ABSTRACT
Aromatherapy is broadly defined as ‘treatment with odours’, the inhalation of which can have beneficial effects on clients through their action on the limbic system in the brain (Buchbauer, 1992; Warren and Warrenburg, 1993; Lis-Balchin, 1997). However, in England it involves the application of a very diluted essential oil (EO) or mixture of EO(s) (1-2 per cent) in a carrier oil like almond oil, which is massaged into the skin; either on hands, feet, head or the total body. Aromatherapy can also mean the addition of drops of EO to the bath or a basin of hot water, or the volatilization of the EO(s) using various burners. It usually involves counselling about diet, exercise, lifestyle etc. by the aromatherapist, who may have absolutely no qualifications to offer such advice.
