09/10/2026
Hear me out…
You can eat Cinnamon and Fennel. 🌿
But that doesn’t tell you whether their essential oils are safe for you.
Take Cinnamon essential oil. Even the part of the plant used matters.
Cinnamon Bark and Cinnamon Leaf are two different essential oils with different safety concerns. Both can thin the blood, so they’re a concern with aspirin, blood thinners, bleeding disorders, and around surgery.
But Cinnamon Bark has additional concerns. It’s not safe during pregnancy or breastfeeding, and its topical maximum is only 0.01%.
And Fennel?
This is one I recommend avoiding altogether. It’s potentially carcinogenic, not safe for pregnancy or breastfeeding, not appropriate for children, and can also thin the blood.
That’s also why you won’t find me filling my new book, Essential Oil Safety for Families, with problematic essential oils just because they’re popular or commonly recommended.
If an essential oil brings more concern than benefit for everyday family use, I’d rather leave it out and give you safer options.
Because:
If the only thing you know about an essential oil is what it’s “good for,” you don’t know enough to use it safely. 💜
Benefits are only half the information.