How Aromatherapy Creates a Healthier Home Environment

Loving where you live is an essential part of a happy life. Over the past few years, essential oils have become an extremely popular way of infusing beautiful, soothing, and healing aromas throughout the home. However, with the rise in popularity there may be some confusion as to the exact benefits of aromatherapy and essential oils.

Aromatherapy can be a simple and non-medicinal way to create a healthier environment for any room. So how does aromatherapy work with humidifiers to create a healthier home?

What Is Aromatherapy?
Aromatherapy is a holistic healing treatment that uses natural plant extracts to promote health and well-being. Sometimes it’s called essential oil therapy. Aromatherapy uses aromatic essential oils to improve the health of the body, mind, and spirit. It enhances both physical and emotional health.

Despite its recent growth in popularity, aromatherapy has actually been in use for thousands of years, having been practiced as far back as ancient Egypt. Aromatherapy activates areas in your nose called smell receptors, which send messages through your nervous system to your brain.

Many people who practice aromatherapy use essential oils. Essential oils are made from flower, herb, and tree parts, like bark, roots, peels, and petals. The cells that give a plant its fragrant smell is its "essence." When an essence is extracted from a plant, it becomes an essential oil.

Benefits of Essential Oils
While essential oils should not be used in place of traditional medical treatments if you require medical assistance, they do have plenty of other benefits when used with a humidifier. In fact, essential oils have been shown to:

• Ease stress, anxiety, and depression
• Boost feelings of relaxation
• Improve sleep
• Help improve quality of life
• Ease certain types of pain
• Fight bacteria
• Ease nausea

Different essential oils have different effects. For example, lavender oil is often used to help relieve stress and anxiety and promote good sleep. Peppermint oil can help relieve symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and may also relieve tension headaches when applied topically.

Using Your Essential Oils: Humidifier vs Diffuser
If you are currently using essential oils or are looking to start using essential oils, there are a few things you should keep in mind. The first is learning the difference between using a humidifier vs diffuser.

Using a diffuser for your essential oils only impacts the fragrance in the air. Diffusers do not contain enough water to humidify your air. That is why humidifiers are ideal for pairing with essential oils.

Having the right humidity level in your home can help you breathe easier, temporarily relieving coughs and congestion. Moisture in the air can also help temporarily relieve dry skin, dry eyes, and chapped lips. When used with essential oils, humidifiers can provide non-medicinal healing to create a healthier home environment.

However, it is important to know which humidifiers to use. While essential oils have many benefits, they also may corrode or damage your humidifier tank if used incorrectly. That is why you should never use your oils directly in the tank, unless otherwise stated in your humidifier’s instruction manual. Using an essential oil humidifier with an aromatherapy tray enables you to safely use your favorite oils for a soothing and pleasant aromatic atmosphere. Aromatherapy trays contain a built-in cotton pad that easily absorbs and diffuses oils.

Best Essential Oil Humidifiers
Holmes® understands the importance of aromatherapy in creating a healthier home environment. That is why we have created a wide range of humidifiers that are designed to work seamlessly with your favorite essential oils to help you love where you live. These Holmes humidifiers are built with an aromatherapy tray to protect the life of your essential oil humidifier.

Holmes Ultrasonic Top-Fill Cool-Mist Humidifier

Easy to clean and fill, the Holmes Ultrasonic Top-Fill Cool-Mist Humidifier propels cool mist. It's energy efficient, filter-free with a virtually silent operation, and has a 0.36-gallon water tank that propels cool, visible mist for up to 16 hours on its Low setting. The ultrasonic humidifier includes an aromatherapy tray for your favorite essential oils.

Holmes Ultrasonic Cool-Mist Humidifier

The Holmes Ultrasonic Cool-Mist Humidifier features 360-degree rotating mist nozzle and a one-touch button for easy use. Its virtually silent operation and 0.5-gallon water tank propels visible, cool mist for up to 24 hours on its Low setting. The tank features antimicrobial protection to prevent bacteria and mold growth. This portable humidifier is easy to move around your home. The 0.5-gallon ultrasonic humidifier is energy efficient, filter-free, and includes an aromatherapy tray for your favorite essential oils.

Holmes 1-Gallon Ultrasonic Humidifier

With an easy-grip handle and adjustable dial, the Holmes 1-Gallon Ultrasonic Humidifier provides warm and cool mist output. Its virtually silent operation and 1-gallon water tank propels cool and warm visible mist for up to 35 hours on its Low setting. The tank features antimicrobial protection to prevent bacteria and mold growth. The 1-gallon ultrasonic humidifier is energy efficient, filter-free, and includes an aromatherapy tray for your favorite essential oils.

Conclusion
There is no doubt about the many benefits of using an essential oil humidifier for aromatherapy. With a wide selection of aromatherapy humidifiers available, Holmes has what you need to ensure that you love where you live. Explore more of our Holmes humidifiers, and create a healthier home today.