# wintergreen eo



## jaggedrande (Nov 15, 2013)

so i went to a craft fair and the was a lady selling her soap and some had wintergreen eo in them, now i had bought some but i thought wintergreen was unsafe to use, but she said no its totally safe because you can ingest it, and its such a little amount that goes into it that it wont hurt you. so i'm so confused is it safe or not???roblem:


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## My Mountain Soaps (Nov 15, 2013)

in general i dont think it is safe to suggest ingestion of eo's. We are not doctors, and we do not know how each person will react to said oil. Having said that, the only thing i can tell you is research that specific eo and see what you find.


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## DeeAnna (Nov 15, 2013)

Wintergreen is an EO to use with caution because it contains methyl salicylate which thins the blood. People have gotten into trouble and even died by over-using liniments that contain methyl salicylate or by using these liniments while taking blood thinning medications. 

Yes, wintergreen can be safely used as a flavoring in food, because it is used only in tiny amounts. Yes, it can be used in essential oil blends for skin use, but is recommended only for spot treatment for short periods of time for people not taking blood thinners.

I would personally avoid using wintergreen in my products, since I don't want to get tangled up with the liability risk, since I know wintergreen has issues. (And also because I don't care for the memory of "liniment smell" that wintergreen triggers for me.) 

But I do see the lady's argument -- if only a very small amount is being used in the product, it is reasonably safe.

What about spearmint instead? It has a mild, sweet minty fragrance that many enjoy and no methyl salicylate issue to worry about.


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## cmzaha (Nov 15, 2013)

I still use a small percentage of wintergreen in some of my mint blends is only used in soap and ls. I do not take the risk of using wintergreen in a leave on product. We just cannot be sure how much they will use the leave on products even with label warnings.


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## Lindy (Nov 20, 2013)

I admit to being prejudiced against wintergreen as I had a cousin die from ingesting it.


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