Essences or Essential Oils

 Dear readers and friends,

Today I present to you a very interesting and useful article for a more appropriate use of essential oils, very useful for our health.

The essences are volatile products obtained by distillation, by pressure or (in rare cases, for example the liquid camphor of Borneo) by engraving. The parts used are very varied: the flowers or flowering tops, the parts of flowers (rose petals), the peels of the fruits (lemon, orange), the seeds (anise), the berries (juniper), the flowering buds (carnation), the fruits (parsley), the wood (sandalwood).

Over the centuries, essences have always been considered as powerful antiseptics even before the discovery of bacteria, perhaps they were called purifiers but the fact remains that our ancestors used them for this purpose. Then, with the advent of modern chemistry, the cause of this activity was explained: the content in the essences of some chemical compounds called phenols, aldehydes, alcohols, ethers and acids which, in descending order, have truly demonstrated a high bactericidal efficacy in both laboratory and "in vivo" tests. 

The tests were performed by placing the germs in contact with the vapors of the essential oils or by direct contact. Just to give an example, I report some research carried out by Cavel in France who used microbial cultures to which he added highly diluted solutions of essential oils (Valnet J.): In decreasing order of effectiveness:

The essences of thyme (effective in the concentration of 0.07%) (I use the plural of essence because different essences of various origins were tested) 
The essences of oregano (effective in the concentration of 0.1%)
The essences of verbena (effective in the concentration of 0.16%) 
The essences of rose (effective in the concentration of 0.18%) 
The essences of cinnamon (effective in the concentration of 0.17%) 

The list examines around 35 essences and compares them with the disinfectant considered most effective at that time, i.e. a phenol solution which, under the same conditions, required a concentration of 0.56%.

More examples: 

Cinnamon essence diluted in 0.2-0.7% alcohol kills Koch's bacillus (tuberculosis). 
0.2% niaouly essence is used for the dressing of sores, burns or skin ulcers.
The essence of thyme is one of the best antiseptics: the aqueous solution of thyme at 5% kills the typhoid bacillus and the Shiga bacillus (epidemic dysentery of tropical countries) in two minutes; in about 5 minutes the colibacillus, in 4 minutes the streptococcus and the diphtheria bacillus. 
Lemon essence vapors neutralize meningococcus in 15 minutes, typhoid bacillus in less than an hour, staphylococcus in 5 minutes, diphtheria bacillus in 20 minutes. (studies by Morel and Rochaix). 

Dr Valnet, French doctor and father of aromatherapy concludes, just to cite an example, reports that: "the essence of thyme has an absolutely superior antiseptic and anti-parasitic power than hydrogen peroxide, potassium permanganate and alcoholic solutions".

Numerous essences, in addition to the antiseptic and bactericidal properties, have antiviral properties. Even in the absence of systematic studies on every single essence it is well known, for example that mixtures of essences have curative properties on herpes zooster (or St. Anthony's Fire). Furthermore, very importantly, the essences keep their antiseptic power unchanged over time. 

The essences can be administered in various ways, that is, orally, generally in the form of pills on the market, in drops in an alcoholic solution, and externally, that is, by fumigations, inhalations and total or partial baths. Mainly the internal route, but also the external route must be used with caution as the essences and mineral and vegetable principles are absorbed through the skin.  

Studies carried out with radioactive isotopes have demonstrated the absorption of essences through the skin-blood-lung pathway and therefore explain the action, for example, of aromatic pine baths and on the action found, ie antiseptic, fluidifying and adjuvant of expectoration. 

Aromatic baths:first of all do not add the essence directly into the bath water as there is no solubilization and therefore a dilution, but a stratification of the essence on the surface of the water which is equivalent to having it on the skin in a concentrated form. A little trick will suffice to obtain a correct dilution: mix 15-20 drops of essence in a spoonful of honey. Honey works as an "emulsifier-solubilizer" and in this way you will have a correct dilution. The water in the bath must be at a temperature of approximately 35°C and the immersion time must not exceed 15 minutes. After the aromatic bath, lie down and rest for another 30 minutes. The results will be optimal.  

Remember that, due to their very powerful activity, it is necessary to use the essences in very diluted solutions and, in some cases, remarkable results are obtained the more the products are diluted without thereby trespassing on homeopathy. 

Some recipes for home use composed of essential oils: 

Vinegar for skin redness and insect bites:  Mint essential oil 2.5 ml Rosemary essential oil 2.5 ml Sage essential oil 2.5 ml Lavender essential oil 2.5 ml Vinegar as needed (to taste) to 200 ml Mix the ingredients in a small dark glass bottle. Essential oils should be measured with a 5ml pipette. 

Antiseptic vinegar or vinegar of the four thieves: Vinegar 70 ml Absinthe 1 g Artemisia 1 g Mint 1 g Ruta 1 g Sage 1 g Lavender 1 g Cloves 2 g Calamus 2 g Cinnamon 2 g Nutmeg 2 g Leave to infuse for 10 days in a dark glass bottle. Proceed with filtration as indicated and add 0.2 g of camphor and 1 g of crystallized acetic acid. Leave it on for 24 hours before using. 

The very name of the preparation suggests a kind of immunity from the infections of thieves who, in the past, took advantage of great epidemics to enter houses and steal precious objects. In fact, this vinegar can be used for inhalation or rubbed on the hands and face or aspirated in cases of flu or other epidemic diseases. 

You can prepare an alcoholic solution indicated for sunstroke, small light burns, insect bites (wasps, spiders, mosquitoes), cuts, wounds, mouth rinses (20 drops in a glass of water); in poultices for shingles (Herpes zooster) in the first 15 days of illness. It is very useful to keep at home, on holiday, as immediate first aid, even for children. It has also shown good efficacy in the case of tick and jellyfish bites.

Composition
Pure alcohol at 95°C 85 ml 
Lavender essence 2 ml 
Thyme essence 2 ml 
Sage essence 2 ml 
Eucalyptus essence 2 ml Rosemary 
essence 1 ml 
Cypress essence 1 ml 
Niaouly essence 2 ml 
Geranium essence 2 ml 

After a diagnosis of mycosis 

Apply twice a day a 5% solution of red thyme in alcohol at 95°C (or if you prefer in almond or sesame oil). Naturally do not apply in the vicinity of eyes and mucous membranes. Thyme has a clear anti fungal action. 

Solution for travel to exotic lands. 

However, remember that in the event of travel, intestinal function is the first to be affected. To avoid unwanted "blockages", obtain lactic ferments in powder or tablet form and take them at least twice a day for the entire duration of the trip. 

Essential oils, unlike certain disinfectant drugs, do not interfere with the intestine. It's very bad… but the taste passes immediately and, given the advantages, it's worth it! 

Thyme essence 1 ml 
Cinnamon essence 1 ml 
Pure alcohol at 95°C enough for 50 ml 

Use 20 drops in half a glass of water once a day as a preventive and three times a day as a cure.

To conclude this very interesting article, I leave you the link of another article of mine so that it is extremely useful and to be able to use these magnificent essences in the best way.

SMALL MAUAL ON ESSENTIAL OILS

For those who don't want to go to the herbalist's shop, the Green Weez partnership has excellent  organic essential oils  for this purpose  with modest prices and organic products.