This is a guest post written by Paisley Hansen, freelance writer. Thanks Paisley!
Each year over $2 billion is spent on candles in the United States. According to the National Candle Association 75 – 80% of candles are scented. The candle industry owes much of its success to the growing popularity of aromatherapy. For the uninitiated, aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses essential oils for the purpose of altering a person’s mind, cognitive function or health. The irony here lies in the fact that most scented candles are not truly aromatherapy candles. In order to have the true aroma-therapeutic effect the candle must be made with natural essential oils.
The use of essential oils is not restricted to candles. Today there are dozens of uses of these oils, ranging from aromatherapy candles to nebulizers to aromatherapy massage oils. While there are close to 120 different essential oils found in nature, not all are ideal for use in aromatherapy consumer products. Because of the wide variety of products that use essential oils it is difficult to determine how much is spent on them each year. But here is a list of the most common oils used for aromatherapy:
Eucalyptus – historically used as a germicide, it is now commonly used in cough medicine.
Mentha or mint oil – In addition to aromatherapy it is used in toothpaste and pharmaceuticals.
Cardamon seed oil – This oil is used in soaps and perfumes. It is extracted from ginger seeds.
Anise – Is often used medicinally. It has a rich odor similar to the smell of licorice.
Camphor – Most often used to treat cough, cold, rheumatism and arthritis.
These oils are used frequently because in addition to their smell they all contain strong medicinal qualities. Modern pharmacology often uses these, as was noted in the list above, in cough, cold and other medicines. This is a just the latest evolution in aromatherapy, a field that has a long and interesting history. From folk remedies to ancient philosophy the essential oils used in aromatherapy has been used for just about everything. Take a look at 5 things you probably didn’t know about essential oils:
1) Folk medicine has been traced back as early as ancient Egypt in 3000 BC. Today it is estimated that over 50% of the world’s population relies on folk medicine practices.
2) The techniques and methods first used to produce essential oils were first mentioned by Ibn al-Baitar (1188–1248), an Andalusian physician, pharmacist and chemist.
3) A French surgeon, Jean Valnet, pioneered the medicinal uses of essential oils, which he used as antiseptics in the treatment of wounded soldiers during World War II.
4) In 1937, the word aromatherapy first appeared in print in a French book on the subject: Aromathérapie: Les Huiles Essentielles, Hormones Végétales by René-Maurice Gattefossé, a chemist. In 1910, Gattefossé burned a hand very badly and later claimed he treated it effectively with lavender oil.
5) Today there is some concern about pesticide residues in essential oils, particularly those used therapeutically. For this reason, many practitioners of aromatherapy buy organically produced oils.
About the Author: Paisley Hansen is a freelance writer and expert in health and beauty. When she isn’t writing she can usually be found reading a good book.
