From Ronni Edmonds-Brown
So “aromatherapy has no direct effect on the brain”
(21 April, p 16).
Who claims that it ever did? The choice of oils used in the German study appears
rather odd. I am unaware of any claims that these particular oils increase
reaction times.
It’s bad enough that we have people setting themselves up as aromatherapists
after a two-week intensive course, and the touchy-feely crowd making claims that
this or that blend of massage oil will settle a “nervous condition”, without a
research group following the same path. The knock-on effect of this piece is
that newspapers have been reporting that essential oils are useless when they
have undoubted benefits. Lavender is great for burns and I find tree oil far
better than anything my GP prescribes for athlete’s foot.
Hertfordshire
