By Tyler Hagan, Certified Aromatherapist
As parents, we face many challenges throughout our child’s life. Sometimes it’s simple things like what they will eat or what they will wear. Other times, it may not be as simple, such as how to help them with Advanced Calculus (that’s my wife’s job) or how to help them heal from their first broken heart. Or sometimes, it can be a combination of the two, simple and complicated…. like figuring out how to use your non-KidSafe essential oils when you have children.
Before we dive in on the subject, it’s important to first have an understanding of what KidSafe really means when it comes to our essential oils. For this, I recommend going back to the basics and checking out our blog post What Does KidSafe REALLY Mean? and then coming back here to learn more about how to use your oils that don’t sport the KidSafe logo.
Personal Inhalers
One of the best ways to use non-KidSafe essential oils around your kids is to use a personal inhaler as there is almost no exposure for your children. For those who have never used a personal inhaler before, check out our blog post on how to use your personal aromatherapy inhaler. Just like with all your essential oils, it’s important to store your personal inhalers where children cannot reach them.
Personal Inhaler Jewelry
Personal aromatherapy jewelry is another great way to reap the benefits of your essential oils. But there are some extra considerations to keep in mind. Just like you, with close proximity, children will be inhaling the essential oils. So don’t use your aromatherapy jewelry if you have little ones that you hold often or like to snuggle. Maybe save those necklaces and bracelets for a date night when it’s just you and other adults.
Topically
Using essential oils topically is another easy way to use non-KidSafe essential oils on yourself with few risks to your children. However, there are some safety considerations to keep in mind. Just like with personal inhaler jewelry, close proximity to children can expose them to the essential oils. If you have small children that you hold for long periods of time, it’s best to save this method of essential oil application for nighttime, or when your children are not around. It’s also best to apply your non-KidSafe essential oils to covered parts of the body that will not come into contact with your children’s skin. This lessens the risk of unnecessary exposure as well.
Diffusion
Contrary to what you might think, diffusion is an option for your non-KidSafe essential oils. There are just some limitations on how and when you can diffuse. To diffuse non-KidSafe essential oils safely when you have kids, it’s important to do it when they are not home, or they are in a different room and will not be in the room you are diffusing in for at least 1-2 hours. By waiting 1-2 hours before introducing them to the area you were diffusing in, it allows the essential oils to settle and fade reducing the risk of exposure to your children. This means you’re free to diffuse while your kids are at school or after they’ve gone to bed and you’ve got your bedroom all to yourself.
General Safety Considerations
Even though there are safe ways of using non-KidSafe essential oils around children, it’s not always necessary. KidSafe essential oils are just as effective for adults as they are for children with fewer risks. It may not be a bad idea to stick with KidSafe essential oils when you can and to save the non-KidSafe oils for when you really need them. This is the best way to eliminate accidental exposure for your children. These tips are here to help you navigate the world of essential oils when you have children so you can make the right choice for you and your family.
*The usage methods described above do not take into consideration other circumstances such as pregnancy or breastfeeding. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding it’s important to follow a whole separate set of guidelines which we’ve shared here and here.
thank you for such great information
I appreciate all the education Plant Therapy does in regards to children’s safety around oils. You never really see that with other companies and I feel confident buying the Kid Safe oils because I know research and thought goes into their preparation.
Been using PT for a few years & have been very pleased with the quality of the oils, the speedy shipping and the overall customer service.
Thanks Plant Therapy for all you do. You educate us, give us DIY information, free shipping, rewards program nd much more!!!!!
Great content.
Great information…I love this company!!!
thank you for always sharing such great information!
Great reminders & recommendations
My kids love their oils. We are very careful in how we use them. I only have one at home that we have to dilute for.
Great information
This is my first time to try PLANT THERAPY, my grand nephew liked the Shield Me very much.
So glad to have access to this info! Keeps me from worrying about what to diffuse or otherwise use around grand kids. I like many of them myself!
Great tips!
Very helpful info!
Starting to buy your oils after using up the MLM stash I had.
Loving this new world of Essential Oils!
I agree!!!
Appreciate the helpful information! Many thanks!
Thanks for the information
Helpful reminders!!! Thanks
I have only used kid safe oils so far. As my daughter is getting older I have started looking into some of the other blends that are not Kid Safe. This gave me some ideas on how I can start to try them and slowly add some for my use. I will be looking into a personal inhaler. Thanks!
This article has been very helpful. I have a 7 yr old grandson and I have introduced him to essential oils. I have purchased him his own diffuser and Kid Safe sample set from Plant Therapy in it’s own little wooden case. He loves it! As he gets older I will continue to teach him the benefits of essential oils!
great information about oils how to keep kids safe
Thank you, Plant Therapy for providing options. Rather than simply saying “don’t use for kids,” you give helpful ways we can still use oils that may benefit us.
Great stuff hoping you will have in near future something on tumeric,aloes
These are great tips for all the safe ways we can use non kid safe oils around kids. I prefer the non kid safe germ fighter smell over the KidSafe so going to try a KidSafe alternative Defender.
Thanks so much for writing this, I was trying to decide how to use the non-kiddo friendly oils on myself while also keeping my kids and animals safe.
I was just wondering about this. Thanks for the suggestions!
Thanks so much for sharing this information. I admire a company that care about safety and not just profit. Keep up the great work Plant Therapy:)
I’m new to PT as I’m coming from a MLM company that broke me every month so I can not wait to save money and still get good quality oils!!!
Very helpful information with 2 young kids running around our home!
Love all of your oils! Great information, thanks for sharing!
Good thoughts here! I appreciate the separate KidSafe blends available from PT.
Great to know that just because the oils are kidsafe doesn’t mean that they are less effective in adults.
This is great information! I only have my granddaughter before and after school but I love wearing my diffuser pendants & have about 4 inhalers with me at all times!
Thanks for this great advice.
I am a retired old lady. This is such a simple well written article for all with and without kids. Thank you
Great Advice!!
thanks for the tips!
Very good recommendations, thank you.
Great tips! Thanks!!
Thanks for sharing the meaning of “Kid Safe” as I have children at home and wasn’t aware of the differences of the kid safe & non kid safe essential oil. However i wish to find out whether kid safe EO is less concentrated if compare to non kid safe EO too. Appreciate you reply here. Thanks.
Hi Julie, KidSafe essential oils are 100% pure and undiluted. They are also no less effective than non-KidSafe essential oils. You can read more about what KidSafe means here.
Love that PT educates their customers. Very helpful tips to keep little ones safe!
Plant Therapy oils are the BEST essential oils I’ve ever bought.
Glad the oils are clearly marked.
Thanks for the extra information about eo around children. I only purchase kid safe eo for my daughter in law because she loves to diffuse but also has a child under 2. Makes it so much easier when it’s time to buy more
Thanks for the info!
Thank you so much for all the good info for my kids. This is the only place I go for oils and info.
Appreciate this post and the multiple ways around this. Having a 2 year old and 4 month old though I’ve pretty much bought only KidSafe stuff now. Love that line or products.
I was scared to use oils not “kid safe” when I first started but now after studying oils and researching and just know how to dilute oils too use on them. It helpss my kid and my wallet as I don’t have to buy the same oils 2x lol.!!!
Very informative
Thank you for this great info.
Great info. I always wondered but i will continue to purchase kids safe oils for her.
Thank you! I do not have kids, but prefer many of these blends.
So Awesome! I will share with all my friends with young ones!!!
Good to note since my daughter is going to be 2 next week.
Good info and glad to have the kid safe and organic kid safe options
I love that you have oils that are labeled specifically for children. As a mom this is very important to me. Thank you!
Very good info! Thank you. We have all been using oils for the past 3 years and have had nothing but good outcome.
These are really good recommendations. I will definitely be more mindful when I’m around little ones. Thanks PT!
Very good advice I wouldn’t have thought to do some of the suggestions because I love the oils that much
No brand out there compares to Plant Therapy!
I love that you have a line of oils that are specifically safe for kids. I think they’d be great for seniors too, since they often have thinner skin and may have respiratory issues as well.
You can always count on Plant Therapy to give you the information you need to know about their oils and their proper applications.
Great tips, to what age of children does this apply?
You’ll want to use these tips for non-KidSafe essential oils for kids up to the age of 10.
Very grateful for all the precautions and recommendations PT provides with kids. Knowing how to safely use EOs around my 3 littles is so important. Thank you!
I love how responsible plant therapy is as a company and how they put out info and education.
Very useful information for a grandmother of five under ten years old. Thank you!
I’m blessed to have all adult children now. Grandkids live in various places not nearby. So for me it’s only an issue a few times a year
Every day I learn something new and this was my new thing for today. Love Plant Therapy
This such good information.
Good to know
good to know, especially with young kids & pets in the house!
Great tips!
Good info! I generally lean towards kid safe all around.
I LOVE oils. Since we have started using them my 2 kids and me and my husband are never sick. Building your immune system is key and oils is a natural way to do!!
Nice reminder.
Great information! I love the tone of this and the gentle reminders to always be safe but not to be afraid to use our oils.
Sometimes I’m glad I don’t have kids, and this is one of them…I can use whatever I want whenever I want wahoo!
Very informative info especially for any new users
I forgot aromatherapy jewelry was an option. Great article!
Thank you so much for all the wonderful blogs that you guys put out.
At what age is it okay to use non kidsafe?
You can start using non-KidSafe oils on or around your children when they are 10 years old.
Great info to keep in mind….thanks
Good info. Thank you
Very useful information. Thank you!
Good tips! I can’t wait to try purchase Kidsafe for my kids
very useful information! I greatly appreciate Plant Therapy taking the time to teach us proper safety for using oils around children.
Great information. Thank you so much for caring so much about our families.
Love ❤️
Very good information.
Great informative!
Informative, thank you!
All my life, I’ve always been interested in flowers and herbs but this is the first time I can get to have the best of both worlds.
Enjoyed this read.
These are great recommendations!!! Will definitely be looking into keeping more of the kidsafe versions on hand
Great advice!
I am impressed that you are concerned about the safety of children, not just selling a product. Thank you!
Very useful recommendation
Very useful info
I will have to keep kidsafe oils for when my grandchildren are here.
very informative… love the choices
Great information to take into account, for and with my granddaughter. Thank you!
Thanks for the different options and not having to limit myself to only Kid-Safe oils.
Love PT blog, always wealth of information.
As always,this is wonderful information:)
Thank you this info. Always so helpful
thanks for the information
Grate Info
Some great ideas in her if you have wee little ones at home…
Great information! Thanks for sharing!
This information is so helpful!
Very useful! Thank you
Love reading ❤️
Excellent recommendations.
I like that the Kidsmart oils are clearly marked for safety.
Good Recommendations
Very informative and helpful.
Very informative! Its always great to include the kiddies.
Thanks Tyler!
These tips are very helpful especially with my first grandbaby on the way.
very informative
I love that kid safe oils are labeled and always double check to see if dilution is an option.
A very helpful article!
Very informative and helpful. Thank you.
This is beyond helpful. I tend to just stick to the EO’s that specifically have the KidSafe logo though!
Great and helpful advice.
Good advice.
Great article! We started using only kidsafe oils since we have an infant and we love them.
Great information! I really like to read all the information that you share.
Some good advice
Thank you for the information! I’ve purchased KidSafe but have been looking at Oils that are not necessary safe got children. This article helps me a lot.
I love the kidsafe line! We use so many of them!
Very helpful!
Love this!
Thanks for the wonderful information!
A good read
I love all of the seasonal oils that Plant Therapy introduces. My favorites so far are the Fall oils.
I love this, i have never seen this beforee!
I love that you offer kid safe oils I am able to use them around and on my grandkids!
I’m always looking for information about safely using EOs with and around the kids, thanks!
I’ve used EO’s with my daughter since she in utero! She is now 34 and continues what mom taught her!
Very helpful. Thanks
Very helpful!
Thank you for these great tips.
I stopped using essential oils because of my 2 cats but my friend told me about the cat blog you have. I ordered kid safe oils for my children and feel more confident using them now that I know more about ones to stay away from.
We’re so glad you feel confident about how to use your oils!
This is great information! I have my granddaughter a lot, so I rely on my pendant for non kid safe ools. Other than I diffuse kid safe oils. Weekends, though, are mine, as well as my bedroom, I can diffuse whatever oils I choose!
Love your honesty about Kidsafe. Such good info and love the 12 hour tip!
I have a few of the plant therapy kids safe oils and have been since last 2 years and never had a problem.
Thanks for the article! Helpful info!
Thank you for this very informative article!
This information is always needed! Thank you!!
We don’t have small children…good information nonetheless!
Great information even though i don’t have small children but i do have friends with little ones and wouldn’t want to ever harm them.
Great article for kids!
Good comprehensive information. I like the personal diffuser option.
Is the information in this article the same for animals ie dogs mainly as it is for children and kidsafe on diffusing.
Yes, these same tips can be used for using non-Pup & Pony approved oils around your pets.
Good information, especially using diffuser jewelry around children. I don’t think people are aware of the effects that could have on little ones.
These tips are very useful. Thanks
Great information and tips
I love our KidSafe oils!! With the knowledge PT us given I can rest assured I am properly using oils with kids in the house!
Love the info
I like that the labels have a very clear kid-safe logo on them.
Thanks for this blog! I’d LOVE To have a list of oils that are still kidsafe even tho the lable doesn’t state it is
I’m worry free due to not having kids. Pets are another story. PT has so much useful info for pets as well
These tips are also great for using non-Pup and Pony approved oils around your pets!
Even without having a young child, this is very useful and great information. Thank you Tyler.
good to know diffusion before or after they come home is an option! I love to diffuse!
Thank you for this article. I especially like the diffusion guidance.
Great article
Thanks for this informative review on using oils that are not kidsafe.
This is such great information to know!
I appreciate that the kidsafe oils are clearly marked. I’m never afraid to use these oils on my kids and I feel good knowing that they get the benefits of oils without the risk of using something unsafe!
Good suggestions to consider! I’m glad my kids haven’t been harmed by use of essential oils and I hope they always and only prove to be beneficial for the whole family!
All good recommendations
Great content from a great company! Thanks for providing a great value!