areas must be reforested. The seedlings must be native species,
and none of them can be genetically modified.
Arborvitae and Nootka essential oils came about because of an
effort to make sustainable use of all the elements of the trees,
including capturing the important chemical components found
in the sawdust residue. Because of the sustainable forestry
program in place for harvesting these trees, not one additional
tree is being cut down to produce the essential oils. Once the
oil is extracted from the sawdust through a proprietary steam
distillation process, the sawdust is then returned and used by
paper mills for pulp production. “All the resources, including
these amazing and unique essential oils, are sustainably and
responsibly harvested from these majestic trees—which of course
is a key priority for our distillation partner and for do-TERRA,” says
Tim Valentiner, do-TERRA Director of Strategic Sourcing.
WHAT MAKES THESE OILS UNIQUE?
Arborvitae
Arborvitae essential oil has molecules called tropolones,
which have a unique chemical structure. Most molecules in
nature are six-sided; tropolones are seven-sided. This makes
it so other sometimes harmful molecules don’t know how to
attack them. Because of this, they are natural preservatives.
This oil is also an effective bug repellant. Arborvitae trees can
live for up to 1,000 years, partially because they are naturally
resistant to insects.
Arborvitae trees can live for up to
1,000 years, partially because they
are naturally resistant to insects.
Nootka
One chemical found in Nootka oil is nootkatone, which is
strangely also found in grapefruits. This adds a sharp, citrusy
note to Nootka oil and gives it similar properties to grapefruit
oil. Nootka is also known for being a powerful insect repellant.
Nootka and Arborvitae have both
recently been added to the do-TERRA
TerraShield® Outdoor Blend.