Everything You Should Know About Aromatherapy
Fact Checked By Skin Formulations
| May 26, 2022
Aromatherapy has been around as a holistic well-being treatment since ancient times. With the benefits of this research-acclaimed therapy, one can experience a wholesome remedy for their physical, emotional, and psychological well-being using essential oils.
Back in 980 to 137 A.D., Avicenna, a prominent Asian physician, discovered and wrote about the advantages of this therapy. Since then, essential oils for both perfumery and medicine became more popular, particularly during the Middle Ages.
Essential oils were used in distinct ways to aid treatments and prevent infectious diseases and other harmful illnesses. Some of the more well-known plant oils back then were lavender, rose, sage, and rosemary.
Even during wartime, aromatic oils were used to treat ill and wounded soldiers and also used for more holistic therapy.
Natural Oils and Their Benefits
Although oils were primarily used for medicinal treatments, the effectiveness of natural oils isn’t limited to that. They are also used to promote other aspects of health, such as uplifting one’s mood or inducing a deep state of relaxation.
Mainly used in massage, natural essential oils also enhance a person’s inner emotions, making it a holistic therapy. They can even be used for inhalation and topical applications. Moreover, they’re widely available, and many of them are already ready to use.
Some examples of the most commonly used essential oils and their benefits are:
- Citronella oil – This is usually commercially-produced and bought at affordable prices from stores. Citronella oil is popularly used to freshen room air and eliminate insects such as mosquitoes in the home.
- Jasmine oil – This is a fragrant therapy oil that can help relieve depression and is impressive for healing oral infections. Jasmine oil is widely known as a stimulant for sexual activities.
- Lavender oil – This is a typical favorite scent in aromatherapy. Lavender oil is often used in the immediate treatment of scars and is also an antiseptic.
- Thyme essential oil – This oil can bring relaxation in fatigued or nervous people. Thyme is known to relieve stress and is usually included in classic teas.
Use of Essential Oils
Essential oils have many uses – from aromatherapy to massages. You can even blend them, allowing you to maximize their effects. There are plenty of recipes online that provide information about the best combinations.
To help you understand their benefits more, check out their uses below.
1. Vaporization
Essential oils can be placed in oil diffusers or burners to achieve the following in your room to fresh and purified air, repel insects, especially mosquitoes, act as a mood enhancer, and create a calming environment
To vaporize essential oils, you need to put in five drops of your preferred oil in water and use an oil burner to heat it for a maximum of 30 minutes.
2. Body Massage
Massaging with essential oils is distinct for relieving muscles and joints,
skin nourishing, and relaxing the mind and body
For a good body massage, most essential oils are blended with carrier oils, usually grapeseed. Putting 1-3 drops of your preferred essential oil and mixing them with 5 ml carrier oil is the general ratio.
However, it may change depending on the oil used and just how strong you want the effects to be.
3. Bath and Shower
Soaking in a warm bath with mint or citrus oils is a sure way to uplift your mood and relax your mind. A blend of 15-20 ml of carrier and the essential oil is enough for a nice bath before sleep.
However, it’s advised to be cautious when adding these oils to your bath regimen because they may cause skin irritation or allergic reactions.
4. Beauty
Depending on skin type and condition, essential oils used for beauty care are often found in masks, toners, face and body creams, and lotions. You can even mix your own at home using your essential oil of choice.
5. Perfumes
Natural oils carry unique signature scents. As such, they’re popular additions to perfumes. That said, fragrances are the best way to get the long-lasting aroma of your favorite essential oils. They have the bonus of uplifting your mood and boosting your energy levels while you’re on-the-go.
6. Room Sprays and for Cleaning
Essential oils are also popular additions to room sprays. However, they don’t just freshen up rooms; they also help clean a room due to their antiseptic and antibacterial properties. For example, zesty scents aren’t just great for creating a fresh and energizing ambiance. They are also great at purifying the air inside. Some examples of these oils are lavender and lemon oils.
Precautions
When using essential oils, you must be careful as they can be harmful to those who have skin conditions. Like with anything, you need to carefully check for any potential allergic reactions before applying essential oils to your skin.
Checking for allergies or hypersensitivity to other ingredients is a must. Following aromatherapy experts’ advice before using any essential oil is also recommended.
Best Recipes used for Essential Oils
1. Basic Essential Oil Blend for Balance
Mixing ten drops of Mandarin, eight drops from lavender, seven drops from Clary Sage, and five drops of Marjoram can be perfect for a balancing aroma.
The soothing fragrant blend induces a pleasant mood in a room of people but must also be used cautiously.
2. Oil Diffusion for Depressed People
A blend of 1 drop of lavender, one drop of Ylang-Ylang, and three drops of Mandarin can alleviate a troubled mind and symptoms of depression.
Generally, multiply the blend in 4 parts to your diffuser. However, ensure that you’re careful as some essential oils can be incompatible with diffusers, such as citrus oils.
Conclusion
Aromatherapy has been around since the old times and is backed by research for its incredible benefits. Using them for medicinal and therapeutic purposes can give your mind and body a holistic experience.
However, you must be cautious when using essential oils because they can cause allergic reactions and skin irritations to some people, especially those with sensitive skins.
Deprecated: Function WP_Query was called with an argument that is deprecated since version 3.1.0!
caller_get_posts is deprecated. Use ignore_sticky_posts instead. in /home/healthwebmagazin/skinformulations.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 5737
