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What is Aromatherapy? | ||||
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Aromatherapy means "treatment using scents". It is a holistic treatment of caring for the body with pleasant smelling botanical oils. Aromatherapy is developed from the ancient practice of using natural plant essences to promote health and well-being. It consists of the use of pure essential oils derived from a wide range of plants.
Essential oils can affect the mood, alleviate fatigue, relieve depression and anxiety, reduce stress, relax, uplift, sedate or stimulate, and promote relaxation restoring both physical and emotional well-being.
The essential oils are aromatic essences extracted from plants, flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with distinctive therapeutic, psychological, and physiological properties, which improve and prevent illness.
There are about 150 essential oils. Most of these oils have antiseptic properties; some are anti-viral, 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.
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The appropriate oils can have powerful results, both on the body and the spirit. To get the maximum benefit from essential oils, it should be made from natural, pure raw materials. Synthetically made oils i.e. "Fragrance Oils", "Perfumes" and other artificially made substitutes for Pure Essential Oils simply do not work.
Does Aromatherapy Really Work? YES. Modern scientific research has proven the potency and healing qualities of Pure Essential Oils. Aromatherapy is one of the fastest growing fields in alternative medicine! Pure Essential Oils are prescribed in Great Britain and throughout Europe for their medicinal benefits.
Aromatherapy is widely used at home, clinics and hospitals for a variety of applications such as pain relief for women in labour pain, relieving pain caused by the side effects of the chemotherapy undergone by the cancer patients, and rehabilitation of cardiac patients.
Aromatherapy is already slowly getting 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 is used in the bank teller counters to keep the staff alert.
History Aromatherapy had been around for 6000 years or more. The Greeks, Romans, and ancient Egyptians all used aromatherapy oils. The Egyptian physicians recommended fragrant oils for bathing, massage, and for embalming their dead nearly 6000 years ago. Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, used aromatherapy baths and scented massage. He used aromatic fumigations to rid Athens of the plague.
The modern era of aromatherapy dawned in 1930 when French chemist Rene Maurice Gattefosse coined the term aromatherapy for the therapeutic use of essential oils. He was fascinated by the benefits of lavender oil in healing his burned hand without leaving any scars. He started investigating the effect of other essential oils for healing and for their psychotherapeutic benefits.
How Does Aromatherapy Work? Scientific studies have shown that essential oils contain chemical components that can exert specific effects on the mind and body.
Their chemistry is complex, but generally includes alcohols, esters, ketones, aldehydes, and terpenes. Aromatherapy works the best when it works on the mind and body simultaneously.
What Can Aromatherapy Treat? Aromatherapy is particularly effective for stress, anxiety, and psychosomatic induced problems, muscular and rheumatic pains, digestive disorders and women's problems, such as PMS, menopausal complaints and postnatal depression.
Safety Issues If used as recommended, and under the care of a qualified practitioner, aromatherapy is very safe. Please remember that essential oils are very concentrated you should not use too much.
It is essential to be wary of any allergies people have to essential oils.
Caution is particularly recommended for patients who are pregnant, have allergy, high blood pressure or epilepsy or for young children or babies.
What can Aromatherapy Treat? Aromatherapy is particularly effective for stress, anxiety, and psychosomatic induced problems, muscular and rheumatic pains, digestive disorders and women's problems, such as PMS, menopausal complaints and postnatal depression, sleep and behaviour.
Case Studies in Aromatherapy
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