31st January 2012
By Sayer Ji – Wake Up World
In a day and age like ours, stress and anxiety come with the territory — so much so, that it you do not experience these emotional states even occasionally then you’re probably not paying attention to what’s going on in the world around you.
Anti-anxiety drugs are powerful, but addictive and dangerous, and withdrawal symptoms can be so severe as to produce seizures, anxiety and a wide range of adverse effects which, paradoxically, are identical to the very conditions they are taken to treat — especially the benzodiazepine class which includes Xanax and Klonopin.
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Due to this fact, natural alternatives are needed now more than ever. Back in 2002 an amazing discovery was reported in the Japanese Journal of Pharmacology. Researchers found that the simple inhalation of patchouli and rose oil reduced sympathetic nervous activity by 40%, with rose oil reducing adrenaline concentrations by 30%.
Many flowers, in fact, are uniquely well-suited to calm the human body and soul. Lavender oil, for instance, has also been studied for the ability to reduce stress, anxiety, aggression and cortisol levels, among two dozen other therapeutic properties.
Aromatherapy, of course, works by aroma which activates the limbic and olfactory systems. Rather than ingesting a drug (chemical), or even an herbal antidote, aromatherapy enables a direct-to-brain action through the nose of small molecules found within the volatile oil components of plants. This also ensures that there is a high margin of safety versus oral or topical routes of exposure. Stress and anxiety are only two of 30 medical and/or psychological applications that have been studied in connection with aromatherapy.
For additional research on our database for natural substances and/or therapeutic actions that reduce stress and anxiety, visit our page on the topic.
About the Author
Sayer Ji is the founder of GreenMedInfo.com, the world’s largest, evidence-based, open-source, natural medicine database. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter
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