How to Treat Kitchen Burns with Lavender

Whether you are an avid cook or you and the kitchen have only a nodding acquaintance, the occasional burn is par for the course – a slipped pot holder when removing something from the oven, sauce bubbling over, accidental contact with a hot pot or burner, etc.

Based in its naturally occurring antiseptic and anesthetic properties, lavender essential oil has long been recognized as an effective treatment for burns.  Immediate topical skin application can provide almost instant pain relief, and continued application during the healing process takes advantage of lavender's anti-scarring attributes.

Recently Amy, one of Pelindaba's long-time staff members, shared her own experience of the power of lavender in the treatment of burns ...

"One event in particular remains vivid in my memory due to the potential severity of the injury and the actual outcome.  I am a licensed esthetician (skin therapist) and an aspiring home chef.  I have used lavender essential oil for many years in many applications.

"It was pasta night in my kitchen.  A large pot of water and linguine was boiling furiously on the stove.  When it came time to drain the pasta, I lifted the pot and began pouring the contents into a colander which sits across the sink.  Suddenly the colander slipped off the edge of the sink and sent a generous wave of boiling water over the back of my hand.  Immediately experiencing the hot, searing pain, I knew I would be feeling the effects for a while.  I quickly turned the faucet to cold and placed my bright red hand under the stream.

"During this moment, I recalled a particular class on aromatherapy I took during my training.  I had learned of the French chemical engineer Rene-Maurice Gattefosse who severely burned his hand in a lab explosion in the 1920s.  As the account goes, he dipped his hand into a vat of freshly distilled lavender essential oil immediately after the accident and healing began the next day.

Roll-On Organic Lavender Essential Oil - easiest to apply directly to the skin

"With my hand still under the cold water I reached for my own bottle of lavender essential oil, always kept close at hand in the kitchen for its numerous and varied uses.  I immediately dried my hand and applied a generous coating of the oil to the burn.  Within moments the pain and burning sensations were virtually eliminated.  As you may have experienced, a burn of this nature will often continue to feel hot, even hours following the injury.  I did not experience this unpleasant after-effect.  I applied the oil a few more times throughout the evening and suffered no discomfort overnight.

"To my amazement, when I woke the next morning, not only did I experience no pain, but barely a red mark was visible on my skin!  I did not develop any additional erythema (redness), edema (inflammation) or blistering, and there was no subsequent scarring whatsoever.  I attribute this to the immediate and continued application of lavender essential oil to the burned skin.  The power of plants is truly remarkable.

Dropper Bottles of Organic Lavender Essential Oil are ideal for lavender's varied uses

"Please note, I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice.  You should always seek medical help for severe burns and injuries."