The Many Uses of Aromatherapy Blends

By yogaguid on 8th October, 2009

Essential oils can be extracted from thousands of plants and herbs. They have been used for centuries to treat infectious diseases. Over the years each essential oil has been found useful for treating a specific set of ailments and illnesses. In laboratory tests they’ve been shown to inhibit the growth of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms.

The growth of aromatherapy skin care products in the marketplace has been on an upwards trend for many years. And they are used by millions of people every day all over the world. These products are produced by a distillation process which extracts the “essence” of the plant which becomes the essential oil that we buy in the health stores.

Aromatherapy blends can be used for more than treating diseases. Often, they’re used to change a person’s mood andr put him or her into a different mental state.

Can aromatherapy help cancer patients? The use of aromatherapy blends have never been preached as a procedure for treating cancer. But what some doctors and medical practitioners do recommend is using it as a method of lessening some of the side effects of cancer and cancer treatments. A lot of essential oils can positively affect moods helping to keep the patient in a positive mental attitude without resulting to prescription drugs.

One surprising thing that many people find out about aromatherapy blends is just how many of them are good for fighting insects. If you’re adverse to using chemical products on your skin or in your home, you may want to try some of the alternatives. Citronella oil is useful for keeping mosquitos away. Many people use citronella candles on picnics that extend into sundown with excellent results. You can also purchase citronella laced lotions to rub on your skin to protect against mosquitos. If you study the literature, you’ll also discover aromatherapy blends to repel moths, fleas, ticks, and many other insects.

Aromatherapy blends, unless they’re heavily diluted, can be extremely sensitive to the skin. So if you’ve just begun to use a particular product, to ensure that you don’t have a reaction to it, try a test sample on your skin first. Also, since these products are so concentrated, be very careful when using them on children.

Because of their intense concentration, when smelling aromatherapy oils, never put your nose directly over the bottle and inhale. If you do, you’ll probably temporarily overload your olfactory senses and probably get a headache. A safer way is to mimic the way that master cooks smell their dishes. Open the bottle and wave the scent towards your nose with your hand. This will give you a much better realistic indicator of what the oil will smell like in a natural setting.

Because of the popularity of aromatherapy, and the expense of real and natural essential oils, you’ll find some companies that are selling synthetic essential oils – even though they might not be advertised as such. If you are using synthetic essential oils, you are not really engaging in true aromatherapy and you will probably not get the same results.