Almost 21 million people in the United States or 10% of the adult population suffer from a mood disorder (Kessler 2005). Anxiety and depression are among the most common and most difficult to treat of these disorders. Billions of dollars are spent each year on prescription medications to treat anxiety and depression. However, these medications are only modestly effective, expensive and can result in strong addictions and severe side effects. Clearly, there is a great need for a therapy that is safe, efficacious and cost-effective.
Over the last two decades, there has been great interest in alternative medical therapies for the treatment of mood disorders. One such treatment has been extensively studied and has been shown to have great promise in the treatment of these disorders. This treatment is aromatherapy.
Aromatherapy utilizes essential oils derived from plants to enhance physical and emotional well-being. Aromatherapy has been used for stimulation and for sedation depending on the particular oil used for thousands of years. Aromatherapy can be administered in several different ways although the most common are direct aromatherapy inhalation and aromatherapy massage.
Aromatherapy has been used to treat various conditions and diseases. The essential oils that are integral to aromatherapy have distinct physiological effects depending on the oil that is used. Many of these oils have anti-anxiety properties including geranium, lavender, mandarin and rose.
Perhaps the most effective use of aromatherapy is in conjunction with massage termed aromatherapy massage. With aromatherapy massage, the concentrated oils that are extracted from herbs and flowers are mixed with massage oil and massaged into the skin.
It is well established that smell is strongly linked to emotion (Pause 2004). Aromatherapy massage is especially beneficial for people with anxiety or depression resulting from a variety of causes. Aromatherapy massage was found to relieve anxiety in women with breast cancer after the first treatment and, with twice weekly treatments for 4 weeks, anxiety remained low during the entire time (Imanishi 2009). Aromatherapy specifically lavender has also been found to be effective in treating agitation (Lin 2007). Reviews of all published aromatherapy studies found that aromatherapy massage produces relieve from anxiety (Cooke 2000) and depression (Yim 2009), regardless of the cause of the condition.
One of the biggest advantages of aromatherapy over traditional pharmaceutical treatments for anxiety and depression is its cost and lack of side effects. Aromatherapy oils are inexpensive especially when compared to the cost of prescription medications. Furthermore, side effects are extremely rare. The most common side effects are skin irritation and an occasional possible allergic reaction. However, these effects are primarily caused by use of expired oils. As essential oils age, the chemical composition changes, which often leads to sensitivity reactions. Therefore, fresh oils should always be used during treatments.
For those suffering with the symptoms of mood disorders, special attention should be paid to a healthy diet abundant in natural vitamins . Whole foods nourish both the body and the brain. If choosing vitamin supplements be sure to choose healthy whole food supplements such as natural aloe vera juice which is rich in life supporting plant nutrients called phytonutrients . Whole foods are a much better choice verses synthetic vitamins.
Overall, aromatherapy is extremely effective in the treatment of mood disorders including anxiety and depression especially when combined with massage. Furthermore, the cost is low and side effects are rare, which makes aromatherapy the ideal treatment choice for those with mood disorders.
Dr. Linda Kennedy MS SLP ND
References
Cooke B, Ernst E. Aromatherapy: a systematic review. Br J Gen Pract. 2000 Jun;50(455):493-6.
Imanishi J, Kuriyama H, Shigemori I, Watanabe S, Aihara Y, Kita M, Sawai K, Nakajima H, Yoshida N, Kunisawa M, Kawase M, Fukui K. Anxiolytic effect of aromatherapy massage in patients with breast cancer. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2009 Mar;6(1):123-8.
Kessler RC, Chiu WT, Demler O, Walters EE. Prevalence, severity, and comorbidity of twelve-month DSM-IV disorders in the National Co morbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R). Archives of General Psychiatry, 2005 Jun; 62(6):617-27.
Lin PW, Chan WC, Ng BF, Lam LC. Efficacy of aromatherapy (Lavandula angustifolia) as an intervention for agitated behaviors in Chinese older persons with dementia: a crossover randomized trial. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2007 May; 22(5):405-10.
Pause BM, Ohrt A, Prehn A, Ferstl R. Positive emotional priming of facial affect perception in females is diminished by chemosensory anxiety signals. Chem Senses. 2004 Nov; 29(9):797-805.
Yim VW, Ng AK, Tsang HW, Leung AY. A Review on the Effects of Aromatherapy for Patients with Depressive Symptoms. J Altern Complement Med. 2009 Feb 13.
Shopping Cart