The Fragrant Spirit Of Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy is the art and science of using pure plant essential oils to enhance your emotional well-being, maximize total health and help restore beautifully clear skin. To be truly effective, essential oils must be absolutely pure. Synthetic or adulterated essential oils, although less expensive, will not give you the effects you desire and may even have adverse effects. To insure quality, you may want to choose only essential oils that are guaranteed to be organic or ethically wildcrafted, properly distilled or extracted, originating from a reliable source and priced according to the aromatherapy market. It is also essential that the oils are species specific, listing the botanical name after the common name, and indicate the variety and chemo type when applicable. As a general rule, the genus of the plant is listed first then the species followed by variety and/or chemotype (i.e. Lavandula - genus, angustifolia - species, delphinensis - variety). An example of a chemotype is cineol as in Rosemary cineol.

Pure essential oils are highly concentrated, representing precious plant resources, and should not be used indiscriminately or, in many cases, used on the skin. We recommend making a 2-5% dilution, which is appropriate for skin care or specific effects. We do not recommend internal use of essential oils. For guidelines to help you get started making your own blends for massage, baths, facial and body oils, compresses, inhalants or perfumes see aromatherapy blends.

This information on aromatherapy is provided for educational purposes only, not as medical advice or a prescription. It is a brief summary of the views of a variety of experts in the field of aromatherapy. Seek the advice of a health care practitioner for any health problems. We do not recommend internal use of essential oils.