Essential oils and botanical extracts
Learn about certain essential oils and botanical extracts, their potential health risks and how to reduce your exposure.
On this page
- About essential oils and botanical extracts
- Safety of certain essential oils and botanical extracts
- What we're doing
- What you can do
About essential oils and botanical extracts
Essential oils and botanical extracts are compounds that come from a single plant source and contribute to its flavour or fragrance. They can be extracted from different parts of the plant and are generally used as fragrance ingredients in a range of products available to consumers, including:
- drugs
- cosmetics
- air care products
- cleaning products
- pest control products
- natural health products
Some also occur naturally in food and may be used to flavour food.
Essential oils and botanical extracts can also be purchased at concentrations up to 100% and are often used as ingredients in do-it-yourself (DIY) products and applications at home. This includes adding them to:
- baths
- facial steamers
- aromatic diffusers
- homemade products, such as:
- massage oils
- bath products
- body moisturizers
- preparations or remedies that are ingested or applied to the skin
Health Canada does not recommend or approve DIY uses.
Safety of certain essential oils and botanical extracts
Natural doesn't always mean safe.
Although essential oils and botanical extracts occur naturally, some may be harmful to human health. Certain essential oils and botanical extracts in DIY products or applications, for example, can result in high levels of exposures when inhaled, ingested or applied to skin. Others may be harmful when used in certain products available to consumers.
Under Canada's Chemicals Management Plan, we review and manage the potential risks that chemical substances can pose to people in Canada and the environment.
We have completed the first stage of this review process:
- a draft chemical risk assessment of certain terpenes and terpenoids, which are the components of essential oils and botanical extracts
We're proposing that certain essential oils and botanical extracts may be associated with a range of health effects when they're inhaled, ingested or applied to the skin. The following table lists those compounds that may be harmful to human health.
| Essential oil or botanical extract | Latin or other common names | Uses that may be harmful to human health |
|---|---|---|
bay oil |
|
DIY use in:
|
cade oil (both rectified and unrectified) |
|
DIY use in:
certain self-care products containing the oil, such as some:
|
| cedarwood oil and Texan cedarwood oil |
|
DIY use in:
certain cosmetics containing the oils, such as some:
certain natural health products containing the oils, such as some:
|
cork tree extract |
|
oral ingestion of the extract DIY use in:
certain self-care and natural health products containing the extract, such as some:
|
Ginkgo biloba extract |
|
herbal teas or supplements that contain the extract certain self-care products containing the extract, such as some:
certain natural health products or non-prescription drugs such as some:
|
| ivy extract |
|
DIY use in homemade:
certain cosmetics that contain the extract, such as some:
|
jasmine oil, and perfumes and essences of jasmin |
|
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oils, such as some:
certain natural health products that contain the oils, such as some:
|
jonquil oil |
|
DIY use in:
|
| mimosa oil |
|
DIY use in:
certain cosmetics containing the oils, such as some:
certain natural health products containing the oils, such as some:
|
myrrh oil |
all species of Commiphora |
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oil, such as some:
certain natural health products that contain the oil, such as some:
|
sage oil |
Salvia officinalis |
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oil, such as some:
certain natural health products that contain the oil, such as some:
|
T & T clove oil |
clove leaf oil terpenes |
DIY use as perfume on children under the age of 9 |
tarragon oil |
|
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oil, such as some:
|
Verbena officinalis extract or essential oil |
common vervain |
DIY use in:
certain self-care products, such as some:
certain natural health products, such as some oral supplements |
violet oil |
|
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oil, such as:
|
wintergreen oil |
Gaultheria procumbens |
DIY use in:
certain self-care products that contain the oil, such as some:
certain natural health products that contain the oil, such as some:
|
wormwood oil |
Artemsia absinthium L. |
oral ingestion of the oil DIY use in:
certain natural health products and non-prescription drugs containing the oil, such as some:
|
We're also proposing that these essential oils and botanical extracts are not harmful to the environment.
What we're doing
Our assessments are not yet final. We're continuing to evaluate the potential risk posed by certain essential oils and botanical extracts before we publish our final conclusions. This includes:
- tracking new information on exposures or hazards
- asking the public to comment on our draft assessments
- reviewing and using this information to help inform our final assessments
If the proposed findings for these essential oils and botanical extracts are confirmed in the final assessments, we will consider:
- adding them to Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999
- this would allow Canada to implement preventive or control actions for the life cycle of the substance, including:
- research and development
- manufacture and import
- use
- storage
- transport
- disposal or recycling
- this would allow Canada to implement preventive or control actions for the life cycle of the substance, including:
- adding them to the Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist, where applicable
- this would provide information to manufacturers on the restriction or prohibition of specified essential oils and botanical extracts in cosmetics
- adding or modifying existing entries to the Natural Health Products Ingredients Database to limit their concentration in certain natural health products and non-prescription drugs, where applicable
- this provides information to manufacturers on the restriction or prohibition of specified substances in natural health products and non-prescription drugs
- taking actions to help reduce exposures to certain essential oils and botanical extracts from products that are inhaled, ingested or applied to the skin to levels that help protect human health
- this includes essential oils and botanical extracts in DIY applications
- informing the public about the harm that may be caused by certain essential oils and botanical extracts that are sold to consumers for use in DIY applications
You can provide any comments on our risk management approaches.
What you can do
You can take steps to reduce your exposure to essential oils and botanical extracts that may be harmful.
Remember that natural doesn't always mean safe. Health Canada does not recommend or approve DIY uses of essential oils and botanical extracts.
Limit your use of essential oils and botanical extracts in DIY applications that are inhaled, ingested or applied to the skin.
Keep essential oils and botanical extracts out of reach and sight from young children and pets. Make sure closures on child-resistant containers are working.
Read product labels and follow all safety warnings and directions:
- labels on cosmetics, natural health products and non-prescription drugs must list all ingredients and instructions for use
- products that have been approved by Health Canada have a:
- natural product number (NPN)
- homeopathic medicine number (DIN-HM)
- drug identification number (DIN)
Some essential oils and botanical extracts may not appear on product labels if they are used as fragrance ingredients. They may instead be listed under the general term 'fragrance' or 'parfum'. Because of this, it can be hard to determine whether the products you use contain these substances.
If you're unsure if your product contains essential oils or botanical extracts of concern, contact the manufacturer.
Follow the manufacturer's directions to dispose of the product safely.
If you're exposed to essential oils and botanical extracts of concern at work, talk to your employer and occupational health and safety (OHS) official about:
- relevant laws
- safe handling and storage practices
- requirements under OHS legislation and the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
Related links
- Use household chemicals safely
- Measuring your exposure to chemicals
- Canada's systems for addressing chemicals
- Overview of the Chemicals Management Plan
For industry and professionals
- Salicylates group – information sheet
- Risk assessment of chemical substances
- Phenylpropanoids and aldehydes group – information sheet
- Monocyclic and bicyclic sesquiterpenes group – information sheet
- Tricyclic sesquiterpenes and triterpenoids group – information sheet
- Fourteen terpene and terpenoid substances group – information sheet
- Acyclic, monocyclic and bicyclic monoterpenes group – information sheet
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