Welcome to the beginning of my essential oil series!
In this blog series we will tackle some basic knowledge of essential oils. Disclaimer: Consider this a primer for further learning. The study of essential oils is too complex to be completely covered in a blog series. I will try to make this as interesting as possible but it may get a little dry...try to push through! A basic knowledge of essential oils is important because:
1. You can filter out some of the unhelpful and incorrect information available.
2. You will have a better understanding of what an essential oil is.
3. You will be a better consumer.
Let's be real: health is in and so are essential oils. We want to look beyond the trends to the real stuff.
Hang on to your hats, folks. Here we go.
A Brief History (no, seriously, it'll be brief)
Aromatherapy means to heal with sweet smelling odors. The break down of the Greek is aroma, meaning sweet smelling odors, and theripia, meaning to heal or cure. Sounds nice doesn't it? Ancient peoples must have thought so because the use of these "sweet odors" goes all the way back to Bible times. China, India, and Egypt were all famous for their use of scented oils both as medicine and as perfume.
Take Moses for example, God instructed him to make anointing oil and incense for the priest to use in Israelite worship. The plants that supplied this oil not only smelled good but also contained antiseptic (capable of preventing infection by inhibiting the growth of microorganisms) properties. If you are not familiar with this story check out Genesis 30:22-38. I think it's pretty cool how God used sweet smelling oils not only to keep the area clean but to remind the Israelites of Himself. Don't forget scent is a powerful means of remembrance (but that's a whole different blog post.)
Aromatic woods and scented mortar were also used around this time in dwellings and temples of other peoples. Soldiers would often bring a scented oil, such as myrrh, into battle to care for wounds. Jumping ahead to the Black Plague that ravaged Europe in the 1300s, dried aromatic herbs were burned in town squares to ward off evil. Although, I think they also wanted to cut the smell...
The point is that the human race has been obsessed with aromatic plants right from the get go. They were also smart enough to connect these aromatic plants with physical and mental healing. Take this quote by Hippocrates c. 400 BC:
"The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and a scented massage every day."
Aromatherapy didn't become a medical phenomenon until 1920. It was all thanks to a French cosmetic chemist named Rene-Maurice Gattefosse. One day, while working in his lab, the Frenchman burned the daylights out of his hand and arm. In a frenzy of pain, the chemist shoved this arm into the nearest cold liquid (we can discuss the intelligence of this choice at a later date.) Much to his surprise, and probably relief, the pain quickly subsided, the burn did not blister and healed quite naturally. You'll never guess what he stuck his arm into: a vat of pure lavender essential oil. Good old Rene had stumbled upon something great. He spent the rest of his life dedicated to discovering the medicinal properties of essential oils.
Despite Gattefosse's great discovery, essential oils fell out of popularity. In 1964, another Frenchman, Jean Valnet, published a book that brought essential oils back into the lime light. Now, it does takes things a while to get across the pond and it wasn't until the 1970s that essential oils really took off in the United States.
What does this all mean for you?
Well, it means that the medicinal field of aromatherapy, in comparison with other medical fields, is relatively new. Despite the long history of using aromatic plants and oils, the trendy way to use essential oils just hasn't been around that long. Is that bad? Not necessarily. It means we all need to stop, think, and learn before we jump on the bandwagon. We need to be good stewards of essential oils so we can use them for years to come.
Resources used for this blog:
Aromatherapy for Health Professionals, 4th edition by Shirley and Len Price
Understanding Holistic Health by Jessie Hawkins, PhD
Advanced Botanical Medicine by Jessie Hawkins, PhD
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