Oil for your ears?

In the last blog, I mentioned plant oils that you can use to help soothe an itchy ear. In contrast to petroleum jelly like Vaseline, plant oils have multiple benefits. Petroleum jelly does provide a seal to protect the skin and prevent further moisture loss, which is great. It’s just that plant oils do SO MUCH MORE.

Many plant-based oils have anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and wound healing properties.  Topical products have a better impact on the skin, and less systemic effect (i.e. less unwanted side effects).

Certain skin conditions, such as eczema/atopic dermatitis, begin with skin barrier dysfunction which is often measured by evaluating trans epidermal water loss (drying out of the skin).  A dysfunctional skin barrier leads to the allergic sensitization and staphylococcal toxin damage that characterizes eczema.  Early intervention to repair the skin barrier can control symptoms and prevent worsening.

Damage to the skin signals an immune response to control infection and repair the tissue, but the chemicals produced by skin and immune cells can also damage the healthy skin nearby. Therefore, the intensity of inflammation and the time to healing are critical in avoiding or at least limiting damage to normal skin tissue.  

I put together this chart as a guide.  It includes fixed oils (olive oil, grape seed oil, and coconut oil) which are safe to use out of the container and essential oils (tea tree oil, oil of oregano, and garlic oil) which are concentrated and need to be diluted with a carrier oil (like olive, almond, avocado oil) before use, typically 1 drop of essential oil to 12 drops of carrier oil.

Always talk to your healthcare provider before using a new product.  Some oils may cause worsening skin irritation.