What is the difference between Essential oil and Hydrosol
What are hydrosols?
Hydrosols are a water-based product, which is obtained as by product during the distillation of essential oils. The distilling process produces two end-products:
Essential oil: the oil-soluble parts of the plant.
Hydrosol: water-soluble parts of the plant (in this fluid also contains micro-droplets of essential oil).
Hydrosol is a chemical term, means “water solutions. In Latin, hydro” — meaning water — and “sol” — meaning solution. The terms “hydrosol “, and “herbal distillates” are the most commonly used in the united states. In France, the world’s biggest producer of modern fragrances, the term changes to the “hydrolat”, which means”water-milk”. The terms such as “floral water”, “herbal water”, toilet water, and aqua vitae are often replaced with hydrosol, but be careful. These products can be very different, depending on the manufacturer.
Typical floral water that is found in the supermarket, the pharmacy, or in the ethnic food stores may also include non-organic substances such as alcohol, chemically produced fragrance, or man-made food dyes. They are often infused with essential oils, but this is not the same thing as this hydrosol.
Pure hydrosols contain the same aromatic, naturally occurring in essential oils, but in a lower concentration. They are usually transparent and colorless, the easier it is to track down the scent of the original plant or flower. Essential oils and hydrosols have a lot of similar qualities, but hydrosols have higher water content.
Hydrosols can also be applied directly to your skin, without the need to dilute them with a carrier oils. They also have a more subtle scent than their essential oil counterpart.
Hydrosols can be used for a variety of products including, among other things:
the perfume of the toner
for all skin types
makeup
aromatherapy
alternative medicine
pH of the hydrosol
The PH of the details of the hydrosol will vary, but most of these can be found anywhere from 3 to 7. Hydrosols with a pH value below 5.0, should last for a period of more than two years, and which has a pH value above 5.0, it’s going to be good for 12 to 18 months.
APPLICATION METHODS
Hydrosols and essential oils are most often used in natural and organic treatments, skincare, and aromatherapy. Hydrosols can be directly applied and do not cause irritation. They can be used to make skincare products, including creams, toner, lip balm, tinctures, sprays, mists, etc.
Essential oils
The highest quality of pure essential oils India made from the same steam distillation process in which the hydrosol is extracted. Steam distillation of the flowers is an intense process that requires a lot of kilos of raw material. For example, more than 60,000 rose flowers will give 1 ounce of pure rose essential oil.
Pure essential oils are obtained through distillation or infusion of the plant and flower. The shelf life of most of the essential oils is about 1–2 years.
Every liter of hydrosol contains 0.05 to 0.2 ml of the thaw of essential oil.
Takeaway
Hydrosols are a water-based product and are extracted as the by-product during the extraction process of essential oils. You can use them for different purposes, for example, face mist, body mist, linen mist or use them instead of water in cosmetics.
Essential oils are concentrated extracts of plants and are obtained through steam distillation. Hydrosols can be direct, however, essential oils have to be diluted with carrier oils before applying to the skin.
