Essential Oil Candles and Aromatherapy Candles
In a world where deceptive advertising is a common practice, one has to be careful when choosing natural candles. Many times these candles are not natural at all. You may be surprised at what companies are allowed to advertise as natural.
Comparing aromatherapy candles and essential oil candles.
Something about aromatherapy candles that most people don’t understand is that they are not necessarily essential oil candles. Essential oil candles are in fact aromatherapy candles. However, what some companies call aromatherapy candles are not always essential oil candles. They are not the same.
Aromatherapy is the practice of using plant oils, also known as essential oils for physical and psychological therapeutic purposes. Aromatherapy can take many different forms, but it must use essential oils to be effective. Whether you’re using massage oils are burning an aromatherapy soy candle, essential plant oils must be the active ingredient.
Things to look for in aromatherapy candles.
The first thing you should find out when shopping for an aromatherapy candle is whether or not it actually contains essential plant oils and whether or not it ONLY contains essential oils. This is very important because artificial fragrances can interfere with the effectiveness of plant oils and render them useless.
Just as important as finding aromatherapy candles with pure, therapeutic-grade essential oil is finding the right type of wax as a carrier. Soy wax burns completely cleanly does not emit carbon-based soot and is odorless when burned. For these reasons, soy wax is the best option for aromatherapy candles.
Using aromatherapy candles with paraffin is a bit like buying organic produce and spraying on a nice, thick coating of pesticides before eating your healthy piece of fruit. It just doesn’t make sense. Paraffin is a byproduct of petroleum and emits harmful petro-carbon soot when burned which can nullify the health effects of the essential oils.
Pure soy or soy wax blend?
Just like with the essential plant oils, you must make sure that the soy is pure soy wax. If the candle says “made with soy wax,” all that means is that there’s soy in the candle. It could be 10% soy – you don’t know. If the candle really contains 100% pure soy wax, it will say so. If the label appears confusing or misleading, contact the manufacturer and they’re obliged to tell you the truth.
Now, this is not to say that all soy wax blends are necessarily harmful or bad. In fact, many companies use blends that contain other natural botanical oils such as palm oil. Usually, these additives are used to keep the soy wax from “frosting.” In fact, an easy way to tell if the soy wax is pure is if there is frosting – a white discoloration on the outside or top of the candle reminiscent of frosting or snow.
If you don’t mind using soy wax that isn’t pure, make sure to use soy wax that is blended only with other natural, botanical oils. Be certain that paraffin is not used in the blend. Again, it’s easiest to simply contact the candle company and ask them.
What type of wick is used?
This is one that most people overlook. It’s also very difficult to tell what type of wick is used since it rarely says anywhere on the label. That being said, you should also use a cotton wick. Paper wicks and wicks with metal cores will affect the aroma of the essential oils.
Conclusion
When all is said and done, your aromatherapy candles should contain only essential oils and soy wax or a natural soy wax blend. If the candle doesn’t contain essential oils, it’s not an aromatherapy candle. If the candle contains paraffin then it’s not truly natural.
