~*~ ~*~*~*~*~Essentials for Health~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~May 31, 1999~*~*~ ~*~Ezine for Essential Oil Enthusiasts~*~ ~*~ " I came to appreciate the power of good aromatherapy. I was impressed and curious as a scientist-practitioner in psychology..." Trevor Stokes, Ph.D ~*~ If you're new to aromatherapy, currently using essential oils or just curious about what they are then you will enjoy this ezine. This is a non-commercial ezine so there are no ads just information. Your email address will only be used for this subscription. So relax, enjoy your visit here...consider it a breath of fresh air on the information super highway. ~*~ Issue 5 Oil of the month "Ask Jackie..." Aromatherapy In the News Inspirational Moment Subscribe/Unsubscribe Info ~*~ Welcome to the new subscribers and welcome back to those of you who joined me last month. Don't forget you can email me your questions and I will do my best to get you an answer. ~*~ Oil of the month: Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) Usual cost $10.00 to $15.00 per 15 ml Description: Rosemary is a very bushy shrub that can grow up to 6 feet tall. It's leaves are sharp, thin, silvery-green in color. When Rosemary blooms, the flowers are pale blue to white. The plant is indigenous to the Mediterranean region but grows well in many other areas of the world. The oil is extracted by steam distillation of the stems and leaves. There are three different chemotypes of Rosemary, depending on where it was grown. The most common is the camphor type which is grown in Spain and Croatia. The oil is colorless to light yellow with a strong herbal aroma. I can definitely smell the aroma of camphor from my bottle. It's a refreshing aroma, not overpowering. History: There is very little history associated with Rosemary, medicinally. The spirit of Rosemary (an elixir made by distilling cedar, rosemary and turpentine) was known as the "Water of the Queen of Hungary". As the story goes, in 1370, this elixir transformed an elderly, ill princess into a young, beautiful woman whom the King of Poland eventually married. Aromatherapy Use: Skin care: Acne, dermatitis, lice, scabies. Circulatory system: Fluid retention, varicose veins, palpitations. Respiratory system: Bronchitis, whooping cough, as an expectorant. Digestive system: Colitis, gallbladder, liver disorders, jaundice. Nervous system: Headaches, nervous tension, stress. Immune system: Colds, flu's, for infections. Muscles and joints: Muscle spasm, gout. According to Dr. Schnaubelt, Rosemary is a problem oil when it comes to adulteration. He states: "Hardly any other oil is so routinely adulterated and diluted. Diverse scientific articles point to contra indicatory results which can only be explained by wide spread adulteration." There are conflicting opinions regarding the use of Rosemary oil with pregnancy and with epileptics among aromatherapy practitioners. I can find no solid research either way so if you are pregnant or epileptic use caution with Rosemary essential oil. Also be careful how much rosemary essential oil you use. 1 or 2 drops will relax and relieve tension but too much will actually stimulate you. I have experienced this first hand! *** The information in this newsletter is not to be taken as medical advice. This information is for educational purposes only.*** ~*~ "Why not take care of this body, which is the receptacle of our soul, so that it may remain as healthy, strong and perfect as possible..." Paracelsus ~*~ "Ask Jackie..." Everyone must be enjoying their gardens because there were no questions this month so I'm going to answer a question I often get when I teach my classes. "What is your daily routine like? Other than diffusing, what are some other ways to use essential oils?" My daily routine consist's of first and foremost diffusing. I purchased a timer for about $10.00 at Eagle Home and Garden Center. This timer allows me 24 settings so I can have the diffuser going constantly 24 hours a day or have it turn off and on. I have mine set to turn on every 3 hours during the day and each time it stays on for 30 minutes. I don't have it on between midnight and 6 a.m. because I am a light sleeper. I alternate oils on a daily basis always going from a single to a blend, then back to a single oil. You never want to combine blends in a diffuser. By doing it this way I don't have to clean the diffuser in between oils. I also use the oils daily in my shower or bath. I use a mesh nylon scrub ball which I apply a good quality unscented bathe gel to, then I add 3 drops of whatever oil I'm using that day to the gel. I like to add oils to my cream rinse, my hair smell's good for hours after. I then rotate the oils of myrrh, rosewood and patchouli in some evening primrose oil and apply it to my face. I am not always consistent with this but I have seen the skin of women who do consistently use essential oils on their skin and they look far younger than their age. Here is a list of other uses, if any of these are not clear feel free to email me for clarification. * In the laundry. * Cleaning the bathroom. * In my drinking water. * Added to water in a spritzer bottle as a refreshing spray. * Added to water in a spritzer bottle as a mosquito repellant. * One drop to the wrist pulse points (or other pulse points), once or twice a day. * Inhale Peppermint oil 10 times deeply from the bottle for heartburn. * Headaches or afternoon fatigue. * Cleaning fruits and vegetables. * Scenting writing paper or gift cards. * Use as a mouth wash mixed with water or hydrogen peroxide. * Add essential oils to a carrier oil like almond and apply to the feet to moisturize dry cracked feet. * Applied to my ears. (If you would like an ear, hand or foot reflexology chart email me your snail mail address and I will send you some.) These are just a few ways I use the oils. There are many good books out there with lot's of ideas. Experimenting is really the best way to learn! ~*~ "Virtue is not the absence of vices or the avoidance of moral dangers; virtue is a vivid and separate thing, like pain or a particular smell." G.K. Chesterton ~*~ In the News: Alopecia areata is the sudden loss of hair usually in circular patches on the scalp. This hair loss is not accompanied by other visible evidence of scalp disease. Both males and females are affected and age is not a factor. There is no pain or itching involved and it is not contagious. There is no known cause but some suspected causes are heredity, stress, anxiety and possibly an auto immune response. At present there is no cure for this sometimes debilitating disorder. Below is an abstract from a study done in 1998 using aromatherapy as a treatment for alopecia areata. Randomized trial of aromatherapy. Successful treatment for alopecia areata. Hay IC, Jamieson M, Ormerod AD Arch Dermatol 1998 Nov 134:11 1349-52 Abstract OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy of aromatherapy in the treatment of patients with alopecia areata. DESIGN: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial of 7 months' duration, with follow-up at 3 and 7 months. SETTING: Dermatology outpatient department. PARTICIPANTS: Eighty-six patients diagnosed as having alopecia areata. INTERVENTION: Eighty-six patients were randomized into 2 groups. The active group massaged essential oils (thyme, rosemary, lavender, and cedarwood) in a mixture of carrier oils (jojoba and grapeseed) into their scalp daily. The control group used only carrier oils for their massage, also daily. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Treatment success was evaluated on sequential photographs by 2 dermatologists (I.C.H. and A.D.O.) independently. Similarly, the degree of improvement was measured by 2 methods: a 6-point scale and computerized analysis of traced areas of alopecia. RESULTS: Nineteen (44%) of 43 patients in the active group showed improvement compared with 6 (15%) of 41 patients in the control group (P = .008). An alopecia scale was applied by blinded observers on sequential photographs and was shown to be reproducible with good interobserver agreement (kappa = 0.84). The degree of improvement on photographic assessment was significant (P = .05). Demographic analysis showed that the 2 groups were well matched for prognostic factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results show aromatherapy to be a safe and effective treatment for alopecia areata. Treatment with these essential oils was significantly more effective than treatment with the carrier oil alone (P = .008 for the primary outcome measure). We also successfully applied an evidence-based method to an alternative therapy. ~*~ Inspirational Moment I hope this story moves you as it did me and if any of you know the author I would appreciate knowing who it is. "Homeless Man?" It was a cold winter's day that Sunday. The parking lot to the church was filling up quickly. I noticed as I got out of my car that fellow church members were whispering among themselves as they walked to the church. As I got closer I saw a man leaned up against the wall outside the church. He was almost laying down as if he was asleep. He had on a long trench coat that was almost in shreds and a hat topped his head, pulled down so you could not see his face. He wore shoes that looked 30 years old, too small for his feet with holes all over them, his toes stuck out. I assumed this man was homeless, and asleep, so I walked on by through the doors of the church. We all fellowshipped for a few minutes, and someone brought up the man laying outside. People snickered and gossiped but no one bothered to ask him to come in, including me. A few moments later church began. We all waited for the Preacher to take his place and to give us the Word, when the doors to the church opened. In came the homeless man walking down the aisle with his head down. People gasped and whispered and made faces. He made his way down the aisle and up onto the pulpit he took off his hat and coat. My heart sank. There stood our preacher...he was the "homeless man." No one said a word. The preacher took his Bible and laid it on the stand. "Folks, I don't think I have to tell you what I am preaching about today." Then he started singing the words to this song. "If I can help somebody as I pass along. If I can cheer somebody with a word or song. If I can show somebody that he's traveling wrong. Then my living shall not be in vain." "IS YOUR LIVING IN VAIN?" ~*~ Thanks for reading and I hope that each of you will take one thing from this newsletter and use it to improve your health and the health of someone you care about. See you next month! Jackie ~*~ "The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage every day." Hippocrates ~*~ To subscribe to this newsletter, send a blank email to: oils@alaskalife.net with 'subscribe' in the subject. If you would like to unsubscribe, send a blank email to: oils@alaskalife.net with 'unsubscribe' in the subject. ~*~ Feel free to forward this ezine on to your friends and family. All I ask is that the newsletter remains intact when it is forwarded. This newsletter is copyrighted in it's entirety. © 1999 Jackie Dae Daugherty P.O. Box 671146 Chugiak, Alaska 99567 mailto:oils@alaskalife.net http://www.yleo.com/i/d/57248 http://www.AToil.com