Aromatherapy & Herbology© Marie A. Miczak
Oct 4, 1999
Aromatherapy and Herbology
There is a strong correlation between herbs and essential oils... they all come from
botanicals or sources which are used in herbal medicine. Many view Aromatherapy as a
branch of herbal medicine and incorporate it as part of a broader holistic health regimen.
In any event, both forms of healing are complementary and may be used interchangeable
to treat various problems depending what is available in one's area. Most plants that are
used in herbology also produce essential oil. One must understand though that the steam
distillation process, which is basically the same as making alcoholic beverages, produces
are very concentrated and may contain a higher amount of poisonous properties. Where
the essential oil is extracted in another factor. Such is the case with almond kernels which
produce an essential oil with high concentrations of cyanide in it. Eating almonds
medicinally is fine, but using the bitter almond oil is not. Being that this is the case, one
may not be able to rely completely on herbal books to gain correct information on
essential oils, especially if you wish to produce them yourself. Although essential oils are extremely concentrated, not all portions of the botanical
produce essential oil, therefore meaning the essential oil may not be the most active or
healing portion of the plant. At times, for a better effect, one will need to use the
botanical in whole form as opposed to just the essential oil. A botanical has synergistic
qualities inherent to itself many times and the essential oil may exclude these needed
properties. This is why it is important to find current information when using essential oils
to treat conditions. Make sure what you're reading is the Aromatherapy effects and not
the botanical as a whole as they may differ greatly. -MAM
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