Usually when I’m introducing you to an essential oil, I briefly touch on it’s scent and move on. Not so with this one. The first time I smelled Palmarosa EO, I was hooked. It literally smells like a glass of fresh brewed sweet tea with a wedge of lemon! Seriously! If you were born and raised in the south like myself, the smell is imprinted on your soul.

So, a couple interesting facts about Palmarosa. One, this was a favorite incense to burn in the Egyptian temples back in biblical times.  Two, this is a popular EO to use when adulterating or diluting Rose EO. We touched on that when we talked about Rose EO here. Rose EO is a very expensive, so buyer beware. Young Living has the purest form of Rose EO anywhere.

I was excited to learn about Palmarosa because I’ve had this oil for probably a year and a half and have never really used it other than when I needed a good whiff of iced tea.  😊 This EO is a powerhouse on multiple levels and I bet you’ll find yourself wanting to have this one around on a regular basis! Let’s dig in.

Many EOs are antibacterial, and some are antiviral, as well. But few are both of those and can ward off sepsis. Palmarosa is one of those EOs. I want to first explain what sepsis is, so you can understand how Palmarosa EO actually works in this case.

Sepsis or “blood poisoning” is not an actual infection itself, it’s the body’s reaction to the presence of bacteria in the blood. The body’s immune system will sometimes go into hyperdrive and react with a whole body inflammatory response so powerful, it’s known to damage tissue, and sometimes shut down organs, and in extreme cases, cause death. That’s why you don’t play around when you have a serious infection of any kind.

Palmarosa can be used topically for wound care and internally to fight infection and ward of the body’s septic response. It’s especially great for fighting and preventing infections of the kidneys, colon, bladder and urinary tract. For topical wound care, first wash the wound with soap and water, then dab the oil onto the wound of drip a drop or two into the wound. Do this 2 to 3 times per day until it’s begun to heal. Internally, take one to two drops in a gelcap on a daily basis while infection is present.

Now, the antiviral component of Palmarosa. Viruses are harder to kill than bacteria. How they work is the virus molecules develop a coating around themselves called a cyst, which protects them from their surroundings and is so tough, it can withstand anything. Viruses remain dormant within their cyst until they find a host, at which time their cyst opens up and the virus begins to replicate. It’s at this point that Palmarosa begins to work. It prevents the virus from duplicating and thus causing sickness.

And I discovered a huge bit of info that blew my mind, most hand sanitizers do not kill viruses. They’re great at killing bacteria but fall short on getting rid of viruses. First and foremost, the best way to prevent infections from any bacteria or virus is plain old soap and water. You’re completely removing the pathogens from your hands at that point. When using hand sanitizer, you’re basically just moving it around, not killing it. I would strongly recommend adding Palmarosa to your hand sanitizer, during cold and flu season and especially when you go a cruise. No thank you, Norovirus! Add about 10 drops to a purse sized handsanitizer and about 20 to 30 drops to the small counter sized bottle. But be careful to not leave your hand sanitizer in a hot vehicle repeatedly, as it lessons the effects of the Palmarosa you’ve added.

Now, let’s move on from all that talk about sickness and explore the next amazingly awesome use for Palmarosa!

Palmarosa EO is cytophylactic. Cyto what?! This EO causes an increase in skin cell regeneration. In plain English, this EO has the ability to preserve and increase skin health and improve its overall appearance. It helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, it’s super hydrating by allowing the skin cells to increase and retain a proper moisture level, it helps to alleviate and prevent some forms of acne, particularly bacteria related acne, and it helps with scar healing and fading. Just add Palmarosa EO to your regular facial moisturizer, one drop per application. And if treating acne, just dab each pimple with the EO undiluted (neat) until it’s gone.

Palmarosa is also great for treating Eczema and Psoriasis. It’s calming and hydrating to the skin when itchiness and inflammation is present in these cases. Just mix a drop with a dime size amount of carrier oil and apply directly as you would a moisturizer. Mix more if it’s a larger area.

And lastly, Palmarosa is excellent for anxiety and nervous exhaustion. When I think of nervous exhaustion, I think of students studying and taking their class finals. This would be an excellent EO to diffuse during study time, and test prep. Also, if you’re prepping for a job interview, the start of a new job or position at work or maybe your first time doing some public speaking. This will help dial back the nervousness and worry you may experience. A great study time blend would be Peppermint and Palmarosa. Just diffuse off and on for an hour or so at a time. Apply directly to your skin when walking into your actually testing time.

Well, that’s it for this amazingly versatile essential oil! Contact me if you’re interested in learning more about this EO or any others, or if you have questions! In the meantime, Happy Oiling!