Use Essential Oils for Medicinal Purposes

Essential oils are extracted from different parts of plants- ranging from the leaves, stems, and flowers. Depending on how the oil was extracted, will determine what grade the oil is. Typically, lower grade oils are better used for aroma, whereas higher grade is better for medicinal use.

Essential oils are a good, natural way to heal many ailments. People have found relief from such things as: insomnia, lack of energy, depression, anxiety, muscle aches, injuries, and much more. Since they are natural, most people can use them without any side effects. Essential oils can also be mixed into special recipes that will help alleviate many symptoms at the same time. These mixtures may contain the essential oils from several different plants so you can get the healing properties of many different essential oils in one mixture. This may be a cost-effective way to use essential oils.

Essential oils have been used for many decades as therapeutic treatments and medicinal purposes, especially for depression, anxiety, stress, insomnia, muscle aches, lack of energy, and basic injuries.

Because it's a natural treatment, it is deemed safer for the body, and you can mix the oils from different plants to achieve the best results. Using essential oils can be cost-effective, although you will find that many conventional doctors will not recommend the use of herbal medicine, as it is a more alternative treatment, nor with conventional doctors guarantee their effectiveness.

Before you try using any essential oil as a natural treatment, you'll want to test just a small portion of your skin so that you can see if you'll have an allergic reaction. Most people don't have any complications, but it's better to err on the safe side as a just in case, as there are some people who are more sensitive to some oils or the particular grade of oil.

Most people use essential oils for aromatherapy, but they can be used for medicinal purposed to help kill germs and bacteria, as well as the following:

• Aid asthma
• Antibiotic
• Antibacterial
  
• Clear sinus congestion
• Ease anxiety
• Ease depression
• Ease digestive problems
• Heal skin infections
• Pest repellent
• Stimulant
  
• Stress relief

Just make sure that the bottle states "therapeutic oil," as an aromatherapy oil won't serve the exact same purpose.

Below you'll find a small listing of essential oils and what they do. The below list is in no way comprehensive, and it definitely does not list all of the potential uses of essential herbs to help your health.

Pain Reliever- birch, black pepper, chamomile, eucalyptus, ginger root, lavender, lemon gress, peppermint, rosemary

Destroy and prevent bacterial growth- basil, clove, eucalypus, geranium, grapfruit, oregano, lime, lemon grass, orange, lavender, lemon, rosewood

Remove mucus from respiratory or lymph systems- eucalyptus, ginger, frankincense, lemon grass, rosemary

Relieve depression- basil, frankincense, geranium, lavender, orange, sandalwood

Heal fungal infection- cinnamon bark, clove, geranium, lavender, lemon, lemon grass, oregano, rosewood, sage, thyme

Destroy and prevent germs- oregano, pine

Relieve inflammation- basil, birch, chamomile, lavender, myrrh, peppermint, thyme, lemon grass

Destroy and resist micro-organism growth- cinnamon bark, lemon, myrrh, rosemary, sage, thyme

Destroy and prevent parasites- basil, oregano

Relieve rheumatism- birch, eucalyptus, oregano, rosemary, thyme

Destroy and prevent microbes- cinnamon bark, ginger, grapefruit, lavender, lemon, lime, sandalwood

Prevent and ease convulsions- birch, chamomile, eucalyptus, lavender

Inhibit virus and the spread of viruses- clove, eucalyptus, myrrh, oregano, rosewood, sage

Relieve headaches- lavender, chamomile, eucalyptus, lemon, lemon grass, peppermint, thyme

Aid congestion- chamomile, eucalyptus, lavender, oregano, peppermint

Skin infection, irritation, and conditions- bitter almond, bitter orange, angelica oil, cedar, chamomile, tea tree oil, lavender, geranium

Lower blood pressure- lavender, lemon, clary sage (do not confuse with regular sage), ylang-ylang

Although, these essential oils have been useful for some illnesses and some people, they don't all work the same for everyone. You want to consult your doctor, as there are some essential oils that you should not use if you have certain conditions. For example, if you have low blood sugar, you should not use geranium; if you have a seizure disorder avoid basil, fennel, rosemary and sage; and if you're pregnant you want to avoid basil, cedarwood, clary, coriander, jasmine, juniper, marjoram, oregano, myrrh, peppermint, rosemary, sage, and thyme

Disclaimer: Please be aware that the advice in this article should in no way replace that of a licensed physician. If you have any questions, you want to consult your doctor so that you can get treatment options.