Essential Oil Spotlight : Bergamot

Few things polarise tea drinkers as much as Earl Grey.

Personally, it’s not my (tea)bag. Where some say golf is a good walk spoiled, I say Earl Grey is a good tea spoiled.

I’m happy to take my bergamot via the essential oil route rather than sipping on a brew that could double as my Eau de Cologne. But if you love it, the Earl Grey producers of the world can rejoice.

Christopher Columbus is thought to have brought citrus aurantium bergamia across to Bergamo in northern Italy from the Canary Islands and it settled in very happily. It was named after the town and there was probably a festival thrown in its honour.  It became a staple of traditional Italian folk medicine, too.

While you often hear bergamot pronounced with a silent ‘t’ as in ‘burga-mow (‘mow the lawn’), call it ‘burga-mott’ and you’re correctly nodding to its Italian heritage.

Grown on small trees that blossom in winter, the fruit is fragrant and orange-sized but closer to lemon in colour. If you’re ever in Reggio di Calabria in Italy, the centre of most production nowadays and aka ‘the city of bergamot’, don’t be tempted to peel and eat one.  The fruit itself is inedible and the juice doesn’t sound much tastier, being less sour than lemon but more bitter than grapefruit. Open a bottle of authentic bergamot essential oil instead as an infinitely more appealing way to enjoy its benefits.

This oil is very susceptible to adulteration (as are all, really) so it’s ever-important to be sure you’re choosing one of genuine quality that’s been produced optimally to capture its delicate constituents and bottled free of fiddling around with adulterants that wreck it. You can find out why we always choose Young Living oils in this quick video here. And to get our personal help with ordering, head over here and we’ll gladly help.

So what are the benefits of bergamot ?

If you’re into chakras, it is known to open and expand the heart chakra and transmute dense energy in the solar plexus, enabling it to align with the heart. This helps with overcoming power issues and in turn, calms agitation and opens up joy and enthusiasm.

Some say bergamot activates grace. Surely we can all do with more of that.

Given its calming, balancing and mood-lifting properties, it’s a natural inclusion in many of Young Living’s ‘feelings’ blends, including Forgiveness™, Harmony and Joy™.

Those calming and balancing qualities translate not just to ‘feel good’ ones but physical ones. Bergamot has been traditionally used for hundreds of years for combating an oily complexion, and is still used today in many skincare products.  And it’s rich in limonene which is being studied more and more for its potential health benefits.  I highly recommend checking out limonene further when you’re in a researching mood.

If you’re applying an oil blend that includes bergamot, avoid sun and UV light exposure to areas where you’ve applied it for a good 36 hours afterwards. If the label specifies it is Furocoumarin-free, a special distillation process has been done which minimises its concentration of sun-sensitising compounds. Neat ! But even so, go easier on direct UV exposure afterwards. The label will guide you.

Essential oils are potent, so please follow directions on the bottle and the usual guidelines for safe use of authentic essential oils.

Whatever your afternoon cuppa of choice, enjoy the good oil daily.

The information on this site does not constitute advice. Please consult with your health practitioner. When using any of the products mentioned throughout this site, please be sure to read the labels and follow their suggestions for safe use.