Essential Oil Research

Throughout ancient history, the herb rosemary was used at weddings, funerals and burned in schools to enhance learning. The Tudors believed rosemary had powers to enhance memory and in Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Ophelia famously remarked, ‘There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray you, love, remember.’ It’s fair to say the connection with rosemary and memory has been a long and persistent one. Read more…

Coriander essential oil (Coriandrum sativum) has been shown to be toxic to a broad range of harmful bacteria. Its use in foods and in clinical agents could prevent food-borne illnesses and even treat antibiotic-resistant infections, according to the authors of a study published in the Journal of Medical Microbiology. Read more…

Our regular readers are used to me banging on and on about the importance of purity when it comes to essential oils, and why analytical testing with GC/MS is the only scientific way to truly establish the provenance of an oil. So it is really nice to feature an aromatherapy article where an experienced aromatherapist is singing the same tune . . .
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Lavender essential oil (Lavandula angustifolia) is often stated in aromatherapy books to be helpful in relieving the pain and symptoms of headaches and migraines. And although aromatherapists know only too well how effective lavender essential oil can be with migraines, there has been little clinical evidence to support this therapeutic claim. Until now, that is.
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Nurses working in an accident and emergency department reported that their anxiety levels fell dramatically when they were given aromatherapy massages while listening to music, according to research in the September 2007 issue of the UK-based Journal of Clinical Nursing.
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For those who do not drink, researchers have found that six essential oils – from thyme, clove, rose, eucalyptus, fennel and bergamot can suppress the inflammatory COX-2 enzyme, in a manner similar to resveratrol, the chemical linked with the health benefits of red wine. They also identified that the chemical carvacrol was primarily responsible for this suppressive activity.
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This study assessed the effectiveness of blended essential oils on menstrual cramps for outpatients with primary dysmenorrhea and explored the analgesic ingredients in the essential oils.

Material amd methods

A randomized, double-blind clinical trial was conducted. Forty-eight outpatients were diagnosed with primary dysmenorrhea by a gynecologist and had 10-point numeric rating scales that were more than 5. The patients were randomly assigned to an essential oil group (n = 24) and a synthetic fragrance group (n = 24). Read more…

New research has discovered that olive extract and lemongrass essential oil reduced E. coli in hamburger to undetectable levels. The occurrence of Escherichia coli O157:H7, the prime E. coli pathogen in ground beef, is inactivated by high heat during cooking, which also leads to the formation of cancer-causing heterocyclic amines (HCAs). Read more…

Postoperative nausea (PON) is a common complication of anesthesia and surgery. Antiemetic medication for higher-risk patients may reduce but does not reliably prevent PON. We examined aromatherapy as a treatment for patients experiencing PON after ambulatory surgery.
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