To Oil or Not to Oil

"Balancing Body, Mind and spirit with pure essential oil”
Colourful bottles are full of colourful liquid. How beautiful those are. Decoration? New flavour drinks? Or colouring? Not. Those called “oil” but an oil. They had taken from a plant for health, beauty and wellbeing. If you’re a lover of nature then you may already know those are essential oils and how to use them in your life, but for those of you who aren’t familiar with these wonderful oils you’re in for a wonderful treat.
Essential oils are one of our planet’s greatest underappreciated resources. In the fourth century, Hippocrates, the father of medicine, said that “The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage everyday,” recognizing that burning aromatic herbs and oils offered protection against contagious diseases. Today most of our medicines and household cleaners and “air fresheners” are chemically-based. The cumulative effect of these products combined with the toxic air we breathe just cannot be good — for our health and our planet’s. Hence the movement towards renewed interest in using essential oils in our daily life, and doing away with the chemical stuff.

What are essential oils?

Aromatic plants produce fragrant essences in secretary cells, to attract beneficial insects. The beauty and magic of these essences are often described as the aromatic heart, life force or energy, and soul or spirit of the plant. When aromatic plants are distilled (usually by steam distillation), the essences undergo subtle chemical changes and turn into essential oils. An essential oil is a concentrated, hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are usually lipophilic (literally: "oil-loving") compounds that usually are not miscrible with water. Essential oils are also known as volatile or ethereal oils. Oil is "essential" in the sense that it carries a distinctive scent, or essence, of the plant. In fact, essential oils are far more widely used than is generally known. They are found in many medications, in perfumes and beauty products, incense and candles, household cleaning products and in some commercially prepared food and drinks.

Essential Oil Constituents

Essential oils are far from simple substances. In fact, few people appreciate how chemically complex essential oils really are. Every essential oil contains an amazing array — a delicate mosaic —of aromatic molecules.
An average essential oil contains around 100 chemical components, but some are many times more complex. Essential oils consist of chemical compounds which have hydrogen, carbon and oxygen as their building blocks. These are then subdivided into 2 groups: the hydrocarbons which are made up of mostly terpenes (monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and diterpenes) and the oxygenated compounds which are mainly alcohols, aldehydes, esters, ketones and phenols.

Representative of this is the following chart.

The seven main chemical groups found in essential oils are Aldehydes, Esters, Ketones, Phenyl Methyl Ethers, Phenols, Alcohols and Mono Terpenes.

Hydrocarbons:

Terpenes

----Monoterpene----
These monoterpene compounds are found in nearly all essential oils and have a structure of 10 carbon atoms and at least one double bond. The 10 carbon atoms are derived from two isoprene units. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Antiseptic
• Fortifying and strengthening anti-viral
• Stimulating effect on mucous

----Sesquiterpenes----
These sesquiterpenes consist of 15 carbon atoms. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Anti-inflammatory
• Antiseptic
  

Oxygenated compounds:

Phenols
The phenols found in essential oils normally have a carbon side chain. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Anti-pathogenic
• Stimulating
• Phenols are also classified as skin and mucous irritants.

Alcohols
These alcohols consist of hydroxyl group (-OH) is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Anti-pathogenic
• Immune-stimulants
• Toning

Aldehydes
These are highly reactive and characterized by the group H-C=O (Hydrogen, Carbon, Oxygen ). Their therapeutic qualities:

• Analgesic
• Anti-inflammatory
• Help regulate the central nervous system
• Calming

Ketones
These ketones contain a carbonyl group (C=O) bonded to two other carbon. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Skin healing
• Mucolytic
• Lipolytic (breaks down fats)
• Aides respiratory tract infection
  

Essential oils high in ketones need to be used with care in pregnancy.

Esters
Esters are formed from alcohols and acids. Esters are the most widespread group found in essential oils. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Calming
• Sedative
• Help regulate the central nervous system
• Mucolytic (breaks down mucous)
• Balancing

Ethers
These ethers contain an ether group — an oxygen connected to two (substituted) alkyl or aryl groups. Phenolic ethers(Phenyl Methyl Ethers) are the most widely found ethers in essential oils. Their therapeutic qualities:

• Anti-spasmodic
• Help regulate hormonal system and central nervous system
• Balancing
  

Natural chemical ingredients and their therapeutic effects illustrates just how important all the natural ingredients are in essential oils. The loss of any of these ingredients, through lack of purity results in essential oils with little or no therapeutic effect, in other words as we said in the beginning, they simply do not work.

Safety information about essential oils

Many oils have strong effects on various medical conditions and we need to be aware of the effects of the oils first.

For example:

• Hyssop, Rosemary, Sage and Thyme Essential oils should be avoided if one has high blood pressure
• Rosemary, Fennel, Sage, and Hyssop oils should be avoided if one has epilepsy
• Angelica should be avoided if one has diabetes

It is also very important to be careful of essential oils during pregnancyor by those with asthma, epilepsy, or with other health conditions. Many, many oils have an Emmenagogic reaction, that is, they can bring on menstruation. Personally, it is recommended that women do not use any essential oils during the first trimester- just to be on the safe side.Essential oils are flammable. Keep them out of the way of fire hazards.

About popular oils

For a basic introduction to aromatherapy, consider this lavender essential oil is the most well-known oil for your health and well-being:

• Lavender has a sweet, floral scent and a calming effect to relieve stress, help sleep problems, ease painful menstrual cramps and work as an antiseptic.
• Composition of lavender essential oil as obtained by chromotography: the primary components of lavender oil are linalool (51%) and linalyl acetate (35%). Other components include α-pinene, limonene, 1,8-cineole, cis- and trans-ocimene, 3-octanone, camphor, caryophyllene, terpinen-4-ol and lavendulyl acetate.
• Contraindications: Lavender oil has recently been implicated in gynecomastia, the abnormal development of breasts in young boys. Researchers discovered in lavender oil the presence of compounds which both suppress male hormones and mimic female hormones. Because sex hormone levels are normally low prior to puberty, young boys and girls are particularly sensitive to estrogenic and androgenic compounds.

Lavender Essential Oil

Tinge of Yellow color

Lavender is seeing a revival with more people using its essential oil to treat a wide range of conditions from migraines and skin complaints to stress, depression, tension and exhaustion.

Above: Linalool
Middle:Linalyl acetate
Below: Eucalyptol (1, 8-cineol)

I heard of somebody said essential oil is effective against insomnia. Maybe it can help me to have good night’s sleep. Is this true? I don’t know. Maybe it is only a decoration. Share your experience with me if you tried it before.Wait for U...