Welcome to… Penny Price Academy of Aromatherapy Saturday Club Potions from the Past Aromatic Medicine Penny Price Academy Saturday Club ❖ The vast majority of people still rely on their January 2020 indigenous system of medicine and uses of herbal drugs. ❖ It is only the western world that relies heavily upon modern medicine as we have access to it. Even then many common drugs are based upon plant properties. ❖ Today we are going on a timeline through aromatic history looking at some of the more famous “potions from the past” First Signs of Aromatherapy Penny Price Academy 18000 BC: In the Dordogne region of Saturday Club Dordogne Region January 2020 Southern France there is documented evidence to show that plants were used for Medicinal purposes. 4500 BC: Egyptians used balsams, perfumed oils, scented barks and resins Temple of Edfu and aromatic vinegars. Translations of hieroglyphics found in the temple of Edfu indicate that aromatic substances were formulated by the priests to make perfumes and medicines. The Egyptian Kyphi Penny Price Academy Saturday Club ❖ Kyphi (Kapet) was one of the most popular January 2020 types of temple incense in Ancient Egypt ❖ It was burnt as a religious incense (the name meaning “welcome to the gods”) ❖ Kyphi did become well known for alleviating anxiety, bringing restful sleep and cleansing the body. ❖ A recipe for Kyphi was found engraved on the wall of a laboratory at Edfu and identified by Victor Loret in 1887. Kyphi Ingredients Penny Price Academy Frankincense Saturday Club January 2020 Incensole acetate has been shown to exert anxiolytic and anti-depressive effects, as well as a sedative effect. Explaining why Kyphi became known to alleviate anxiety and bring restful sleep. Cypress Part of the Latin name ‘sempervivens’ meaning ‘live forever’ as cypress was seen as health tonic. The diuretic properties of cypress add to Kyphi for its cleansing properties. With over 80% terpenes cypress will stimulate all systems. Cinnamon Mostly made up of phenols which are decongesting, bactericidal, parasiticide and expectorant. Adding to the cleansing effect. Pine Pine was traditionally added to baths to cure nervous exhaustion as it is restorative and stimulating to the CNS. Sheppard and Boyd found that pinene gives Pine its expectorant actions. The Greeks Penny Price Academy ❖ 500 BC: The Greeks learned from the Saturday Club January 2020 Egyptians (mummies and recipes) and catalogued the knowledge. ❖ 460-377 BC: Hippocrates described the effects of 300 plants. Known as the ‘Father of Medicine’ he wrote ‘The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage every day’. Megaleion Penny Price Academy ❖ A perfumer named Megallus (Greece), created Saturday Club January 2020 the legendary megaleion, that was used in the treatment of wounds and inflammation. ❖ Megaleion contained burnt resin, cassia, cinnamon and myrrh in a fat soluble oil. ❖ In 2013 DSH perfumes brought out a perfume in dedication to the ancient megaleion with the same name. It is described as animal-spicy Megaleion Ingredients Penny Price Academy Cardamom Saturday Club January 2020 Al Zuhair et al (2000) found the oil to have significant analgesic activity as well as anti inflammatory and anti spasmodic properties. Lemongrass With approximately 80% citral the anti inflammatory properties of aldehydes will add to the potions well known inflammation benefits. Myrhh Made up of 40% sesquiterpenes which are calming and analgesic. Myrhh has great skin properties as well as being anti microbial. Copaiba balsam Has great bactericidal, anti inflammatory and disinfectant properties. The Romans Penny Price Academy ❖ 200AD: The Roman Claudius Galen put Saturday Club January 2020 forward his ideas on medicine, anatomy and physiology, which were to remain in force for over 1000 years until the rise of the great Italian universities of Padua and Bologna. The old word for a medicinal preparation was "galenical", a sign of the tremendous influence of this man. ❖ As the Roman Empire spread so did the knowledge of the healing properties of herbs. In fact the Roman soldiers took with them seeds and plants to ensure their availability. Many of the 200 plants (including borage, fennel, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme) brought to Britain became naturalised and now grow wild. Avicenna Penny Price Academy ❖ 900 AD: Avicenna the Arab wrote books on the Saturday Club January 2020 properties of plants and made a significant contribution to the distillation process by improving the cooling system. By this time the Arabs were famous for perfumes and medicines. Ye Olde England Penny Price Academy ❖ 1400 AD: During the Bubonic plague in the Saturday Club January 2020 14th century frankincense and pine were burned in the streets. Indoors, incense and perfumed candles were used and pomanders and garlands containing aromatic gums and resins were worn around the neck. ❖ 1600 AD: In the middle ages, many herbal books were written. One of the earliest was by William Turner, who described the plants in English instead of the more usual Latin and this helped to popularise herbal medicine. Thieves Oil Penny Price Academy ❖ In Marseilles, a vinegar preparation known as Saturday Club January 2020 the Four Thieves was credited with protecting many of the people when a plague struck that city (1722). ❖ The preparation originated with four thieves who confessed that they used it with complete protection against the plague while they robbed the bodies of the dead. Thieves Ingredients Penny Price Academy Clove Leaf Saturday Club January 2020 Anti viral, anti septic, bactericidal and vermifuge. The synergy of clove is a wonder as 1% emulsion of clove is 3x stronger than phenol on its on. Rosemary Used to treat fluid retention, persistent coughs, asthma, sinusitis, fatigue, and hysteria. Eucalyptus Radiata E Radiata fights minor infection in the body and is beneficial to the sinuses and lungs in aiding decongestion. E radiata has been shown to strengthen the T-helper cells of the immune system. Lemon Anti-infectious, antiviral, anti microbial. The high limonene content makes this oil expectorant Industrial Revolution & Gattefosse Penny Price Academy ❖ 1900 AD: By the late 19th century many Saturday Club January 2020 essential oils could be produced synthetically. This was a much cheaper and easier process than using natural plants and the use of natural medicines began to decline. People moved into towns for factory work and lost the link with plant medicine. ❖ 1928 AD: Gattefosse, a French chemist, coined the term “aromatherapy”. In the 1920's he investigated the antiseptic properties of essential oils because he had discovered the healing properties of lavender. Gattefosse wrote the first modern book on aromatherapy, which was published in 1937. Today Penny Price Academy ❖ Marguerite Maury introduced the use of Saturday Club January 2020 essential oils in the late 1950’s under the name "aromatherapy" into Britain - through beauty therapists, who were qualified in massage techniques and learned to use ready-mixed aromatherapy oils. ‘English-style’ aromatherapy is the combining of massage with essential oils and carriers. ❖ Shirley Price brought her own version of Aromatherapy from France to the UK in the 1980’s offering training in Clinical Aromatherapy and so here we are today January 2020 Could you write for the IFPA In Essence Magazine?…the editorial team are looking for a volunteer to share their experience of our Saturday Club… Conclusion Penny Price Academy Saturday Club Our usual 10% off todays featured oils; November 2019 Kyphi – Frankincense, Cypress, Cinnamon, Pine Megaleion – Cardamom, Lemongrass, Myrrh, Copaiba Balsam Thieves – Clove Leaf, Rosemary, Eucalyptus Radiata, Lemon Thank you for your continued support of Saturday club… Next time… Penny Price Academy February 8th Saturday Club November 2019 Breathing Easily March 14th The Aromatic Bath If you have any ideas/requests for topics or workshops, please let us know? Thank you… Penny Price Academy of Aromatherapy Saturday Club.