Aromatherapy and the bible

The bible and the culture it relates has been a source of inspiration for 6000 years.  We want to lead a good life.  The gel, the lake and stream of consciousness which is perceived within the human mind we are told does not end on our deaths but continues.  Reason tells us this cannot be, that when the neurons in our mind die the conciousness we have dies with them preserved only in the minds of those left behind.  That may be so but faith inclines us to believe there awaits us a new life.  Perhaps the life we lead now but without the need for food and drink.  An attractive thought!

Certainly something remarkable happened just 6000 years ago. A creation of a kind.  Civilised and organised man appeared and with him an appreciation of everything that we take for granted today.  Abrahamic religion holds that if we take a record of the lives recorded in the bible then we get to a starting point of 4004 BC.  That may well be an accurate estimate of when civilised life began.  Science with its measurements and our minds common sense tells us that the world and all in it were not created in a working week at this time but were the work of billions of years of life. That we and the plants diverged onto our differant paths one and a half billion years ago from a common stock.  Genesis should not be taken literally our reason dictates.  Nor should it be dismissed.  The account of Genesis contains the fundamental truth that everything that we perceive was created out of nothing a long time ago.  It is hard for us to imagine what our creator may be because light and dark are nothing and not something to such a creator.  Laws are something to such a creator as the universe is governed and bounded by laws. Will is something to that creator as it is to us.  Life perhaps is something to such a creator not because it existed before but that was the consequence of the way the universe was created.  So intelligent life should be esteemed greatly by such a creator.

We cannot sustain civilisation without leading good lives ourselves individually.  Reason alone is enough to be good.  Reason alone is enough to seek and maintain wellbeing.  Genesis tells us that light, dry land, the sea and air for travel and communication, grass, herbs, trees their seeds and fruit were created for our wellbeing.  That is certainly true enough.  We grew together sharing the light of the sun.  Science is informing us on a daily basis of how and why.  Looking after the wellbeing of ourselves and others with herbs and oils derived from them is integral to our creation not an optional extra it seems.  A belief in the benign goodwill of a creator and creation is fundamental to the British style of aromatherapy and in its kindness also lies its power.

 Certainly there is a great truth in that ester containing plant oils have the ability to relax the mind and relieve anxiety.  There is though a great deal more to Aromatherapy around the world than that.  Today as I walked in my garden with my three year old we talked about why plant bark is broken in some trees as they grow.  We came to a pine tree with pine resin exuding down into the broken bark. Creation is a shared intelligent creation it seems whether it be our chemical intelligence or that of trees, grasses and herbs.

Lavender Folgate Analysis

 

Start a lavender farm 

Lavender at Stonegate with Sarah Bader

Lavender - what does 40/42 mean?

40/42 relates to the ratio of linalyl acetate and linalool. A natural lavender or lavandin can be made into a perfect 40/42 with the addition of some synthetic linalool or synthetic linalyl acetate. this is what perfumers and toiletries manufacturers want. But anyone who wants a completely natural lavender needs to buy lavandula angustifolia miller. With a natural lavender the proportions can vary from crop to crop. 

That is the way Lavender standards work in France. High altitude distillers can be told that what they are producing is not 'Lavender' because it doesnt meet the standard.

There are no right or wrongs here because the fact is 95% of essential oil if not more does not go to aromatherapy. There is though a true and false oil. For aromatherapy its easy enough as Maggie Tisserand says to source a Lavandula Angustifolia Miller.

You will find the 40/42 is probably a tough and prolific cloned variety called Lavendula Angustifolia 'Maillette'. True french Lavender Angustifolia Miller (also known as Lavender Officinalis is somewhat softer smelling or may almost lack a smell) This can also be obtained with a biochemists certificate of purity.

And of course (sorry my usual hobby horse) organic or AOC (appelation origine controlle) in the same way as you would buy a wine.

As an aside aromatherapists tend to reckon that what the true lavender lacks in strong fragrance it makes up for energetically. There is also the point that usually in aromatherapy there is enough of an emotional load without adding a strong fragrance which the client and their relations can take exception too.

But theres a good point - would you use a fine red wine to make a stew or the Supermarket's standard red wine? Why waste a fine wild harvested angustifolia if it is to be used in a cleaning product for which the 40/42 is ideal. And wouldnt you want the cleaning product to be fragrant? 

 Jeane Rose writes...

Lavender should have linalool and linalyl acetate in it in a proportion of 2:1 or about 40:20. It should never contain Camphor. If your Lavender has camphor in it, then you either have the wrong plants or the wrong earth. The essential oil is the expression of the earth in the plant. Camphor can be in Spanish Lavenders and spike Lavenders but fine Lavender will have a soft and soothing scent.
http://www.jeannerose.net/courses.html
Linalool is an alcohol like the alcohol in wine. The essential oil alcohols here are monoterpenols. They are bactericides, anti-infectious, antiviral, stimulating to the skin to heal, good general tonics and free of hazards.
Linalyl acetate is an ester. Esters are gentle in action, soothing to the skin, anti-inflammatory, effective on skin rashes and other skin problems. They can both calm and uplift and combined with the tonic virtues of alcohols are very balancing, especially to the nervous system.
This is why Lavenders are so desired by the skin care industry

Essentia

Only Lavender and Tea Tree are safe to put directly on the skin?

Tea tree works best in combination with other antifungal oils and as these require dilution it will be normal to drop some tea tree and other oils into a little carrier like a cream or jojoba before application to the feet.  other antifungal oils to try are 


Eucalyptus Citriodora, Geranium, Rose, Sandalwood, Vetiver, Lemongrass, Patchouli, Spikenard, and Palmarosa


 Tea tree is one oil that is not absorbed readily into the skin. If you are treating a surface fungal infection then the addition of a carrier to assist absorption into the skin doesnt make sense.

On sensitisation generally I guess its worth reflecting here why the lamiaceae developed essential oils at all. Look at peppermint (menthol) and thyme (thymol). Brush your hands through the leaves and you get a nice smelling dusting of essential oil. Not so much as to irritate our skin but if you are a snail or a fungus then its death. Rubbing concentrated peppermint oil or thyme oil onto the skin is therefore probably not a good idea! remember the snails! 
 

Lavender (esters) as a mountain plant by contrast developed its own non toxic essential oil primarily to attract insects to its remote location and the oil is concentrated in the flowers not the leaves. lavender is therefore prone to periodic snail attack when its grown at lower altitudes but safe enough for our skin in small amounts but dilution is the sensible norm to follow even with lavender.

Bergamot is phototoxic and a potential skin sensitiser. The principal ingredient in eau de cologne it is sprayed on and as the alcohol evaporates so the bergamot is in direct contact with the skin but the effect of the spray is to spread the bergamot over the skin. 

 Why did the rutaceae develop essential oils? To keep the bugs off until the seed and fruit is sufficiently developed to be consumed. So if the lamiaceae and rutaceae developed essential oil as a pesticide (and that is much of essential oil use to us, the psycho-therapeutic properties apart,), would you drop an undiluted pesticide onto your skin? whether pure? whether natural? 

It is worth bearing in mind that essential oils should be diluted when applied to the skin for external use.  Oils used like this as well as being carried into the body volatise.  Essential oil that is that is taken internally has no such escape.  Therefore our safety cautions found with our tough external skin apply 100 fold when we are talking about our sensitive internal skin.
 
If you nontheless do feel tempted to put orange or lemon oil in a glass of water then bear in mind that limonene is an industrial degreasing agent.  So take care on the dose unless you want that desired effect!

Research

Successful topical treatment of warts
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18940708

Essentia

Lavender aroma

Lavender odour is an interesting one. Some therapists working in palliative care find patients and their families object to a strong smelling lavender and opt for a french officinalis distilled on the farm with the stalks with very little odour at all.

Some french lavender collected wild at high altitude has a distinctive and attractive odour and is highly prized. A lot of cheaper french lavender smells of linalool added to 'standardise' the Lavender but you can buy your french lavender angustifolia with its ester content 'stated' at 40-42%, 50-52%. A good deal of the higher altititude french angustifolia is the Mailette Clone.

Many farmers take cuttings from the stronger plants which have proved resistent to disease and this too can influence the odour profile of the crop. Some therapists like to work with artisanal distillers so they get more consistency in the lavender they work with because the majority of the french lavender is farmed cooperatively and then sent to a single point to be processed from which it goes to large companies like IFF.

The italian tuscan lavender distilled from just the flowering tops has an amazing top note which lasts for about a year making it smell similar to a Lavender absolute. Take into account natural variation in soil, climate, weather and field distillation on the farm and no wonder no Lavender smells the same. The Bulgarian however I have found to have a consistent sweet floral odour which many people prefer.

Lavender as you know is grown in many places including the UK croatia, india, china and tasmania too (which is on the same latitude as provence but 'down under'.

Lets not forget Lavandin. As a study by Jane Buckle showed its aroma assisted recovering heart surgery patients to relax just as effectively as any Lavender.

And finally those using kinesiology find when clients 'self choose' oils for their needs lavender is rarely chosen so its not the case lavender has to go in every blend. However those researching synergy note lavender can bring out the best in other oils. 

Essentia