Tag: Essential Oils

The Use of Essential Oils for Pets

When people have success using essential oils for healing and rejuvenation, they automatically assume they can use them on their pets as well. Sometimes this is indeed true. However, it takes special knowledge of animals to know when and how to use essential oils for pets. With many pets, you should avoid the use of essential oils altogether. Birds especially are susceptible to severe reactions to essential oils. You should not even diffuse these oils in the air near birds. They can have respiratory problems that can be deadly.

Cats are another subject. There is much controversy over whether you can use essential oils with cats. Many purveyors of these oils recommend frankincense for ear mites and peppermint for respiratory troubles. These are just a couple of the remedies suggested for the ailments of cats. Veterinarians, though, explain that essential oils do more harm than good to cats. Oils like peppermint are too “hot” for cats. Their sensitive skin will burn. Also, any essential oils that a cat takes in, whether it be through the air or through the skin, must be eliminated. This is done through the cat’s liver.

The problem is that a cat’s liver is more delicate than a human’s or that of other animals, as well. It takes some forty eight hours for the cat’s liver to process and expel the essential oils. This can lead to a build-up and finally to liver damage.

Dogs are more suited to the use of essential oils, but you should still never use them without diluting them. If you use a reasonable amount of caution, you can use essential oils to help dogs with many common problems. You can massage the essential oils mixed with carrier oils into the dog’s skin. Use an area of the skin that is the least hairy. You can also use a diffuser in a room twice a day and let your dog breathe the air from it. Since a dog’s liver is hardier, this will not damage it. You can use a mister to spray around the areas where the dog stays, too.

Many dogs will develop arthritis as they get older. Sometimes owners will even euthanize their dogs just so they won’t have to suffer with this ailment. However, there are essential oils that can help your dog live a more comfortable life. Some are juniper, pine, rosemary, and birch oils. When your dog becomes ill, it can mean damage to your flooring and furnishings. Besides that, you don’t like to see your dog suffering. For vomiting, you can use essential oils of lavender, tarragon, or peppermint. You can use a cinnamon oil massage for diarrhea.

Dogs often get what are known as “hot spots.” These are raw areas of skin where the fur has either been chewed or worn off. They can be very difficult to treat, and vets have several antidotes for them. If you want to try essential oils, try Melrose and lavender. They both clean the wound and reduce inflammation.

Care should be taken when using essential oils on or around animals. Some pets just can’t take it. Yet, for those pets that are able to tolerate them, they can be a great help.

The Miracle of Essential Oils

Often described as nature’s gift to us, essential oils provide natural remedies for minor ailments, the beautifying of our bodies, and helps to aid in promoting positive emotions. These oils are normally derived from plants using their flowers, stems, barks, roots and even sap. Various parts of the plant are then distilled to extract the precious essence that is seemingly life giving.

What makes essential oils so special? Maybe it’s the fact that they can be found anywhere as they are naturally grown sometimes in farms or even in wild conditions. Maybe it’s the fact that essential oils can provide a multitude of physiological benefits as well as have the power to calm our soul. Maybe it’s the fact that the use of essential oils dates back to almost a thousand years and is already embedded in our history although no one exactly prove that they work much less how they work. Whatever the case may be, there is no doubt that they provide a natural method of healing that can’t always be found in synthetic compounds.

Take for example, the unique history of frankincense. The use of frankincense dates back to more than 5000 years with one use directly being cited in the bible. (Frankincense was one of the gifts presented to baby Jesus by the three wise men.) At one time, the value of frankincense equaled that of gold! It was noted for abundant healing properties including rejuvenating skin, treating acne, bacterial and fungal infections, and wounds and scars. Frankincense was also used as a treatment for arthritis and joint pain. In addition to all of that, frankincense was used as a cosmetic as well as for repelling mosquitoes, wheat moths, and sand flies. Most notably, however, is the use of frankincense in spiritual practices. Frankincense promotes the body’s ability to quiet one’s mind; slow breathing rates, and enhances meditation. To think that all of this was found in a single plant!

The miracle of essential oils is this: that we have already been provided with all of what we need for our physical and emotional healing. Many of the ailments we suffer are the results of destructive emotions such as stress, fatigue, anger, loneliness and the like. These emotions take a toll on our physical being and results in worsened conditions which we seemingly are unsure of how to cure.

The miracle of essential oils is that no matter what your physical condition may be, you can still receive positive benefits even though it may be something as small as reducing the amount of pain you experience. Aromatherapy can help to eliminate negative emotions and reach a place of emotional balance to help you deal with any situation coming your way. All it takes is a positive outlook on life – your life. The effects may seem small to non-existent at first, but with time, may snowball into reversing some of the effects of the ailments you experience. What if you received a report that your blood pressure lowered on your next trip to the doctor?

Before starting any aromatherapy regimen, consult with your doctor or aromatherapy practitioner. Aromatherapy should also not be used as a substitute for any medical treatment.

The History of Essential Oils

In modern times, essential oils are used in aromatherapy to aid people with their physical and emotional health. In the past, they have been used by many people all over the world and in different cultures to do just that. The history of essential oils is a long one. Thousands of years ago, the Chinese were using plants with aromatic qualities for healing. Although these plant substances were being used in the medical practices of the day, they had not yet been distilled into essential oils.

The Egyptians, and perhaps also the Persians and the people of India, were the first to make distillation machines. Oil of cedarwood distilled with such machines was used along with myrrh, cinnamon, clove and nutmeg oils to embalm the dead.

The Egyptians were concerned more with the sense of smell than with any of the other senses. They believed that it was the most important and dominant sense. They adopted the essential oils they made to their medicine, cosmetics, and fragrances.

The use of essential oils was taken up by the Greeks next. Hippocrates did an ancient form of aromatherapy. A Greek named Megalleon invented a perfume called megaleion. This substance was used in aromatherapy and as an essential oil as an anti-inflammatory and to heal wounds. A Roman, Discorides, wrote on the uses of 500 different plant substances. Distillations were also made of such substances. However, these distillations didn’t produce essential oils. Instead, they made floral-smelling waters.

Avicenna was a Persian man who refined the process by inventing a distillation machine with a coiled cooling pipe. This allowed for more effective cooling. Eventually, the focus shifted towards more emphasis on true essential oils and their uses.

Paracelcus was a doctor of the fifteenth century who began using the term “essence.” His emphasis was using essential oils for medicine. During this time, many new essential oils were being produced. Among them were juniper, rosemary, rose, and sage. During the sixteenth century, people would go to their apothecary to get essential oils for many different uses. Around this time, the advent of new essential oils flourished. In the next few centuries, essential oils changed little except in their use in perfumes.

The major chemical ingredients of essential oils were identified. Scientists became more interested in the subject of essential oils. In the twentieth century, this became a problem for those interested in the use of true essential oils.

Much of twentieth century science has been consumed with creating synthetic versions of essential oils. However, an early twentieth century Frenchman named Gattefosse became increasingly involved with the study of essential oils and their medicinal values. He was the first to use the term “aromatherapy”. Aromatherapy and the use of essential oils were not well known in English-speaking countries. Robert B. Tisserand changed all that. He wrote the first English book on the subject, and many other books and articles.

As the years go by, people are becoming more and more interested in natural ways of doing things. They want to find ways to soothe their minds and comfort their bodies without synthetic drugs. Essential oils give them a way to do it.

Weekly Tweets on 2012-10-09

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