Aromatherapy Essential Oils

Common name: Lavender Oil
Botanical name: Lavandula officinalis, vera, spica or angustifolia
Family: Lamiaceae (Labiatae)
Habitat regions: Mediterranean, Southern Alps, Middle East, China, India
Common method of extraction: Steam distillation
Part of plant used: Flowering tops
Color: Light yellow
Scent: Fresh, floral, sweet and clean
Combines well with: Almost every essential oil and especially with Clary Sage, Geranium, Pine, Lemon, Orange and Bergamot oil.

Description: Lavender is the most popular essential oil. It has been used since antiquity for cosmetic and therapeutic purposes. Egyptians used lavender oil in mummification process of their dead, Greeks used it for insomnia therapy and Roman used to add it in their baths to scent their body and hair. It believed that the name “lavender“ derived from the latin verb “lavare” which means to wash.

Lavender oil is generally considered as the most useful, versatile and beneficial oil for many physical and emotional conditions. It has calming properties and it can balance strong emotions, enhance memory and relieve tension and insomnia. Moreover, lavender oil is used to heal skin disorders and circulatory problems, to alleviate muscle pains, to assists immune system and to help women with pre-menstrual syndrome.

Lavender oil properties

High	Middle	Low
Antiphlogistic	Antidepressant	Antiinfectious
Relaxing	Antispasmodic	Anticoagulant
Calming	Cicatrizant	Anti-rheumatic
Sedative		Antiseptic
		Bactericide
		Diuretic
		Emmenagogue
		Balancing
		Tonic
		Vermicide
		Antitoxic
		Deodorant

Therapeutic action

	High	Middle	Low
Neurology	Stress		Migraine
	Insomnia		Neurasthenia
	Irritability
	Nervousness
Skin		Wound	Acne
		Scratch	Insects bite
		Burn	Dermatitis
		Itching
Cardiology			Tachycardia
			Cardialgia
Digestion			Dyspepsia
			Colitis
			Enteritis
Rheumatology		Myalgia	Rheumatism
		Cramps
General Health Care			Dizziness
Pneumology			Asthma
			Cough
Venereology			Leucorrhoea
			Blennorrhagia
Hair			Louse
Otolaryngology (ENT)			Respiratory disorders
Urology			Urinary track infections

Precautions: Lavender oil is considered as non irritant and can be applied to skin in undiluted form. Nevertheless, people with very sensitive skin should always dilute it with carrier oil before use. Moreover, people with low blood pressure may feel drowsy after use, while women during the 3 first months of pregnancy and lactation should avoid using lavender oil. Finally, lavender oil is associated to hormonal imbalances that may cause gynecomastia in young boys and pre-pubescent breast development in girls.

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