About Aromatherapy
by Murari Brian Healy

Aromatherapy (or essential oil therapy) is the therapeutic use of natural plant essences to impact postive change in an individual's physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. The active ingredients of various plant parts (leaves, flowers, bark, roots, etc.) are highly concentrated and extracted through various methods of distillation - a practice believed to date back to the ancient Egyptians and Greeks and later refined by the French. In fact, it is believed that essential oils played a major role in the still mystifying mummification process. In ancient times essential oils were used medicinally as well, much in the way that pharmaceuticals are used in our society today.

Some essential oils are extremely rare and expensive due the the minute traces of active ingredients that must be extracted from the plant parts and the precision required in the harvesting and processing of the raw herbal materials. For instance, approximately one ton of rose petals are required to produce only a half gallon of rose essential oil. At the time this article was written pure, organic essential oil of rose was retailing for approximately $450 US for one ounce! Unfortunately, this has led to the prevalence of diluted, synthetic, or poor quality oils being sold as the real thing

• Essential oils have strong antibiotic, antiseptic and antifungal properties, without the inconvenient side effects of conventional antibiotics. In fact, laboratory experiments in Europe demonstrate that one drop of white thyme oil diluted in a liter of water sufficed to kill germs responsible for many diseases.
• The presence of phytohormones, natural plant complexes, can give the oils hormone-like properties that can produce profoundly beneficial changes in human physiology. When used properly, these oils have little or no harmful side effects.
• The heating and cooling powers of oils aid greatly in regulating the proper circuation to and from skin cell tissues. This fact has important significance in two ways. First, cells recieve a good supply of oxgyen and nutrition vital to cell functions. Second and of equal significance is the improved return circulation. This helps to detoxify the cell enviroment of the waste products of cell metabolism which, when left to accumulate create toxic conditions within the cell and can ultimately lead to cell death.
• Lastly, of supreme significance is the fact that essential oils are highly transdermal i.e.they have the ability to penetrate the skin and reach deeper tissues directly without having to be ingested. This property makes oils effecient carriers for other desired natural cosmetic products and also allows the therapist to treat specific areas of the body directly and precisiely. It is this property that makes it extremely important to use only high quality and whenever possible organic oils of known origin because any impurities or toxins in the oils will also be transported through the skin and into the body!