Why I Will NEVER Use Young Living Essential Oils

Some of you may be shocked or offended but the title of this post (and it's gonna be a LONG one) but there is so much mis-information out there and I am hell-bent on educating the public about safe use of essential oils, so this post has been a long time coming. What has put me over the edge was reading a blog post from a YL rep about natural eye drops using essential oils.  Please read this! I have years of training and experience with using essential oils safely and what I know is scientific. I get none of my information from a multi-level marketing company that only cares about making money from the gullible. Many of the reps for Young Living (and Do Terra) are like brainwashed cult members who receive all of their "training" from the company.

The oils are drastically overpriced. Yes, good essential oils are going to cost more money but in this case you are NOT paying for better quality. You are paying for layer upon layer of commissions for the reps and recruits.

They claim to be the only company with pure therapeutic quality essential oil, therefore making them safe to be used undiluted on the skin. I'm not even sure where to start with this BS! First of all, there are LOTS of companies who sell pure, high quality essential oils and even have them tested to prove it.  Second, there is no such thing as "therapeutic grade".Who is grading them? There is no certifying body for essential oil quality. As far as using oils undiluted, or "neat" on the skin-well, that depends on the oil. Very few can be safely used this way (lavender, tea tree, rosalina, MQV and not much else). Their claims with this are all over the place. They say if you experience burning with anybody else'soils it's a sign that they are contaminated. If you experience burning with their oils it's a sign your body is detoxing. Well, how convenient. Sorry to burst your bubble but if an essential oil burns your skin it's because of the chemistry of the oil. If you put straight cinnamon or oregano oil on your skin itWILL BURN.  I say if it doesn't THAT is a sign it isn't pure, no matter whose oil it is!

Young Living claims that their steam distilled Frankincense contains boswellic acid. No it doesn't.That molecule is far too heavy to be carried over in a steam distillation. If you bother to do any honest research on essential oil chemistry you will find out that diterpenes are the absolute heaviest molecule that can be carried over in steam and even at that not many oils contain diterpenes.

Young Living promotes dangerous practices. He recommends all of his oils and blends for internal use.  I am NOT opposed to internal use of essential oils but, here, you need to understand the chemistry and what you are ingesting. Some of his blends contain Tansy oil. Which one? The safe annual kind (AKA Blue Tansy) or the very toxic perennial? I can't emphasize enough that a substance isn't safe just because it's natural. Petroleum is natural-would you drink oil? Poison Ivy is natural-would you roll naked in it? Would you let your child eat all the pokeberries they want or let your dog chew on the Christmas poinsettias?

We live in the age of the internet and we have more information available to us than ever before in the history of our species. It never ceases to amaze me how many people are too lazy to find information for themselves. I absolutely believe in the power of aromatherapy but I also understand it has its limits. It is NOT a magic bullet for all of your problems. And you certainly MUST learn how to use them SAFELY and with RESPECT. You shouldn't put straight orange oil on your wood furniture and you sure as HELL shouldn't put rosemary oil IN YOUR EYES!

Here are some important links I want everyone to look at.

Gary Young Arrest

The Truth about Gary Young

Gary Young Shocking Exploits

Young Living’s Fake Products

Is Gary Young an MD?

The FB page for Essential Oil University is run by Dr. Robert Pappas who has an actual PhD in chemistry. Not a mail-order degree, and actual degree and he is an actual college professor and works as a chemist in real life. He tests essential oils for various companies, including Young Living. He is currently testing samples of frankincense to prove the boswellic acid thing.

In short, I won't use Young Living oils because they are MASSIVELY overpriced, and no matter how good they are, I will not put one penny in the pocket of a man who I consider to be unethical and dangerous.

Essential Oils Scam: NOT a Medical Treatment

Social media has been exploding over the last year with claims that essential oils have cured all sorts of diseases and illnesses. Obviously, this is a total scam. Even worse, essential oils are being pushed through multi-level marketing (also a scam) with companies such as doTERRA and Young Living.

What is the real story about essential oils and multi-level marketing? As our friend Lazy Man has said: No, Your MLM Health Product Doesn’t “Work.” (This most definitely includes Medifast, Herbalife, Xyngular, Isagenix, Usana, and any other MLM with a “health product.”) 

Essential oils are the oil of particular plants, and can come from the flowers, leaves, roots, bark, or peels of plants. They are called “essential” because they contain the “essence of” the plant’s fragrance, but not because they are essential for any health needs. Essential oils have been used for years in aromatherapy, household cleaning products, and some personal care products.  They smell good, which can be relaxing and can also enhance different cleaning processes. They may also help moisturize skin, assist in the treatment of conditions such as acne, and enhance the appearance of skin.

The controversy about essential oils relates to their supposed medicinal properties. Some claim they have antioxidants, antrimicrobials, and anti-inflammatories. I don’t doubt that essential oils may have some of these properties on a small scale. But essential oils most certainly do not heal broken bones. While the oils can help with minor burns, they definitely do not heal serious burns. They don’t cure autism, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, cancer, or any other potentially serious illnesses. Some of the advice being offered by pretend doctors and pretend scientists can be downright dangerous. (And essential oils shouldn’t be ingested EVER or used without diluting them first.)

Harriet Hall, MD, who we have quoted here before, takes doTerra to task for its unsupported claims about essential oils:

They say modern science is validating “the numerous health and wellness benefits of essential oils” but they don’t identify those benefits or offer any evidence. No clinical studies are cited, and there is no research section on their website.

The published evidence is sparse to nonexistent. There are clinical studies to support a few of the recommended uses, but they are generally poorly designed, uncontrolled, and unconvincing. Research is difficult, because patients can’t be blinded to the odors, and mental associations and relaxation could account for most of the observed effects.

And Dr. Hall points us to some really interesting information about D. Gary Young, the founder of Young Living. Be careful who you trust. Dr. Hall writes:

I first heard of essential oils years ago in connection with Gary Young, described on Quackwatch as “an uneducated huckster with a track record of arrests for health fraud.” Gary Young and his Essential Oils are still in business despite the devastating critique that has long been featured on Quackwatch. The record of misdeeds there makes for painful reading. Among other things, he practiced medicine without a license, was arrested repeatedly, did bogus lab tests, and contributed to the death of his own child by performing an underwater delivery and holding the newborn infant underwater for an hour. His judgment about medical matters is obviously not very trustworthy.

I did some very brief research on these claims, and found additional information on Mr. Young in this article and this article, both by Eva Briggs, MD.

Roy Benaroch, MD (yes, an actual doctor!) writes about essential oils:

Is there any reason to think there are broad health benefits from essential oils, as a group? Many of them smell good, and I imagine that used in a sort of aroma therapy they might be relaxing to people who like the smell of lemon, cedarwood, patchouli, or hyssop. But statements referring to essential oils collectively as having near-magical health benefits are just plain silly.

Some essential oils probably do offer health benefits, but many can be harmful if used incorrectly; and since selling these is intertwined with questionable business practices, it’s unlikely that Kayla is going to get reliable or balanced health information from local distributors. Don’t waste your money or endanger your health—stay away from the multilevel marketing of essential oils.

In order to make the products look legitimate (or look like they’re superior to other products out there), MLM companies are prone to lying, exaggeration, and misleading. One such example is doTERRA’s claim that their products are Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade. What does CPTG mean? Absolutely nothing. It’s a phrase that doTERRA made up and got a trademark on. In essence, doTERRA is saying “our essential oils are high quality because we say they are.”

It is common for the representatives of multi-level marketing companies to make all sorts of false claims about the healing properties of their products. These essential oil companies are no different, and the Food and Drug Administration has taken notice. Young Living received a warning letter from the FDA last year, telling the company that representatives are not permitted to make drug claims about the products.  doTERRA also received a warning letter from the FDA last year, pointing out that the essential oils “…are not generally recognized as safe and effective for use under the conditions prescribed, recommended, or suggested in their labeling.”

Both product lines were falsely pushed to cure or prevent ebola:

The website www.theoilessentials.com reportedly wrote “[T]he Ebola virus cannot survive in the presence of a therapeutic grade Cinnamon Bark and Oregano essential oil.” 

The website www.essentialsurvival.org wrote “Thieves [a proprietary Young Living blend] oil can be . . . applied topically on the skin to help the body fight off infection . . . If Ebola was going around in my area . . . I would apply it to my feet and armpits 2x/day or more and take it in capsules at least 2x/day for preventive purposes,” and “If I were exposed to Ebola or had reason to believe I could be sick with it, I would use some of these oils every 10 minutes for a few hours, then cut back to every hour for the rest of the first day. Then I would use them every 2 waking hours of the day for at least a week, or longer if it was known I was sick.”

A doTerra distributor wrote “Many Essential Oils are highly Anti-viral. I list here a few of them those (sic) oils that could help prevent your contracting the Ebola virus . . ..” on a Twitter account credited to “MrsSkinnyMedic.”

There were also claims that doTERRA and Young Living essential oils cured all sorts of other illnesses, such as “…Parkinson’s disease, autism, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, insomnia, heart disease, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), dementia, and multiple sclerosis,” according to the FDA letter.

Here’s the bottom line: Essential oils do not cure illnesses or medical conditions. They possibly make people feel better, and may have a minimal effect on very minor skin conditions. But that’s it. Essential oils won’t heal your cancer, broken bones, migraines, dimentia, fybromyalgia, autism or anything else. And if used incorrectly, essential oils can be dangerous.

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Gary Young Arrest

The Truth about Gary Young

Gary Young Shocking Exploits

The day Young Living broke my heart

Gary Young somolia

Young Living Farms Wacky Somalian Adventures

Sultan Yusuf Ahmed Salah of Somalia recently posted a YouTube video in which he claims that Young Essential Oils Founder Gary Young visited Somalia to test resins from their rare frankincense trees and write about his journey. According to Salah, Young promised to provide donations to establish health clinics and money to train teachers.

Young Living Farms legal department then contacted YouTube to request the video be removed because it contained copyrighted materials and false information to defame Young’s character. YouTube then removed the video. After the video was removed Utah Stories was contacted by two independent essential oils specialists telling us that Young Living Farms is trying to silence the truth of what Gary Young did when he visited Somalia.

Was Sultan Yusuf Ahmed Salah indeed mislead and lied to by Gary Young? Or is Salah himself an extortionist, as Young Living Farms claims?

Con Artist of Healer? D Gary Young – Founder of Young Essential Oils

Salah says that Young claimed to be a medical doctor and philanthropist, and that he wanted to donate money to help them build clinics and train teachers. According to Salah, the money was never sent, but instead Salah’s photos were used in highly fictionalized account of the events which occurred in Young Living Farms newsletter called Essential Edge to promote Young’s successful very dangerous frankincense collection trip to Somalia.

The photos, used in a four-part series on Young’s Somalia trip, depict Salah as a friend and protector of Young. Young writes in his newsletter that Sultan Yusuf Ahmed Salah showed up to the airport to ensure his safety. According to Salah, Young came to his village without proper notice began asking for photos and misleading him and his people with promises. Salah said he was most offended by how Gary Young used his men to pose for photos demonstrating the “danger” of his journey by posing with their guns.

Certainly this story has a great deal more detail than what we are able to present. Later in the day,Young Essential Oils Marketing and Legal Team spoke to Utah Stories off the record.

Utah Stories was scheduled to meet with Young Living PR and legal team at their Lehi headquarters yesterday morning, but they cancelled the meeting because we were unable to provide all questions beforehand. Utah Stories requested prior to the meeting electronic copies of the newsletters which have Young’s account of the story, before we attempted to provide detailed questions. They have not provided the materials.

We are simply seeking Young’s side of the story. Young has a history of a the very least stretching the truth. Young has consistently made claims that his oils can cure illnesses and diseases they are unproven to cure including infertility. Young has been convicted of practicing medicine without a license.

Still Utah Stories supports the essential oils Young Living promotes for helping with stress relief , anxiety and muscle pain. The Utah-based Young Living Farms is a world-wide businesses with seven farms. They employ 1,000 people. But the facts of Young Living Farms success do not forgive lies or misleading practices.

Utah Stories was able to find Young Livings Essential Edge stories online and have provided Young Living Farms our questions. But they have not responded to our e-mails except to make the following statement:

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Gary Young claims

The day Young Living broke my heart

Gary Young somolia

YLEO - What happens in Oman stays in Oman

Very few individuals are willing to pay the price, since it is easier to copy other people's information, claim someone else's stories as their own, or just make it up when they simply dont know what they're talking about. (Gary Young)

Feels like he's looking into his own mirror... Isn't this what Gary Young has been doing all along? Copying Tisserand, Lafabvre, Penoel, etc... alleging that he has studied with some or all of them...which is not true. Marcel Lafabvre himself said that Mr. Young took one class that he never completed. By the end of the first day, he was boasting around like an "expert". Needless to say he looked ridiculous to all who attended that class/seminar.

Mr. Young continues to add lies to falsehoods, to bogus medical claims, while showing very little respect for the cultures he is exposed to...obviously leaving his ominous footprints wherever he goes, like a bulldog coming home with paws full of mud... In the end, reputation is everything, and Mr, Young despite his financial success is really not taken seriously by anyone involved in true Aromatherapy.

Another lie...and a serious one: https://www.facebook.com/dgaryyoung

Here Gary is shown posing with his Business permit from the Ministry of Agriculture-Dhofar (Oman).

Moreover, Young Living is proud of the singular opportunity we have to be the first commercial frankincense distiller in Oman in hundreds of years" (Gary Young)

The date of his Business Permit is dated May 30, 2013. I KNOW FOR A FACT that there is a distiller in Salalah who has a Business Permit dated JULY 25, 2011. This means that this company has been distilling in Oman for at least two years prior to Gary Young. AND GARY YOUNG KNOWS THIS. He knows but lies about it. I have seen the permit. I believe at this point that Young is suffering from multiple psychosis, one of them being that he thinks that he is "the only one who", "the first one who". He forgets too easily that in this industry people travel far to search for their oils... and sometimes bump into each other... it's a small world after all... and Salalah is a small town.

And once again Gary Young has been caught in a big fat lie as he keeps talking out of his "derriere". Mr. Young is neither the first, and was never the only company granted permission to distill, and/ or export Frankincense.

If his blunder in Somalia is an indication of how adept he is at making friends, I sincerely doubt that the Omani people respect him at all... and for good reasons.

Most companies buy their Frankincense from Somalia, not Oman... there is too little of it in Oman. But since G.Young insulted Sultan Yusuf in Somalia, I would doubt that he would be welcomed back.

Another thing that G. Young is not telling: In Oman THERE IS NOT ONE ESSENTIAL OIL COMPANY THAT IS HARVESTING THEIR OWN FRANKINCENSE. That's a fact. In Oman frankincense is harvested by "tribes". If you want frankincense, you need to buy it from the tribes who own the trees. THAT'S A FACT. Tribes in Oman are "families", well educated, prosperous, wealthy, well dressed, sophisticated and professional individuals. They control large businesses and send their children to study abroad. They are by no means the "tribes" that most people imagine, ignorant, poor, perhaps barbaric, and in need, and running around with a loin cloth... ;o)

They don't need a guy like G.Young.

I have built two distilleries in Salalah and have walked the mountains from the eastern Dhofar mountains east of Hasik to the border of Yemen, harvesting frankincense resin". (Gary Young)

One, you cannot go into the mountains and harvest frankincense in Oman... it is not allowed. Secondly, you cannot harvest frankincense in Oman. It's strictly a tribal business.

Then there is his story about receiving a "gift" of 200,000 to 400,00 acres of land from His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, for their exclusive use of frankincense. This has been posted on the Internet... However there is nothing about this that Gary Young has written about. He does not write it... he tells his cult members during his conferences, then THEY write it, they annote it, but he doesnt do this anymore, lest he may be accused of lying! He has been caught lying too many times and his legal team have put a gag on him. He will not speak without his legal team as a shield. He would not show up for the interview with Utah Stories... This story about the gift of land is simply not true. Mr. Young has always wanted to appear more important than anyone, and who is going to check into his stories?..not his followers. Ask yourselves, why would the Sultan award this guy whom nobody knows., with a gift of land?...for what reason? There has never been such a gift.

Young claimed that he would be protecting the trees and help the tribes. Seems a bit like a colonialist attitude to have, don't you think? The trade never needed his help, thank you. It continues to succeed and prosper without G. Young.

Following the fiasco in Somalia, I would advice Mr. G.Young not to repeat that experience in Oman, which is quite a different place. Publishing lies about meetings with important Omanis is a big mistake.

About US:

For more information visit us at:
The day Young Living broke my heart
Truth about Gary Young
Young Living’s Fake Products
Gary Young Arrest
Is Gary Young an MD?

Are Essential Oils a Scam or Are They Proven to Work

Now, we are saying essential oils are a scam. Or are they really proven? What makes an essential oil a scam or a proven product that works. There are some on the internet that are claiming that essential oils are just that-scams. Apparently, social media has been exploding with reports that essential oils will heal every disease under the sun. You have it there is some essential oil out there that will heal it. It doesn’t matter what the disease or sickness is it can be healed by an essential oil. It can be cancer, diabetes, or some asthma condition the essential oil will take care of it. But then there is the other side that claims that essential oils are a total scam and all these reports of essential oils healing every disease imaginable is a scam. So, consumer who do you believe? Let’s explore the issue a little further.



The Essence of the Plant



Essential oils are called essential oils because contain the essence of the plant’s fragrance not because they have powerful healing properties according to this one site that claims that essential oils are a scam. The core of the controversy is that essential oils have medicinal properties not that they are used in cleaning products or help the body relax because of their calming smell. It is put forward that they contain antimicrobials, and anti-inflammatories and antioxidants. Some experts strongly assert that they may have these properties but in such small quantities that they wouldn’t have any medicinal values. They go on to say that they may heal very minor burns but not extensive burns. They help treat acne and act as a valuable skin moisturizer but they don’t heal broken bones. They don’t heal autism, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, cancer, or any potential harmful diseases.



There are experts who say that there are false doctors and scientists who say that essential oils will bring miracalous cures to the human body. But there is no clear scientific evidence or any legitimate studies to support these claims. Harriet Hall,MD, took doTerra to task about their claims concerning essential oils. She says “They say modern science is validating “the numerous health and wellness benefits of essential oils” but they don’t identify those benefits or offer any evidence. No clinical studies are cited, and there is no research section on their website.” According to her the studies that support these medicinal properties of essential oils are uncontrolled, poorly designed, and unconvincing. The subjects in these studies were relaxed by the aromas of the essential oils and were affected by mental associations. They were not blocked from the fragrances of the essential oils. She seems to be suggesting that the subjects were manipulated by these factors into believing the essential oils were healing their bodies.

Dr. Hall had some supposed interesting information about D. Gary Young, the founder of Young Living, she writes: “I first heard of essential oils years ago in connection with Gary Young, described on Quackwatch as “an uneducated huckster with a track record of arrests for health fraud.” Gary Young and his Essential Oils are still in business despite the devastating critique that has long been featured on Quackwatch. The record of misdeeds there makes for painful reading. Among other things, he practiced medicine without a license, was arrested repeatedly, did bogus lab tests, and contributed to the death of his own child by performing an underwater delivery and holding the newborn infant underwater for an hour. His judgment about medical matters is obviously not very trustworthy.”

Another genuine medical professional Roy Benaroch, MD writes about essential oils healing properties: “Is there any reason to think there are broad health benefits from essential oils, as a group? Many of them smell good, and I imagine that used in a sort of aroma therapy they might be relaxing to people who like the smell of lemon, cedarwood, patchouli, or hyssop. But statements referring to essential oils collectively as having near-magical health benefits are just plain silly.”

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For more Information about Essential Oil's truth visit us at:

Gary Young Arrest

The Truth about Gary Young

Gary Young Shocking Exploits

The day Young Living broke my heart

Gary Young Fraud

The Nitty Gritty on Essential Oil Purity

Today, I’ve decided to pull my hair up and get serious about the purity of essential oils. After all, if I’m gonna be rubbing them on my stomach/feet/chest/face (the list goes on and on), sniffing them, and even tasting them—they had better be 100%, no-nonsense pure. Unfortunately, NOT all essential oils are created equal.

Here’s the riff: every essential oil company claims their contents are “pure.” Ugh. So who can you trust?

Personally, I trust certified aromatherapists, dermatologists, massage therapists, oil distillers, naturopathic physicians, and holistic nutritionists. So I researched what these specialists look for when selecting their essential oils. Here’s the collective criteria:

●     Rigorous Testing

●     Unadulterated Oils (Yep--those oil companies shouldn’t be committing adultery either)

●     Plant Potency

●     Published Main Chemical Components

●     Scientific Backing

Cheers to Lots of Testing:

When it comes to testing, essential oil companies differ—a lot. Some brands do all sorts of less-than objective tests (cough, cough) or even certify their oils by merely paying “sniffers.” True story. I’m of the opinion that the more tests involved, the more trustworthy the oil. And that’s one cool thing I found out about the doTERRA brand. They don’t mess around with verifying their oils objectively, and they definitely don’t test just once a year. Each batch (liter) goes through what I like to call the “Accountable Eight” via 3rd party testers: organoleptic testing, microbial testing, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), chirality testing, isotopic ****ysis and heavy metal testing. Only if an oil passes this intense lineup, is it considered CPTG (Certified Pure Theraputic Grade).

If an oil doesn’t pass every last test, doTERRA rejects the entire batch. And if the oil continues to fail, doTERRA will keep that oil out of stock until it has a batch that passes. Back in 2015, doTERRA did that very thing w/ “Melissa Officinalis” (aka Lemon Balm) and “Roman Chamomile.” Both of these oils are big sellers, so keeping them off the market until they met their standards, well, let’s just say that’s a big trust builder for me.

Young Living also publishes their fairly rigorous testing processes.  But it just doesn’t have the checks and balances to it that I’d like. It’s one of the predominant reasons I felt a bit hesitant to keep using their stuff.

Let’s Talk Science:

I wanted to see if there were any oils/brands that weren’t “poo-poo-ed” by the traditional medicine posse.  So when a nurse told me the hospital she worked at diffused peppermint oil for queasy patients, my interest was piqued!  After a bit more probing, I found that the doTERRA brand is actually used/being studied in a bunch of hospitals across the nation, including the Cleveland Clinic and Vanderbilt Medical Center among others. How’s that for a credibility?

Unadulterated and Undoctored:

What makes an oil truly essential? It shouldn’t be filled w/ additives, fillers or synthetic stuff  and it shouldn’t be grown with any nasty ”cides” (pesticides/herbicides). Plus the harvesting, distilling, transporting, and storing are all critical.

Plant Potency:

Happy plants make good oils. Okay, that sounds silly, but honestly, if a plant is grown in the right soil, climate, and temperature, it reaches it’s highest potency levels. This is why I’m a big fan of how doTERRA grows its plants in their indigenous environment—like lavender from France and frankincense from Somalia (both have grown in those respective locations for hundreds of years).  If an oil company is sourcing from 33 countries instead of just a handful—you know it cares about plant potency.