Best Essential Oils for Burns

Cuts, scrapes, and even minor burns can be part of everyday life. While some burns can get serious or infected, in most cases being able to deal with them handily (and naturally) at home would be most convenient. But what could you use in those cases?

Can essential oils be used with burns at home? Research and historical use of herbs suggests that yes, these can be effective, when the right ones are safely and properly used. Read on to learn more about the best essential oils for burns.

Can essential oils help with burns?

If you are dealing with a minor burn (1^st degree), then essential oils may be able to help with some of the pain or other symptoms. They may also be able to help reduce your risk of infection.

If the burn is more severe or infected, then essential oils for burns should not be the only treatment you rely on. You should use first aid approaches in addition to these, or contact a doctor or emergency room if a minor burn is quickly getting worse, more painful, or progressively infected.

First-degree burn symptoms may include:

• Inflamed and painful skin
• Swollen or tender skin
• Pink or red skin (especially in Caucasian people)
• Skin feels hot to the touch
• Small and superficial blisters, peeling skin

Signs of severe or worsening burn (possibly second- or third-degree):

• Skin is extremely inflamed and/or painful
• Skin is very pink or red (especially in Caucasian people)
• Skin feels very hot to the touch
• Medium and large fluid-filled blisters are forming
• Major skin peeling, lost skin layers
• Nausea, headache, or fatigue with burn pain
• Mild, worsening, or severe fever
• Skin looks infected: discolored, yellow pus or fluid draining, etc.

If you have the above symptoms from a severe or worsening burn, seek medical attention immediately.

Best essential oils for burns

Many essential oils have anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe irritated and burned skin. Below are my top recommendations that can help with minor burns. As with all essential oils, make sure to dilute these oils properly before applying to any burn (see section below for more details).

1. Calendula

In the herbal and natural remedy worlds, calendula is synonymous with soothing skin—including skin plagued by burns. The flower’s bright orange petals make it a choice essential oil for home treatment, burn recovery, and soothing burn pain to a degree.

The flower could also help support the healing of skin after the burn has healed: such as dry, itchy, inflamed, or peeling skin. Studies also show that calendula can indeed help soothe the pain and inflammation of minor burns.¹

2. Chamomile

Chamomile is another classic flower remedy for skin. Herbalists use it for skin dryness, itchiness, pain, inflammation, mild burns, or sunburns. A cold compress of chamomile can be effective for burns; this can utilize either the cooled tea of chamomile or properly diluted essential oil.

Both traditional accounts and recent scientific data point to chamomile being a fantastic herb and essential oil for helping burns.² You may also find it as an active ingredient in plenty of other burn treatment products or lotions for this exact purpose.

3. Iris

Iris flower, also called blue flag or orris root, has strong anti-inflammatory properties in its roots. These have been used for thousands of years for burn treatment. Some herbalists even claim that iris works better for burn healing than the classic aloe vera remedy for fresh burns!

In essential oil form, however, iris would only be helpful for soothing burn inflammation but not for the fresh treatment of mild burns, like aloe vera gel. There also isn’t a lot of updated or recent research on the plant showing that it works for burns. Still, we have thousands of years of herbalist use and empirical evidence suggesting it would be a safe and effective home remedy choice.

4. Lavender

Lavender can help soothe the mind and nerves—and, apparently, skin as well, including for burns. The oils this purple flower contains are gently anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial. This means that it could help reduce the risk of infection while also keeping down pain in the burn.

Lavender is also well known for being a hypoallergenic herb. This means it could be an essential oil widely used for supporting burn healing even in the most sensitive skin types. Besides lavender’s topical healing properties, research suggests that even smelling the divine aroma of this flower’s heavenly fragrance could provide pain relief—even for burns!³

5. Myrrh

A very easy-to-find essential oil at most natural health stores, myrrh may be a top choice for helping with burns, especially with the healing and infection-prevention aspect of recovery.

Ancient civilizations once used myrrh as a choice ingredient in some burn treatments, according to research. The Greeks, Romans, and Sumerians would mix it with wine into a lotion for burn treatment.⁴ Today, myrrh essential oil is no longer a “choice” treatment for any burn, but could help with mild or minor burns at home in a pinch.

6. Rose

The rose plant, its petals, and even rosewater and essential oils are all famous skin healers—both in the worlds of herbalism and skincare. Rose is subtly drying and astringent, but also has slightly emollient and moisturizing properties. These help to balance skin of all types: weepy skin, inflamed skin, itchy or dry skin, etc. This makes rose the perfect healer for burns.

While rose is widely used for healing skin and burns, there aren’t many recent studies testing how well it fares for natural burn treatment compared to conventional approaches. All the same, it is a very safe remedy to try.

7. Mint

Burns can cause uncomfortable burning pain. Mints and their essential oils—especially spearmint, peppermint, and other varieties with strong menthol properties—can bring a refreshing and cooling sensation that may help relieve the pain of a mild burn. That is, if it has already healed and closed the skin to some degree.

Many over the counter products use mint essential oils or mint’s active compound, menthol, as home pain relievers. Research shows that this has an effect on the nerve signaling that has to do with pain, which can be useful with mild burn pain, too.⁵

8. St. John’s wort

Many know St. John’s wort as a depression remedy. But in ancient times, this yellow flower and its oils were actually more commonly used to treat skin wounds and infections—including burns.

Research shows St. John’s wort essential oil may help both with pain and reducing the risk of infection in a mild burn. According to a recent study, a treatment incorporating the plant’s ingredients in a gel helped speed the recovery of burns compared to burns that were not treated with the gel. Researchers think this may be due to the herb’s antioxidant content.⁶

9. Tea tree

No other type of essential oil is better known for cleansing and protecting than tea tree. Chock full of antimicrobial compounds, tea tree may be a great choice for burn support if one is concerned about lingering or growing infection.

One study showed that a treatment using quite a bit of tea tree essential oil had a great impact on the healing process of burn treatment, bringing about a speedy skin healing recovery and preventing infection.⁷

10. Violet

Violets were once a traditional treatment for burns and skin issues: especially the flower petals and leaves. If you can find violet essential oil, this purple remedy may help with the pain and healing of your mild burn.

There isn’t much up-to-date research actually testing out the use of violet essential oil for burn healing specifically, however. Still, many herbalists have used it successfully, and it’s thought that violet’s antioxidants and polyphenols may play a helpful role in the burn healing process. Research does show that, at the very least in animal studies, violet can be effective for inflammation and topical pain management.⁸

How to use essential oils for burns

Essential oils can lend an extra hand to the burn healing process. Be sure to check out the natural tips section for dealing with burns—some of these home remedies can be used in conjunction with essential oils for even more relief and healing. Some essential oils may soothe burned skin while others help with the pain. Some may protect against burns getting infected.

Best ways to use essential oils for burns: Combine 2-3 drops of any of these with 1 cup of clean, cool water to use as a cold compress on your burn. Or, you can mix 1-2 drops with every dollar coin-sized dollop of carrier oil, aloe vera gel, lotion, or skin product you use for healing sunburn.

Best essential oil blends for burns

Herbs and essential oils alike tend to work better together than when alone, and can be far more effective. Here are some of the best blends and combinations of essential oils to try for burns. Again, make sure to dilute these blends properly before applying to the skin.

Pain-relief blend

Combine chamomile, mint, and lavender essential oils.

First aid blend (for immediate burn treatment)

Combine calendula, iris, and St. John’s wort essential oils—preferably applied along with aloe vera gel (not water).

Burn-healing blend (for when burns have healed a few days and to reduce infection risk)

Combine myrrh, rose, tea tree, and violet essential oils.

Other natural tips for dealing with burns

Essential oils for burns are one way you can naturally approach pain and symptoms. They could even limit or mitigate the possibility of infection to some extent. However, they are not the only natural remedy options you can try. Here are some other natural methods that may help with the pain or speed the healing of mild burns.

• Aloe vera gel: This is best to apply immediately after getting burned. Be sure to use the gel, not a lotion that contains aloe. (The lotion should not be used on a fresh burn.)
• Moisturizing or emollient lotion: For the healing process when the burn is not too fresh and painful, a skin-healing and moisturizing lotion can help. Mix 1-2 drops of essential oils for burns with each dollar coin-sized dollop of lotion before applying for even further benefit.
• Cold or cool shower: This can be helpful for soothing the burn and bringing some pain relief. It is best to do this after the burn has had some time to heal.
• Cold compress: Applying cool, clean water to a burn can help with some of the pain. Use this water to dilute 2-3 drops of essential oils for burns (1 cup per every 2-3 drops).
  
• Oat or oatmeal skin treatments: For healing very painful burns and skin damage, try oat skin treatments—or even an oatmeal bath.
  
  

Essential oils may be helpful for the most minor of burns. However, it is best that you contact a doctor or emergency room to get your burn treated if it is severe, second or third degree, or obviously getting worse or infected.

It is not recommended to only use essential oils for burns or solely natural remedies. If you’re only dealing with a mild burn, however, essential oils may help—though be sure to be thorough and careful with your home treatment. A burn can always carry the risk of getting worse. If it does, seek the guidance of a medical health professional quickly.

About Adrian White
Adrian White is a certified herbalist, organic farmer, and health, food, and agriculture freelance writer—and upcoming author. She is a past contributor to Healthline with bylines in The Guardian, Civil Eats, and Good Housekeeping. Adrian is also the co-owner and operator of Jupiter Ridge LLC, an organic farm growing diverse vegetables, mushrooms and herbs.

Sources:

1. Silva, D., M. Salvador Ferreira, et. al. “Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Calendula officinalis L. Flower Extract.” Cosmetics 8, no. 2 (2021): 31.

2. Rehmat, S., R. Ahmad Khera, M. et. al. “Medicinal Plants of South Asia – Chapter 8 – Chamomilla.” 101-112 (Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier, 2019).

3. Akgul, E. A., A. Karakul, et. al. “Effectiveness of lavender inhalation aromatherapy on pain level and vital signs in children with burns: a randomized controlled trial.” Complementary Therapies in Medicine 60 (2021): 102758.

4. Wallner, C., E. Moormann, et. al. “Burn Care in the Greek and Roman Antiquity.” Medicina Vol. 56, no. 12 (2020): 657.

5. Pergolizzi, J.V., R. Taylor, et. al. “The role and mechanism of action of menthol in topical analgesic products.” Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics 43, no. 3 (2018): 313-319.

6. Cabbaroglu, D., M. Songur Kodik, et. al. “Treatment of contact burn injury with hypericum perforatum: An experimental study.” Ege Journal of Medicine 58, no. 2 (2019): 154-160.

7. Kamel, R., S.M. Afifi, et. al. “Nanolipogel Loaded with Tea Tree Oil for the Management of Burn: GC-MD Analysis, In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation.” Molecules 27, no. 19 (2022): 6143.

8. Sedghi, E., E. Moghtadaei-Khorasgani, & M. Norbakhsh. “The histomorphological effect of Viola odorata flower extract on skin wound healing process in Wistar rats.” Feyz Medical Sciences Journal 24, no. 4 (2020): 366-373.

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