essential oils, are able to "carry" your topical oils to potentially enhance a therapeutic creations texture and application.

A carrier oil is an oil that is neutral in smell and has little to no volatility such as that found in essential oils. These are organic, vegetable derived oils can be used to dilute essential oils or used to improve and enhance therapeutic application. 

There are numerous carrier oils available and each one can be used for different mixtures or dilutions. Importantly, mineral oil and petroleum-based oils or butter should not be used. The same applies to vegetable butter or margarine used in cooking as these often have additional elements that can cause concerns or issues.

Understanding the individual properties can allow you to select the right oils for your needs. Many carrier oils can be combined to produce variations that could further enhance your therapeutic creations and could potentially improve your results.

A carrier oil should be stored in airtight containers and in dark, cool, and dry areas. This will prevent them from going rancid and increase the length of their shelf life.