Aromatherapy
The use of plant oils for medicinal, culinary and religious purposes goes back thousands of years. There is evidence of aromatic remedies being used in China over 4000 years ago. A book from approximately 2697 BC, "Yellow Emperor's Book of Internal Medicine" lists herbal and aromatherapy treatments. In Egypt, medical papyri remain that include the use of fragrant resins and plants. Even the biblical book of Ezekial states, "The fruit thereof shall be your meat and the leaf for medicine."
Oils and gums were among the earliest trade items of the ancient world. They were prized for their fragrance and their healing properties. Merchants brought camphor from China, cinnamon from India, rose from Syria to name just a few.
The earliest writings about distillation dates to approximately 425 BC and was written by Herodotus of Greece. He had traveled to Egypt to study perfumery and natural therapies. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, also a Greek, included the use of aromatherapy as part of his treatment of the sick.
Early Greek medical practice often included the use of aromatic unctions. One of the most famous medical treatments from the fifth century, BC, was created by Megallus and was named megaleion after him. It was used for skin irritations and to heal wounds. Megaleion was made from myrrh, cinnamon and cassis.
As science advanced over time, so did the science of aromatherapy. A physician and scholar in the Arab world, Avicenna (AD 980-1037) was credited with inventing a refrigeration coil that was a breakthrough in the art of distillation. Later archeological research indicates, however, that this distillation method was used in the ancient Indus Valley, Pakistan. At a museum in Taxila, Pakistan, a perfectly preserved terracotta distillation device is on display. It dates to about 3000 BC. Along with the equipment in the display, are numerous perfume containers from the same historical time, indicating that the people of the Indus Valley had, in fact, prepared aromatic oils.
Avicenna used his invention to produce pure essential oils and aromatic water, especially rose oil and rose water, as the rose was cherished by Islam. During the crusades, rose water was brought to the Western World, along with other essences.
Many in the West began to learn the distillation methods of the East and by the thirteenth century the perfumes, oils and ungents of Arabia were famous throughout Europe.
As plagues and other infections diseases swept through Europe during the Middle Ages, herbal bouquets were carried for protection and aromatic plants were strewn on the floors of homes. Because of the lack of gum yielding trees in Europe, many researchers began experimenting with their own native plants, such as lavender and rosemary.
Between 1470 and 1670 herbal books were published in the West. Some included illustrations and instructions for extracting oils. Throughout the Renaissance, pure oils and herbs were the main protection against epidemics. Over the centuries the medicinal benefits of additional plants were analyzed and recorded. By the end of the seventeenth century there was a split between perfume and aromatics. To this day that split remains, with fragrance oils being used in perfume, and pure essential oils being used first in the apothecary and later by aromatherapists.
In the early nineteenth century, with still more scientific advances available, chemists were able to identify the chemical make up of the oils for the very first time. This historic event led to research to develop synthetic compounds which created the roots of our modern pharmaceuticals.
Over time herbal and aromatic medicine was replaced with synthetic medicine. It wasn't until 1928 that the term "aromatherapy" was first used. A French chemist, Rene-Maurice Gattefosse became fascinated with the therapeutic benefits of essential oils after he was able to heal a serious burn to his hand by using pure essential lavender oil. He had been working in the family perfume business, and had discovered the healing property of lavender completely by accident.
He began researching many of the essential oils and found them to be more effective than their synthetic, pharmacological, substitutes. Dr. Jean Valnet, also of France, used essential oils for the treatment of medical and psychiatric disorders. He wrote of his experiences, and his work inspired Madame Marguerite Maury, who set up the first aromatherapy clinics in Paris, Britain and Switzerland.
The science of aromatherapy continues to grow, although it is often misunderstood. Many people assume that this is a form of healing that works strictly through the sense of smell. In addition to the scent directly evoking a reaction through the limbic system of the brain, each essential oil also interacts with the body chemistry, causing change to an organ, a system, or to the body as a whole.
Aromatherapy is, in fact, one of the most unique and holistic modalities of massage available. It treats the physical, emotional and psychological realms at the same time, in a gentle and peaceful way.
