Home | Health | Alternative Medicine

Using The Research-Proven Sleep Supportive Effects Of Essential Oils

By: Caroline Ashton

Read More About Alternative Medicine

The wonderful therapeutic values of essential oils are many: they have science-proven antibacterial, antiviral, and anticancer effects. On a psychological and emotional level, oils have demonstrated anti-anxiety and anti-depressant action in placebo-controlled research. And so, what about one of the greatest therapeutic challenges of our times: the ability to get a good night's rest? Well, the data is in! A number of studies have shown essential oils to be able to improve both the quality and the duration of sleep. This is crucial for those who have difficulty getting this rest, as it is so important to both our physical and mental health. Would you like to give essential oils a try? Here's a look at which oils might work best for you, and how you can most effectively apply them.
The first oil of choice, and the one with the most scientific backing is lavender, distilled from the lovely purple flowers grown in France and Bulgaria. Lavender is certainly the most widely used oil for stress reduction, with a great many research papers supporting this effect. Lavender is the essential oil with the highest amount of "linalool", a natural chemical to which the relaxing effects are attributed. Linalool itself has been the subject of numerous studies, and its gently sedating action is well documented.
Several factors make lavender this number one choice: It's absolutely safe, so much so that it can be used with young children as well as those well into old age. It's relatively inexpensive, the aroma is generally well-liked, and is readily available from a number of sources. At the same time, the choice of lavender is not for everyone -- and this is an important note in all therapeutic uses of aromatic oils -- the user must not find the aroma of the oil unpleasant and expect it to work. Women seem to have an affinity for lavender, as do young children. This is of course a generalization, but if you or someone you know would like to try aromatherapy for enhancing sleep and don't care for lavender, don't force it! There's other oils out there.
One of the great features of lavender is that it can safely be used with infants, a feature every mother will be particularly appreciative of. Researchers at the Touch Research Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine found that a bath scented with lavender essential oil resulted in infants that "cried less and spent more time in deep sleep after bath". Further, lower stress of the mothers bathing their children was also noted: "The cortisol levels of this group of mothers and infants significantly decreased, confirming the behavioral data showing increased relaxation of the mothers and their infants."
The latest published research involving lavender utilized an ingestable lavender capsule, rather than lavender aroma. The focus of the study was to see whether the capsule reduced anxiety when compared to a placebo or a common sedative drug. The lavender capsule was deemed as effective as the pharmaceutical preparation in reducing anxiety, and it was noted that study participants also slept better when ingesting the equivalent of 2 drops of lavender oil per day. Because lavender works both when inhaled and when ingested, it stands to reason it will work via topical application as well, where the oil can both be smelled and passed through the skin into the bloodstream.
Sandalwood is another very popular oil with sleep enhancing properties. Sandalwood comes from the heartwood of trees growing in India, Australia and islands in the South Pacific. All these oils contain the individual constituents attributed to improved rest and relaxation, called "santalols". So while the Indian variety is considered the finest for perfumery, all of these should do the trick. Santalols seem to produce a someone different physiological action than the linalool in lavender. It is not considered sedating, and might even be clarifying to the mind. Like lavender, sandalwood also appears to work not only through aroma alone, and should be effective via both aromatic and topical use.
Other essential oils that do not necessarily have science-backed results, but are otherwise traditionally used for sleep enhancement include chamomile, neroli and ylang ylang. Chamomile is mentioned by many professional therapists for use with children, and can be used just as lavender is, or probably better yet, blended with lavender for a synergy of effects. Neroli is thought to be the single most calming oil in all of aromatherapy, with an even more gentle action than lavender. Ylang ylang, with a pleasing floral scent, may be more widely enjoyed than lavender with similar effects.
So what's best way to use essential oils for better sleep? The answer is that there is no "best" way -- really that almost any classic aromatherapy technique will be suitable. The options for all oils are: use throughout the night in a diffuser, massage a couple drops into the feet (top and bottom), sprinkle a drop or two onto one's bedding, or add a little to a bath before retiring. If using topically, these oils are generally safe to use undiluted, though with the very young, or for those with sensitive skin, mix a couple of drops of essential oil into a teaspoon of any carrier oil before application. If you're interested in seeing if ingestion of lavender works for you, try putting 1-3 drops in a capsule and taking daily on an empty stomach -- this is only recommended with lavender, as it is the only oil with significant research on the long-term effects.
There are clearly many oils and many methods that may enhance sleep. It's important to experiment to find the oil and technique that works best for you. You (or the loved one you're working with) should enjoy the oil's aroma, and the application should be simple enough that it actually gets used. When you or someone you love is having challenges getting a good night's sleep, aromatherapy has a lot to offer, with its brilliant natural aromas and science-backed therapeutic actions.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

For more, visit The Ananda Apothecary here, or organic herbs here.

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Alternative Medicine Articles Via RSS!
Additional Articles From - Home | Health | Alternative Medicine
Sign Up for a free account.
Our other websites
All about SEO
Beauty Tips Forum
Submit Articles
Member Login
Link Us
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
Sitemap
New Stuff
About Us
Developer
Good shopping portal
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

counter easy hit

Powered by Article Dashboard