AROMATHERAPY THEORY
Aromatherapy is a prevention treatment for disease by using essential oils. Two simply methods are presented to help in the understanding the supposed effects. The first is the effects aroma has on the brain, specifically the limbic system via the olfactory system. The second is the direct pharmacological influence of the essential oils.
While aromatherapists often claim precise knowledge of the synergy between the body and aromatic oils, the efficacy of aromatherapy still needs to be proven. However, some initial clinical reports show encouraging effects.
English speaking practitioners mainly focus on the use of oils in massage. Within the UK, USA and Australia, aromatherapy is mainly seen to be a balanced modality in its best form and a pseudoscientific swindle at its worst.
In France and elsewhere in the continent, where aromatherapy first started it has integrated into the standard medical practice. There, the application of antiseptic, antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial material of oils in the control of infections is prominent over the more touchy feely methods more common to English speakers. In France some essential oils are certified as prescription drugs, and therefore issued by a physician.