LAVENDER HEALTH BENEFITS AND SIDE EFFECTS

Lavender Health
Benefits and Side Effects

Lavender aromatherapy may benefit anxiety and insomnia. Lavender
oil, traditionally used as an antiseptic agent, is now predominantly
used as a relaxant, carminative, and sedative in aromatherapy. [7]
Lavender is originated from Mediterranean area and its neighborhoods
and now it is cultivated over the world. English lavender ( L.
angustifolia ) is the most common species of lavender used in the
herbal medicine.

Health Benefits of Lavender - Research Studies

Lavenderin ingredient may have benefits of muscle relaxation.
In a preliminary experiment, Japanese researchers found that lavender
essential oil relaxed vascular smooth muscle. They further discovered a
chemical called linalyl acetate as the major ingredient to cause the
relaxation effects on rabbit vascular smooth muscle. Linalyl acetate
produced sustained and progressive relaxation during the contraction
through partially activation of nitric oxide/cyclic guanosine
monophosphate pathway, and partially MLC dephosphorylation via
activating MLC phosphatase. [1]

Lavender fragrance had a beneficial effect on insomnia and
depression in women college students.
In a 4-week study, Korean researchers supplied 42 women suffered
from insomnia with lavender fragrance, they found improvements in
insomnia and depression. [2]

Lavender oil and its component - linalool benefited rats suffered
from high blood pressure.
Japanese researchers showed that olfactory stimulation with scent of
lavender oil or its component - linalool lowered renal sympathetic
nerve activity and blood pressure and elevated gastric vagal
(parasympathetic) nerve activity in urethane-anesthetized rats. [3]

Lavender oil enhanced appetite in rats.
Japanese researchers observed that olfactory stimulation with scent of
lavender oil suppressed sympathetic nerve activities and elevated
gastric vagal (parasympathetic) nerve activity, decreased plasma
glycerol concentration and body temperature, and enhanced appetite
in rats. [3] A 15-min daily exposure to scent of lavender oil increased
food intake and body weight in the study. [8]

Lavender oil may help pain relief.
Eight sessions of acupressure with aromatic lavender oil were found to
be an effective method for short-term neck pain relief. [4]

Use of Lavender oil during recesses may improve work efficiency.
A study of 36 healthy male students randomly assigned to exposure to
aroma or not exposed to aroma during recesses significantly higher
attention levels for the lavender group than for the control group. [5]
Probably, lavender aroma allows a better rest.

Lavender oil may benefit people suffered from anxiety and agitation.

Researchers stimulated dental procedures patients with lavender
during their waiting in a study of 200 patients. They found that
ambient odors of orange and lavender reduced anxiety and improved
mood in patients waiting for dental treatment. Use of odors is helpful
in reducing anxiety in dental patients. [6]

Researchers also found that a Lavender aromatherapy hand massage
program is effective on emotions and aggressive behavior of elderly
with dementia of the Alzheimer's type. [9]

Researchers from UK found psychologically positive mood changes
after the bathing regimen (20% lavender oil and 80% grapeseed oil)
for energetic arousal, tense arousal, hedonic tone and
anger-frustration in a study of eighty women not receiving treatment
for psychological disorders. [12]

Researchers also found that lavender oil administered in an aroma
stream showed modest efficacy in the treatment of agitated behavior
in patients suffered from severe dementia. [13]

Japanese researchers claimed that lavender odorants were associated
with reduced mental stress and increased arousal rate. In the study,
the researchers placed subjects into a (2 x 2- x 3 m) sound protected
room for 20 min without the presentation of an odor, an analogous
group of 15 received the odor oil, and one group of 13 received a
non-stressful condition. They then analyzed the responses from the
Cox and Mackay's stress/arousal adjective checklist. [14]

Lavender oil may have benefits of cutting cancer risks.
Researchers from Italy showed lavender oil exerted strong
antimutagenic activity, reducing mutant colonies in the TA98 strain
exposed to the direct mutagen 2-nitrofluorene. Antimutagenicity was
concentration-dependent: the maximal concentration (0.80 mg/plate)
reduced the number of histidine-independent revertant colonies by
66.4%. Lavender oil (0.80 mg/plate) also showed moderate
antimutagenicity against the TA98 strain exposed to the direct
mutagen 1-nitropyrene. [7]

Lavender oil has anti-bacterial activities in vitro studies.
Spanish lavender essential oils exhibited a very strong antibacterial
activity against the tested bacteria in a test-tube study. [10]

SIDE EFFECTS OF LAVENDER OIL

Toxicity for albino rats was reported to be very low. [16] A study of
635 women on perineal discomfort reported no side-effects of lavender
oil. [15] However, lavender oil is cytotoxic to human skin cells in vitro
(endothelial cells and fibroblasts) at a concentration of 0.25% (v/v) in
all cell types tested (HMEC-1, HNDF and 153BR), according to a cell
study. [11] It may be related to cell membrane damage.

Lavender may increase the amount of drowsiness caused by some
drugs. In theory, lavender may also add to the effects of
cholesterol-lowering drugs.

Do not apply excessive amounts to the skin. Discuss with your doctor
for long-term use of lavender oil or use lavender together with
cholesterrol-lowering agents, blood pressure lowering agents and
sleeping pills or herbs.

THIS ARTICLE IS FOR YOUR REFERENCE. ASK YOUR DOCTOR FOR MEDICAL
OPINIONS AND BEFORE USING ANY SUPPLEMENTS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
ZHION 2008.

[1] Koto R, et al, Linalyl acetate as a major ingredient of lavender essential oil
relaxes the rabbit vascular smooth muscle through dephosphorylation of
myosin light chain. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006 Jul;48(1):850-6. [2] Lee IS,
et al, Effects of lavender aromatherapy on insomnia and depression in women
college studentsTaehan Kanho Hakhoe Chi. 2006 Feb;36(1):136-43. [3] Tanida
M, et al, Olfactory stimulation with scent of lavender oil affects autonomic
neurotransmission and blood pressure in rats. Neurosci Lett. 2006 May
1;398(1-2):155-60. Epub 2006 Jan 25. [4] Yip YB, et al, An experimental study
on the effectiveness of acupressure with aromatic lavender essential oil for
sub-acute, non-specific neck pain in Hong Kong. Complement Ther Clin Pract.
2006 Feb;12(1):18-26. Epub 2005 Nov 8. [5] Sakamoto R, et al, Effectiveness
of aroma on work efficiency: lavender aroma during recesses prevents
deterioration of work performance. Chem Senses. 2005 Oct;30(8):683-91. Epub
2005 Sep 14. [6] Lehrner J, et al, Ambient odors of orange and lavender reduce
anxiety and improve mood in a dental office. Physiol Behav. 2005 Sep
15;86(1-2):92-5. [7] Evandri MG, et al, The antimutagenic activity of
Lavandula angustifolia (lavender) essential oil in the bacterial reverse mutation
assay. Food Chem Toxicol. 2005 Sep;43(9):1381-7. [8] Shen J, et al, Olfactory
stimulation with scent of lavender oil affects autonomic nerves, lipolysis and
appetite in rats. Neurosci Lett. 2005 Jul 22-29;383(1-2):188-93. [9] Lee SY.
The effect of lavender aromatherapy on cognitive function, emotion, and
aggressive behavior of elderly with dementia Taehan Kanho Hakhoe Chi. 2005
Apr;35(2):303-12. [10] Dadalioglu I, Evrendilek GA. Chemical compositions and
antibacterial effects of essential oils of Turkish oregano (Origanum
minutiflorum), bay laurel (Laurus nobilis), Spanish lavender (Lavandula
stoechas L.), and fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) on common foodborne
pathogens. J Agric Food Chem. 2004 Dec 29;52(26):8255-60. [11] Prashar A,
et al, Cytotoxicity of lavender oil and its major components to human skin cells.
Cell Prolif. 2004 Jun;37(3):221-9. [12] Morris N. The effects of lavender
(Lavendula angustifolium) baths on psychological well-being: two exploratory
randomised control trials. Complement Ther Med. 2002 Dec;10(4):223-8. [13]
Holmes C, et al, Lavender oil as a treatment for agitated behaviour in severe
dementia: a placebo controlled study. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2002
Apr;17(4):305-8. [14] Motomura N, et al, Reduction of mental stress with
lavender odorant. Percept Mot Skills. 2001 Dec;93(3):713-8. [15] Dale A,
Cornwell S. The role of lavender oil in relieving perineal discomfort following
childbirth: a blind randomized clinical trial. J Adv Nurs. 1994 Jan;19(1):89-96.
[16] Delaveau P, et al, Neuro-depressive properties of essential oil of
lavenderC R Seances Soc Biol Fil. 1989;183(4):342-8.