Overview
Lavender is well-known and commonly used throughout the world. Thinking of lavender brings a picture to mind of a vibrant purple-blue color and the soft, soothing and woody smell of the flowers. Traditionally, the oil of this shrub has been used as an antiseptic, a calmative, to deter insects, to treat burns and most notably used as a perfume. Today, uses are extensive in aromatherapy as well as in the production of perfume. Most individuals, through readings or even television product ads, are familiar with lavender as a relaxant. On-going science studies are investigating the properties of lavender in potential cancer treatments for breast, ovarian, pancreatic, liver and prostate. Current clinical studies have reported lavender essential oil as possibly being beneficial for a number of conditions, including insomnia, alopecia (significant hair loss), anxiety, stress, postoperative pain and as an antibacterial and antiviral agent.
Although generally known as lavender, there are actually thirty-nine species of the genus Lavendula, yet only a handful is used commercially. This fragrant plant is native to the Mediterranean region south to tropical Africa and to the southeast region of India. Today lavender is successfully cultivated in southern Europe, Australia and the United States. Aromatherapists distinguish lavender species according to their therapeutic uses and medicinal properties. True lavender (L. officinalis, L. angustifolia) when distilled at high elevations is known for its large percentage of ester content and regarded as the best in quality. Uses for true lavender include cases involving anxiety, stress, small burns, cuts and insect bites. Spike lavender (L. spica, L. latifolia) is known for its camphor content and thus used for respiratory infections, for muscular aches and pains and as a possible stimulant. Lavendin (L.fragrans, L. burnatti) is a hybrid of true lavender (L. angustifolia) and spike lavender (L. latifolia) and commonly used for large-scale commercial purposes. Stoechas lavender (L. stoechas) is used as an expectorant and known for its antimicrobial properties.
Reducing Anxiety
Therapeutic uses of lavender are well regarded by conventional and alternative practitioners alike, specifically in stress and anxiety reduction. Its effectiveness is due to its chemical properties (mainly linalool and linalyl acetate) and its molecular pathway to the brain. Diffused molecules of essential oils, such as lavender, illicit a rather quick response from the brain. They enter the body through the nasal cavity and thus able to by-pass the blood-brain barrier. Through a series of rapid events, molecules of essential oil enter the nasal region, bind to chemical receptor sites of the olfactory system which then send a series of electronic impulses (messages) via the olfactory nerve. The nerve fibers of the olfactory system run directly to the limbic (or primordial) area of the brain, which is intimately associated with the expression of emotion, without passing through the dorsal thalamus (a relay station to the cerebral cortex). Even more intriguing, in 2004 Linda Buck and Jim Axel won a Nobel Prize on their work on smell, discovering that each olfactory receptor cell has only one type of receptor able to detect just a few related molecules.
Diffused essential oil of lavender has been shown to alter reactions in the limbic system - a system that includes the amygdala and hippocampus, both of with are vital to our behavior, mood and memory. Recent studies have found lavender to reduce levels of cortisol (a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands). High and prolonged levels of cortisol have been shown to have a deleterious effect on the body, such as higher blood pressure, lowered immunity and decrease in bone density. A 2008 study published by the International Journal of Cardiology (Sep 26; 129(2): 193-7)found that lavender aromatherapy reduced serum cortisol and improved coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR ) in healthy men after stress was induced and concludes that lavender aromatherapy has relaxation capabilities and may be beneficial for cases concerning coronary circulation. Another study from the Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan (Archives of Oral Biology 2008 Oct; 53(10): 964-8) found that salivary cortisol levels decreased in stressed subjects (via a series of mathematical tasks) after being exposed to air-borne lavender essential oil; cortisol levels did not decrease in the control group. Lavender essential oil has also been found to help babies as well. The University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Florida (Early Human Development 2008 Jun; 84(6): 399-41) found that babies bathed with essential oil of lavender cried less and spent more time in deep sleep than babies who were not bathed with the oil.
Other Noteworthy Uses
A rather haphazard discovery of lavender in the use of tissue regeneration was made by the late Dr. Rene-Maurice Gattefosse (a French cosmetic chemist) who after he severely burned his hands in a laboratory accident, submerged them in a container of lavender essential oil and noted the remarkable speed at which they healed. More recent research has newly discovered the possible antimutagenic (inhibits mutations) effect of lavender. In this study (Food and Chemical Toxicology 2005 Sept; 4319: 1381-7) scientists noted antimutagenic effects of lavender oil (L. angustifolia) on a strain of Salmonella bacteria, concluding that such uses of lavender may be promising for applications in modern human healthcare. Other uses, such as antimicrobial and antiviral have been recognized and supported on the University of Maryland Medical Center website (www.umm.edu).
Conclusion
Lavender, highly regarded for centuries for its medicinal and sedative properties, is finding its way into modern medical facilities. It is encouraging to read of increased laboratory research that is uncovering the active chemical properties of lavender and their possible uses in human healthcare. Yet, it must be duly noted that clinical research often looks at single constituents of an essential oil rather than the synergistic properties of the plant's oil as a whole. Also, many research studies are limited to in vitro testing verses looking at the effects of human beings as an entire being (which often is outside the parameters of analytical research analyses). It is recognized here that evidence from promising clinical and laboratory results on uses of lavender is opening doors for modern medicine to look for solutions outside conventional settings. The aromatherapy use of lavender might just be a welcomed addition in many medical facilities in the near future. Centuries-old knowledge and modern laboratory investigations are well to go hand in hand in finding beneficial approaches in supporting health and healing. - 14130
Lavender is well-known and commonly used throughout the world. Thinking of lavender brings a picture to mind of a vibrant purple-blue color and the soft, soothing and woody smell of the flowers. Traditionally, the oil of this shrub has been used as an antiseptic, a calmative, to deter insects, to treat burns and most notably used as a perfume. Today, uses are extensive in aromatherapy as well as in the production of perfume. Most individuals, through readings or even television product ads, are familiar with lavender as a relaxant. On-going science studies are investigating the properties of lavender in potential cancer treatments for breast, ovarian, pancreatic, liver and prostate. Current clinical studies have reported lavender essential oil as possibly being beneficial for a number of conditions, including insomnia, alopecia (significant hair loss), anxiety, stress, postoperative pain and as an antibacterial and antiviral agent.
Although generally known as lavender, there are actually thirty-nine species of the genus Lavendula, yet only a handful is used commercially. This fragrant plant is native to the Mediterranean region south to tropical Africa and to the southeast region of India. Today lavender is successfully cultivated in southern Europe, Australia and the United States. Aromatherapists distinguish lavender species according to their therapeutic uses and medicinal properties. True lavender (L. officinalis, L. angustifolia) when distilled at high elevations is known for its large percentage of ester content and regarded as the best in quality. Uses for true lavender include cases involving anxiety, stress, small burns, cuts and insect bites. Spike lavender (L. spica, L. latifolia) is known for its camphor content and thus used for respiratory infections, for muscular aches and pains and as a possible stimulant. Lavendin (L.fragrans, L. burnatti) is a hybrid of true lavender (L. angustifolia) and spike lavender (L. latifolia) and commonly used for large-scale commercial purposes. Stoechas lavender (L. stoechas) is used as an expectorant and known for its antimicrobial properties.
Reducing Anxiety
Therapeutic uses of lavender are well regarded by conventional and alternative practitioners alike, specifically in stress and anxiety reduction. Its effectiveness is due to its chemical properties (mainly linalool and linalyl acetate) and its molecular pathway to the brain. Diffused molecules of essential oils, such as lavender, illicit a rather quick response from the brain. They enter the body through the nasal cavity and thus able to by-pass the blood-brain barrier. Through a series of rapid events, molecules of essential oil enter the nasal region, bind to chemical receptor sites of the olfactory system which then send a series of electronic impulses (messages) via the olfactory nerve. The nerve fibers of the olfactory system run directly to the limbic (or primordial) area of the brain, which is intimately associated with the expression of emotion, without passing through the dorsal thalamus (a relay station to the cerebral cortex). Even more intriguing, in 2004 Linda Buck and Jim Axel won a Nobel Prize on their work on smell, discovering that each olfactory receptor cell has only one type of receptor able to detect just a few related molecules.
Diffused essential oil of lavender has been shown to alter reactions in the limbic system - a system that includes the amygdala and hippocampus, both of with are vital to our behavior, mood and memory. Recent studies have found lavender to reduce levels of cortisol (a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands). High and prolonged levels of cortisol have been shown to have a deleterious effect on the body, such as higher blood pressure, lowered immunity and decrease in bone density. A 2008 study published by the International Journal of Cardiology (Sep 26; 129(2): 193-7)found that lavender aromatherapy reduced serum cortisol and improved coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR ) in healthy men after stress was induced and concludes that lavender aromatherapy has relaxation capabilities and may be beneficial for cases concerning coronary circulation. Another study from the Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan (Archives of Oral Biology 2008 Oct; 53(10): 964-8) found that salivary cortisol levels decreased in stressed subjects (via a series of mathematical tasks) after being exposed to air-borne lavender essential oil; cortisol levels did not decrease in the control group. Lavender essential oil has also been found to help babies as well. The University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Florida (Early Human Development 2008 Jun; 84(6): 399-41) found that babies bathed with essential oil of lavender cried less and spent more time in deep sleep than babies who were not bathed with the oil.
Other Noteworthy Uses
A rather haphazard discovery of lavender in the use of tissue regeneration was made by the late Dr. Rene-Maurice Gattefosse (a French cosmetic chemist) who after he severely burned his hands in a laboratory accident, submerged them in a container of lavender essential oil and noted the remarkable speed at which they healed. More recent research has newly discovered the possible antimutagenic (inhibits mutations) effect of lavender. In this study (Food and Chemical Toxicology 2005 Sept; 4319: 1381-7) scientists noted antimutagenic effects of lavender oil (L. angustifolia) on a strain of Salmonella bacteria, concluding that such uses of lavender may be promising for applications in modern human healthcare. Other uses, such as antimicrobial and antiviral have been recognized and supported on the University of Maryland Medical Center website (www.umm.edu).
Conclusion
Lavender, highly regarded for centuries for its medicinal and sedative properties, is finding its way into modern medical facilities. It is encouraging to read of increased laboratory research that is uncovering the active chemical properties of lavender and their possible uses in human healthcare. Yet, it must be duly noted that clinical research often looks at single constituents of an essential oil rather than the synergistic properties of the plant's oil as a whole. Also, many research studies are limited to in vitro testing verses looking at the effects of human beings as an entire being (which often is outside the parameters of analytical research analyses). It is recognized here that evidence from promising clinical and laboratory results on uses of lavender is opening doors for modern medicine to look for solutions outside conventional settings. The aromatherapy use of lavender might just be a welcomed addition in many medical facilities in the near future. Centuries-old knowledge and modern laboratory investigations are well to go hand in hand in finding beneficial approaches in supporting health and healing. - 14130
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