Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy uses plant materials and aromatic plant oils, including essential oils, and other aroma compounds for improving the psychological or physical well-being of a patient and for healing.  

Uses have included pain and anxiety reduction, enhancement of energy and short-term memory, relaxation, and reduction of eczema-induced itching.  Two basic mechanisms are offered to explain the purported effects.

• Boosting the immune system - One is the influence of aroma on the brain, especially the limbic system through the olfactory system, scents have a very relaxing effect and help invoke the parasympathetic nervous system as opposed to the sympathetic nervous system.  That in itself helps reduce anxiety and stress, and by doing this it helps to boost the immune system, which does not function well in times of anxiety and stress.
• Directly combatting pathogens – Disease is caused by pathogens, toxins, radiation and nutritional deprivation or excess.  Aromatherapy helps when the diseases is caused by pathogens.

A large number of essential oils have anti-microbial activity, as such if one has a chest infection for example, the tiny droplets inhaled may cure the infection.  In one example study, out of 21 essential oils tested, 19 oils showed antibacterial activity against four gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris) and two gram-positive bacteria Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus.  Cinnamon, clove, geranium, lemon, lime, orange and rosemary oils exhibited significant inhibitory effect.  Cinnamon, clove and lime oils were found to be inhibiting both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. [PMID: 17134518]

Thus in essence, the healing taking place may be a direct result of the combined relaxing effect of the oils, which will help to stimulate the immune system, as well as the pathogen attacking properties of the oils themselves.

History

Distilled essential oils have been employed as medicines since the invention of distillation in the eleventh century, when Avicenna isolated essential oils using steam distillation.

The use of essential oils for therapeutic, spiritual, hygienic and ritualistic purposes goes back to a number of ancient civilizations including the Chinese, Indians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.  Oils are described by Dioscorides, along with their healing properties, in his De Materia Medica, written in the first century.  For a while this knowledge was lost, but the book Aromathérapie: Les Huiles Essentielles, Hormones Végétales by René-Maurice Gattefossé, a chemist, published in 1937 helped revive interest. In 1910, Gattefossé burned a hand very badly and treated it effectively with lavender oil.  An English version was published in 1993.

A French surgeon, Jean Valnet, also pioneered the medicinal uses of essential oils, which he used as antiseptics in the treatment of wounded soldiers during World War II.

Method

The Aromatherapists uses blends of therapeutic essential oils that can be issued through topical application, massage, inhalation or water immersion to stimulate the desired response.  The modes of application of aromatherapy include:

• Aerial diffusion: for environmental fragrancing or aerial disinfection.  Aroma lamps or diffusers: an electric or candle-fueled device which volatilizes essential oils, usually mixed with water may be used here
• Direct inhalation: for respiratory infections, decongestant, expectoration as well as psychological effects.  Vaporizers may be used in addition to aroma lamps or diffusers : typically higher oil content plant based material is dried, crushed, and heated to extract and inhale the aromatic oil vapours directly.
• Topical application: for general massage, baths, compresses, therapeutic skin care.  Because essential oils are highly concentrated they can irritate the skin when used in undiluted form. Therefore, they are normally considerably diluted with a carrier oil for topical application, such as jojoba oil, olive oil, or coconut oil.

It should be noted that ‘smudging’ and smudge sticks are simply another version of this approach and there is also the possibility that the inhalation of incense achieved much the same effects and was used for much the same purpose

Observations

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• A systematic review of the effect of inhaled essential oils on sleep
• Acaricidal activity of eugenol based compounds against scabies mites
• Action of essential oils from Brazilian native and exotic medicinal species on oral biofilms
• Activity of tea tree oil and nerolidol alone or in combination against Pediculus capitis (head lice) and its eggs.
• Anatomical, phytochemical and pharmacological studies of roots of Cnicus benedictus L FULL PAPER
• Anti-Candida activity of Brazilian medicinal plants
• Antifungal activities and chemical composition of some medicinal plants
• Assessing the antibiotic potential of essential oils against Haemophilus ducreyi
• Bay leaves, juniper berries, SARS virus and Herpes
• Bioactivity of Dianthus caryophyllus, Lepidium sativum, Pimpinella anisum, and Illicium verum essential oils and their major components against the West Nile vector Culex pipiens
• Catmint and mouth disease
• Chamomile oil and herpes
• Chemical composition and efficacy of some selected plant oils against Pediculus humanus capitis in vitro.
• Chemistry, cytotoxicity and antileishmanial activity of the essential oil from Piper auritum
• Contact Toxicity and Repellency of the Essential Oil from Mentha haplocalyx Briq. against Lasioderma serricorne
• Efficacy of anise oil, dwarf-pine oil and chamomile oil against thymidine-kinase-positive and thymidine-kinase-negative herpesviruses.
• Essential oil from Citrus aurantifolia prevents ketotifen-induced weight-gain in mice
• Evaluation of Repellency Effect of Essential Oils of Carvacrol, Myrtle, Lavender and Salvia
• Evaluation of the effect of aromatherapy with Rosa damascena Mill. on postoperative pain intensity in hospitalized children
• Healing actions of essential oils from Citrus aurantium and d-limonene in the gastric mucosa: the roles of VEGF, PCNA, and COX-2 in cell proliferation
• Herb Robert, Lavender, Cloves and ear infections
• Herbs and Streptococcus pyogenes
• Lavender fragrance essential oil and the quality of sleep in postpartum women
• Limonene, a natural cyclic terpene, is an agonistic ligand for adenosine A(2A) receptors
• Limonene, a natural cyclic terpene, is an agonistic ligand for adenosine A(2A) receptors
• Limonene, citrus fruits and rheumatoid arthritis
• Marigolds, the red flour beetle and allergies
• Massage with aromatherapy: effectiveness on anxiety of users with personality disorders in psychiatric hospitalization
• Mrs Grieve on Almonds
• Mrs Grieve on Anise
• Nurses experience of aromatherapy use with dementia patients experiencing disturbed sleep patterns. An action research project
• Patent literature on mosquito repellent inventions which contain plant essential oils--a review
• Pharmaco-physio-psychologic effect of Ayurvedic oil-dripping treatment using an essential oil from Lavendula angustifolia
• Phytochemical Profile and Evaluation of the Biological Activities of Essential Oils Derived from the Greek Aromatic Plant Species Ocimum basilicum, Mentha spicata, Pimpinella anisum and Fortunella margarita
• Randomized trial of aromatherapy: Successful treatment for alopecia areata
• Repellent effectiveness of seven plant essential oils, sunflower oil and natural insecticides against horn flies on pastured dairy cows and heifers
• The additive and synergistic antimicrobial effects of select frankincense and myrrh oils--a combination from the pharaonic pharmacopoeia
• The effect of lavender oil on stress, bispectral index values, and needle insertion pain in volunteers
• The use of essential oils in veterinary ectoparasite control: a review.