An essential oil is an oil extracted from plants, same as a normal oil, but the "essential" comes from people thinking it contains the "essence" from the plant. So it has nothing to do with actually being essential as with essential amino acids or essential fatty acids.
For hair use, they are typically added to add a nice smell to the product. But there are also recipes intended, for example, for the scalp to boost hair growth.
Essential oils can be quite strong and can cause allergic reactions, inflammation and skin irritation, especially in sensitive skin. Essential oils should never be added undiluted to skin.
Many essential oils, especially from the lemon families, can cause photosensitivity which makes skin easier burned by sunlight.
This might sound like I'm against the use of essential oils. But I'm not. I just think people should be more aware of why they use the oils. Essential oils smells awesome, but it adds very little "active" to any hair or skin product. I'm particularly fond of lavender, ylang ylang and jasmine for their smell, but everyone has a preference.
Your blog and the science-y hairblog are the best blogs when it comes to knowledge about hair, scalp and skin in general. I like straight to the point answers to questions everyone may have at some point. I love how you don't need 10 mins. intro and outro on your blog. Your YouTube videos are just as great as your blog. I have fine hair and I'm into the II/III but your blog is a true encyclopedia when it comes to all things hair. I wonder why people love long cheesy holistic habits videos and don't read a great blog for like 3 mins. Sigh*
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