Aromatherapy Course

Additional Details

Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine in which a volatile liquid plant material or any other aromatic compound derived from plants known as essential oils are used to treat or prevent ailments.

The term aromatherapy is used freely in any tradition that involves essential oils combined with any other alternative medicinal practices and mystic beliefs. More popularly, it refers to the kind of massage and spa that uses essential oils for its therapeutic capabilities. Aromatherapy is also used to refer to essential oil products whether as dietary supplement or for topical application. Most of these use essential oils in their purest forms.

Essential oils

Essential oils differ from other herbal products in terms of chemical composition. Each undergoes a process of distillation to extract merely lighter phytomolecules. Apparently, there are several sources of essential oils. One is fragrant oils extracted from the plant through steam distillation, such as eucalyptus oil, and the other is through the process of expression such as in grapefruit oil. Another source of essential oil is through absolutes. It is when fragrant oils are extracted from the flower tissue by means of a solvent such as in rose absolute. Volatile organic compounds in plants that are known to kill microbes are also used as essential oil. These compounds that are extracted are called phytoncides.

The by-product of distillation is also considered as essential oils. Herbal distillates or hydrosols, the term given to these essential oils, can be used in cooking, topical application as well as dietary supplements. The most common essential oils of this kind are rose, lemon balm, and chamomile.

Another common extraction process used for essential oils is infusion which is somewhat comparable to the process used in most botanical plants. Other essential oils are also obtained from carrier oils or the natural extraction of oily plant base triacylglycerides. These types are mostly used on the skin such as sweet almond oil.

Methods of application

Aromatherapy is applied in many ways, each infuses a certain effect. Aerial diffusion is one of the most common methods of application for aromatherapy, expectedly, since its relaxing value is obtained through the olfactory system. Having mentioned that, direct inhalation may also be considered as a common use for aromatherapy. This is usually done for respiratory disinfection, decongestion and expectoration. This method is also done to relieve stress.

In most cases, aromatherapy is used for topical application especially when done in coordination with other alternative therapies such as massages, baths, compresses and therapeutic skin treatments

The notion behind aromatherapy lies in the fragrance’s effects on the brain, more specifically, the limbic system which is connected to the olfactory system. Although many health practitioners are considering the direct pharmacological effects of essential oils, the effectiveness of aromatherapy is yet to be proven. Some clinical studies, however, show the positive effects of aromatherapy used in massage.

Aromatherapy originated in france. French health practitioners incorporate the system into modern medicine. In fact, some essential oils are administered by a physician and are regulated as prescription drugs.

French health practitioners have a specialized method to decide which essential oil to prescribe. This technique is called aromatogram. The doctor will culture a sample of the patient’s infected tissue or any secretion from the patient if applicable. The growing culture shall be divided among petri dishes with agar solution. Different essential oils shall be vaccinated on each petri dish to find out which among them is more effective in targeting the strain of microorganism that has infected the tissue.