Did you know that one pound of Jasmine oil requires about 1,000 pounds of jasmine (or 3.6 million blossoms) to produce? These blossoms must be unsquashed, and collected before sunrise (for optimal fragrance).

One pound of Jasmine pure essential oil costs between US$1200 and US$4500, whereas one pound of synthetic Jasmine oil costs US$3.50!!!! It’s natural to wonder what the difference is. Synthetic (or “nature equivalent”) oil does not possess the same therapeutic value as genuine essential oil. It contains only a few of the same compounds as genuine pure essential oil, and these compounds have been manufactured in a laboratory. Synthetic oils are very popular in commercial personal care items, as they convey to the naïve consumer that this product is “aromatherapy” and therefore “must be good for me”.

However, these synthetic compounds may be toxic. Have you ever been in an “aromatherapy” store and left with a headache? That can be the result of impurities in the oils. If your essential oil contains synthetic additives, you will definitely not be wanting to put it directly (neat) on your skin, or add it to food or drinks.

In Australia, an essential oil can be labeled 100% pure, and it can be 100% pure synthetic oil. In America, it can be labeled 100% pure and only requires 5% pure essential oil in it (the rest can be synthetic). So this labelling gives no indication of quality. Likewise an oil can be “therapeutic-grade” and still contain synthetic additives.

Adulterated and mislabled essential oils present real dangers for your health. The only way you as a consumer can know about the quality of the oils you are buying is to ask the right questions of the company who is selling you the oils.

I’ve done thorough research into Young Living(visiting their farms around the world, talking to their buyers). I am satisfied that their essential oils are what they say – pure and unadulterated.

Much of the lavender oil produced in the world is not really lavender – instead it’s an infertile hybrid called lavandin, grown and distilled in China, Russia, France and Tasmania. Lavendin has a higher camphor content than true lavender, and because of this it can actually aggravate burns when applied to them.

Lavendin is brought into France, and cut with synthetic linalyl acetate to improve the fragrance. Then propylene glycol, DEP, or DOP (solvents that have no smell and increase the volume) are added and the end product is sold to consumers as lavender pure essential oil. Most people don't know the difference, and are happy to buy this from their health food stores and department stores.

It’s interesting that France is the number one producer of lavender oil. In 1997 they produced 25 tons of lavender….yet 67 tons were recorded as being shipped to the U.S. alone…..that means that 42 tons of it was adulterated, or not real lavender!

Frankincense is another commonly adulterated oil. The frankincense resin that is sold in Somalia costs between US$30,000 and US$35,000 per ton. Because Frankincense takes 12 hours or more to properly distill, it’s pure essential oil is very expensive. In order to make it more cost effective, many suppliers add other gum resins, alcohol or solvents in with their frankincense during the distillation process. This leaves the "pure" essential oil laden with harmful chemicals (and likely to cause rashes, burns, or other irritations).

Unfortunately, it’s becoming more and more difficult to detect these synthetic extenders in pure essential oils. French research scientist, Dr. Cassabianca (head of the French Government- owned Scientific National Centre of Research), has developed state-of-the-art testing procedures to detect whether pure essential oils have been synthetically adulterated, or have pesticides in them. He concluded that normal testing procedures (based on AFNOR norms) are not reliable in detecting these substances.

Since developing these new tests, he has found that many so-called "organic" products are still showing as being high in pesticides. It is not enough for essential oil companies to buy "organic" produce and then claim that their pure essential oils are organic, without these latest testing procedures confirming that the products are indeed organic.

The methods developed by Dr. Cassabianca are used for testing all Young Living essential oils, to ensure that they achieve the highest quality and best standards available in the world. Most other pure essential oil suppliers purchase from “Brokerage houses”, which source their oils from around the world, and rely on the seller to confirm the quality of the oil. The seller is likely to utilise routine laboratory tests which will not indicate whether the oil is adulterated.

My husband and I have met with Dr. Cassabianca, and he has spoken very highly to us of the quality of Young Living’s pure essential oils. And he should know – he is the “guru” called in to resolved disputes between essential oil manufacturers and buyers.

One of the reasons I believe Young Living’s oils are so superb is because of their quality control. They are committed to producing the highest quality pure essential oils available in the world today.

Young Living have 4 farms worldwide where they grow their own plants from seed or seedling, giving them ultimate control over the growing and distilling process. However, the demand for their oils is more than they can presently grow, so they personally source oils from other farmers (not from brokerage houses), who are growing and distilling to their strict standards.

Then, as an extra precaution, all batches are tested by 3 independent laboratories to ensure that they are therapeutic-grade, and free of synthetics, pesticides, herbicides and other adulteration. If they do not meet Young Living’s strict standards, they are rejected.

The more that I learn about Young Living’s pure essential oils and their exacting standards, the more I realize most people have never experienced a truly unadulterated, therapeutic-grade pure essential oil.

Is it any wonder that in an editorial in the International Journal of Aromatherapy (Vol 8, issue 4), Robert Tisserand wrote: “What is really sad is that so many people around the world have no idea what aromatherapy [the science and application of pure essential oils] really is. They think aromatherapy is a hair spray which smells of hyacinth or a perfumed candle redolent of lily-of-the-valley.”

In their book Natural Home Health Care using Essential Oils, Dr. Daniel and Rose-Marie Penoel state, “If aromatherapy is confused with the artificial fragrances contained in mass-merchandised cosmetics, it will compromise the future of both the true science and the true art. If aromatherapy is reduced to these types of products, which typically come straight from petroleum chemistry, then there will be no hope for the millions [of users]…throughout the world.” This book can be ordered from The Health Garden, along with a wide range of other books on aromatherapy and aromatic medicine.