| Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine where volatile plant materials, known as essential oils, and similar aromatic compounds from plants are used to better a person's mood, cognitive function or wellness. It is a holistic treatment that is grounded on the belief that the entire body should be treated with fragrant oils, such as lemon, peppermint, eucalyptus, rosemary. Essential oils are added to the bath or massaged into the skin, breathed in directly or dispersed around a room. Aromatherapy is used to alleviate pain, to take care of skin, alleviate tension and fatigue and invigorate the entire body. Essential oils can also have a positive effect on the mood, reduce tiredness, reduce strain and promote relaxation. When breathed in, they impact on the brain and central nervous system by stimulating the olfactory nerves. Essential oils stimulate the powerful sense of smell. Patients who have lost the sense of smell are believed to suffer from psychiatric problems - such as tension and depression - more often than others.
Essential oils are extracted from plants, flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with distinctive curative, psychological, and physiological properties which better and prevent illness. Most of them have antiseptic properties; some are antiviral, anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, antidepressant and expectorant. Besides the above mentioned characteristics, essential oils are also renowned for simulation, relaxation and digestion improvement. To derive the maximal benefit from these pleasant smelling oils, they should be extracted from natural, pure raw materials. Synthetically made oils do not work.
No wonder, aromatherapy is one of the quickest increasing alternative therapy. It is used at home, clinics and hospitals for a scope of applications: as a pain killer for females in labor pain, for cancer patients after chemotherapy, and for a speedy recovery of patients with heart problems.
Aromatherapy is already gradually getting into the mainstream. Thus, in Japan engineers are incorporating purpose-built aroma systems into new buildings. |
Article Details