# A word to the wise abt EO and FO's....(and Migranes!)



## saylee (Aug 25, 2009)

Never, ever, ever use EO's and FO's if you get scent or chemical based migranes.   The binder used in commerical grade products ie (hobby lobby or Michaels ) will quite likely trigger a migrane with in one whif!!! (we are going on the third day of it here....seeing little black floaty things and auras around everything is not fun believe me! The ice pick that keeps stabbing me through the eye is no terribly nice either. :roll: )

So far the high grade oils that have natrual, little or no binder at all are usable, i.e. rose water, peppermint oil etc. as are extracts. Though the scent is not as long lasting. Its making my choices in soaps a little limited though, i cant be around the ones with the chemical binders long enough to even make the soaps!!! And once they are made i cant even keep them in the house!!!  :cry: AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGGGG>......( :cry:  ,

So far i'm sticking to the scents that naturally come from the things added ie cinnomon. allspice dried mints and such and they do not seem to trigger any thing.   The smells are usually pretty light but not  terribly so. It most commony the heavy smells or musks that trigger migranes also when there are multiple scents in one item it will start them in many sufferers. We can usually handle up to two scents in a product ie cinnomon/vannilla but once you go higher it gets chancy and the smaller amount of us that will be able to handle it.

I was just wanting to mention this if any one was making soaps for thouse with problems with fragrences, and that we can usually use lightly scented natural smells with out problems. as well as the completly unscented items. It might open up a few more avenues for products if you keep a few on hand for thouse of us who get tired of having everything fragrence free. We are often willing to buy scented items if we can find them, even if the scent does not last as long as soaps that have some form of chemical binder in them. We just buy in smaller amounts more often then you would do otherwise.

Sorry if this ended up sounding like a rant, but i thought the info might help open up some ideas.    for thouse interested in this area of the market!!!!

bye!

p.s. :cry: i need to find another ice pack and a very dark room now :cry:


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## Bubbles Galore (Aug 27, 2009)

Just wanted to say:

Hope you feel better soon Saylee.


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## saylee (Aug 27, 2009)

*Thanks...*

  Yes i'm much better now! Thanks for asking, things went much better after i swiched to the other oils 8)  sorry about the rant earlier   
 talk about embarasing  :roll:


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## Goldenearthgirl (Aug 28, 2009)

Glad you feel better Saylee.

Just a warning, Rosemary and Peppermint can give you awful headaches too.  Hot soap is like inhaling oils directly from an oil burner.  I just stand back whilst I stir and pour.


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## saylee (Aug 28, 2009)

Thanks, ive not tried thouse to yet! i'll be caeful if i end up trying them.


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## carebear (Aug 29, 2009)

simply put, you are mistaken about the chemical composition of fragrance oils.  i cannot imagine what "binder" you mean, and I've been in the fragrance manufacturing industry for 15 years now.



> Never, ever, ever use EO's and FO's if you get scent or chemical based migranes.


  Sounds like good common sense advice - I'd think anyone with odor/chemical sensitivities is best avoid all strongly scented materials.  Or wearing a good mask while working with them at the very least.

Be aware that many of the natural oils you mention (and others) can be sensitizing, so the more you are exposed the more likely you are to react.

Anyway, feel better.


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2009)

Glad you feel better .
Plumeria will give me an instant headache , that is the only one that I can recall doing that .

Kitn


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## soapbuddy (Aug 29, 2009)

Glad you're feeling better. I won't buy my fragrance oils from either one of those places as I can find better quality elsewhere.


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## SilverMaple (Sep 6, 2009)

A good reminder.  I hope you feel better, soon!

I cannot use any of the FO's or EO's from places like Michaels, Hobby Lobby, etc.  Instant itching if it touches my skin, and a headache like you would not believe.

I have not had any problems using EO's and FO's from reputable soap suppliers.  As soon as I got my first orders from BB and WSP, the horrid FOs from the craft stores went out with the trash.


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## BluebirdMama (Sep 26, 2009)

I can't stand the craft store EO's and FO's. Just makes me all migrainey thinking about them. Yucko.


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## ibariaSoap (Oct 13, 2009)

Thanks for the warning. I will definitely be taking heed to this one!

Perhaps a small nose/mouth would work? Like the ones dr.'s use?


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## AndreaMakesSoap (Aug 30, 2012)

I also suffer from migranes, although I find some scents are better than other.  It kind of seems like the more I 'like' a scent, the less likely I am to react to it.  Sounds weird, but true.  Maybe it's just that the more I react to it (ie. get a migrane from it) the less I like it!!
Most citrus scents are fine for me, and I've used 'Lovespell' and an 'Island Coconut' scent that didn't bother me.  I've also used Peppermind FO without a problem.  However, when I recently picked up an order from BB the lavender FO had spilled and I had to smell it all the way home.  It didn't make me feel very well.  I thought I would give it a second chance and did some soap recently that was a mix of lavender and Champaka, and I had a headache for 2 days.  Yuck.  I'm thinking about transitioning to more natural scents and EO's.


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## Rains Mirage (Aug 30, 2012)

My mom and me have bad allergies, so no matter where the FO comes from, headache and migraine city, till she bought an air purifier and turned in on while i was scenting my candles and soap 8 years ago. Soaps don't need as much as candles, but any strong scent will trigger our headaches and migraines, even from just sniffing candles at a store.


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## BubblyRose (Sep 12, 2012)

I, too, suffer from migraines. One of the things that helps me when I am creating a fragrance to use is to 1. drink coffee or 2. sip Mountain Dew. The caffeine will actually stave off migraines. Unfortunately, I learned that in the ER when I passed out at work from one.  :?  But I hope that helps you. Also, during the winter months I can tolerate different fragrances better so that may be a help to you too. Glad that you are feeling better.


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## sperry (Sep 25, 2012)

Spooky conversation.  I've had one migrane in my life and it's not something I want to repeat.  Is it the high concentration that the person making the soap is exposed to that might trigger the headache?  Is there any danger to the people who buy the soaps?  And I'm sitting here thinking of my little parrotlet.  They die (I hear) from fumes produced by Teflon.  Obviously they are sensitive to airborn particles.  I wonder if I should borrow my (petless) friend's kitchen to make soap.


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