Which essential oil is better for hygienic massage practice?

Abstract

We examined whether it was possible to practice hygienic massage by using six essential oils (eucalyptus, lavender, niaouli, sage, tea tree, and thyme linalool) that in previous studies or anecdotally have been found to have antibacterial effects. First, to determine the inhibitory properties of the six essential oils against 4.80 × 10⁵ colony forming units (CFU) of strain ATCC-25923 of Staphylococcus aureus, we used a disc method to measure the inhibition zones. Niaouli and eucalyptus showed higher growth inhibitory effects. We then examined the results of using these two essential oils in seven different massage sessions. The niaouli and eucalyptus were each diluted to 1%, 3%, or 6% v/v with jojoba oil base and jojoba oil without any essential oil was used as a control. Bacterial samples were taken from the therapist’s palms and the subject’s skin, and the surviving bacteria were counted.

The antibacterial effects were correlated in vitro with the concentration of the essential oil and massage sessions with niaouli oil were more hygienic than those with eucalyptus oil.