The History and Uses of Lavender

Lavender: A Fragrant and Versatile Plant

Lavender is a flowering plant belonging to the mint family. This bushy shrub has been cultivated widely for its essential oil. The tubular, tiny, mauve-blue blossoms grow as whorls of five to ten flowers along angular, square stems and form a terminal spike. The spikes stretch upwards beyond twelve to an eighteen-inch height of the shrub. The blooming time is from June to August. It is believed that lavender originated from the Middle East, Mediterranean, and India. The plant is known for its sweet floral fragrance, beauty, its herbalism practices, and other multiple uses. Ancient Greeks called lavender plant Nardus (Lis-Bachin, 2003). It was one of the herbs used to prepare Holy Essence and Nerd.

Various Species and Uses of Lavender

There exist several species of lavender which vary in aromatic quality and appearance. English lavender is mostly used commercially in different perfume industries and is mainly found in English country gardens. French lavender is the type most likely used as a scenting agent of washing water in Roman times. The third species is L. officinalis which are officially used in medicinal preparations even though the other species have some medicinal properties at varying degrees also (Lis-Bachin, 2003). Lavender plant is liked by bees because of the abundant nectar they produce. The nectar is useful for the bees in the honey making. Since the cultivated form of lavender plants is grown in gardens worldwide, they are commonly found growing wild beyond their natural range as garden escapes. The wild variety of lavender does not vary from the cultivated variety. Today, lavender is cultivated across the countries of origin as well as temperate regions across the world including Australia, Europe, New Zealand, North and South America. The widespread presence can be attributed to the plant’s alluring scent, beautiful flowers, and its extensive uses.

The Healing Properties of Lavender

Lavender plant is used internally and externally in healing. Externally, the essential oil from lavender is used in aromatherapy to improve mood and as a relaxant. Aromatherapy can be done through burning in specially-designed oil burners, massage, used in bath and in potpourri jars. Lavender is also widely used to treat nervousness, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, and restlessness (Moss, cook, Wesnes & Duckett, 2003). Additionally, in Europe, pillows stuffed with lavender have been used as sleep aids. Researchers have proven that lavender herb is effective in treating signs of anxiety. The oil from the plant promotes relaxation. The sedative properties of the lavender oil contribute to its anxiety-reducing effect. The principles of aromatherapy indicate that breathing in the scent of lavender oil or application of lavender essential oil to the skin sends a message to the limbic system. This limbic system is part of the brain responsible for influencing the nervous system and also regulating emotions. The lavender essential oil partly helps alleviate anxiety by triggering a calming effect on the central nervous system. (Cavanagh & Wilkinson, 2005)

Effective Application of Lavender Oil

When lavender oil is combined with a carrier oil such as sweet almond or jojoba, it blended and massaged into the skin of people with anxiety. Additionally, the oil can be added to a person’s bath, sprinkled onto a tissue or cloth then the aroma inhaled while in some cases it is added to a vaporizer or an aromatherapy diffuser. The calming power of lavender has practically been proven by researchers. Linalool odor that comes from lavender has an anxiolytic effect (Mirzaei, et al., 2005). While conducting surgeries, pretreatment with an anxiolytic such as lavender can be useful in alleviating pre-operative stress and placing patients under general anesthesia smoothly. For elders and children with difficulties with oral and suppository administration, vaporizing linalool can provide an alternative for them.

Anxiety Relief and Other Applications of Lavender

Individuals waiting for dental treatment also may be faced with a lot of anxiety. Breathing the scent of lavender improves the mood and lowers anxiety (Lehrner, Marwinski, Lehr, Johren, & Deecke, 2005). Evidence indicates that ingesting lavender oil relieves anxiety to a certain degree. Therefore, direct supplements that contain lavender oil have therapeutical effects on individuals struggling with stress and anxiety. Further studies have shown that lavender-essential-oil-based aromatherapy helps to soothe anxiety in postpartum women. Due to the relaxation effect, lavender oil soothes headaches, motion sickness, and migraines when applied to the temples. Apart from aromatherapy, the oil is also used as a disinfectant, an anti-inflammatory and an antiseptic. In other cases, infusion of lavender is said to soothe and heal sunburn, insect bites, acne, inflammatory conditions, and small cuts.

Lavender for Relaxation and Improved Sleep

Lavender flowers can be dried and used extensively as fragrant herbal fillers in sachets. These flowers freshen closets, drawers, and linens. Any room can be freshened practically by air spraying. Therefore, the scent creates a relaxing atmosphere anywhere the spray is used thus lowering anxiety. Lavender falls on the safer side of the spectrum and this is a good choice for use around kids and babies (Moss et al., 2003). The kids stay calm and get sleep with much ease. The soothing effect brought by lavender help in managing premenstrual syndrome by inducing sleep which is a lifestyle factor that balances hormones. Women with labor pains can use sprigs of lavender to add courage and strength to the whole task of childbearing. When the essential oil of some species is used in hydrotherapy as part of an aromatic, Epsom salt bath soothes tired nerves and kills the pain of neuralgia. Tea made from lavender flowers can be taken internally to become a sedative and antispasmodic. The tea treats restlessness which is a sign of anxiety.

The Calming Power of Lavender for Sleep

In most occasions, a stressed person has unstable moods. It becomes difficult for the stressed individual to get any sleep. However, lavender plant has the ability to stabilize a person’s mood, relieve stress, and improve sleep (Fismer & Pilkington, 2012). The impact made by lavender includes a reduction in the heart rate, reduction of the respiratory rate and blood pressure. When a person inhales lavender oil scent, they feel more energized and relaxed. The brain waves are altered by lavender to reduce stress.

Using Lavender for Quality Sleep

Sleeping in a room that is diffused with lavender essential oil improves the quality of sleep. This improvement is achieved because lavender increases slow-wave sleep by slowing heartbeat and relaxing the muscles (Field, Cullen, Largie, Diego, Schanberg, & Kuhn, 2008). To deal with sleeplessness, there are several ways that people can use lavender as their remedy. First, one can arm the bedside table with lavender oil, a pillow spray which gives the pillowcase a fine spritz or using a diffuser. Secondly, dabbing several drops of essential oil on wrists, temples or the neck before bedtime can help through calming and soothing. Sprinkling a few drops of the essential oil on a small piece of tissue and tucking it under the pillow is another way that can ensure the oil scent lasts for the night. A diffuser spraying a mist of water and the essential oil into the air while one is sleeping can also be used. The other recommended way is taking a warm bath using water that is mixed with a few drops of lavender oil. Additionally, when a person takes a bath, there is also the alternative of smoothing a lavender-scented body lotion into the skin before retiring to bed. Before hitting the sheets, a person can also place a few drops of oil on the collar of their pajamas and in cases where lavender is grown in a person’s garden, there is an option of harvesting the beautiful purple flower buds and placing them in bowls next to the bed before sleeping. The scent of lavender in bath oil has the ability of calming babies and sending them off to a deep sleep.

Lavender: A Culinary Herb

Being a member of the mint family, lavender has, for centuries, been used in preparations of food, either as an ingredient or by itself. When used as an ingredient, lavender provides a slightly sweet, floral, and elegant flavor to meat, salads, seafood dishes, soups, cheeses, baked goods, desserts, and confectionery (Lis-Balchin, 2003). Flowers from lavender are dried and used for cooking but in some cases, the leaves of the plant are used too. Flowers and buds are used because they are the ones that contain the essential oil, thus the flavor and scent are best derived from them.

Lavender: A Natural Solution for Sleeplessness

According to Fismer & Pilkington (2012), the different sleeping pills used by individuals suffering from insomnia and poor sleep have different side effects such as unusual dreams, stomach pains and tenderness, heartburns, headaches, dry mouth and throat, daytime drowsiness, dizziness, difficulty keeping balance, diarrhea, constipation, changes in appetite, burning in the hands, uncontrollable shaking of parts of the body, mental slowing and even impairment during the next day. Additionally, some people become allergic to sleeping pills. These individuals may experience chest pains, hoarseness, itching, nausea, shortness of breath, vomiting, blurred vision, swelling of the eyes, and get pounding heartbeats (Hirokawa, Nishimoto & Taniguchi, 2012). However, lavender offers a remedy for sleeplessness without all those side effects related to the sleeping pills. This fact makes lavender the best option for any person suffering from anxiety and sleeplessness. Another advantage of using lavender is the ease associated with its use. No prescription is required from a healthcare provider before using lavender, and the cost of using lavender as a remedy is significantly lower than buying the sleeping pills. On top of that, the elderly and young children can comfortably use lavender as a solution to their problem of sleeplessness without fear of tampering with their health.

References

Cavanagh, H. M., & Wilkinson, J. M. (2005). Lavender essential oil: a review. Australian infection control, 10(1), 35-37.

Field, T., Field, T., Cullen, C., Largie, S., Diego, M., Schanberg, S., & Kuhn, C. (2008). Lavender bath oil reduces stress and crying and enhances sleep in very young infants. Early human development, 84(6), 399-401.

Fismer, K. L., & Pilkington, K. (2012). Lavender and sleep: A systematic review of the evidence. European Journal of Integrative Medicine, 4(4), e436-e447.

Hirokawa, K., Nishimoto, T., & Taniguchi, T. (2012). Effects of lavender aroma on sleep quality in healthy Japanese students. Perceptual and motor skills, 114(1), 111-122.

Lehrner, J., Marwinski, G., Lehr, S., Johren, P., & Deecke, L. (2005). Ambient odors of orange and lavender reduce anxiety and improve mood in a dental office. Physiology & Behavior, 86(1-2), 92-95.

Lis-Balchin, M. (Ed.). (2003). Lavender: the genus Lavandula. CRC press.

Mirzaei, F., Keshtgar, S., Kaviani, M., & Rajaeifard, A. R. (2015). The effect of lavender essence smelling during labor on cortisol and serotonin plasma levels and anxiety reduction in nulliparous women. Journal of Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

Moss, M., Cook, J., Wesnes, K., & Duckett, P. (2003). Aromas of rosemary and lavender essential oils differentially affect cognition and mood in healthy adults. International Journal of Neuroscience, 113(1), 15-38.