Are fragrance oils bad for you? Fragrance Oils vs Essential Oils

If this blog has caught your attention, I know what you're thinking. What are the differences between fragrance oils and essential oils, if there are any? Well, you are not the only one stuck in this debate. With more people widely embracing the benefits of aromatherapy lately, finding the right wellness staple has become a common topic. 

Are essential oils and fragrance oils the same? What makes the two different?

If all these questions are doing rounds in your mind, keep reading, and you will find your answers. As a professional reviewer of wellness products, I have gained some insights into these oils. By way of this information, we will know more about these oils and the properties they have. So, let’s get started!

Table of contents:

• Fragrance Oils vs Essential Oils
• Where are they sourced?
• Do they have health benefits?
  
• Are they expensive?
  
• What are they used for?
  
• What is their shelf life?
  
• Who is the winner?
  

Fragrance Oils vs Essential Oils

It's hard to tell the difference between fragrance oils and essential oils when both have strong, recognizable scents. The differences lie in where they are sourced, benefits, price, usage, and shelf life!

Let’s see how both oils differ from each other: 

Where are they sourced?

Knowing the source of what you're applying to your skin or diffusing in the air is super important! So, where do essential oils come from? Good quality essential oils are derived from different parts of plants, like flowers, seeds, bark, leaves, roots, stems, and more. Some popular examples are how lavender oil comes from a flower, cinnamon oil comes from bark or leaves, and almond oil comes from seeds. These essential oils are obtained through different methods of extraction. For example, WOW's essential oils are cold-pressed to extract the purest essential oils that contain all its benefits!

In essence, good quality essential oils are 100% natural and do not have any chemicals or added fragrances mixed in them. These essential oils cannot be made in a lab because they capture the natural properties of plants through their extracts, which are impossible to achieve in unnatural environments. 

On the other hand, fragrance oils originate in a laboratory through a concoction of natural oils and chemicals like synthetic fragrances, resulting in strong-smelling fragrance oils. A fragrance oil mimics perfumes and scents, delivering familiar fragrances with no real health benefits. The chemicals used in these oils are generally petroleum by-products, which makes them unfit for people with skin sensitivities and should generally be avoided. 

Do they have health benefits?

Since essential oils come from plant extracts, they contain the original powerful properties and benefits from its original source! Since it's in such a concentrated formula, a little goes a long way to deliver naturally effective wellness and beauty boosting. In aromatherapy, essential oils benefits can be diffused into the air, massaged into skin (after diluting in a carrier oil), or added into your bath to help you relax your mind and body to fall asleep faster, treat skin problems, relieve muscle pain, and aid the health of your skin and hair. 

Conversely, the only benefit that synthetic fragrance oils offer is their aroma. Often used to scent products, room sprays, and cosmetics, this fragrance offers no real health benefits. 

Are they expensive?

To curate essential oils, a large volume of plants makes a small amount of oil. For example, it takes 65 pounds of rose petals to create just 15 mL of Rose Otto Essential Oil! Due to this reason, the value is higher and thus, more expensive, depending on their botanical source, type, season, availability, and extraction method. 

To bring affordable options to wellness lovers, WOW has a skin-safe option that includes 100% pure Rose Otto Essential Oil with pure Jojoba oil, making it safe to directly apply to your skin and enjoy the benefits for less money!

On the other hand, a fragrance oil is typically cheaper than essential oils because it is made in a lab using synthetic components, delivering no real benefits. 

What are they used for?

As mentioned above, essential oils are widely used for aromatherapy to treat numerous beauty and wellness woes. You'll often see them in the ingredient list of perfumes, medicines, detergents, bath and body products, candles, aroma diffusers, vaporizers, and more for their benefits and natural aroma. 

Fragrance oils are created to serve cosmetic purposes. Their strong scent makes them an ingredient of many scented cosmetic products. 

What is their shelf life?

As they are naturally extracted and don’t have any chemical mixes, essential oils last longer than you expect. The shelf life of essential oils ranges between 2 and 15 years. Their long shelf life is also a reason why essential oils are on the pricier side of the scale.

On the other hand, the shelf life of synthetic fragrance oils is shorter because of the synthetic ingredients and artificial fragrances. Their shelf life ranges between 6 and 12 months only. 

Who is the winner?

Both essential oils and fragrance oils are useful in their own way, so it depends on what you're looking for. If you're interested in ONLY fragrance, then both would work. Essential oils offer a more natural option, with natural benefits that are super effective without added chemicals. They're the best boosters for any beauty and wellness routine, thanks to their therapeutic properties!

For topical applications like massages, you should only use 100% pure essential oils and dilute them with a carrier oil. Since fragrance oils are chemically based, using fragrance oil on your skin can be harmful.

To buy essential oils with 100% pure plant extracts, you can check out the collection of essential oils by WOW Skin Science. Get all kinds of natural essential oils and oil blends at affordable prices!