Why Using Essential Oil Latin Names Is So Important

By Caryn Gehlmann, Clinical Aromatherapist

You want to buy some essential oils, but when you look online it’s hard to know where to start! There are so many essential oil suppliers out there… how do you know who to trust and what to look for? And then how do you narrow down your selection of oils? That’s where learning something about essential oil Latin names is very helpful.

This is especially important when you’re using essential oils for therapeutic purposes. Before you buy an essential oil, you want to do your homework to make sure it’s of the highest quality, pure, and of the correct type. For example, here at e3, we work with an independent lab that utilizes various forms of testing to confirm purity and quality. But there’s more to it than that…

Three main reasons to learn and use essential oil Latin names

Of course, you want essential oils that smell good, but here at e3 we’ve made it part of our mission to ensure that the oils you purchase are:

1) being used safely,

2) easily identifiable, and

3) suitable for your unique purpose.

If essential oils are not pure, there may be an increased risk of skin irritation or allergic reactions and the odor of the essential oil may also be affected. So it is very important to find the correct, pure essential oil from a supplier you trust.

Therefore, in this month’s Q & A with Caryn, I’m answering the question I hear all the time, “Why does e3 include Latin names for their essential oils? Is this information helpful in any way?”

Each plant has a Latin or botanical name. The first part of the Latin name is the genus — a group of closely related plants. The second part of the name is the species — the particular plant group. This helps classify plants and, in turn, essential oils. Latin names make it easier to identify exactly what you’re looking for because it specifies the exact plant.

Let’s look at an example. Say you want to buy Eucalyptus essential oil. Well, there are many different types of Eucalyptus so looking at the Latin name is important, because it tells you the exact species. Here at e3, we have Eucalyptus Citriodora, Eucalyptus Globulus, Eucalyptus Radiata, or Eucalyptus Smithii. They are all Eucalyptus but they each have their own unique properties and uses. If you don’t know which “Eucalyptus” you’re getting, then you might not be getting the oil that best suits your needs.

Keep a lookout for more blogs and videos that will expand on how to identify quality essential oils. And please send us your questions. e3’s team of clinical aromatherapists is happy to provide trustworthy answers to questions about essential oils and their safe usage. It’s important to remember that just because people distribute essential oils and have the best of intentions, doesn’t necessarily make them the best resource when you have health and safety issues you want to address.