Plant oils are used extensively in skin care preparations to improve the condition of the skin, nails and hair. To use plant oils properly and to best advantage, it is necessary to study and understand their varied constituents, their composition will influence the choice of oil to achieve a particular end.
There are distinct differences between fixed oils and essential oils. The plant oils used as carriers in aromatherapy and massage are referred to as ﾓfixedﾔ oils because they do not evaporate. Plant essential oils do evaporate because they are volatile. All essential oils dissolve easily and completely in fixed oils in all proportions. A fixed oil may also be called a "carrier" oil because its function is to ﾓcarryﾔ or act as a vehicle for administering the essential oils to the body. They also act as a lubricant, making it possible to carry out massage movements. All carrier oils are emollient, to a greater or lesser degree.
Sweet Almond Carrier Oil
Almond (Sweet) Prunus amygdalus, P. dulcis: Sweet almond oil is obtained from the nut of the tree, which is native to Asia and the Mediterranean. This oil is a favorite carrier oil for essential oil aromatherapy blends, although it s often used by itself for moisturizing skin. The oil has no scent and is a great nutrient for softening and conditioning the skin. It's been known to be especially suitable for eczema, itchy, dry and inflamed skin. Since it contains glucosides, vitamins and minerals, it makes a fabulous massage oil.
Sweet almond oil is widely used in lotions, lotion bars, balms and soap; it saponifies easily and produces a mild soap with very good lather. This oil can be used as a large percentage of the fats or as an oil added at trace.
Almond Oils is one of my favorites'
Have a great Friday,
Robie Waterworth
Aesthetic Candles
Candle Maker
Some of the history of Aromatherapy
The Greeks, of course, learned most
of their medical knowledge from the Egyptians, so they, too, incorporated
aromatherapy, but refined it even further. They discovered that the essence of
some flowers and herbs were stimulating while others were relaxing. They
developed the use of olive oil as the base oil, which absorbed the aroma of the
more concentrated essences, then used the "perfumed" result for both
cosmetic and medical purposes.
The Romans came along and learned from the Greeks. Rome was noted for its scented baths followed by massage using aromatic oils. In fact, it was the popularity of aromatics that led to trade routes being established to import exotic oils and spices from India, Arabia, and China. These imports were used far more in aromatherapy than in cooking.
When Roman society fell into decay, the use of aromatherapy in the Western World decayed with it as Europe descended into the Dark Ages in which anything with natural origins was regarded as witchcraft and superstition - a suspicion only reinforced by "modern" Western medicine until recent years when the little guys in white coats in their sterile laboratories discovered that the best cures lay not in the labs but in the rain forests and jungles.
The Romans came along and learned from the Greeks. Rome was noted for its scented baths followed by massage using aromatic oils. In fact, it was the popularity of aromatics that led to trade routes being established to import exotic oils and spices from India, Arabia, and China. These imports were used far more in aromatherapy than in cooking.
When Roman society fell into decay, the use of aromatherapy in the Western World decayed with it as Europe descended into the Dark Ages in which anything with natural origins was regarded as witchcraft and superstition - a suspicion only reinforced by "modern" Western medicine until recent years when the little guys in white coats in their sterile laboratories discovered that the best cures lay not in the labs but in the rain forests and jungles.
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