Aromatherapy, a fragrant history of essential oils

This is not what I'm searching for. Written on 17-01-2011 by Kooitje

What is aromatherapy? The term aromatherapy is heard more and more often these days. It has become especially fashionable in the 'wellness' industry. Aromatherapy is, as the term 'therapy' suggests, a method of treating ailments with extracts or 'aroma's' called essential or ethereal oils distilled from plants. Read about the history of aromatherapy.

History of aromatherapy

The term 'aromatherapy' was first used by the French chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé in 1928, but the use of aromatic plants for health purposes is thousands of years old. The Aboriginals in Australia were frequent users of the various kinds of Melaleuca (a plant belonging to the Myrtle family), like niaouli, tea tree of cajeput. These essential oils are again in vogue as used in modern aromatherapy.

In India, essential oils or frangrances from plants are seen as 'prana' (breath of life). They are widely used in ayurvedic or traditional medicine, and have been for centuries because of their healing properties. The ancient Egyptians had wide knowledge of ethereal oils, which they used for balsaming their dead, for body and skin care and as a prime ingredient for their perfumes. The Egyptians passed on this knowledge to the Greeks, who in turn passed it on to the Romans, who, with their well-known bathing culture, made lavish use of oils and fragrances.

But is was the Arabs who were the forefathers of the modern ethereal oils. Around the year 1000 A.D. the renowned Arabic doctor Avicenna developed an alchemical still, called an alembic, for the production of essential oils. His basic method of distilling is still used today. In Europe, France became the pre-eminent centre for industrial extraction of oils by steam distillation. Thanks to a French chemist, René-Maurice Gattefossé, who studied ethereal oils for years, and subsequently discovered their antibacterial properties, their use became increasingly popular. In 1975 the chemist and aromatologist Pierre Franchomme introduced the term 'chemotype', or chemically distinct entity of the plant genus. The knowledge of the chemotype enabled a refinement of aromatherapy, producing purer oils with beter results. Slowly but surely the established scientific and medical world is acknowledging the many healing and beneficial properties of plant fragrances.

The scent in the plant

The essential oils are distiiled from that part of the plant where they are most concentrated. Sometimes this is from the petals or flowering tops (as with roses), sometimes from the fruit or peel (as with oranges), but also sometimes from the seeds, the leaves (eucalyptus), the wood (cedar), the bark (cinnamon), the needles (pine) or the roots (angelica). A great deal of plant material is needed to produce a relatively small amount of good quality oil, and this explains why essential oil is so expensive. For example; To make a single liter of lavender oil 150 kilos of flowering tops are needed. And if we are talking about roses, we need, believe it or not, 4000 kilos of rose petals (the equivalent of a hectare of roses!) to produce one liter of essential oil.

A few practical guidelines

Only 100 % pure and natural essential oils have a therapeutic effect.
Do not use more than three to six different essential oils at one time. Your sinuses will quickly become saturated by the multitude of fragrances. The best thing is to use only one at a time, and so really get to know a fragrance.
Store essential oils in a cool, dry and dark place. The high humidity of a bathroom is unsuitable.
Essential oils differ in colour and viscosity. Some are almost as thin as water (e.g. peppermint, rosemary) . Others are syrupy (e.g. myrrh, patchouli) Some oils are colourless, others vary from yellow to green. Older oils are often yellower and can change in fragrance.
When mixing essential oils with base oil the solution may vary from 1 to 5 %, depending on the oil and the therapeutic use. The most common ratio is 2%. This translates to 20 drops of essential oil in one 50 ml bottle of base oil.
Some essential oils have a photosensitive effect. (e,g, bergamot, lemon, mandarin). They make the skin oversensitive to sunlight and so may cause skin irritation. If using these oils be careful with exposure to the sun.
To prevent possible allergic reactions, it is recommended whenever using a new oil to test it by putting a small drop on the inside of the elbow. Generally if there is no reaction within 30 minutes it should be safe to use.