Can Essential Oils Help People With HIV or AIDS?

Many people turn to alternative and complementary therapies to help support their health, especially if they’re coping with a chronic or life-threatening diagnosis.

The idea: If it won’t hurt, and it might help, why not? But sometimes it’s good to know what evidence might be behind a therapy, even if just to decide whether to invest in that approach or another one.

What’s the evidence for using essential oils to help patients with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)?

In short: not much. Though that could be in large part because there hasn’t been a huge investment in research like this.

“It is known that essential oils have antimicrobial, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory properties, which would suggest some possible benefit for persons with chronic infections and cancer,” says Jeffrey T. Kirchner, DO, who is based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and specializes in treatment and care for HIV and AIDS.

But, he adds, “There is no proven medical or scientific benefit, to my knowledge, from essential oils specifically for persons with HIV disease.”

What Are Essential Oils and How Do They Work?

Essential oils are created from plant extracts, which remain when plants (which can include flowers, bark, leaves, or fruit) are pressed and distilled, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

The idea is that plants have chemicals that, when distilled into oil, can be beneficial when sniffed by stimulating the part of the brain related to memory and emotions, or when absorbed through application to the skin.

It takes a lot of plants to make a small amount of oil: For example, 220 pounds of lavender flowers are needed to make just 1 pound of lavender oil.

Is There Any Evidence That Essential Oils Help People With HIV and AIDS?

Not much. However, Dr. Kirchner notes that there has been what is called bench research (aka lab research) — according to an article from 2018 — showing that essential oils from the Thymus vulgaris, Cananga odorata, Cymbopogon citratus, and Rosmarinus officinalis plants “are capable of blocking a certain HIV protein called Tat, which is a regulatory protein that helps HIV reproduce itself in people infected with the virus.”

That’s the extent of it, says Kirchner. More research in this area is needed before scientific recommendations can be made for humans living with HIV.

HIV, AIDS, and Essential Oils: What You Need to Know if You Try Them

Are there any downsides to trying essential oils if you have HIV or AIDS? Odds are slim, but there are things you should know about.

“There is always the possibility of prescription drug interactions when taken with supplements or over-the-counter products,” says Kirchner, though he says he’s unaware of any reactions between essential oils and antiviral medication.

People with HIV should continue to take their medication as prescribed and talk with their healthcare providers if they are interested in seeing how essential oils might be beneficial, says Kirchner.

And if you are trying an alternative or complementary therapy, always let your doctor know. “Always discuss any alternative, complementary, or even over-the-counter products you wish to take with your doctor,” says Kirchner.

Ultimately, he says, something like essential oils may be of subtle help in this situation, but nothing beats taking your prescription medication every day, following a healthy diet, maintaining a normal body mass index (BMI), and exercising at least 30 minutes every day.