What’s the difference with a fragrance ?
Why do essential oils work?
.
I sometimes feel frustrated when I see that essential oils are commonly regarded as a hippy thing that smells good. They are way more than that, and there is scientific evidence to support their strong therapeutic effect.
.
A fragrance is synthetic, by the way. No benefit at all, and they can even be harmful and hurt your skin or create imbalance in your endocrine system (hormones)
.
When you see the GCMS for an essential oil (gas chromatography / mass spectrometry, basically the chemical identity of the oil), we see names like the one above, 1.8 cineole. This molecule from the oxides family can be found in high amount in eucalyptus species, also in rosemary (chemotype cineole), laurel, niaouli. It is very beneficial to the respiratory system, helps relive congestion and clear airways, excellent to get rid of seasonal cold viruses.
.
Another example? Chamazulene. This wonderful molecule from the sesquiterpene family (derived from the sesquiterpene matricin during the steam distillation process) is a very strong anti-inflammatory. It can be found in yarrow and German chamomile. It it easily identified by its dark blue color. Chamazulene is very helpful to soothe any type of skin irritation or dermatitis. I recently used yarrow to help reduce nerve inflammation from my sciatica.
.
One more for the fun: linalol! A wonderful monoterpene alcohol. It has analgesic, antibacterial and sedative properties. Lavender, clary sage and petitgrain contain a significant amount of it. Very useful to reduce pain, and promote sleep and relaxation.
.
Aromatic plants contain much more than these three compounds (and I’m not even getting into non-aromatic plants!) They are real medicine from nature. You can even be using them without being aware of it! Are you using tiger balm or Vicks vaporub? There you go. Vicks contains eucalyptus oil, and isolated camphor and menthol, molecules that are naturally present in camphor essential oil and peppermint essential oil.
.
Aromatherapy is much more than just diffusing or spraying good-smelling stuff for fun. It’s a real science, and it help thousands of people everyday.