The following are a few ways to enjoy and properly use your essential oil diffuser:

1. Begin by selecting oils or oil blends that make your nose happy. Common favorites include lavender, ylang ylang, peppermint, pine, spruce, and grapefruit. Try custom blends to discover more nuanced scents. Ylang ylang, lavender, and frankincense make a sweet, soothing fragrance. A drop of each is all you need.

2. You can also try pre-made blends. There are blends to help you relax or go to sleep, blends to energize you, blends to comfort you, and even blends to help you feel romantic.

3. Purchase high-quality essential oils. Essential oils should come in small, dark bottles. Be wary of any that come in clear bottles since exposure to sunlight can damage the oil. Also, skip any oil brands that include “perfume oil,” “fragrance oil,” or “nature identical oil.” Finally, avoid bottle that come with a rubber dropper. Some oils can degrade the dropper, leading the rubber the contaminate the oil. If you find a brand you trust, stick with them.

4. Begin by using a few drops of essential oil per diffusing session until you have a better sense of how much oil you need to add to adequately fill your space with fragrance.

5. Follow the cleaning instructions that come with your diffuser. Keeping a clean diffuser will result in more effective scent diffusion and will help keep your device working for the long haul.

6. Do not directly inhale the mist from an ultrasonic diffuser. If we happen to drink slightly contaminated water, our stomach has a chance of destroying the unwelcome substance, but the body doesn’t have the same defenses if bacteria-laden water is inhaled through the nose.

7. If you plan to directly inhale the pure essential oil mist created by a nebulizing diffuser, be sure to consult with an aromatherapist or naturopath before self-treating.