Thursday

Diffuse Essential Oils in Offices or Waiting Rooms?

Ask the Aromatherapist:
Hi, I work for a holistic and integrative physician and we want to add aromatherapy to our office, my question is what is the best type of diffuser for a large waiting room.

A couple of people have written to me asking about diffusing essential oils in offices or waiting rooms. In this sort of situation, I think it's important to bear in mind that when you choose to diffuse essential oils in a public space, you are subjecting your patients, clients, and/or coworkers to potent aromas they may or may not appreciate. Different people have different reactions to aromas, based on personal preferences and emotional associations with particular scents. And, diffusing essential oils using a potent method - such as with an electric nebulizer - may cause headaches or irritate some people's eyes, nasal passages, or airways. In addition, it wouldn't be good for anyone - an employee who is in the office all day, for example - to continuously be exposed to a heavy mist of essential oils all day, day after day.

For those reasons, I would take a conservative approach to diffusing essential oils in public spaces and use passive diffusion. You can passively diffuse essential oils without any costly equipment by placing cotton pads or stone oil diffusers around the room. Each morning, you could add a couple of drops of an oil or blend to the pads or stones to refresh the scent.

~

ShareThis