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Aromatherapy Massage is simply a massage with the addition of essential oils. It combines the healing of essential oils with the healing art of touch. For best results, Back To Heath Massage only use high quality pure Essential oils. |
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Purpose of Aromatherapy Massage is to help the penetration of essential oils into the body and treat problem areas. Aromatherapy massage can be stimulating or relaxing depending on the essential oil used. Aromatherapy Massage combines the balancing properties of the essential oil with the relaxing benefits of touch. Aromatherapy Massage can, Improve blood circulation, Help to reduce Mental and physical tiredness, Improve Skin tone, Reduce aches, pains, spasms, stiffness, Aid relaxation by calming the nervous system. |
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Essential Oils occur widely in plants and are minute drops of liquid, occurring in glands, leaves, seeds bark, roots and fruit peel of trees. The droplets are a mixture of complex, organic compounds. In different flowers these droplets occur in different parts of the tree or plant. For example: lavender essential oil occurs in tops of the flowers Orange essential Oil appears in the peel and rosemary in the leaves. These minute droplets from the flowers, plants and peels produce what we know as Essential Oil. Difference between Pure essential oils & Synthetic oils Therapeutic grade essential oils are pure. They are grown and packaged with minimal harm to the plant. When the plant is processed in a gentle manner, the essential oil maintains the integrity of the plant's natural healing properties, including its antibacterial properties, which increases the body's ability to fight disease Synthetic oils are primarily made from petrochemicals, attempt to duplicate the smell of a specific plant and are created for a specific purpose, such as perfume The most common form of extraction (taking the oil's from the plant,flower or tree) is by steam distillation. See picture on another page Essential oils enter the body by two main routes - the skin and the nose. When essential oils are inhaled they come in contact with the olfactory system. This system relates to the sense of smell and is located behind the nose and behind the eyes. Essential oils are taken directly into the blood stream, and have a positive affective on blood circulation. This helps get rid of waste products in the body and bring nutrients to muscle tissues.
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The health benefits of Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil can be attributed to its properties like anti depressant, anti seborrhoeic, anti septic, aphrodisiac, hypotensive, nervine and sedative
This name was seldom known to common man even a few years back, but with the thousands of cosmetics products and their advertisements flooding the television, soon this became a well known name in households. The essential oil of ylang-ylang is extracted by steam distillation of fresh flowers of ylang-ylang tree, which bears a scientific name Cananga Odorata and is an inhabitant of the rain forests of certain Asia-Pacific Islands like Indonesia, Philippines, Java, Sumatra, Comoro and Polynesia etc. The chief components of the essential oil of ylang-ylang are benzyl acetate, benzyl benzoate linalool, caryophyllene, geranyl acetate, methyl benzoate, p-cresyl methyl ether and certain other components called Sesquiterpenes, which attribute to its aroma and medicinal properties. Hence, apart from its widespread use in perfumes and aromatherapy, due to its very pleasing and delicate fragrance, it is used in medicines too.
Let us see how many of these medicinal properties match with those canvassed in the advertisements.
Anti Depressant: This is one of the oldest known medicinal properties of Ylang-Ylang and it comes in its essential oil too. It fights depression and relaxes body and soul, thereby driving away anxiety, sadness etc. It also has an uplifting effect on mood and induces and feeling of joy and hope. It may be an effective treatment for those undergoing nervous breakdown and acute depression after a shock, accident etc.
Anti Seborrhoeic: Seborrhoea or Seborrhoeic Eczema is a dreaded disease which is caused due to malfunctioning of sebaceous glands resulting in irregular sebum production and consequent infection of the epidermal cells. It looks very ugly as the skin, colored white or pale yellow, dry or greasy, starts peeling off, particularly from the scalp, eyebrows and wherever there are hair follicles. Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil can be beneficial in curing this inflammatory situation and reduce peeling off of skin by regularizing sebum production and treating infection thereof.
Anti Septic: Any wound from cut, abrasion or burn comes with the fear of the wound getting septic from bacterial infection. The fear is doubled when the wound is from an iron object as there remains a chance of it getting infected by tetanus germs. Essential Oil of Ylang-Ylang might help us avoid both septic and tetanus as it inhibits microbial growth and disinfects the wounds. This property of Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil protects your wounds from infections from bacteria, virus and fungus and does not let it go septic. This way it helps it heal quicker too.
Aphrodisiac: The Essential Oil derived from Ylang-Ylang can really activate that Cupid in couples and can give you a good time. This can be very beneficial for those people who are losing interest in sex due to tremendous work load, professional stress, worries and effects of pollution. The loss of libido or frigidity is an alarmingly growing problem in metropolitan lives. Here, this oil can be a real help.
Hypotensive: This oil is a very good and effective agent for lowering blood pressure. In a scenario, where high blood pressure is an alarmingly growing problem among young and the old, and the drugs for lowering it having serious adverse side effects on the health, the Ylang-Ylang oil can be a safe refuge. It is natural and has no adverse side effects on health, if taken in prescribed quantities.
Nervine: The Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil is a health booster for the nerves. It strengthens the nervous system and restores it from damages. Further, it also reduces stress on nerves and protects them. It can also help heal nervous disorders.
Sedative: This oil sedates or calms nervous afflictions, stress, anger and anxiety and induces a relaxing feeling.
Other Benefits: It can be used to cure infections in internal organs such as stomach, intestines, colon, urinary tracts etc. It is also good for people suffering from insomnia, fatigue, frigidity and other stress related factors. It is extremely effective in maintaining moisture and oil balance of the skin and takes very good care of it.
Few Words of Caution: Some cases of sensitivity, nausea and headache have been observed when taken in excess amount. Otherwise it is non-toxic and non-irritant.
Blending: The Essential Oil of Ylang-Ylang makes very good blends with those of bergamot, grapefruit, | |
Patchouli: essential oil, Patchouli Essence and patchouli extract are renowned for their deep, earthy musky fragrances. Organic patchouli essential oil has a long history of use in the fields of medicine, perfumery, rituals, cosmetics and to scent clothes and textiles. Along with scenting textiles, patchouli oil acts as a deterrent to insects. The essence of patchouli remains a very popular scent and is a traditional ingredient in love potions. Although the aroma of undiluted patchouli oil is disliked by many people, if it is a high quality patchouli essential oil used in small quantities it can be pleasant to almost everyone. Indeed, patchouli oil is used extensively in the flavoring industry, and is an ingredient to be found in many foods and beverages.
The Patchouli Plant: Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin) is a member of the mint family. It is a large (3 feet) perennial mint which grows in tropical climates. The plant originated in Southeast Asia, and is extensively cultivated in various Indonesian Islands, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, China, and South America. Patchouli is also known as patchouly, tamala pattra in Sanskrit and guang huo xiang in chinese.
Extraction Methods: The essential oil of patchouli is extracted by steam distillation of the leaves. The leaves need to be shade dried and partially fermented before distilling. Fresh patchouli essential oil has a sharp, green fragrance, and needs to age to develop the deeper, earthier aroma of a good patchouli oil. Patchouli essential oil should always be aged and will continue to improve the longer it sits. The color of the oil will deepen from a light yellowish, pale red to a deep, dark amber upon aging, and the oil will become more and more viscous.
Patchouli oil can also: be produced through the CO2 extraction method. This is a new technique for extracting essential oils (and other constituents) from plant materials. It does not use water or steam. Instead CO2 (carbon dioxide) is used as a solvent. The CO2 is used under high pressure in which it expresses a likeness to both a gas and a liquid (called a supercritical state). These qualities allow the aromatic constituents of patchouli to be extracted without heat. The CO2 is then removed from the resulting extract which is then refined and filtered. The oil produced from this method has a different odor profile than the oil obtained by steam distillation. CO2 extracts are still relatively rare due to the large cost in setting up the equipment. Patchouli CO2 extract is rarely seen, but if you can locate some, it is worth exploring.Patchouli oil is also rarely available as a resinoid and as a solvent extracted absolute.
Aromatherapy Use: Patchouli essential oil is used as a topical remedy for skin problems such as acne, eczema, inflamed, cracked, chapped and irritated skin. It is known as a cell rejuvenator and helpful in healing wounds and scars. As an antifungal, patchouli oil has been used to treat athlete's foot. For the hair, patchouli oil has been used for dandruff and to aid oily hair.
For the nervous system: patchouli essential oil helps to reduce tension, insomnia and anxiety. It is also know as uplifting fragrance that helps to soothe away everyday cares, and to bring about a sense of nourishment. In this way, and due to its wine-like intoxicating aroma, patchouli oil is also known as an aphrodisiac.
Use in Perfumery: A base note and fixative par excellence. Patchouli oil is used in many famous perfumes such as Tabu and Shocking. A little patchouli oil, used as a fixative can be used in many natural perfume formulations. Patchouli oil mixes well with many essential oils including vetiver, sandalwood, frankincense, bergamot, cedarwood, myrrh, jasmine, rose and the citrus oils.
Spiritual Use: Patchouli is used in temples as an incense. It is said to assist in grounding and centering the mind prior to meditation. It is also produces a strong connection to the earth as such is an aid to connecting with the natural beauty of the our planet. | |
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Bergamot: This fresh smelling essential oil is a favorite in aromatherapy and is great for creating a more relaxed and happy feeling, relieving urinary tract infections, boosting the liver, spleen and stomach, while fighting oily skin, acne, psoriasis, eczema, as well as cold sores.
Oil properties The scent of the oil is basically citrus, yet fruity and sweet, with a warm spicy floral quality and is reminiscent of neroli as well as lavender oil. The color ranges from green to greenish-yellow and the oil has a watery viscosity.
Origin of bergamot oil This tree is native to South East Asia, but was introduced to Europe, and particularly Italy and is also found in the Ivory Coast, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria. Bergamot oil is made from a tree that can grow up to four meters high, with star-shaped flowers and smooth leaves, bearing citrus fruit resembling a cross between an orange and a grapefruit, but in a pear-shape. The fruit ripens from green to yellow. The oil is one of the most widely used in the perfumery and toiletry industry and forms, together with neroli and lavender, the main ingredient for the classical 4711 Eau-de-cologne fragrance. It is used to flavor Earl Grey tea. The name is derived from the city Bergamo in Lombardy, Italy, where the oil was first sold.
Extraction The rind of both ripe and unripe fruit is used to extract the oil by expression, which yields about 0.5 %. Chemical composition The essential oil is composed of various chemical constituents and includes a-pinene, myrcene, limonene,
a-bergaptene, b-bisabolene, linalool, linalyl acetate, nerol, neryl acetate, geraniol, geraniol acetate and a-terpineol.
Precautions Bergamot oil can cause burns when used on a sensitive skin which is then exposed to sunlight, as the high content of bergaptene can cause photo-toxicity. It is advisable to keep out of the sun if this oil is used on the skin. Even when the ingredient Bergaptene (Furocoumarin) is removed from the oil and photo toxicity is therefore minimized, it is still advisable to keep treated skin out of the sun, and to use it in concentrations of less than 1 %.
Therapeutic properties The therapeutic properties of bergamot oil include analgesic, antidepressant, antiseptic, antibiotic, anti-spasmodic, stomachic, calmative, cicatrisant, deodorant, digestive, febrifuge, vermifuge and vulnerary.
Uses Bergamot oil can be used in the treatment of depression, stress, tension, fear, hysteria, infection (all types including skin), anorexia, psoriasis, eczema and general convalescence.
Summary When you are looking for an oil to help with depression, SAD (Seasonal Affected Disorder) or generally feeling just a bit off, lacking in self-confidence or feeling shy, then consider bergamot oil. It also has superb antiseptic qualities that are useful for skin complaints, such as acne, oily skin conditions, eczema and psoriasis and can also be used on cold sores, chicken pox and wounds. |
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A list of Essential Oils, therapeutic actions and what conditions they are used for can be found below |
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Essential Oils Guide
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Properties of Essential Oils
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