Aromatherapy is a form of herbal medicine. It uses the scents in essential oils distilled from herbs, flowers and trees to improve health and vitality. Used properly, it can re-energize and rejuvenate the mind, body and spirit. Aromatherapy comes in many forms. It can be used as oils, candles, lotions and soaps.
How Is The Scented Oil Extracted From The Plants?
Many herbs are used in the production of essential oils and waters for aromatherapy. Essential oils are the aromatic compounds found in the herb. They are extracted by distillation. There are different methods of this but they are all basically the same.
The herbs are put into water which is heated until it produces steam. This releases and then carries chemicals, including the aromatic compounds. The steam is then chilled in a condenser and the material left behind is collected. Oils (which will become the Essential Oil) floats to the top of the distilled water and may be scooped off.
The distilled water part is called hydrosol. If you want to buy a herb or flower 'water' the best kind is a hydrosol as this is the by-product of aromatic distillation. Many 'waters' are essential oils added to water or alcohol and are not as good as true hydrosols.
Treat Aromatherapy With Respect!
Many people think that because the scented oils have 'only come from plants' that they can use as much as they like. Essential oils are very concentrated and are usually measured in drops. Strength wise - one drop would equal the volume amount of two cups. Ingesting one ounce of essential oil could prove fatal.
Unless you are a skilled aromatherapist, it's best to use essential oils only on the skin. Always mix the drops of oil with a 'carrier' like sweet almond oil. Undiluted essential oil can burn the skin.
How Can Anything From Plants Be So Powerful?
Our pharmacology has developed from herbal medicine. Many medications in use today are still derived from plants.
There are more than 250,000 known plant species and yet less than 1% of them have been thoroughly tested for use in medicine. A quarter of our prescription medications are derived from this tiny 1%. The list includes morphine, atropine, ephedrine, warfarin, aspirin, digoxin, taxol, hyoscine - so plants are pretty powerful and care should be taken. Isn't it amazing to think what other helpful medications are out there and as yet undiscovered!
Growing Herbs For Aromatherapy
A large area of crops is needed to grow herbs for aromatherapy purposes. This is because when calculated on the weight of fresh herbs distilled, plants only yield between 0.01% and 2% of essential oil. So a lot needs to be grown and distilled to produce reasonable amounts of oil.
To produce essential oils, the requirements are the plants, good soil (often organic), irrigation, reasonable shelter from harsh weather, harvesting and distillation equipment.
Hints And Tips On Essential Oils
1. Always read and heed advice on the labels on essential oils.
2. Keep them out of the sight and reach of children.
3. Never put essential oils near the eyes.
4. Always dilute with carrier oil before putting on the skin - or it will burn!
5. Essential oils are for external application only. Don't ever ingest them.
6. As with any new skin preparation, test the oil first. Dilute a drop of essential oil with carrier oil and apply to the skin on your inner arm. If there is any irritation, discontinue its use.
7. Many herbs should be avoided by pregnant women and by people suffering some health conditions. Always check before use.
Aromatherapy is an alternative health science that is based on a more holistic approach to dealing with health ailments or simply to stimulate the mind and body. It is a totally natural, non-invasive treatment. Aromatherapy treatments help to heal the person as a whole as opposed to just isolating the disease or illness and dealing with that only.
Aromatherapy treatments involve the use of naturally extracted aromatic plant extracts. Aromatherapy essential oils and essences seek to stimulate and enhance the body's own healing process so that the body is capable of regulating, maintaining and healing itself. Aromatherapy treatments also work on many different levels, including emotional and physical levels, to bring relief.
There are a vast array of conditions for which aromatherapy treatments provide relief and beneficial results. These include
-treating skincare complaints such as dermatitis, acne, eczema, psoriasis, cellulite, varicose veins and stretch marks; -promote emotional healing such as for depression, hysteria, lack of concentration, panic attacks; -calms the mind for insomnia and moodiness; -treat burns, bruises, sprains and strains, asthma, bronchitis, flu, muscular aches and pains, skin inflammation; -and aids digestive problems such as constipation.
An essential oil is one which is made by distilling it with either water or steam or by processing it mechanically (especially in the case of citrus rinds) or by dry distillation of natural materials. After the distillation process, the essential oil becomes physically separated from the water phase.
Essential oils are not greasy and many of them do not leave oily marks behind. These oils are very easily penetrated through the skin and get absorbed into the bloodstream where they will be absorbed at different rates throughout the body.
If used incorrectly, they can do more harm than good as essential oils tend to be highly concentrated extracts which are obtained by distilling a variety of plant materials such as flowers, leaves, fruit peel, wood, grasses etc.
Hence, if you are seeking aromatherapy treatments, you must ensure you are consulting with a qualified aromatherapy practitioner as using essential oils is a precise and learned science. You want to ensure the highest quality oils and in the right combination to work its best effect on you.
For a start, you can simply buy some aromatherapy candles to burn in your room. So the next time if you are feeling down and need some relief, ingest some aromatherapy scent, relax and you will begin to feel much better.
Both Rebecca Prescott & Evelyn Lim are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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