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The Oil StoryBy: Jacquelyn Close My first exposure to essential oils happened during the summer of 1995. I had experienced debilitating allergy symptoms for years, headaches, runny nose, itchy watering eyes, sneezing, ears stopped up, congestion. I was generally miserable from the beginning of Spring right through Fall. On this summer’s day in 1995, my allergies were worse than ever. Yet, less than 3 minutes after I stepped foot into a little herb shop in St. Louis, Missouri, every allergy symptom disappeared. I didn’t take anything. I didn’t drink anything. I just walked into the shop and suddenly I was well. What were they doing? And just by breathing the air in the room that had been infused with a micro-mist of therapeutic grade essential oils, I was completely and almost instantly well. It was nothing less than a miracle to me. I was euphoric. It was so dramatic. Sick one minute; healthy and happy the next. What Is An Essential Oil?Essential oils are highly concentrated plant extracts. It takes 1500 pounds of organic peppermint to make one pound
of peppermint oil. It takes 5000 pounds of organic rose petals to make one ounce of rose oil. Essential oils are generally described in books as steam-distilled volatile aromatic compounds derived from organically produced plant materials, and may be made from the leaves, petals, roots, seeds, bark, stems, and even the fruit. Therapeutic grade essential oils are also free of man’s interference or manipulation, and incorporate the largest variety and number of organic compounds found in the original plant material. Why Haven’t I Heard About Essential Oils?The aromatic liquids called “essential oils” today were in ancient times called “precious oils,” “anointing oils,” “sacred oils,” “oils of joy,” “treasure in the house of the wise.” Most were reserved for the kings and priests because they were known to be powerful protective gifts from God. An article in National Geographic, 1987, reported that a translated hieroglyph, found on an Egyptian Pharaoh’s tomb said that “Frankincense was known to cure everything from gout to a broken head.” The alluring scent and healing properties of Rose oil have been written about by poets and historians, and recorded in medical texts the world over for thousands of years. From India to China to Egypt, Europe to America, the healing properties of numerous aromatic plants and their oils have been recorded for posterity. In modern times laboratory research has shown that essential oils are antiseptic, antibacterial, antibiotic, antiviral, anti-infectious, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitoxic, antiparasitic, antitumoral, and antifungal. They have been known to stop the onset of the flu, the common cold, and even the Black Plague. But they are not patentable. When grown and distilled with loving care and the intent to capture and preserve all of the plant’s rich variety of organically produced compounds, essential oils enjoy a world-renowned reputation for profound and often immediate, beneficial changes in health. One of the earliest known mentions of an aromatic oil is found in the Sanskrit teachings that form the basis of India’s Ayurvedic Medicine written more than 5,000 year ago. In the Iliad, Homer describes how Aphrodite anoints the body of Hector with Rose oil. Egyptian papyri dating to 2700 BC record the use of fragrant herbs, choice oils, perfumes and temple incense, and also tell of healing salves made of fragrant resins. During the same period, Shen Nung’s Herbal Book, the oldest known medical book in China, provided information on the medicinal uses of more than 300 plants. They are mentioned throughout the Old Testament, and the Bible records that Frankincense and Myrrh were given to the Christ child. In fact, according to Dr. David Stewart in his book, Healing Oils of the Bible, over two-thirds of the books of the Bible contain references to oils, aromatic plants, or anointing with oil, and anointing for the purpose of healing the sick. Modern chemistry and factory production lines provided cheap reliable synthetics, and patentable compounds that could be mass produced without concern about growing seasons and harvests. This reliance on man-made synthetic medicines has provided reliability, yet this reliance on synthetics has also resulted in an ever-growing list of health problems including those resulting from the over use of antibiotics. Super bugs, such as MRSA, are rampant in hospitals, and are now spreading to schools and the community at large. Illness, disease and all too often deaths associated with the side effects of prescription and over-the-counter medications are one of the top ten killers in the US according the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). So, today, modern science is turning once again to a study of the wisdom of the ancient traditions, and testing the healing and restorative powers of essential oils and aromatic plants. Researchers across the Globe have presented their findings on the ability of essential oils to aid in sleep disorders, destroy bacteria and viruses, even MRSA, their ability to alleviate allergies, to eliminate toxic mold, to reduce pain and the memory of pain, to assist with cancer, arthritis, asthma, dementia, Alzheimers, heart disease and many other illnesses. Dr. Janet Maccaro explains, "Aromatherapy is a safe, pleasant way to lift your mood and relieve stress...Scents and odors influence the glands responsible for hormone levels, metabolism, insulin and stress levels, appetite, body temperature and even sex drive." In deed, information has been presented in such prestigious forums as the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine, the British Medical Journal, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and many others. Yet, essential oils and their benefits are known by only about 3% of the world’s population today. The beauty of aromatherapy and essential oils is that the rich synergy of aromatic compounds cannot be reproduced exactly by man. In fact, science has named less than half the compounds found in many essential oils. It is this richness and variety in their constituents that gives them their strength and efficacy in supporting our body’s ability to heal. This very same richness prevents them from being reproduced exactly by man. This very same richness prevents viruses, bacteria and fungi from developing immunity to the constituents of essential oil. And while man may synthesize a small portion of the constituents, or isolate the active ingredients, his synthetics will never provide the same benefits. And because plants cannot be patented and essential oils cannot be patented, they can never be owned or totally controlled by one company for profit. This means there are no advertising budgets, no doctor’s lunches, no sponsors for television and radio broadcasts. The information is passed from one person to another, one neighbor to another, one family member to another, one friend to another. It is up to us, as individuals, to eliminate as many synthetic chemicals from our lives as possible, and with true, organic, therapeutic grade essential oils and products that use them instead of synthetic chemicals, we can do that. This is how we can protect ourselves, our children and our extended families. Essential oils are God’s Gifts to man for his healing. Ezekiel 47:12 -- “And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.” Sirach (Apocrypha) 38:4 – “The Lord hath created medicines out of the earth; and he that is wise will not abhor them.” Hosea 4:6 – “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge...”
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