Citrus Essential Oils

The citrus family is one of the largest essential oil producing fruit families in the world. Nearly ever citrus has an essential oil that comes from it; the world of aromatherapy would be very poor without this well known family.

One of the citrus oils most commonly used in aromatherapy is bergamot oil. Bergamot, or citrus bergamia, is a sub-species of citrus aurantium, or bitter orange. Because it is supposed to have an uplifting, refreshing quality, its most common use in aromatherapy is against depression; however, it is also used to treat many other disorders, such as acne, colds, cramps, fever, insect bites, rheumatism, infectious diseases and many other things too. One of the more modern uses of citrius aurantium is as a weight loss supplement; this use, though, is somewhat controversial.

Bergamot was originally cultivated in Italy; it takes its name from Bergamo, a town in the north of Italy. It has been used in Florence for medicinal purposes since at least 1725. When the fruit is almost ripe, the rind is used to produce the oil through steam distillation.

In spite of its refreshing citrusy smell, however, this oil can indeed be dangerous sometimes. As is the case with almost all citrus oils, it is phototoxic, which means that it becomes irritating (even poisonous!) if it is exposed to too much sunlight for too long, so never apply it to an area that is going to be exposed to the sun within the next 24 hours.

Another famous essential citrus oil is that of grapefruit, or citrus paradise. Most often believed to promote clear thinking and light spiritedness, grapefruit oil is often used in treating people with high expectations who often feel let down. It is also used in treating various skin disorders: cellulites, dull skin, and toxin build-up. The rind of the fruit is cold-pressed to produce the purest grapefruit oil. The pale yellow liquid has a medium-to-strong aroma that is quite fresh and pleasing; it smells somewhat akin to lemon oil.

Grapefruit was first discovered in Barbados the 1750's. In fact, grapefruit is even sometimes referred to as one of the "seven wonders of Barbados!" As with bergamot, be careful when applying, because grapefruit oil is phototoxic.

Other important citrus oils that we will not look at in depth are lime (citrus aurantifolia), lemon (citrus limon), mandarin oranges (citrus reticulata), and sweet oranges (citrus sinensis). All of these are most commonly used for treating skin disorders.