Holistic Health Corner
Aromatherapy
Kristen A. Oberle
Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: Features
You walk into your favorite spa for a massage and the massage therapist gives you a basket of small glass bottles and says, "Pick a scented oil for your massage." You look at the different bottles and choose lavender, the one you know, and wonder what the other oils are for and why your massage therapist offers these oils? Your massage therapist explains they are aromatherapy oils and you wonder, what is aromatherapy? Why do you use aromatherapy? How is aromatherapy used? Is aromatherapy safe?
Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils for physical and emotional benefits. Essential oils can be inhaled (candles/heated oil), sprayed on fabrics or rubbed on the body for therapeutic effects. If smelled, the molecules enter the lungs and the bloodstream where it stimulates the brain's limbic system. The molecule will cause a calming or stimulating effect. If rubed on the skin, the oil is absorbed in the skin and then is carried by the blood to the various organs for the benefit. It can also work on the skin itself for an antiseptic or antibacterial effect for burns, infections and athlete's foot. Regular use of essential oils can create dramatic and lasting positive effects on a person's health. These oils can not only lift a person's mood but help with headaches, stress, anxiety, back pain, insomnia, and arthritis.
These essential oils have been used for centuries dating back to the bible era. Cleopatra, the ancient Greeks, and the Romans used these oils for medical treatments. A French chemist Rene-Maurice Gattefosse named this practice of using oils for health purposes "aromatherapie." He claimed that these oils can be used for therapeutic effects. Today in the year 2010 there are numerous aromatherapy products on the market. You can find lavender oils in candles, bath salts, body soap, room sprays and so on. However most of these products over the counter have small amounts of the therapeutic oil in them and more additives and impurities for a long shelf life. They may have a nice fragrance, but what is missing is the therapeutic effect of the particular oil. So how do we get the best benefit from these oils and how do you use them?
Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils for physical and emotional benefits. Essential oils can be inhaled (candles/heated oil), sprayed on fabrics or rubbed on the body for therapeutic effects. If smelled, the molecules enter the lungs and the bloodstream where it stimulates the brain's limbic system. The molecule will cause a calming or stimulating effect. If rubed on the skin, the oil is absorbed in the skin and then is carried by the blood to the various organs for the benefit. It can also work on the skin itself for an antiseptic or antibacterial effect for burns, infections and athlete's foot. Regular use of essential oils can create dramatic and lasting positive effects on a person's health. These oils can not only lift a person's mood but help with headaches, stress, anxiety, back pain, insomnia, and arthritis.
These essential oils have been used for centuries dating back to the bible era. Cleopatra, the ancient Greeks, and the Romans used these oils for medical treatments. A French chemist Rene-Maurice Gattefosse named this practice of using oils for health purposes "aromatherapie." He claimed that these oils can be used for therapeutic effects. Today in the year 2010 there are numerous aromatherapy products on the market. You can find lavender oils in candles, bath salts, body soap, room sprays and so on. However most of these products over the counter have small amounts of the therapeutic oil in them and more additives and impurities for a long shelf life. They may have a nice fragrance, but what is missing is the therapeutic effect of the particular oil. So how do we get the best benefit from these oils and how do you use them?
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