Each plant contains a unique combination of oils in its roots, stems, leaves, seeds and flowers that is known as its essential oil. The essential oils of selected plants are used in aromatherapy to foster balance and harmony of the body, mind and spirit. Their therapeutic benefit may result from their effect on hormones and other chemical messengers in the body and brain.
Eucalyptus
Mental benefits: It promotes alertness and clears the mind. Physical benefits: Helps fight cold and congestion, soothes dry coughs, combats skin infections, such as boils and pimples, and reduces swellings and muscle aches and pain.
Geranium
Mental benefits: It reduces mental stress and anxiety. Physical benefits: It tones and cleanses the skin, fights throat and mouth infections, stimulates the liver and cleanses the digestive system, helps the body to remove waste products, combats fluid retention.
Lavender
Mental benefits: Combats anxiety, stress and depression. Physical benefits: Stimulates renewal of skin cells, reduces skin inflammation, helps heal mouth ulcers, and reduces bad breath and nausea.
Peppermint
Mental benefits: Uplifting mood, useful in treatment of emotional shock. Physical benefits: Helps reduce coughs and throat infections, soothes intestinal cramps and heartburn, and alleviates the symptoms of motion sickness.
Roman chamomile
Mental benefits: Relaxing, reduces anxiety, often effective for calming children’s tantrums. Physical benefits: Helps clear acne, rashes and skin inflammations, reduces muscle inflammation, stimulates appetite, and combats diarrhea.
Rosemary
Mental benefits: Stimulates the memory. Physical benefits: Relieves the indigestion and flatulence, helps circulation, alleviates muscular aches, cleanses and stimulates the skin, counters infection.
Sandalwood
Mental benefits: Sleep inducing and relaxing, good for insomnia. Physical benefits: Soothes throat infection, bronchitis and asthma, softens dry skin, combats dandruff, alleviates vomiting and diarrhea.
Sweet marjoram
Mental benefits: Eases respiratory problems, such as bronchitis, asthma, relives constipation, and helps to relax muscle cramps.
Tea tree
Mental benefits: No special benefits. Physical benefits: Works as antiseptic against infections specifically on skin, used for cleaning cuts and surface wounds.
When winters set in they bring in the usual host of cold spine chilling winds. If only the aches were limited to our bones. But alongside the shivering and chattering teeth, we have to deal with our skin that is trying to do the impression of a drought-plagued desert. The simplest solution is to moisturize. […]
