My last article about selecting the right diffuser for your needs prompted one of my newsletter subscribers to email me and ask me to alert readers about the potential harm to cats from exposure to essential oils via diffusers. I wanted to share some of my thoughts on this subject for the benefit of those of you who have cats and may be worried or concerned that your use of essential oils could pose a threat to their well being.

Let me start by saying that there is enough anecdotal evidence to suggest that even the tiniest amount of essential oil administered orally or topically to a cat can be toxic and even life-threatening. Stories abound of people whose cats almost died when they applied Peppermint or Tea Tree essential oils directly to their cat’s skin unwittingly expecting the oils to work the same way they do on humans. But cats and humans are not built the same way!

This problem arises due to the fact that cats are unable to metabolize some of the components found in certain essential oils –-namely compounds known as terpenes. Depending on the type and amount of exposure, this deficiency can lead to rapid toxic build up in their kidneys and in extreme cases, liver failure. 

Thanks to Judith Pynn for forwarding the following links to sites with some additional information on this topic:
http://cats.about.com/od/housekeeping/a/aromatherapy.htm
http://www.thelavendercat.com/3201/index.html

The Lavender Cat web site is the only one I’ve come across that offers fairly technical medical information on this topic and worth the read if this is an issue of concern for you. According to this site inhalation of essential oils can be unsafe for your cat so precautions should be used when repeatedly diffusing essential oils, since the development of liver damage can be a slow process without any visible symptoms.

For what it’s worth, my cat companion who, for the better part of the 15 years we were together was routinely exposed to essential oils both via diffusion and just from being present whenever I was transferring essential oils to different containers or when I was blending or using them on myself or others. Sadly, Fluffer passed away from Lymphoma at the end of 2007 –which I now attribute at least in part to the commercial dry food diet I fed him his entire life.

Personally, I think the evidence of harm to cats from indirect inhalation through diffusion is not definitive or convincing. I certainly don’t believe that this type of exposure is any more harmful to cats than exposing them to the myriad chemicals and synthetic fragrances present in most household cleaning products and commercial air fresheners.

That having been said, I do feel it is wise to err on the side of caution so here’s a summary of some of the precautions to follow when diffusing essential oils:

1. 1. Try not to use excessive amounts of essential oil per session and try whenever possible to use oils with lower volatility. Citrus oils are the most volatile and, not coincidentally, tend to be high in terpene content. If you want to diffuse these oils do so intermittently with proper circulation.
2. Ensure good air circulation at all times, but especially during the diffusion process, to prevent essential oil vapor build up in areas inhabited by the cat that are not ventilated (i.e. closets, pantries, or other rooms without windows).
3. Make sure your cats can get to fresh ‘undiffused’ air at all times
4. Don’t diffuse essential oils continuously or for extended periods of time without a break. Ideally, essential oils should be diffused for no more than10-15 minutes per hour depending on the efficiency of the diffuser.
5. Avoid placing or using a diffuser in areas where your cats like to nap or sleep, unless they are not present and there is adequate ventilation in the room.
6. Toxicology studies show that the feline liver usually needs 48 hours to process and excrete terpenes, so if you have diffused a lot during any 24 hour period, then allow 48 hours between the end of the last diffusion and starting another to avoid potential over exposure.
7. Humans become quickly used to the intensity of a nice aroma and have the habit of ‘freshening it up’ by adding more essential oils when this may not always be necessary. To test this, leave the room or area for about 15 minutes, when you re-enter the room, you will know if the aroma needs to be refreshed.

Remember that essential oils can have an impact on you even if or when you don’t smell them. As with everything in aromatherapy, a little goes a long way. For the best results, don’t over-use or over-diffuse essential oils. If you follow that simple guideline your feline friends should be just fine.

Posted April 14th, 2009 under Aromatherapy. RSS 2.0 feed. Leave a response, or trackback.