Nature's Sunshine Products NSP

[CombinedNSP]

E.O. - Shelf Life

Essential Oils - Shelf Life Is there any way to know if oils have lost their medicinal values if they still smell good? I have a friend with a stock of oils that are about 2 years old. She left them in a hot car one day, but wrapped, so they were never in the light. I'm assuming they're only good for scent and not healing. Am I right? They are NSP oils. -Nolee
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In my Aromatherapy class, we learned that the way to know when they are no longer good is by smell. They will smell bad or will have lost the scent. -Nancy Coulter
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When you say hot car. Just how hot? EO's will change as they are heated, because heat alters the molecular structure of the oil. This means most of the antibacterial ,and other therapeutic benefits are lost. They will still smell fairly good.

This is why I discourage lamp rings, tea candles or light bulbs.

Another thing if the oil has changed color appears darker then it has oxidized. This is common from exposure to air. This is why you never leave EO in a diffuser unused.

One more thing to think about where EO's are considered. One should never leave a diffuser running all night. They should run for a short period. An example of what could happen is the oil being used for the therapeutic benefit i.e. Lavender for relaxation ran all night in a diffuser will sent the person in the opposite direction, and in the morning instead of waking up feeling relaxed you wake up with a killer headache, or maybe even nauseated. EO's are used for therapeutic benefits short term. Best Regards. -Darcy