Beauty

Description

Lavender essential oil is a heavy, thick, volatile liquid with a rich floral aroma with woody notes, obtained by extraction from the evergreen subshrub of the same name. A distinctive feature of all essential oils, including lavender, is their multicomponent and purity — the composition of the oil usually includes dozens of biological compounds — parts of the plant from which they were obtained. Lavender is a perennial spicy shrub with straight stems, entire linear leaves and blue flowers from the Lamiaceae family. The plant in a wild form is common in the Canary Islands, France and Persia, and in a cultivated state it is grown in Spain, Italy, England, Morocco, France, Central Asia, the Crimea and the Caucasus.

The birthplace of lavender is the Mediterranean, where even during the time of the Roman Empire it was used to prepare fragrant waters, with which they rinsed their hands before a meal. The very name of the plant, in all likelihood, comes from the Latin «Lavare» — «to wash», because the ancient Romans often added lavender to baths, resulting in a kind of plant extract in the water. However, many believe that the origin of essential oils is much older and dates back to the reign of the Egyptian pharaohs. Such data confirm numerous archaeological finds of incense residues in the pyramids, but not the fact that lavender oil was among them.

Chemical composition

The main components of lavender oil are esters of organic acids (butyric, acetic, caproic and valeric) and linalool alcohol, as well as geraniol, caryophyllene, borneol, lavandiol, coumarin, ursolic acid, herniarin, resins, bitterness and tannins.

Application

Lavender oil is used in traditional and folk medicine, in cosmetology (it is especially popular for anti-cellulite massage) and aromatherapy. They are often used to deodorize rooms and add to the water when taking a bath to relax and calm the central nervous system. Lavender flowers and oil are used as a repellant (to repel moths and mosquitoes). There is also a French hygiene preparation with lavender oil, designed to prevent animal diseases.

Healing properties of lavender oil

Lavender essential oil is one of the main components of French patented myo- and neurotropic drugs, an Australian inhalation liquid used to prevent influenza infections, as well as remedies for the treatment of laryngitis, pharyngitis, rhinitis and even pneumonia.

An alcoholic solution of lavender oil is widely used in folk medicine for the treatment of neurasthenia, migraine, cardiovascular diseases, rheumatism, pyelonephritis and urolithiasis. Lavender is added to therapeutic baths for neuralgia, dislocations, bruises, skin diseases, inflammation of the joints as a wound healing, bactericidal and anti-inflammatory agent.

In cosmetology, lavender oil is part of the care products for oily and problem skin with acne, boils (antiseptic effect of the oil). It is effective for dandruff (a fungal infection of the scalp), sunburn and hair loss.

Aromatherapy with lavender has an antidepressant and anti-stress effect, stimulates mental activity, helps to establish psycho-emotional balance and increases attention.

Contraindications

Lavender oil should not be used during pregnancy and taking iodine-containing drugs.

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