Customer Reviews

Essential Oils Desk Reference (3rd Edition)

5 star:		(116)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

For owners of previous editions of the Essential Oils Desk Reference, this new and expanded edition will be a treat. The black and white photos have been replaced by full-color photos and this edition includes new essential oils from Ecuador.

For beginning oil users or for people who are ready to switch from recreational essential oils to therapeutic grade essential oils, the Essential Oils Desk Reference is the single best essential oils reference work in the English language, in my opinion. Medical doctors refer to the Physicians Desk Reference and serious essential oil users refer to the Essential Oils Desk Reference.

For the beginner or for people who have been buying other essential oil books, the 588 pages of this book can seem overwhelming at first. When I'm teaching people how to use it, I divide it into five main sections.
1. Introduction
2. Essential Oils and Essential Oil Products
3. Education
4. Health Issues and Essential Oil Recommendations
5. Appendices and Index
Most people use parts 2 and 4 most.

The quickest way to get started is to begin with the index and look for the essential oil or health issue that interests you. If multiple pages are given, look first for the page listed in bold.

People of all ages are using this valuable book. I know teenagers, moms, and even people in their 80s who refer to the EDR on a regular basis.

The EDR is based on the assumption that you are using therapeutic grade essential oils, so please do not try some of its recommendation unless the oils you are using are at least AFNOR or ISO certified. Therapeutic grade essential oils are ideal. If you are using essential oils that merely have "pure" on the label, you're doing so at your own risk.

I keep my hardcover edition of the EDR within reach in my office and the smaller spiral-bound edition in my briefcase. At the time of this writing, Amazon does not yet carry the smaller version of the new 4th edition, but they probably will very soon.

Here's the bottom line: In this single volume, you will find almost everything you want to know about safely using essential oils for yourself and those you care about most.

Whether you're new to the world of Essential Oils, or a seasoned follower, there is a plethora of information for you in here. Each single oil and blended oil is explained, where it originates, what it's used for, how to apply it, where to apply it and how often. A big section is nothing but diseases listed alphabetically and how to treat it with the e.o.'s, also listed are nutritional supplements that help to heal that particular condition. I've owned the book for about 5 months now, and am still discovering new things in it. Also has a section on how to deal with sick pets. I wish I had known about the oils when my daughter had a year long bout with head lice from school, kept getting re-infected, and Tea Tree oil works wonders...FAST.
But don't be fooled thinking you can go into your local health food store for the oils, they're not therapeutic grade and won't have the same effect, and cannot be ingested like the Young Living Essential oils. Not all oils can be taken internally, but a few can, and they work great. I looked up GOUT in this book and it said you can use Panaway essen. oil, so I put it on my mothers big toe and in about 5 minutes, the pain was totally gone. One time it took 20 min, once the pain was gone in about 20 seconds, and once, I had to reapply it after about 15 min. so be patient, and I can atest that they work wondrously and this book will help you to become an expert , it is the best, bar none. :)

This book is an essential Essential Oils reference.

Beware, however, that the 4th edition has dropped the cancer protocols that were in the 3rd edition (possibly due to government pressure).

The 4th edition does contain some updated information, especially in the areas of the newer blends of oils and newer products. It also has more illustrations in color.

But you also need the 3rd edition in order to have a complete reference.

When I purchased this book I was under impression that this is a generic Essential Oil Desk Reference - as the titles of the books says. I didn't realise that this is actually a Desk Reference of Young Living Products, apparently designed for Young Living Distributors and while it provides a wealth of information related to essential oils and different health and other issues, it is more like a compendium of Young Living Products, their uses and ingredients. What you will encounter are products fitting to fill a health-food store - Young Living nutritional supplements containing essential oils, Young Living natural hormone replacement products containing progesterone creams in combination with essential oils, pregnenolone, DHEA, lozenges containing essential oils, and many others. The products listed are like the assortment of products you could find in a health-food store, except that each one has few drops of essential oils added to the blend. A good deal of these products are to be ingested, like for example Power Meal, which is alike one of those protein drinks, except that this one has several essential oils added to the mix.

Among the recommendations for different health issues, essential oils are intermixed with Young Living products so in the section for animal treatment for example, few listings go as follows:

TUMORS & CANCERS:
Mix frankincese with lemon, lavender or clove and apply on area of tumor.

and then for WORMS AND PARASITES, there is no mention of any essential oils, but rather it just says: ParaFree and Di-Gaze. Looking through the rest of the book, you may find that ParaFree are Young Living gel capsules for cleansing from parasites.

Other than that, if you're looking for essential oils products which you can ingest, as may be more popular in France than on this side of the world, Young Living products may be just what you were looking for.

On this side of the world, it has been more common to use essential oils - diluted in a vegetable oil (which in this book is referred to as V6 Oil complex)- topically and to consume herbal teas, extracts and powdered herbs internally. I have been using them that way throughout my life with good effects. If you'd rather be ingesting a drop of peppermint oil instead of drinking peppermint tea, than you should ensure that the essential oil you're ingesting is of pure, therapeutic, quality and not stretched or adulterated.

Somewhere in this book the author says that unless you can pronounce the name of the ingredient, it may be harmful to your health. People who promote natural products tend to say that often, though I'm not sure what do they make out of botanical names of plants which are in Latin and which many people do have challenge pronouncing. Soaps and creams also often have bunch of ingredients that sound nothing like a natural plant, fruit or vegetable picked from an organic garden.

As an aromatherapist, I occasionally buy books here and there to add to my fairly large library of reference material. Buying this book is a HUGE mistake. This is a reference book for people involved in a multi-level marketing company called Young Living Essential Oils- it is NOT a reference book for those using essential oils outside the sphere of this company. The vast majority of information in this book will be worthless to those not involved with the author's company, as much of the information is dedicated to blends and products his company makes. The title of this book is really misleading- too bad there isn't truth in advertising when it comes to book titles.

Additionally, there is a lot of information in this book about a technique called Raindrop Therapy. During this treatment, essential oils are applied to the client's body 'neat'- which means undiluted. This can be VERY dangerous with many different essential oils- including several which are used for this procedure. The National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy has published a white paper against using this treatment, and if you are interested in reading it go to their website- it's posted there. Additionally, the Aromatherapy Registration Council (which offers a national exam for certification as a Registered Aromatherapist) does not provide contnuing education credit for this technique, as it is not approved as a safe administration method by the ARC.

He makes a point of trying to 'brainwash' the reader into believing that Young Living essential oils are far superior to products available elsewhere. The TRUTH is that most reputable companies provide a Certificate of Analysis, and a Material Safety Data Sheet for their essential oils- and often will supply a Gas Chromatography analysis for many of the oils they sell as well. These tests are done on an essential oil to ensure they are therapuetic grade, high quality essential oils. There are PLENTY of great companies out there to buy essential oils from, and most of them sell their products at FAIR prices. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that there needs to be a HUGE markup on MLM products to support the people up the line from the distributor you buy from.

In closing, I would suggest that you think twice before buying into the hype that this author is spewing regarding his company and products. If you aren't involved with Young Living, this book is not for you. Do some research, then go check the essential oil prices at his site and compare them with prices from other companies. You just might save some money.

I have no qualms with the author's right to publish this book, but it should be re-titled to more accurately reflect it's content. In lieu of that, it should only be available to people that are involved with his company so the rest of us don't get duped into believing we are purchasing something we aren't. There are many good TRUE reference books on the use of essential oils which treat the subject matter in such a way as to make the information universally applicable to all readers. I would suggest you invest in one of those titles.

This is a very good detailed reference book for the use of therapeutic grade essential oils. It has information you won't get from the manufacturers of essential oils who are trying to steer clear of the FDA. However, there are some inconsistencies. There is a list of medical properties and then a list of what the oil is used for. The association between the medical properties and uses is rather vague at times. For instance, Cassia is listed as being anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-coagulant, but first on the list of uses is cataracts??? Also, wintergreen oil is recommended to not be used internally, but is in several products that are used internally. I have yet to find a safety warning about the overuse of methyl salicylate, so while this is a good reference it is incomplete.

A recent purchase for clinical use, this book is nothing more than a thinly veiled product manual for a company called Young Living Essential Oils (YLEO), a pyramid sales structured business that also happens to churn out some good quality therapeutic oils.

I should have taken clue #1: no opportunity to browse the book online prior to purchase, or, clue #2: no listing for either an author or an editorial staff that may have culled an Essential Oil Desk Reference worthy of academic study and clinical application at more than a YLEO sales or personal use level.

While a brief discussion of basic essential oils information occurs in passing, the overwhelming balance (and emphasis) of the text is directed toward and devoted to the YLEO product line.

In addition, about 1/3 of the book addresses non-essential oil topics including detox diets, herbal supplements, and lifestyle recommendations all of which, brace yourself dear reader, also happen to include YLEO product recommendations.

If you are using YLEO, it's a great tool. If you are seeking a true reference tool, look elsewhere.

I recently purchased this book, trusting the recommendations on this site, and after reviewing the book I am sorely disappointed. The book doesn't give a tremendous amount of information in individual essential oils, it dedicates nearly three times the amount of pages to Dr. Young's exclusive blends, and how to use them. Additionally a lot of content is dedicated to telling you why every other oil is inferior to the Dr. Young oils, which came across as nothing more than a marketing ploy to sell his oils. I've used other oils, such as John Steele oils - which are EXCELLENT quality - and have had no negative effects from it.

Another thing I found quite alarming is his recommendation to use essential oils neat, including ones known to be irritating or caustic to the skin. The "Raindrop technique" is extensively discussed which any respectable aromatherapist knows is incredibly hazardous and likely to cause burning or injury to the skin.

There is some generally good information given about individual oils, like the range of which chemicals should be in each oil, however, nowhere does he explain what each of these components do, and no where does he talk about how these various components act on the brain chemistry. He also doesn't explain how various oils can counteract each other in the brain chemistry through inhalation, something critical if EO's are to be used in mood alteration, altering brain function or the like.

If you plan on using the Young Living oils, then this book would be of great help, but if you don't, I think the book is mostly advertising for his oil line and won't be of much use to you.

This is a helpful book, however the oils it refers to almost exclusively are Young Living Essential Oils, oil blends and digestive products. So, it seems it would be appropriate to indicate somewhere on the cover this information. If a person is using another product line, there is no product tranlation available. The book is not cheap, so an individual can feel mislead in buying it to find that it only refers to one product line, offered by a multi-level marketing company. For that reason, I have given it a rating of 3.

This is a very good manual for anyone interested in broadening their knowledge of essential oils and how to use them for a variety of conditions.

It was recommended by my teacher and it has been a very important title in my personal library since.