The power of essential oils

Essential oils are aromatic and volatile bodies extracted from the plant kingdom, made up of a few to more than 250 components. Among 800,000 plant species, only 10% are capable of synthesizing essential oils in one or more of their organs: leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, bark, roots, etc.

The molecules contained in essential oils have a very broad action and work both on the symptoms and on the terrain. For the plant kingdom, essential oil has many functions, including in particular that of protecting it from aggressions from the outside world. They provide the same service to humans in different ways.

Each oil contains several active ingredients, in varying doses. Each oil therefore has several indications. In comparison, a medication contains only one or two active molecules that target a specific pathology.

The use of essential oils dates back to 4500 BC in Egypt. The method was rudimentary: they macerated plants in vegetable oils to obtain aromatic oils.

These were used as remedies, for religious ceremonies and in the embalming procedure.

Alexander the Great brought them back to Greece. Aristotle details more than 500 recipes using essential oils to treat various ailments.

In Persia, Avicenna developed the first still for steam distillation, which allows the extraction of the molecules that make up essential oils.

The father of modern aromatherapy is the French chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé, to whom we owe the term "aromatherapy." He published his experiments and discoveries in his book "Aromatherapy" in 1937.

Dr. Jean Valnet, a French doctor who healed war wounds with essential oils (39-45), wrote his first book in 1964, "Aromatherapy, treatment of illnesses with plant essences," and popularized the healing concepts of essential oils.

Finally, one of the most recent works of this therapy, "Aromatherapy Exactly," written by the scientist P. Franchomme and Dr. D. Pénoël, is considered the "bible" of aromatherapists. It provides, among other things, the fundamental notion of "chemotypes," that is, the classification of essential oils by their biochemical characteristics.

Water vapor: The plant is mixed with water in the still bodies. The mixture is heated under controlled pressure, so as not to alter the quintessence of the plant. The vapor passes through the still and is loaded with essential oils. It then travels along a coil, condenses, and is collected in an essential oil tank. The difference in density between water and essence facilitates the separation of the two liquids: essential oil and hydrosol.

Maceration: The plant is mixed with hot vegetable oil or alcohol. These act as a solvent and absorb the active ingredients, odor, and taste. The mixture is then clarified and decanted.

Decoction: the plant is boiled directly mixed with water in order to extract its quintessence.

Expression: This method is only used for citrus fruits. It is in the epicarp (the skin) that the essences are concentrated. It is scraped mechanically. Carried by water, it is then decanted to separate the essences.

Quality guarantee : with a precise identity card, including: French & Latin name, botanical variety, part of the plant used, country of origin.

Storage : They can retain their properties for 5 years. Highly volatile, they must be sealed in airtight, sealed bottles. Sensitive to ultraviolet light, store them in dark-colored glass bottles.

Why prices vary : Essential oil yields vary greatly depending on the plant. The larger the quantity of plants required, the higher the price. Examples of average weights required to obtain one kilogram of essential oil:

• 4000 to 12000 kg of grass for lemon balm
• 3500 to 4000 kg of petals for the Damask rose
• 150 kg of flowering tops for true lavender
• 6 to 7 kg of flower buds for cloves