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Getting to know…Hydrolats!
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Greetings from Wisdom of the Earth!
We have been getting a number of questions recently about Hydrolats….what are they? Why does Wisdom of the Earth use the term hydrolat and everyone else uses the terms hydrosol or floral water? Why does one hydrolat smell heavenly, and another has virtually no aroma at all? Do they have the same properties as the essential oil made from the same plant?
Those questions are just the beginning of our discussion about hydrolats…what they are, the role they play in aromatherapy and when and how you should use them. Let’s get started!
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How our Hydrolat journey began
WOTE’s history with hydrolats has been one of learning for us, as well. In the early days, hydrolats were not a significant part of aromatherapy offerings. Basically, as we will discuss later, they are primarily water! And water is heavy, so shipping costs can sometimes be comparable to, or even greater than, the cost of the product itself. Also, pure hydrolats are also more vulnerable to deterioration than an essential oil from the same plant. Therefore, shelf-life is shorter and storage conditions are more important.
These, and other factors, made farmers less interested in offering hydrolats as a product, as they were less well-known than the oils and had more risk associated with getting them in the hands of their customers. I remember being in France, where we were participating in the distillation of Lavandin grosso. As things progressed, we went down to the lower level of the facility, where the essential oil was being collected from the “cook”. A pipe on the other side of the area was spewing a liquid onto the ground. When we asked what it was, we were told “the hydrosol”. (More on that term, later.) So…the oil was being collected for eventual bottling, the spent plant material was collected and later spread onto the fields for mulch, and the hydrosol…the first water off of the distillation process…was literally being dumped onto the ground!
We all looked at each other in disbelief, poured the water out of our water bottles, and ran over and filled them with the hydrolat! The farmers laughed at us, but we couldn’t bear the idea of wasting that precious liquid! I remember sleeping like a baby, even with the heat of the summer and lack of air conditioning in our accommodations, by cooling myself off with a washcloth steeped in the hydrosol every time I woke up from the heat. To this day, Lavandin grosso is one of my favorites for a sound and restful sleep.
When Barry and I returned to the US, we started researching hydrosols, and discovered a book by Suzanne Catty called Hydrosols: The Next Aromatherapy (2001) While we didn’t agree with every aspect of the book, we felt it was a valuable contribution to the profession and put hydrosols on the map. Between her book and our experience in France, we decided to add a few hydrosols to our beautiful line of essential oils, namely, Rose, Neroli (Orange Blossom) Helichrysum and Lavender.
Things stayed that way for years, until I attended a seminar on hydrolats presented by the renowned aromatherapist John Steele. It was life-changing! Armed with increased enthusiasm and experiential knowledge, we greatly expanded our offerings, and today, we proudly offer 30 beautiful hydrolats.
Hydrolats versus hydrosols
On our last trip to France, we were discussing the current state of hydrosols in the world of aromatherapy with several of our farmers. It was then we were told that they were under pressure to add preservatives to the hydrosols to extend shelf-life. So, many of the farmers began offering their product in two ways…one with preservatives and one without.
Also, they said that, unfortunately, many people were “making” their own hydrosols…adding an essential oil to water. That may be termed a floral water, but it is NOT a hydrolat, which is ONLY the water off of the actual distillation process. So the farmers were starting to use the term hydrolat for the products that came directly from the distillation process, to distinguish them from waters created differently or with preservatives added.
The picture above shows the essential oil floating on top of the water from the distillation…the hydrolat.
The following history/explanation, provided by a company in The Netherlands, offers the clearest explanation I have been able to find, and I am happy to share it with you.
Guérain (1886) defined the word hydrolat as a pharmaceutical term. His definition of a hydrolat is a colorless liquid, which is obtained by distilling water with (fragrant) flowers or plants. A hydrolat is always a product of steam distillation. The official definition of the word hydrolat in French law is: “aqueous distillate remaining after steam distillation, after the separation of the essential oil and water has been carried out.”
The word hydrolat consists of two parts: “hydro” comes from the Greek for water, “lat” is a word from Old French for milk. So, you can conclude that this terminology comes from the milky turbidity of a hydrolat just after steam distillation.
The word hydrosol is widely used in the English language, specifically in the US, when referring to distilled plant waters. The word is wrong, because it is a generic (insufficiently specific) term and therefore applies to a wide range of products. The definition of hydrosol in Chambers Science and Technology Dictionary is “a colloidal solution in water” (which is a very broad term). “Hydro” comes from Greek and means water and “solvere” is Latin for to loosen. A colloidal solution is a dispersion (a mixture in which one substance is finely divided into another substance), in this case liquid substance, characterized by very small particles.
Due to this explanation, a hydrosol could also be obtained, for example by centrifuging an essential oil for a long time in water, whereby eventually some water-loving ingredients transfer to the water. But soaking, for example by making an infusion or tea, could also be applicable. A chemical process with synthetic substances could even fall under the heading of colloidal solution. (Emphasis, mine) (Source: https://www.jolieetco.com/information-hydrolats#)
The last point in this excerpt deserves to be highlighted, in light of the article I wrote recently about fragrance oils versus essential oils. According to the above definition, some improperly produced hydrosols could also include synthetic substances. So, our use of the term hydrolat (which is actually the French word for hydrosol), is well-considered and based on the science. Clearly, it is not accurate to use the two terms interchangeably.
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Using Hydrolats as part of your aromatherapy practice:
Skin Care, Environmental Clearing
We love to use hydrolats in several primary ways….they are great for skin care (for example, Rose, Neroli, Helichrysum), excellent to clean and treat small wounds and abrasions (for example Frankincense, Cistus, all of the Conifers, Geranium), wonderful for clearing an interior space, such as bathrooms, massage rooms, kitchens (for example, Peppermint, Lavender, Rosemary, Sandalwood) and for ceremony…purifying a space, creating a sacred atmosphere…(for example Rose, White Sage, Rosemary, Frankincense, Sweetgrass). People also love to use them when a family member is sick in bed…spray their room throughout the day, and it will be uplifting for the patient, as well as disinfecting for all household members. These are just examples, but they give you an idea of various common uses for Hydrosols.
Treatment of small children, small animals, birds
Hydrolats are also excellent for small children, small animals or birds, as they are much less intense than pure oils. For example, many of you have heard my story about treating my mother’s small bird for mites. Every day, we used a spray of Helichrysum hydrolat in the water and several sprays of Lavender hydrolat on the bird’s wings and body (as well as a few drops of Black Cumin oil in its food), and in a couple of days, the bird was back to singing and flying around the house! Compare that to the “medicine” we had purchased at the pet store…which required the use of rubber gloves to apply it to the bird, it was so toxic. We read the instructions and decided not to even try it…and turned to our essential oils and hydrolats, which did the job safely.
Medicinal Properties/Potency
Basically, the hydrolats do have the same medicinal properties as the essential oils they come from…they are just not nearly as potent as the oils themselves. There are traces (typically around .02%) of the essential oil in the hydrolat, which equates to about 1-2 drops of oil in a 120 ml (4 oz) bottle. And, to re-emphasize…merely adding that amount to a four ounce bottle of water will not create a hydrolat…that only comes from the distillation process itself.
Aroma: Oil vs Hydrolat
Now to the issue of aroma. Why don’t many of the hydrolats smell like the essential oil they come from? To start with…some do…but primarily the floral ones, like Rose and Neroli. Helichrysum has a very recognizable aroma…clean, strong, but light. Some of the conifers have a soft “woody” aroma, and our Sweet Grass has a beautiful, sweet, grassy aroma, just like its name! On the other hand, Redwood hydrolat, from the the giants of the forest, has a fresh aroma, but, in my opinion, not heavily “woody”.
We have to remember that the hydrosols are not only about aroma, but also about the energy of the plant and the medicinal properties of the plant. So, when I spray the Redwood Hydrolat on, I consciously focus on the fact that I am taking in the incredible energy of this ancient, beloved tree
So remember, even with a professionally produced and responsibly stored hydrolat, there is not often a 1:1 relationship between the aroma of the plant, or the oil derived from it, and the hydrolat that is produced from the distillation process.
Shelf-life and storage considerations
Hydrolats can last 1-2 years (conservatively), and even longer, if storage conditions are cool and dark. Some people store theirs in a refrigerator, which will likely optimally prolong the viability of the hydrolat . I tend to store them where I use them, and have had hydrolats in my bathroom for years, in some cases, with no deterioration. If you have any concerns that a hydrolat is still “good”, if you can, check the aroma against a newer or new bottle, and also pour some into a clear glass container and see if any cloudiness or “floaties” are noticeable. In the latter case, it is best to discard the remaining hydrolat, which we usually do by pouring it out on the earth.
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In Closing…
I hope this newsletter has answered some of the questions you may have had about hydrolats and their use. If you haven’t given them a try, I would encourage you to explore our wide selection. There’s nothing like a spritz of Peppermint hydrolat on a hot day, or a spritz of Helichrysum or Lavender hydrolat on sunburned skin! We love our hydrolats and are proud of the extensive array of options we offer to our clients. With that, I will indulge in a few sprays of White Rose….ahhhhh!
Love, Audre Gutierrez
Owner, Wisdom of the Earth
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