Please check out the image below which appears to be doTerra’s response to my findings of Lead in their diffuser. I do believe that this response was posted when I initially shared these results on Facebook in February of 2018. Below that is my response to their response. [For good measure a picture of the diffuser in question is also posted below.] Here also is a link to my original post about the doTerra diffuser.
My response to the above (from Facebook):
It’s really funny how many of the sales people for these companies are insistent on blindly believing the word of the company over scientific testing. #Sigh.
There are VERY few companies who own their shit and make proactive changes to improve their products based on my testing:
Companies overtly DENYING the truth of scientific testing, calling out lawyers against me and arguing with science: Corningware, doTerra, VitaClay, Ceramcor / Xtrema / Dr. Mercola, PuraKiki, MadeSafe, Green Sprouts, Marble King, Corkcicle & others.
But there are about ten GREAT examples of companies who have done this and we are collectively so proud of those companies:
Good companies who took note and took ACTION to make sure their products are safe (or at least properly labeled) as a result of my testing (or additional testing they did): Ikea, Hydroflask, Emile Henry, Hevea, Roshambo, Instant Pot and many others!
Look up any of these companies on my site for more info: http://www.LeadSafeMama.com
doTerra, time to grow up and take responsibility instead of denying the truth of science based testing. The product in question was not sold on Amazon. The product in question was positive for Lead at a level far above what one might conjecture to be a low level trace contaminant.
Tamara Rubin
Lead Safe Mama
Mother of Lead Poisoned Children
Trained and Certified in using an XRF instrument.
Click here to see all of the posts I have written about essential oil diffusers.
As always, thank you for reading and for sharing my posts.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
Is it possible that thediffuser might still not release lead into the environment?
Hi Amanda,
Yes – my educated guess is that it is likely not releasing lead into the environment, HOWEVER this has not been studied and it is my firm belief that there should be no Lead in any product designed / developed and sold with the intention of imparting health benefits.
Tamara
Just because your and environmentals and film maker and mother to your son’s don’t mean you have a PhD In anything.
Why don’t you test every single product out there and see what has lead in it.
Why don’t you go to home Depot and all the paint stores and check their paint for lead.
Why don’t you become a Peta activist also and complain about animals.
doTERRA is a good company and they do their own research on everything they do.
You are just trying to ruin a company that you can’t own.
You need to grow up and leave the research to professionals.
Hi Jane!
I do test pretty much every thing I get my hands on, every single product I can. Take a look around my site.
Tamara
“You” test everything? What degree and training so you have in this field? In one comment your hrases to question may contain lead but does it release it into air were educated guess and probably not. This does not provide solid proven information. I do believe in DoTerra because they have proven themselves through providing information to back up their statements. You also said the diffuser didn’t come from Amazon but , you didn’t say where you obtained the diffuser or how many you tested. I also work in the medical field and DoTerra has been accepted for use in hospital who have nonbias state to stae inspection for safety and quality of products.
Hi Marion,
Here’s my certificate: https://tamararubin.com/2017/09/certificate/
Here’s a post about the testing I do (please read the full post): https://tamararubin.com/2016/12/ask-tamara-what-do-you-use-to-test-for-lead/
Here’s a post about the instrument I use for testing: https://tamararubin.com/xrf/
After you have taken a look at those posts, please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you.
Tamara
Honestly I’m concerned about anyone working in the medical field with this kind of attitude. If you looked around Tamara’s site-instead of jumping to an emotional conclusion- to get an understanding of who she is and what she does you would know she has XRF certification. Furthermore, who inspects YOUR products and what methods do they use?
From someone whose family at one point had amassed quite a collection of hospital toiletries I can tell you they don’t have very ‘clean’ ingredient lists (parabens, artificial dyes, ‘fragrance’ etc), so the ‘used in a hospital’ defense doesn’t hold much water to me.
Furthermore I myself use medical supplies for daily living and have learned many contain concerning ingredients like parabens, urea, and formaldehyde. These weren’t listed on the box; I had to scour the internet to find data sheets and info on random medical supply sites. Point being: the healthcare/medical industry is not always know for the best ingredients and needs an overhaul, including patient transparency.
Those in the medical field should be practicing the ‘precautionary principal’ and not using something unless the benefits are proven to outweigh the risks. I can’t really see any justification for used a leaded product around patients when it hasn’t been proven they CAN’T be exposed to lead that way. Seem very irresponsible.
Thank you so much for your comment E.
Tamara
A good company doesn’t do its own research and solely rely on that. A good company participates in peer reviewed studies and research from unbiased third parties to validate their claims. I can guarantee doTerra does not do this.
Tamara has linked her certification to test these products, states the equipment she uses, has tested numerous items and cited these tests above, and follows scientific standards when testing.
Jane, I think you should probably remove your blinders and accept that doTerra at a minimum doesn’t follow the standards that most scientific communities follow when making claims or forming hypothesis. No MLM’s do, it works against their best interest to do so.
DōTERRA DOES, in fact, send ALL their essential oils through stringent third-part testing through a company called https://sourcetoyou.com/en. They have numerous medical & university studies and reports on their research and you can find all these things on their website. You can become fully educated about dōTERRA products and the company through their website. They are very transparent. https://www.doterra.com/US/en
https://www.doterra.com/US/en/about-science
DōTERRA wellness advocate & educator
my.doterra.com/luv2nspyr
Hi Micah,
Thank you for commenting. While they may test their oils, it looks like they have not thoroughly tested their diffusers (and they are publicly stating otherwise), which the focus of the considerations with these posts.
Tamara
The level of cognitive dissonance it must take to leave a link to your website on a comment for an article like this is just…astounding?
It’s like your hope is someone will go, THERE MIGHT BE LEAD IN THIS!?!?!
Well, lah dee day, sign me up, Hun
Salty doTerrorist is salty.
I am a doTERRA wellness advocate (I sell doTERRA) and I too love the company and believe in their products and hope for honesty. Tamara is not trying to ruin anything. This was all completely unbiased. I think that if the right people were contacted, doTERRA would make the necessary changes. But no need to attack this person who is helping isn’t all out by discovering safer products for us and our families 🙂
LOL! The piece your arrows are pointing to is plastic.
Hi J,
No – it’s a metal ring in the center.
T
I think they should at least acknowledge but I highly doubtful they knew the ring had lead. It looks like you messaged on Facebook….I’m sure that’s some 20 yr old customer service rep with some canned response. If you want to Lear from doTERRA don’t send a Facebook message. Contact Emily Wright or email them and ask to talk to someone. They are a pretty good company that takes responsibility where it’s due.
Yes…in the real world you’d contact the company directly and share with them your research…if there was an issue, they will follow up and follow thru.
doTERRA has around 40 million Wellness Advocates and we all desire to be associated with a company like doTERRA that helps humanity…we care…
Whom exactly did you contact?
And I personally thank you for your research as long as it is validated.. you are a brave woman and a wonderful Mom…
Hi Cathryn,
The way what I do works (since I am a busy mama with four kids – including my three youngest who each have disabilities) is that my readers send me things to test. I test those things and report the results on my blog and share them on social media. Then my readers share any concerning results with the companies (because they are the owners of the items tested). If the company wants to send me more stuff for testing I always encourage them to do that as well. Here’s a link with more information about the testing that I do: https://tamararubin.com/2017/07/subscribe-in-support-of-my-advocacy-work-you-can-become-eligible-to-send-in-a-box-of-your-things-for-testing/
Tamara
Hi. Why are you not doing a NIOSH wipe sample through an accredited lab to test for Lead?
That’s not what I do.
I do XRF testing of consumer goods. I welcome you to do that type of testing (and to share the results here.)
Thank you for commenting.
– Tamara
I have the same diffuser that you do, directly from doTERRA, and mine does not look like that…no metal in mine
Hi Liz,
I don’t actually have diffuser. I am scent-sensitive and cannot use scents in my home.
The diffusers tested belong to my readers.
– Tamara
Question. If you don’t actually have the diffusers and your readers provide the diffusers that are tested, how can you verify where they came from (i.e. not Amazon)?
Thanks.
Hi Hannah,
The owners did not buy them from Amazon. Did you read this response yet: https://tamararubin.com/2018/12/young-living-reps-have-had-a-lot-of-questions-about-my-findings-of-lead-in-their-diffusers-here-are-some-answers/
T
I have this diffuser bought in April 2018 and mine does have metal. Perhaps doTerra changed the washer after the hype on FB?
Same here. My doTerra diffuser does not have metal but plastic at the part you showed in your picture.
My diffuser does not have that either and I have doTERRA right from the company I also love that oils
Hi Joni,
I understand some diffusers do have that center disk and some do not.
Tamara
Yep Tamara. I have that diffuser from doTERRA and it looks exactly like that with a metal ring. Maybe doTERRA changed it out? I hope so. Mine is a few years old.
Joni, Angela and Liz, How old are the ones with plastic at the bottom? Is that newer than mine is? Do you remember about when you bought it?
Mine has the metal ring also. I bought mine April 2018. I’m hoping they changed it after the hype in Feb2018 on FB and I just got one of the old ones.
Hello! I contacted dōTERRA as soon as a friend sent me Tamara’s findings. I have been using the Petal diffuser for 6 years now and I got concerned. The replied to me today with their findings and included the technical report from the test (not sure how to attach the report…)
Here is the reply:”Dear Antonia,
Thank you for reaching out to us in this regard. We appreciate your dedication to dōTERRA and sincerely appreciate your patience as we reviewed your request for information and awaited scientific testing results to ensure that our information is current and accurate. As you will see from the attached report from Puzhen Life USA, LLC, dōTERRA’s Petal Diffuser is in full compliance, and even exceeds much stricter FDA Food and Drug testing standards.
We sincerely care about the overall health and wellness of all who use dōTERRA Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade® quality essential oils and value outside review of our products to ensure superior quality standards. In fact, our product team works diligently to upgrade diffusers and other offerings as new components become available or better solutions exist.
Thank you so much for sharing your concerns. We value your important contributions to dōTERRA. Please feel free to contact us with additional questions or concerns. We hope you have a great day!”
They told me that also, but they won’t send me the report….. I told them I can’t trust that word. There is no proof….
I just viewed the testing report too. Its clear. Its not possible to put photos and files in here unfortunately.
Create a read only Google doc and post the link to the doc.
I want to say how much I appreciate your dedication to sharing your information with others trying to provide the safest and healthiest environment for their children.
I did notice that doTerra said in their response that they do not sell their products on Amazon. More and more research is being done on the shocking volume of counterfeits sold via Amazon. But you didn’t really address that anywhere in this post. Did you test a diffuser that you received directly from the company?
I have actually emailed companies before buying their products on Amazon and have been told on a number of occasions that they either do not sell that particular product on Amazon or don’t sell any products on Amazon. Since we seem to agree that we should err on the side of caution (I no longer buy products on Amazon that I use in the kitchen or bathroom or toys for my children- unless I decide it’s worth my time to first confirm the authenticity with the company.)- do you confirm the authenticity of the products prior to testing them and prior to providing links to those trusting your recommendations? It’s now so easy to purchase directly from companies online- many now regularly offer free shipping deals- I didn’t know if you had considered linking directly to the companies’ websites? I realize that affiliate links are helpful for you to maintain the support you need to run your blog, but I (and probably many others) would be willing to donate to your work if you could provide direct links to direct products. I realize I have now gotten somewhat off topic, but I hadn’t seen this addressed elsewhere on your site and this particular company did mention their concerns about counterfeiting via Amazon.
Thank you so much for all of your hard work and dedication.
I feel perhaps I should mention that I do not myself use any doTerra products nor profit from them in any way. I found a glass nebulizer in which the oils only ever touch glass, the base is wood, and the interior mechanisms are your typical mix of metal and plastic (though unfortunately I do not know the lead present in those particular pieces).
Sharyn,
If you want to email a picture of the inside to me I can give you an educated guess: tamararubin@mac.com
Tamara
Sorry. I just saw that you received this from a consumer. My toddler was pulling on my arm all afternoon and I missed the part about not receiving a box from Amazon. I’m new to your website and still learning your processes. Nevertheless- my concerns about the safety of products purchased via Amazon remains. They have denied it for years and just in the past couple months have begun to admit it’s a big problem.
Thank you again for sharing your research. I’m so sorry about what prompted you to begin this journey. You certainly have risen above.
Hi Sharyn, yes – 99.9999% of what I test is stuff that my readers send me to test:
https://tamararubin.com/2017/07/subscribe-in-support-of-my-advocacy-work-you-can-become-eligible-to-send-in-a-box-of-your-things-for-testing/
Tamara
Good job with this !
Here is my perspective on the entire idea of using essential oils.
I personally grow my own crops and distill my own essential oils. In a “lead free”setup ,Copper lambic.
As for diffusion, a splurge for a glass
Diffuser/nebulizer is the way to go. Even some plastic/glass/wood composites may contain lead traces. Heck ! some plants actualy contain lead values at very low ppm.
This is due to the fact that some plants may absorb heavy metals naturally through rain ,air and soil mineral contents.
It is almost impossible for the average eo user to understand all that can be adulterated or cheaped out faked counterfeit or plane synthetics.
So beware people. If you have any dignity for yourselves, respect Tamara’s finding because the topic of lead found in a diffuser is very alarming. Its @#%& lead, that stuff can poison you before realizing and it becomes too late. Thank you this opened my eyes.
Trusting a company doesn’t make it safe.
Thank you so much for commenting!!! (and for being supportive of my work!)
– Tamara