If you’re changing your home to a more healthy environment then one way you can do this is by using essential oils that purify the air.
Whether you need to purify the air in your bathroom or in your living room, using an essential oil diffuser along with air purifying essential oils is a natural way to clear the air. And it’s more environmentally friendly!
In this article, we share the top essential oils that purify the air, that you need for your diffuser to help purify the air in your home.
Top 10 essential oils that purify the air
What are the best essential oils that purify the air?
- Peppermint Essential Oil
- Chamomile Essential Oil
- Lemon Essential Oil
- Lavender Essential Oil
- Eucalyptus Essential Oil
- Basil Essential Oil
- Tea Tree Essential Oil
- Lime Essential Oil
- Jasmine Oil
- Pine Oil
- Lemongrass Oil
- Cinnamon Leaf Essential Oil
- Ylang Ylang Oil
- Red Mandarin Essential Oil
- Nutmeg Oil
Let’s take a closer look at some of the top essential oils that purify the air:
Lemongrass essential oil
Studies have shown that lemongrass is effective at eliminating certain bacterial strains when used in aromatherapy. It’s also known for its anti-inflammatory benefits and is great for upset stomachs due to gastro. It’s an antioxidant which makes it great for skincare. This is why skincare products often contain lemongrass essential oil.
Wild thyme essential oil
Not all thyme essential oils are useful for purifying your air but wild thyme essential oil is effective at removing certain bacteria in the air. Wild thyme essential oil contains a chemical compound known as thymol which is what makes it effective for air purification.
Cinnamon bark essential oil
Essential oil can be derived from cinnamon bark or cinnamon leaves, so make sure you’re aware of which one you’re buying. Cinnamon bark essential oil contains cinnamaldehyde and eugenol which both help with eliminating bacteria especially when rapidly evaporated.
It also reduces gastric pain, prevents growth of fungus, repels and prevents certain insects from infestation and soothes ulcer pain.
Peppermint essential oil
Peppermint is a great air purifying essential oil that will also leave the room smelling fresh and clean. It has that freshness and crispness about it.
It has antiseptic properties which makes it great for disinfecting surfaces around your home and is also great at eliminating unpleasant smells. Use peppermint oil in your bathroom as an air freshener.
You can also use peppermint essential oil as an insect repellant by mixing it with water or an oil carrier before using. Spray in areas around your home that are prone to insects such as spiders (for example, around air vents, heating and cooling vents, window and door frames).
Lemon essential oil
Another great air purifying essential oil is lemon essential oil, which has many health benefits and smells great too. Many regular household cleaning products come in a lemon scent because of the appealing scent but also because the fragrance is good at purifying the air.
One thing to note- if you like leaving windows and doors open, bees are attracted to lemon essential oil so you may notice bees hanging around the outside of your home when they smell the lemon scent.
Why should you use air purifying essential oils in your home?
Essential oils are used for many purposes but mainly because they can have health and psychological benefits. There are many oils recommended for different ailments and the scent of essential oils can have a positive effect on your mental health.
Essential oils are naturally extracted from plants via the roots, leaves, stems or other parts of the plant. They each have a unique composition and scent, and how we react to the scent can be quite individual. It’s like when you choose a perfume- some people will love a particular perfume while others will hate it! It’s a personal choice.
Although essential oils have become popular in recent years, they’ve been used in eastern medicine and therapies for centuries. It’s only in recent times that we’ve embraced the benefits of using essential oils.
How air purifying essential oils help your home
One of the many benefits of using essential oils is that they can purify the air around you. The air around isn’t completely pure- dust, bacteria, pollen, fragrances and toxins are in the air we breathe. It isn’t possible to eliminate everything in the air however we can take steps to reduce the toxins in the air and purify it so that you’re breathing in clearer air.
In a study published in the National Library of Medicine by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, essential oils sprayed into a room full of airborne bacteria showed that essential oils are able to inhibit the growth of airborne bacteria.
A study published in the Oxford Academic Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy in 2001 showed that certain essential oils were effective at eliminating 5 bacterial pathogens in a vapour state- ie. through a diffuser/aromatherapy situation while others were not as effective.
While many health bloggers write about almost every essential oil being great for air purification, there aren’t studies that back their claims for most of the essential oils they mention.
This article lists essential oils for which there are studies that show their effectiveness at purifying the air especially for airborne viruses and bacteria.
