Learn and discover how aromatherapy came to be including how ecah nation contributed to the history of the alternative medicine.

Aromatherapy has been around for a very long time; it arguably began in Egypt, several thousand years ago, when the Egyptians used various plant oils for medicinal, fragrant, cosmetic, and spiritual uses. This marked the beginning of the story and

history of aromatherapy. Many of the substances used to preserve body parts during the mummifying process are used for healing in aromatherapy today.

The Greeks had several aromatherapy-type remedies for illnesses as well. The most well-known of these was megaleion, which was a myrrh-based lotion used for its anti inflammatory effects and wound healing potential. The history of aromatherapy was not greatly developed during the time of the Romans; whilst the Romans did perfect a distilling technique, they preferred using it to develop floral waters rather than essential oils.

By the twelfth century in history, lavender was well-known as a healing agent, and was commonly distilled for medicinal purposes. In the fourteenth century, an interesting phenomenon was noted: perfumers seemed much less susceptible to the Black Death than those around them. What caused this? Could it be their constant contact with potent fragrances that helped them? This opened a whole new window of speculation about the preventative and healing powers of plants.

Perhaps the greatest advance of aromatherapy history came in the 1900’s with the French chemist and scholar Ren Maurice Gattefoss, who is sometimes referred to as "the father of modern aromatherapy". When Gattefoss had the misfortune to burn his hand whilst working in a perfume plant, he thrust his hand into the nearest cooling liquid, which happened to be a bucket of lavender oil. He was amazed at how quickly the burn healed and how little scarring occurred. From then on, Gattefoss was devoted to researching essential oils. In fact, he was even the one who coined the term aromatherapie in 1928 for the title of one of his books!. 

Aromatherapy history helped us hone in the properties of this selective alternative medicine and we continue to develop further even today; with modern equipment, distilling is even easier and quicker than ever, our knowledge of this branch of healing continues to grow. Whilst some scientists are skeptical as to the actual healing merits of aromatherapy, many people have experienced recoveries as a result of this interesting science, and its following continues to grow.

Aromathrapy’s Anti-Anxiety Effects 

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The Benefits Of Aromatherapy And Essential Oils

Learn how aromatherapy can help you heal and feel better

The practice of using volatile plant oils to enhance the psychological and physical aspects of an individual is called aromatherapy. The invigorating or uplifting scents of this process relies on elements, such as essential oils of well-known plants and flowers to provide an array of health benefits when used in the proper manner. To date, there is close to 100 essential oils used in aromatherapy techniques.

Essential oils are extracted from herbs, plants, fruits, and flowers, which work once they come in contact with the blood stream. Aromatherapy is also seen when an individual spreads a scented lotion or cream on their body and pleasantly takes in the enveloping scent. Additionally, one should take notice that perfume oils (such as "fragrance oils") are not in the same category as essential oils, as these options contain man-made chemicals that do more harm than good.

The Benefits of Aromatherapy

As the aromatherapy essential oils are inhaled into the lungs, a wide-range of benefits that affect the brain and body have been noted for many centuries. Reactions are triggered in the brain, while physical changes take place to ease the symptoms of many different common ailments - on of the reactions is the connection. Many people seeking natural approaches to achieve an improved status in health consider aromatherapy. Instead of relying on caffeine and prescribed medications, aromatherapy provides a treatment that carries very few side effects. A host of medical concerns are treated using aromatherapy, such as PMS cramps, high blood pressure, congestion, dandruff, blemished skin, minor aches and joint pains, tension headaches, insomnia, and a failing immune system.

Aromatherapy is also convenient, as it is a practice easily accomplished within the comforts of your own home. While professionals in the massage or spa business offer pricey aromatherapy sessions, those sticking to a budget can still benefit from the same techniques, but within their own controlled setting. For example, a simple scented candle is enough to send a person into the arms of relaxation.
                                              

Common Aromatherapy Scents

Depending on what you wish to achieve in aromatherapy, you will encounter a variety of selections that treat ailments spanning from bronchial coughs to stress. Accomplishing a state of relaxation, rejuvenation, and invigoration is often associated with aromatherapy oils of sage, lavender, and sandalwood. These selections contain components that possess the ability to ease the signs and symptoms of tension, anxiety, and insomnia.

To intensify the sense of wellbeing, essential oils are sometimes combined with therapeutic massage in order to enhance the overall process. As the oils are absorbed through the skin, they come in contact with the circulation of blood, which speeds up the effectiveness of the aromatherapy oils while still being absorbed through the nose.

Studies have even revealed that lavender can slow down the heart rate and lower blood pressure. It also works wonders by relieving muscle tension. Chamomile also allows one to relax. Encouraging a sense of motivation is associated with the essential oils of pine, mint, or citrus. When using candles and sprays that contain essential oils of lime, orange, lemon, or grapefruit - an uplifted spirit is the result. Peppermint and eucalyptus are known to create stimulation within the body. Aromatherapy has also been used to set the mood in the bedroom, as gardenia, sandalwood, and jasmine bring romantic scents into the air.

Overall, an individual can take advantage of aromatherapy by seeking the lotions, candles, gels, bath salts, room sprays, inhalants, and vaporizers that utilize the essential oils that correspond to their concerns.

By Lee Dobbins Published: 10/20/2007

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Take advantage of the power of nature, using a simple warm bath infused with ancient remedies - natural bath salts, essential aromatherapy oils, and candle light - to nurture, heal, and soothe your body, mind, and spirit.

Stress  Relief and Relaxation with Natursoaps, aromatherapy oils, and bath saltsal Bath Salts and Aromatherapy Oils

The therapeutic qualities of seawater have been known for centuries. Hippocrates wrote about the healing affects it had on the injured hands of fishermen. The seawater reduced infection, and patients treated with seawater found that it also promoted pain relief.

Seawater is salty, and when the water is removed, we get these natural seawater ingredients in concentrated form - we call it ’sea salt’.

Not All Bath Salts Are The Same

Chemical companies start with sea salt as a raw ingredient to make other chemicals. They remove ‘impurities’ - other minerals and dried sea plants - from sea salt, refining the salt and removing important components along the way. At some point, after many important minerals have already been removed, they package it and sell it. They call it ‘bath salt’.

As minerals are removed from sea salt, the salt becomes more refined. Nearly 80 minerals are removed from sea salt to create other products. Each step along the way, minerals of natural sea salt are removed until only one is left - a pure crystal of sodium chloride.

This final crystal happens to be white and tastes salty, and we call it ‘table salt’.

The reason table salt is not used for baths is simply because it is so concentrated; it is very harsh to our skin.

(For these same reasons, table salt is also harsh inside our bodies, containing almost none of the nutrients we used to get from real salt. That is why we should buy sea salt to flavor our food, as well - all the ingredients we need for health are still there!)

The Best Bath Salts (and food salts) are All-Natural!

Natural sea salts come in a variety of colors - gray, brown, green, pink and other colors. These colors come from the minerals and other ingredients in that particular sea as the water evaporated over the centuries.

The natural buffers and other minerals contained sea salts allow us to feel the gentle ‘balance of the sea’, and the softness of warm bath water with sea salts is good for our skin.

One of the best sources of natural bath salts is the Bay of Brittany, France. This area is well known for its great wealth of algae, plankton, and rich sea life. Salt in this area is sun dried and hand harvested by the Celtic people, using ages-old harvesting methods that preserve the vital elements.

This salt is rich in 84 vital minerals, organic iodine compounds, microscopic algae and phytoplankton, and other trace elements. These natural salts are beneficial to us in ways we don’t understand and cannot measure. They are simply good for us.

Sea salt, when added to bath water, is like a seawater kit!

Sea salts in a bath create an effective therapy for many skin problems. People with psoriasis, eczema and other dry skin conditions can benefit from warm seawater therapy. Acne can improve with this as well - baths of sea salt help clean pores and detoxify the body.

(Detoxify means, the minerals in the sea salt bath pulls the waste materials out of the pores - such as the salty-sweaty stuff that we eliminate through the skin during the day - and the bath salts neutralize these things, leaving your skin fresh and really clean.)

In other words, a sea salt bath creates an environment that can help remove waste materials from the body, a comfortable and soothing way to detoxify our bodies.

And when natural herbs and essential aromatherapy oils are added, a bath with sea salts can improve our sense of well-being, too!

A Recipe For Relaxing

Start with natural sea salts from the Bay of Brittany. Add natural plant-based aromatherapy oils - use fragrances from essential oils of eucalyptus, cyprus, and peppermint. Sprinkle in organic herbal extracts of chamomile and calendula. Mix this in a warm tub, light a candle or two, turn off the lights, and climb in.

Then, just soak, relax, and breathe. Seawater from natural bath salts with herbal aromatherapy oils. Speak quietly to yourself, out loud, with some positive language. Say things like "I am okay", and "It is all good". Positive affirmations can be very helpful.

Imagine how this could improve your life, just doing this simple routine for yourself, on a regular basis!Take advantage of the power of nature, a simple warm bath infused with ancient remedies - seawater, aromatherapy, and candle light - to nurture, heal, and soothe your body, mind, and spirit.

 You are worth it!

Dr. McIntosh has had a wellness-based practice for 30 years. He and Lisa, his wife, live in Las Vegas. They teach women a safe, natural approach to osteoporosis, showing women how to stop and reverse bone loss without drugs. They teach women how to use simple, natural methods and products such as natural herbal  to reconnect with themselves for better health and wellness.

By Martin McIntosh Published: 12/11/2006

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                              Aromatherapy  Herbs

Aromatherapy or scent-based remedy for certain ailments is an authentic science that has a long association with royalty and the crme de la crme of society. The use of essential oil herbs in the treatment, makes it unique.

Aromatherapy herbs is an alternative medicine application that involves the use of volatile liquid plant material. The extracted essence or essential oils and other strong scented compounds from plants are used as mood and health

enhancers and pain relievers. The chemical compositions of the essential oils usually recommended in aromatherapy differ from the herbal products also widely sold all over the world. The difference is due to the exclusive distillation process used in aromatherapy, which retains or extracts only the lighter phyto-molecules present in the base material. Aromatherapy essential oils are potent with sesquiterpenes, esters, monoterpenes, hydrocarbons and organic sulfides.

You can prepare a great aromatherapy gift basket for someone you love and enjoy indulging in - your mother, wife, hsuband, son, daughter, grandparent or even yourself. Yes, why not! When buying Christmas or Easter gifts for the family, put yourself on the budget too and indulge. You need to know what goes into effective aromatherapy, to put together a great gift basket. When conducting research and marketing for the aromatherapy products, it is essential to know that aromatherapy is a generic term applied commonly to traditions that use essential oils, either alone or in combination, with alternative medical practices. The therapy is also associated with spiritual beliefs. Not all medical treatment involving the use of such scents are included in the term ‘aromatherapy’.
Your aromatherapy gift basket should include one or many fragrant oils, like eucalyptus or grapefruit oil. These oils are also referred to as solvent extractions. There are ‘absolutes’ that are essence oils extracted from flowers and delicate plant tissues. Absolutes also include the essences of fragrant butters and enfleurage pommades. There are ‘phytoncides’ or voltile organic compounds that kill microbes. Among the variety of phytoncides available, ‘allium’ are not desirable due to their disagreeable odors. Then, you could include hydrosols, the aqueous by products. They also have culinary uses and are great skin care options. The common hydrosols are rose, chamomile and lemon.

Your aromatherapy gift basket could also include infusions or aqueous extracts of plants and carrier oils that are used to dilute essential oils for use on sensitive skin. You could make your gift basket special by including basil for sharpening concentration, getting rid of depression and migraines. However, if you are gifting the basket to someone pregnant, then you should leave out the basil oil because of the emmenagogue chemotypes present in it. Bergamot is a great oil to include and is very popular too. It makes an excellent insect repellent and the recipient of the gift basket will definitely bless you. The sharp and spicy aroma of black pepper should be included ina basket for your grandparents. It stimulates blood circulation and eases muscular aches and pains.

You can also consider geranium oil, which is an astringent, antiseptic and a diuretic. If you are gifting the absket to your spouse, you could get a little bold and include extract of jasmine, rose, sandalwood or ylang-ylang, which are used as aphrodisiacs. In the case of the aromatherapy gift basket going out to someone with children, inlcude lavender oil. It is a good antiseptic and soothes cuts and burns, while calming the person. Lavender extract also eases headaches and migraines. Considering lemon oil is also wise. It serves as an anti-stress agent. Tea tree oil and thyme oil can be considered as part of the gift basket too. Tea tree oil is used externally as an antifungal, antiviral, antimicrobial, antiparasitic and antiseptic.

If you are planning to gift the aromatherapy gift basket to a friend who has a history of sinus, them including yarrow oil is a good idea. It helps to relieve cold and reduces the resultant joint inflammation. Your aromatherapy gift basket should also include cotton swabs and cotton balls. The essential oils accompanied with a brief hand-written description on the uses of each speak volumes for the intent. Depending on your budget, you could indulge in one, two or an assortment of the essential oils easily available. There are a number of online resources that even market baskets that can be customized by you.

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Aromatherapy Massage Oils

Aromatherapy massage oils are oils that have been extracted from flowers and plants to provide us with healing and energy.

History of Aromatherapy

The word "Aromatherapy" can be divided into two words, "aroma" meaning fragrance and "therapy" meaning treatment. Flowers, plants and their essences have been used for relaxation, healing and energy for as far back as 18,000 B.C.

Aromatherapy is reputed to be at least 6000 years old and was used by the ancient civilizations of India, Egypt and China. The Egyptians used the method of infusion to extract the oils from aromatic plants that were used for medicinal, cosmetic and embalming purposes.

It is estimated that the Chinese were also using some form of aromatics at about the same time as the Egyptians. The oldest surviving medical book that dates back to 2700 B.C. contains information on about 300 plants. The Chinese burned aromatic wood and incense to show respect to God. Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicine that has been practiced for more than 3000 years incorporates aromatic massage as one of its main aspects.

Slowly but surely the knowledge of essential oils spread far and wide. Traders, physicians, chemists and doctors all learnt the importance of essential oils. Experiments were carried out to provide us with aromatherapy, as we know it today.

Using essential oils stimulates the mind and body. Each essential oil contains properties that can have subtle effects on the mind, body and emotion.

Benefits of Aromatherapy:

• The oils when applied to the body are believed to aid in health and beauty.
• When essential oils are inhaled correctly into the lungs they offer psychological and physical benefits. The aroma of the natural essential oil stimulates the brain to trigger a reaction and the natural constituents of the essential oils when inhaled provide physical benefits.
• Aromatherapy treatment is also used to help cancer patients dealing with chemotherapy, depression, anxiety, tension and sleep.
• Apart from the benefits referred to above, essential oils also act as a natural repellent and pesticide.

Names of a few essential oils with their properties:

Bergamot
This oil is used in clinics to treat depression. Bergamot relaxes the brain when sniffed. It is cooling, refreshing and calming. It helps in insomnia, releases stress and helps to deal with anxiety.

Cardamom
Cardamom is fresh and spicy. It encourages concentration, direction, straightforwardness, confidence and courage.

Cypress
Cypress is said to stimulate skin circulation, therefore it is used in massage blends to tone the muscles of the body. It is also very useful for cellulite, sore throat, varicose veins, muscle cramps, rheumatism, arthritis, stress and nervous tension.

Eucalyptus Lemon
A soothing and calming oil with a strong sedative effect, eucalyptus lemon is used for muscle and joint aches, it is anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic. Apart from this, it is also a powerful antiseptic, used for athletes foot, and fungal infections. It is useful to use for a massage when a client is on the verge of getting a cold.

Fennel Sweet
Fennel sweet has a scent that is warm and slightly sweet. It is used for digestive, nausea and colic complaints. This oil also helps to keep the body and mind calm and free of stress and tension. This oil is best avoided in pregnancy.

Germanium
This essential oil is helpful for anxiety and stress relief. It balances female energy and hormones. It is oil that is wonderful for skin care, menopause, pre-menstrual syndrome and uplifting.

Helichrysum
This oil is one of the most ancient and valuable. It opens the heart and connects the body and spirit. Helichrysum is used for healing scar tissue, old or new. It is also very effective for joint pains associated with rheumatoid arthritis. This oil is also anti-inflammatory with analgesic and pain reducing effects.

Jasmine Sambac
Jasmine is an antidepressant and aphrodisiac. Romantic and sensual, this oil bolsters confidence and optimism. It is helpful for anxiety, fear and panic.

Peppermint
Peppermint is used for a host of problems like nausea, indigestion, headaches, liver problems and inflammation. Since peppermint is anti-spasmodic, it is used in massage for sports injuries. It is stimulating to the mind and provides mental concentration and memory. Pregnant women in their 1st trimester, small children and those with high blood pressure should avoid peppermint.

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