One of the best ways to protect your health during flu season is to ensure that your immune system is healthy.

Yes, you should wash your hands and get plenty of quality sleep. That helps greatly. But did you know that pure essential oils can help your immune system?

A healthy immune system is able to fight off bacteria and viruses that would otherwise make you sick.

How Do Essential Oils Help Your Immune System?

When I was training to be an aromatherapist, one of the areas I studied was the chemical makeup of pure essential oils. Many of these constituents have been studied by researchers to figure out why and how they work.

Here’s just a few for you.

• Lemon (Citrus limon). Who doesn’t love the scent of lemons? It lifts your spirits, makes a great natural disinfectant and activates white blood cells which are part of your immune system. Lemon encourages white blood cells to fight the harmful toxins that enter the body, and helps to release them. Bonus points: Lemon essential oil helps to protect your liver as well. Yay!
• Clove Bud (Eugenia caryophyllata). Ayurvedic medicine uses cloves extensively to boost the immune system. The oil within its flower bud (where the oil is extracted) contains polyphenols that can increase white blood cell count, resulting in stronger immune response against bacterial and viral infections.
• Cinnamon Bark (Cinnamomum zeylanicum). Cinnamon bark can help enhance nitric oxide function, which causes increased blood flow and lower levels of inflammation. Some of the most researched benefits of cinnamon include its’ ability to stimulate the immune system as well.
• Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus). Not only does it help to open your airways, but a study published in 2008 demonstrated that eucalyptus oil helped boost the immune system by stimulating the immune response at a cellular level. Various other studies have demonstrated that eucalyptus oil can stimulate the actions of white blood cells against foreign microbes which helps boost immunity.
• Lavender (Lavendula angustifolia). Lavender is such a versatile and nurturing essential oil. I use it in quite a number of blends because it’s very gentle and balances your system. It works wonders to calm you (and helps you sleep better) and is a powerful antimicrobial and antibacterial oil – all good for your immune system!
• Tea Tree (Melaleuca alternafolia). This is a powerful oil with antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties because it contains a chemical compound called terpinen-4-ol. This component in Tea Tree essential oil helps to break down the cell walls of harmful bacteria and prevents them from reproducing.

So, how do you use all of these oils to help your immune system? I blend them together as Thievery Synergy diffuser blend (wow – does it ever smell awesome!)

and I also make the Thievery Synergy Blend rollerball with these oils diluted in organic Jojoba wax.

Help yourself stay healthy by washing your hands, drinking your water, get plenty of good sleep and use your essential oils to strengthen your immune system.

As always, I’m grateful you stopped by – be well!

Melissa