Aromatherapy Chapter II by Deborah Dolen

AROMATHERAPY - Chapter II What is Aromatherapy?

The word “Aromatherapy” is a compound Greek word made up by the words fragrance (aroma) and treatment (therapy).

Aromatherapy means 'treatment using scents'. It is a holistic treatment of caring for the body with scents that causes a psychological reaction. An example of these scents are Lavender, Lemon, Neroli and Peppermint.

Essential oils, the most potent of aromatics, are delivered in many ways including but not limited to, the bath, massage, steam inhalations, direct inhalations or are diffused to scent an entire room.

Aromatherapy is used for relaxation, stimulation, depression, pain (whether physical or psychological), for skin care, to alleviate tension, combat fatigue, and/or to invigorate the entire body, as a few primary examples. Essential oils can also affect mood, alleviate fatigue, reduce anxiety and promote relaxation. When inhaled, they work on the brain and nervous system through stimulation of the olfactory nerves. Essential oils are not the only sources to deliver 'aroma', but they are the most common.

Essential oils are aromatic essences extracted from plants, flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with distinctive therapeutic, psychological, and physiological properties, which can improve and at times prevent illness.

The story of the 'Toulouse Thieves' would be a good example of prevention. “As the bubonic plague decimated Europe in the year 1413, four thieves were captured and charged with robbing the dead and dying victims of Toulouse. When the thieves were tried, the magistrate offered leniency if they would reveal how they resisted contracting the infection as they performed their gruesome acts. The four thieves explained that they were perfumers and spice traders and told of a special concoction of aromatic herbs, including cloves and rosemary, that they rubbed on their hands, ears, and temples.” Like any good tale, the story actually has another version, and probably the more specifically true one! “During the gruesome days of the Black Death in France in 1628, the homes of the dying were being ransacked. At first the authorities did nothing, assuming that the foolish thieves would die of the plague. However the robberies continued and people began to wonder why the robbers had not become ill and died. It was then that the authorities began to pursue the thieves...to discover the secret of their immunity to the Plague. Four thieves were eventually caught and were condemned to be burned at the stake for their crimes. However the king of France offered to mitigate their sentence if they would reveal their secret in how they had been avoiding death by the plague. The thieves told all, revealing a secret blend of aromatic herbs steeped in vinegar. All four thieves were then hung. Their lasting legacy is this tonic which has powerful anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties and is still used in France today."

Note the basis of the real 'tonic' was vinegar, although it also consisted of an infusion of rosemary, thyme, sage, and lavender. Some accounts claim clove was a featured element. As you will learn later, modern day technology has shown that actual handlers of essential oils Rosemary, Basil, & Oregano did not tend to get the avian flu as it passed through, and affected others that lived with them. The 'why not' is still being studied. I dub these the 'Italian' oils because it is easier to remember and sounds like a salad dressing.

A few of the oils mentioned are extremely potent, so know your oils before you begin trying to make your own blends. “Essential oils are so potent--imagine dropping a drop of food color into a glass of water. Just one drop affects the whole glass. Well, essential oils tend to be far more potent than that." There are approximately 200 essential oils. Most of these oils have antiseptic properties; some are antiviral, anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, antidepressant and expectorant. Other properties of the essential oils which are taken advantage of in aromatherapy are their stimulation, relaxation, digestion improvement, and diuretic properties. Essential oils are even used to repel bugs.

Historically, Citronella has been touted as the 'bug' repeller, but that could be just excellent marketing by growers of Citronella. Citronella is a “Cinderella" in my lab, hardly ever used. The truth is bugs do not like most essential oils. Lemongrass smells so much better, so that is my essential oil of choice for outdoor candle making or scent. It also has the strongest 'throw' of most any essential oil. Synthetically made oils do not work, they just seem to be missing 'energy'. Aromatherapy in general, is one of the fastest growing fields in alternative medicine. It's widely used at home, clinics and hospitals for a variety of applications such as pain relief for women in labor pain, relieving pain caused by the side effects of chemotherapy undergone by cancer patients, and rehabilitation of cardiac patients. Aromatherapy is already slowly spreading into the mainstream. In Japan, engineers are incorporating aroma systems into new buildings. In one such application, the scent of lavender and rosemary is pumped into the customer area to calm down the waiting customers, while the perfumes from lemon and eucalyptus are used in the bank teller counters to keep the staff alert. There are many impressive studies on increased productivity like this which we will discuss later on. ~Revised by Deborah Dolen & Group 7.18.2008 via Wiki.