Essential oils can affect the mood, alleviate fatigue, reduce anxiety and promote relaxation. When inhaled, they work on the brain and nervous system through stimulation of the olfactory nerves.

The essential oils are aromatic essences extracted from plants, flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with distinctive therapeutic, psychological, and physiological properties, which improve and prevent illness. There are about 150 essential oils. Most of these oils have antiseptic properties; some are anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, anti-depressant and expectorant. Other properties of the essential oils which are taken advantage of in aromatherapy are their stimulation, relaxation, digestion improvement, and diuretic properties. To get the maximum benefit from essential oils, it should be made from natural, pure raw materials. Synthetically made oils do not work.

Essential oils, extracted from plants, possess distinctive therapeutic properties, which can be utilized to improve health and prevent disease. There are some 400 essential oils extracted from plants all over the world. These natural plant oils are applied in a variety of ways:

    * Massage (most used method)
    * Baths (add a few drops to warm water)
    * Inhalations (not for asthmatics)