Cleansing Action

THOSE OF US WHO WORK with essential oils on a daily basis can see their cleansing action quite clearly when used for skin care and for treatment of cellulite. If the correct oils are applied, certain toxins appear to be cleared from the body and the results are soon apparent. What seems to happen is that the toxins - the free radicals, cell debris, heavy metals, renegade cells, fungi, bacteria, viruses, or other debris - may become attached to the essential oils which are then excreted from the body in the usual ways. The essential oils could be seen as rubbish collectors, attaching themselves to the unwanted agents and taking them to the exits for disposal.

Natural Balance

ESSENTIAL OILS SEEM to have the effect of bringing balance to the human organism. This is understandable because certain essential oils are thought to have "phytohormones" - molecules that mimic some of the hormones naturally occurring in the human body - acting as messengers, or keys, for the related system. Other essential oils are "adaptogens" - they work at balancing the sympathetic nervous system. This means that the essential oil will respond to the body's requirements at any given time. If the system is stimulated and needs relaxing, the essential oil will do that, but if the system is sluggish, the oil will stimulate it. This may seem paradoxical at first but not if one has a basic belief in the wisdom of the body being able to take from the environment that which can do it the most good.

The Mind/Body/Spirit Connection

THE SPIRITUAL DIMENSION of essential oils is well known and has been used by people throughout recorded history. Indeed, from the earliest times it is clear that people have been using essential oils - or the materials they are extracted from - in prayer, meditation, ritual, purification, and celebration. The association between aroma and spirituality is not simply aesthetic, but grows from the fact that people find themselves more easily able to experience the spiritual while certain aromas are being used. The aroma seems to facilitate a connection with the spiritual dimension, making it a sort of highway to the soul. People are a physical/mental/spiritual complex, and essential oils seem to have the ability to work on all three at the same time in some cases, or at least act as links between aspects of the self bringing the whole into balance. There is no way to prove this point experimentally; I am simply describing an experiential phenomenon which people appreciate. "Wholeness" is not scientifically quantifiable, but is no less real.

Synergy

EACH ESSENTIAL OIL is made up of dozens, if not hundreds, of components. These act not only in synergy with each other, giving the individual essential oil a particular characteristic and efficacy, but when you blend two or more essential oils together, you create another much more complex synergistic effect. Even blending one drop of (a) and two drops of (b) gives a different effect than two drops of (a) and one drop of (b). Aromatherapists marvel at the complexity of the system and appreciate its effects. Synergy is basically the rule that the whole is more than the sum of the parts, and blends of essential oils working well together seem to enhance each other's effectiveness. This blending is a skill which is acquired with time and experience