Bergamot Essential Oil – All you need to know

Overview 

If you like Earl Grey tea, you’re surely relishing the distinct taste of Bergamot, which is used to flavor it. Bergamot essential oil is extracted from the flesh of citrus fruit, which grows on bergamot orange trees.

Originally from Southeast Asia, the bergamot tree is grown across the globe today but gained prominence and its name in Bergamo, Italy. Because of the soothing smell, spicy notes, and wide range of uses, it is becoming a highly demanded essential oil.

Bergamot Essential Oil Uses

Its citrusy scent makes Bergamot a popular addition to popular men’s and women’s care products. You can find it in perfumes, aftershaves, soaps, and cosmetics. Bergamot oil can also be used as a flavoring in foods and beverages.

Using it directly on the skin is not a good idea. It can be mixed with carrier oil, such as coconut oil and used as a skin softener. It can also be blended with water vapor and used as an aromatherapy treatment. Never swallow essential oils.

Bergamot Essential Oil for Skin

Bergamot oil contains several anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial compounds, making it an effective acne spot treatment for those without sensitive skin. Its palliative qualities may also make it effective in treating painful zits and pimples.

To treat skin conditions-

• You can mix it with carrier oil and apply it directly to acne, zits, and breakouts.
• You can even leave it on overnight.
• However, it would be best not to use this treatment during the day or in direct sunlight.

The oil can also be mixed with water or your favourite cleanser as a facial rinse.

Bergamot Essential oil for hair 

Those who love soft, lightly scented hair swear by this oil’s ability to soften and tame curls. Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is also soothing to an irritated scalp.

You can mix a few drops with a tablespoon of carrier oil, massage it into your scalp as an overnight treatment, or even add a few drops to your regular shampoo.

Bergamot Oil for Aromatherapy 

As an aromatherapy treatment, Bergamot is known for its soothing properties. Here are some ways you can enjoy its scent:

• You can use it as a body lotion or massage by mixing it with a carrier oil.
• Your favorite body washes, shampoo, and facial scrubs can be infused with this citrusy oil
• Add it to homemade candles or air fresheners to scent a room, or use it as an ingredient in aromatherapy. It can also be added to potpourri or dabbed in vaporizers to diffuse its scent.
• If you’re on the go, dab it on a bandana or handkerchief for a soothing scent all day long.

Bergamot Oil Benefits

1. Stress reduction

It has been proven that inhaling it mixed with water vapor can reduce feelings of anxiety and fatigue. Additionally, aromatherapy with Bergamot, among other essential oils, can reduce feelings of depression and stress by signaling the brain to discharge dopamine and serotonin.

2. Fights food poisoning

Bergamot contains a compound called linalool, which is sometimes helpful in destroying bacteria that cause food-borne illnesses.

Different formulations of this oil have shown potent effects in stopping the growth of the different types of bacteria.

3. Lowers cholesterol

Bergamot contains flavonoids that can reduce lipid levels, and polyphenols in Bergamot possess anti-inflammatory properties in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease-affected rats’ livers.

4. Reduces pain and inflammation

Like many other natural essential oils, Bergamot has positive effects on body pain and infections, whether aromatherapy or directly applying diluted oils to acne, spots, swellings, and inflammation can effectively cure these problems.  

Bergamot Oil Side Effects

Some people may experience sensitivity to it, significantly when it is not diluted with a carrier oil. Essential oils, like bergamot, can sometimes induce allergic reactions.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction or sensitivity may include:

• Itching
• Swelling
• Slight burning
• rashes
• pain

Before using any essential oil, test it on a small area of your forearm diluted in carrier oil. If you don’t have any allergic reaction within 24 hours, it is safe to use.

Children, pets, and pregnant women should beware of the adverse effects of diffused essential oils.

The essential oil and Bergamot products, such as perfume, may cause a skin reaction. If your skin is sensitive to sunlight, look for bergapten-free brands of bergamot oil.

Bergapten in bergamot oil is toxic if swallowed. Even applying the essential oil topically, or inhaling it, can change the effects of medication. Some medications, like the antibiotic ciprofloxacin, also make people more sensitive to UV rays, increasing the effects of bergamot oil.

To determine if it interferes with other medications, you should speak with a pharmacist or doctor about your medicines.