Latin Name: Gardenia jasminoides
Aroma: Rich, heady, sweet and string floral scent
Physical Appearance: The oil is dark yellow in color.
Overall Summary: Gardenias are evergreen shrubs and trees from the Rubiaceae family, with over 140 different species. The Gardenia Essential Oil is extracted from the specie Gardenia jasminoides by effleurage. It is a native to the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, China, Japan and the United States.
Gardenia Essential Oil has a feminine fragrance in consideration to its aphrodisiac qualities, as well as its use in perfumery and aromatherapy for curing various ailments. Because of the resources and time needed to extract gardenia, 100% pure gardenia essential oil tends to be more expensive than other essential oils.
Primary Benefits One of the numerous benefits of this essential oil is the treatment of a wide variety of bacterial infections including sepsis and tetanus. Several diseases are associated with the excess and over accumulation of reactive molecules such as reactive oxygen specie and reactive nitrogen specie which results in oxidative stress. Loaded with antioxidants, gardenia essential oil helps prevent the accumulation of these molecules, helps to minimize oxidative stress and keeps other diseases at bay. The two main constituents of gardenia: geniposide ¹and genipinn² have promising anti-inflammatory action. They help treat inflammatory disorders as arthritis, intestinal inflammation, and ulcerative colitis. Studies have shown that gardenia essential oil are capable of producing sedative, hypnotic and anti-seizure effects in mice, and that these effects were increased by combining the oil with jujube seed oil. Gardenia has a long history of use in perfumery and as an aphrodisiac. You can spice up things in the bedroom with your partner with this essential oil through a massage or bath. Aromatherapy is one of the most widely practiced alternatives of healing systems today. It allows the many different types of aromatic compounds to cure various ailments. Gardenia essential oil is the main ingredient used in aromatherapy The main component in Gardenia (geniposide) has also shown to have multiple effects in neuroprotection, particularly Alzheimer’s Disease. Gardenia can help treat interstitial cystitis. It helps reduce bladder and pelvic pain. A study carried out on patients with interstitial cystitis concludes that 83% of the patients who drank a tea-containing gardenia regularly reported a reduction in bladder and pelvic pain. Gardenia essential oil fights free radicals that cause some visible signs of skin disorders and aging. The high level of antioxidants present in it does the job of maintaining a good and healthy skin. You can treat anxiety, inability to sleep well, nervousness and a feeling of impending doom with gardenia essential oil. With this oil, you can make certain aromas that trigger pleasant memories or put you in a better mood and help you overcome anxiety. You can correct menopausal imbalances that occur because of conditions like insomnia and depression with the help of gardenia oil. Another benefit of this oil is the treatment of wounds and reducing swelling. A topical application with appropriate precautions will work wonders on a swelling.
Emotional Benefits For a very long time now, Gardenia Essential oil has been in use for aromatherapy. The rich, heady, and sweet aroma have aphrodisiac qualities, which are a very sensual scent and can induce feelings of deep attraction by smell alone. It melts away stress, promotes relaxation, lifts your spirits, and serves as a major mood booster. Gardenia essential oil blends well with the following oils: cinnamon essential oil, sweet orange essential oil, lemon essential oil, neroli essential oil, jasmine essential oil, rose otto essential oil, ylang essential oil, and tuberose essential oil and clove bud essential oil. Diluting Gardenia essential oil with carrier oils or using neat are some of the uses of this oil. However, using it undiluted every day for several weeks may cause sensitization.
It can be used topically (massage, compress, baths), aromatically (direct inhalation, as a humidifier), externally (around the house) and internally (drinking). It is not generally safe for use in kids/babies as is also a family of jasmine. It is not generally safe for pregnancy as gardenia is also a family of jasmine and can cause contractions in pregnancy.
How to use gardenia essential oil topically Essential oils are very concentrated and Gardenia essential oil is no different. Dilute all Gardenia essential oils before applying to the skin for massages or for baths. Concentrated Gardenia essential oil is toxic and one can easily poison himself through topical application. Undiluted topical application of Gardenia essential will lead to skin irritation or sensitization. PRECAUTION: Concentrated dilution or application on delicate areas of the skin like in close proximity to the eyes can cause irritation. In a long term, continuous application of an undiluted form of Gardenia essential oil can cause inflammation and some other reactions on your skin. How to use gardenia essential oil aromatically Applying these essential oils aromatically can be very effective in dealing with various emotional issues: stress, depression, anxiety, fear, or even a lack of creativity. This is where it comes into a power of its own. The recommended dose is ten drops for respiratory, headaches, hormonal balance and sinus afflictions. This is one of the most popular methods of applying Gardenia essential oils. Aromatic application has proven to be the fastest way to use essential oils. How to use gardenia essential oil internally This essential oil can be used for medicinal purposes to treat conditions like interstitial cystitis and other infections. Some of the ways to ingest this oil is through cooking or drinking. You can include it in your food recipes but only in a moderate quantity. Be careful not to add the essential oil when the food is far from finished because this could render it obsolete and ineffective. For ingesting it by drinking, you can make blend of drinks and add little drops of Gardenia essential oil. Mix the blend well to avoid irritation of your mucus membrane. As a precaution, start with a single drop to see how the oil will affect you before you start using multiple drops. Remember to give your body ample time to break down a drop of the essential oil you ingest before another. How to use gardenia essential oil externally You can use gardenia essential oil externally to eliminate bacteria. It is a strong bactericidal agent, which makes it an effective remedy for treating bacterial infections like sepsis, tetanus, and others. This makes it also suitable for use on surfaces to make stay germ free and smell nice. Try adding a few drops of Gardenia essential oil in the water you intend to use as a spray. In addition, this essential oil provides an effective way to help you unwind and relax as you go to sleep. You can add a couple of drops to your pillow or place a cloth underneath your pillow with some oil on. It has a flowery and strong, sweet scent, and works really well as a fragrance. You can enjoy a good night sleep everyday with this essential oil.
PRECAUTIONS Inhalation – inhaling this essential oil helps in the treatment of headaches, respiratory problems, and sinus afflictions. For inhalation, the recommended amount is ten drops using hot compress, hot water or diffuser. Compress – this helps in relieving achy muscle, bruises, wounds, sore joints, skin problems, and dysmenorrhea. Simply take a bowl: Facial Steam – this helps beautify your skin as gardenia essential oil contains antioxidants, which help improve and maintain the health and appearance of your skin, it relieves headache and sinus problems too. To enjoy a good gardenia steam: Massage – after a stressful period, getting a massage is the best option to melt away stress, or soothe achy muscles, and if its romance you want, the sensual scent of gardenia is sure to get you there. Simply add a few drops of essential oil in an unscented moisturizing lotion or in carrier oil. Candles– the rich, strong scent of gardenia in candles stays present in the room whether you light the candle or hours after the candle has burnt out. It works great in scenting both soy and paraffin wax candles. Professional and homemade candle makers often use gardenia essential oil when scenting their new made candles, adding a few drops on your less scented candles is always a good idea to keep the romance and relaxed feeling in the air. Potpourri – The dried flowers, pine cones, and other dry components used for your potpourri can stay refreshed by adding a few drops of this essential oil at intervals. The components in your potpourri absorb the sweet flowery scent of the Gardenia. Soap– from hand soap to bathing soaps, Gardenia oil leaves a refreshing floral scent to your skin, you can choose to go for pure gardenia scented soap or decide to go for a stronger fragrance by mixing it up with other essential oils like lemon essential oil or rose essential oil. Baths – taking a bath at the end of a stressful day can be more relaxing by adding about five to ten drops of Gardenia Essential Oil mixed with half to one cup of salt or emulsifier to ensure that the oil evenly distributes in your bath water. It helps in calming and relaxing you, reducing respiratory symptoms, poor circulation, skin problems, muscular pain, achy joints, insomnia, stress, menstrual pain and nervous tension Herbal therapy – herbal therapy referred patients use gardenia oil mixed with some other herbs as an alternative treatment in reducing interstitial cystitis. Direct Palm Inhalation – put about two drops of Gardenia Essential Oil in your palm and gently rubs your palms together, then inhales deeply to help calm that headache and solve respiratory problems. Perfumery – gardenia oil can be used for your do it yourself signature perfumes or added to your pulse points to carry on all day surrounded by the sweet flowery scent. Gardenia colored scented candles The ingredients required for preparing this include: Start by melting your wax on medium to low heat. Remember to keep an eye on the wax always. Secure your wick to the bottom of your mason jar by applying a bit of hot glue to the center of the jar. Hold it in place until it dries, then arrange your wick such that it stands upright. When the wax melts, allow it to cool a bit before adding in your colorants. Add your Gardenia essential oil when the wax had reached between 120° and 140° Fahrenheit. Wait for the wax to cool off then pour it into your mason jar and allow it to cool. Trim your wick and your candle is ready to go. Gardenia scented sunscreen To prepare this, you will need the following ingredients: Place your glass bowl on your scale, hit tare, add all ingredients one after the other with zinc oxide last. Next, you place the glass bowl over pot of shallow, slightly simmering water and stir with a whisk to melt the ingredients completely. Then you carefully remove and wipe down condensation on the bowl. Place the bowl on scale, hit tare and slowly add zinc oxide until you get to 40g. After this, continue to whisk, carefully pour in the container then leave to set. Gardenia scented potpourri Gardenia scented potpourri can be made with lavender, rose petals, carnation, chamomile and gardenia oil. You can choose to use food dryers or ovens set on low heat. Alternatively, you can choose to dry your flowers in the traditional way by hanging the plants upside down from the rafters. Dry until crisp, and put into jars with lids. Add layer of each inch of the plant material (2-3″ if you are using small jars) with 1/2 tablespoon of Orris Root powder and store for about 3 weeks. If you do not want to retain the color of your potpourri, also add 1/2 tablespoon of salt with the Orris Root. Then add your gardenia essential oil to help the fragrance last longer. Gardenia, sage and lavender soap Start by soaking about 3 tablespoons of the dried sage into the olive oil in a glass bottle with a stopper for about one to two weeks. This allows the oil and sage to infuse together for as long as possible. Strain the oil mixture, to remove all the bits of sage then line your mould with heavy film and get ready to mix. Next, measure the oils using digital scales for exact measurements. Also, measure out the water into the jug that you are going to use to make your lye solution on the scales. Measure the caustic soda, then add the caustic soda in one steady slow movement and stir very slowly to combine. The solution will heat quickly. Then put it on a windowsill or outside to cool down to 60° Centigrade. Weigh out the required quantities of solid oils, straight into the pot that you will be using on the stove, make sure you balance the temperatures before adding the lye and the oils, then mix to a cloudy oily consistency. The next step is to take your stick mixer and mix in slow 20-second bursts, for about 10 minutes. Continue until the mix begins to thicken and become a thick creamy consistency called Trace. At this point, you can add your natural colorant like cinnamon or cocoa then add your gardenia essential oil. Pour the mixture into your previously lined mould and cover with a lid, leave for 24 – 48 hours then unmold and cut into bars, leave it to harden for about 4 weeks. After 4 weeks, you have produced gardenia, sage and lavender soap with gardenia essential oil. Thanks for reading………Susan Sources:
Complimentary Oils
How to use Gardenia Essential OilUse in Adults
Use in Children/ Babies
Use in Pregnancy
Popular uses of Gardenia Essential Oil
Gardenia Essential Oil Recipes
1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21963504
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21644569
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