The sun, of course, is with us year-round.  (Thankfully!)  But this time of year we become more aware of it, as most of us spend a lot more time outside.

I’ve written before about the benefits of the sun, in general.  (Just the other day I came across another study, indicating that avoidance of sun exposure “is a risk-factor of all-cause mortality.” In other words, sun exposure is health-protective, overall.)

But today, let’s talk about essential oils, specifically, and their relationship to our time in the sun.

AVOID in the Sun

The first thing you need to know is that some essential oils are “photosensitizing” — sometimes known as “phototoxic.”  What this means is that when you apply these oils to the skin, they increase the skin’s sensitivity to the sun, so you will burn more readily.

Most citrus oils fall into this category (except expressed sweet orange oil, which doesn’t appear to be photosensitizing), especially bergamot.  Other phototoxic oils, according to Tisserand*, include angelica root & cumin oils.  (There are a couple others, but they’re unusual oils the average person is not likely to have on hand.)

So what does that mean in practical terms?  It means if you’re planning to get sun exposure, you’ll want to do one of the following:

• Avoid using photosensitizing oils.
• Apply the oils only in concealed areas.
• Wait 24 hours after application before getting out in the sunlight.
• Choose a non-topical method of administration — for instance, diffusing the oils into the air.

FOR the Sun

What about oils that are of benefit when we’re going to be spending time in the sun?  There are some of those, too. 🙂

Some people have taken advantage of lemon oil’s sun-enhancing effects by using it to help highlight their hair.  They’ve applied the oil in streaks before going out in the sun (in a similar manner to that in which one would use lemon juice), and claim it’s effective.  I haven’t tried it myself, so I can’t vouch for it, but it’s a possibility.  (Leave a comment if you try it, and let us know if it works!)

If you get too much sun, and you burn, essential oils can be used to help soothe the sunburn.  Not alone — dilute them properly!  For this purpose, you can mix a few drops of an applicable essential oil into some aloe before rubbing it on.  Lavender is exceptionally good on burns, including sunburn.  Tea tree oil is a good choice, too.  Other oils that are good for burns — and therefore may be good for sunburns — include Roman chamomile, eucalyptus, geranium, and rose.  (Some readers might consider some of those more appealing scents.)

In Ancient Egypt, one way plant extracts were used was to help protect skin against the sun.  They probably used certain base oils — like coconut, perhaps (which has a slight sunscreen effect) — and mixed in plant extracts for their combination of fragrance and function, much as we use essential oils today.  If you wanted to add oils to your skin-protective lotions for this purpose, oils with cell-protective traits would probably be your best bet.  German chamomile is one example of an oil that falls into this category.  (Améo actually has a pre-made cell-protective blend.  If you’re interested, you can buy it — Cell Defense — here.)

Do you have a favorite summertime essential oil?

_{*Tisserand, R., & Young, R. (2014). Essential Oil Safety (2nd ed., p. 87). Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.}

The information in this post is, as always, provided for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure any illness.  Nothing here has been evaluated or approved by the FDA.