What is aromatherapy and
what are essential oils? How are they used?
More
than 6,000 years ago, The Greeks, Romans, and Ancient Egyptians used
Essential oils for bathing, body massages, and for embalming their
dead. The modern era of aromatherapy started in 1930 when French chemist
Rene Maurice Gattefosse used the term aromatherapy for the therapeutic
use of essential oils. Fascinated by the benefits of Lavender oil,
Gattefosse used it on his burned hand leaving it with no scars. Gattefosse
then started studying other essential
oils for their psychotherapeutic
benefits. Later, during World War ll French army surgeon Dr. Jean
Valnet used essential oils as antiseptics. Madame Marguerite Maury
elevated aromatherapy as a holistic therapy. She started prescribing
essential oils as a remedy for her patients. She also was credited
with the modern use of essential oils in massage.
Essential Oils are
aromatic essences extracted from roots, tree bark, fruit peels
or flower petals. Combined in different ways, these highly concentrated
oils contain potent natural compounds that can be used as medicine,
for beauty and pampering, for perfumes and aromatherapy, and for household
purposes such as cleaning, polishing and disinfecting.
Most of these oils have antiseptic properties; antiviral, anti-inflammatory,
pain-relieving, antidepressant and expectorant.
Other aromatherapy
uses are for their stimulation, relaxation, improving digestion and
diuretic properties. To benefit from these oils they should be pure,
natural made from raw materials. Synthetically made oils do not work.
Aromatherapy is one of the fastest growing fields in alternative medicine.
Widely used in clinics, homes and hospitals for relief of pain and
rehabilitation. Not only used for pain relief, Essential Oils also
has a healing effect on mind and spirit. Once inhaled, Essential Oils
can promote calmness, hormonal balance, stress relief, rejuvenation
and much more.
