by Sharon Falsetto

Created on: July 09, 2008   Last Updated: January 06, 2009

About aromatherapy essential oils

Essential oils have been used for centuries in one form or another. Many civilizations have recognized the uses of plants before they emerged today in their present usage. The earliest recorded use of aromatherapy can be attributed to the use of plants and plant extracts in the use of medicine and for personal hygiene in places such as India, Egypt, Greece and, later in time, the Romans. However, it is likely that it was in use long before even these early beginnings and record keeping.

Essential oil usage in modern use was redefined in France in 1928 by the French Chemist, Rene-Maurice Gattefosse. Amazingly, it was by some accident that Gattefosse 're-discovered' the powerful and natural effects of what we today commonly call 'essential oils'. Gattefosse severely burned his hand, whilst carrying out his work, and plunged it into the nearest container, thinking it was water, when it fact it was a vat of lavender (lavandula angustifolia). To his surprise, his hand did not bear the burn scarring that he feared, and thus 'aromatherapy' was born..

Essential oils are the 'life blood' of the plant. The essential oils of the plant can be found in a number of places. They are in the glandular hairs, glands, veins or sacs of a plant, grass or tree. Oil can be extracted from flowers, leaves, trees (including the bark), roots, and the fruit. The orange tree is perhaps one of the most versatile in producing essential oils which produces a variety of essential oils from its fruit, leaves, twigs and flowers all from the same plant!

Essential oils can only be extracted from aromatic plants. It is the aroma' or smell' which is essentially extracted. Non-aromatic plants do not produce essential oils.

A true' essential oil is extracted from a plant and is not produced synthetically, as is the case of a number of fragrances in the perfume industry. These synthetic fragrances are usually establishing a branding' of a particular product and thus need the fragrance to be identical. True essential oils are never identical by their very nature. Aromas of essential oils from the same plant may vary due to a number of factors including altitude grown at, soil conditions, temperature and the country grown in. In addition, synthetically produced essential oils' do not have the healing properties of true essential oils.

Methods of extraction vary depending on where the essential oil is to be extracted from. For example, most citrus oils are extracted by expression,

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