The Use of Therapeutic-Grade Essential Oils for A Variety of Benefits

Not just for massage and aromatic spa atmosphere anymore-therapeutic-grade essential oils are used in complementary/integrative medicine. Tori Rodriguez writes  "6 Scents That Have the Power to Heal" for ABC News Digital.

She cites Dr. Brent Bauer, M.D., who is the Director of the Complementary and Integrative Medicine program at Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Bauer discusses the value of using these oils, but he also emphasizes that  we should speak to our doctors before using any essential oil aromatherapy, and that we need to be sure not to  use essential oil aromatherapy for more that 15 to 60 minutes at a time.  Staying within the 60-minute limit can be very beneficial while longer exposure could lead to cardiac problems.

  He notes, "Whatever is powerful enough to exert a beneficial effect in the body is powerful enough to exert a negative effect." And please choose carefully.  Many  products available may not be the real essential oils.

Dr. Bauer points out that the essential oils that most of us think of as being used for massage and relaxation in the spa atmosphere are actually capable of promoting our well being and health in the long term and can actually help to alleviate the symptoms of common ailments.

What can they do?  Dr. Bauer indicates that therapeutic-grade essential oils can help to
"lower stress levels, relieve pain, improve mood, and quell cravings and nausea. They have been demonstrated in lab studies to kill flu, E. coli, and cancer cells" ( Rodriguez, "6 Scents That have the Power to Heal"  ABC News Digital,  June 14, 2014.) 

So which therapeutic-grade essential oil is good for what?  As listed in Rodriquez's article,
1.  Sage:  Blood Pressure Reduction
2.  Peppermint:  Stress Relief
3.  Orange:  Lessening of Anxiety
4.  Rosemary:  Enhancing Brainpower
5.  Cinnamon:  Improving Focus
6.  Lavender:  Relaxation, Relieving PMS

The possibility is that our doctors aren't very informed about the therapeutic uses of essential oils. We can direct them to Rodriguez's article citing Mayo Clinic's  Director of the Complementary and Integrative Medicine.
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Aromatherapy and Essential Oils in the National Library of Medicine's PubMed.
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In addition to the 50+ studies listed in PubMed, and the information from Mayo Clinic's Dr. Brent Bauer, we can also find information at the National Cancer Institute's website.

(Thanks to Diana R for a discussion of therapeutic-grade essential oils that pointed us in the direction of research on the subject.)