Monday, 21 June 2010

Nature's healing Power!

The healing properties of essential oils are many, varied and extremely effective. The list of plants providing these healing essential oils is almost endless. Here is just a small handful:

- Clove bud or lemongrass for numbing pain
- Chamomile or geranium for anti-inflammatory action
- Cinnamon or ginger for relieving pain by producing heat
- Lemon eucalyptus or lemon verbena for relieving pain through relaxation
- Sandalwood or tangerine for inducing sleep
- Peppermint or basil to inhale for headaches
- Marjoram or neroli to relieve stress
- Angelica or bergamot for depression
- Cardamom or jasmine to stimulate and make you alert
- Ylang ylang or rose to lower high blood pressure
- Thyme or garlic for powerful antibacterial agents
- Bay rum or geranium lavender for more gentle antibacterial oils
- Juniper or Melissa for treating viral infections

Lavender is the most popular of plants for its healing properties. It is a natural analgesic, anti depressant and anti inflammatory agent. Lavender originated in the Mediterranean basin but because of its fragrance and medicinal benefits, it has moved with migrating people and is now found worldwide. Lavender oil is the most important medical component of the plant and contains several distinct chemicals with healing properties that complement one another. It is one of the few essential oils that can be applied directly to the skin undiluted but should never be taken internally.

The most common way in which essential oils enter the body is through the nose and the skin. Oils absorbed through skin pores and hair follicles enter the bloodstream and circulate throughout the body. Because you smell the fragrances as the oil is rubbed on your skin, you can often benefit from both inhalation and the topical administration.

Smells are very important in our lives - they so often trigger memories of events in the past that we had almost forgotten. In addition, smells can initiate different physiological responses that can go so far as to affect our entire body and mental outlook and those healing properties in essential oils include the different smells produced.

The cost of making essentials oils is high, so most commercial product fragrances do not use the genuine article but rather those that are chemically synthesized. They might smell like the real thing but they will not have the healing properties - quite the reverse as many of the chemicals used may even be harmful by causing an allergic reaction.

Two treatment therapies that use essential oils for their healing properties are:

- Psycho Aromatherapy where essential oils are used to either stimulate or relax the brain. Some oils can have calming and tranquilizing effects while others are energizing. These oils can relieve depression, stress and anxiety and promote a general feeling of well being.

- Therapeutic Aromatherapy where essential oils treat medical conditions.

Whatever condition you might be suffering from, there may well be a healing natural oil product to treat it. These products are made from essential oils with all the healing properties that they bring. Such products are specially formulated to target a specific condition so there is no hit and miss. Essential oils are highly complex mixtures of often hundreds of individual aroma compounds so research, knowledge and experience are needed to get the perfect mix.

Importantly, the healing properties of essential oils have tremendous potential to reduce our reliance on pharmaceuticals with their synthetic ingredients and adverse side effects.

Try putting a few drops of pure lavender essential oil in a small cup of bicarbonate of soda(Naturally deodorising, neutralising odours)and leave to dry for a few 24- 48 hours. sprinkle on carpet and vacuum(viola you get a clean carpet and the scent Provence will linger for days!

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