Aromatherapy in Biology: An Annotated Bibliography and Report

This biology report delves into the world of aromatherapy, examining its historical background and therapeutic applications. The paper begins with an introduction to aromatherapy as a holistic healing process utilizing plant extracts to enhance well-being. It then provides a historical overview, tracing the use of essential oils for medicinal purposes across various cultures and through the evolution of aromatherapy as a recognized field. The core of the report consists of an annotated bibliography, summarizing key research articles that explore aromatherapy's effectiveness in treating conditions such as depression, pain, postoperative nausea, and neuropathic pain. Each entry includes a concise summary of the study's findings, highlighting the use of specific essential oils and their mechanisms of action. The report concludes by emphasizing the potential of aromatherapy in promoting both emotional and physical health, and suggests avenues for future research, particularly in combining aromatherapy with conventional medicine to enhance healing. The references section lists all the sources used in the report.

Running head: BIOLOGY
AROMATHERAPY
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1BIOLOGY
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Background................................................................................................................................2
Annotated Bibliography.............................................................................................................3
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

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Introduction
Aromatherapy has been identified as the holistic healing treatment process which uses
plant extracts in order to promote human wellbeing and health. In various times, it has been
referred to as an essential therapy which includes oil. Aromatherapy has been found to use
essential oils for the improvement of the body and minds of a human being. This therapy has
been found to enhance both emotional and physical health. Aromatherapy has been thought
of as a piece of science and art which has gained huge recognition in the field of medicinal
science. This paper will discuss an annotated bibliography based on the topic of this study,
which is annotated bibliography.
Background
The historical background of aromatherapy states that humans have used this process
for more than a thousand years. These natural substances have been used for medicinal
purposes by India, China, Egypt and other Asian countries. In the 16th century, essential oil
distillation process was published in Germany and was highly used in aromatherapy. In the
19th century, the German and French doctors have recognized the role of natural plant
products in the treatment of illnesses. This term “aromatherapy” has been found to be coined
by a French chemist and perfumer named René-Maurice Gattefossé who published in 1937.
Aromatherapy has been found to manage pain, reduce stress, soothe sore joints and improve
digestion which is the main benefits as stated by various pieces of literature.
Annotated Bibliography
Sánchez-Vidaña, D. I., Ngai, S. P. C., He, W., Chow, J. K. W., Lau, B. W. M., & Tsang, H.
W. H. (2017). The effectiveness of aromatherapy for depressive symptoms: a systematic
review. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2017.

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Depression has been identified as one of the major health issues which has been
affecting people for a long time. Depression associated with anxiety has also been reported to
cause deaths among the human population when synthetic drugs fails to function due to
intolerance of the body. In this case, aromatherapy has been used to manage or neutralize the
disorder, Aromatherapy has been used a very popular CAM intervention which has been
chosen for the people associated with depression. This study found that lavender, sandalwood
and bergamot has been found to solve depressive symptoms and yuzu has been found to
eliminate emotional stress.
Lakhan, S. E., Sheafer, H., & Tepper, D. (2016). The effectiveness of aromatherapy in
reducing pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Pain research and treatment, 2016.
Aromatherapy has been referred to the therapeutic or medicinal use of essential oils
which are absorbed through the skin or the olfactory system. A significant positive effect on
the reduction of pain has been reported on a visual scale which a p-value less than 0.05.
Chronic back and knee pains have predominated the human community for years. Chronic
pain has been found to be treated with a hand massage with lavender oil in a case-control
study, which proved to be very much effective. People who received lavender essential oil
massage has been found to be relieved from lower back pain.
Hines, S., Steels, E., Chang, A., & Gibbons, K. (2018). Aromatherapy for treatment of
postoperative nausea and vomiting. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (3).
This paper showed that aromatherapy has been used as a substitutive treatment
process in various hospital settings to cure nausea and vomiting issues. Like, all other
synthetic drugs, aromatherapy has also a specific mechanism of action with which it
successfully neutralizes the pain. The mechanism of action of aromatherapy has been
discussed n short in this paper. This process states that integration of essential oils into the

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receptor cells of the nose is perceived through signals, on inhalation. These signals are then
transmitted to the hypothalamus parts of the brain and limbic system via the olfactory bulb
finally elucidating the effect.
Ali, B., Al-Wabel, N. A., Shams, S., Ahamad, A., Khan, S. A., & Anwar, F. (2015). Essential
oils used in aromatherapy: A systemic review. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical
Biomedicine, 5(8), 601-611.
This paper has been found to describe the use of complementary and alternative
therapies with mainstream medicine which has gained rapid momentum in recent years.
Inhalation and baths have been described as the major processes of aromatherapy. As soon as
the oil gets inside the system, it remodulates themselves and functions in friendly pattern by
penetrating through the skin in the affected area. This remodulation has been found to be
done by suppressing of the pain receptors and relieving the patient from his or her painful
experiences. Aromatherapy has also been found to be very much effective in suppressing the
nervous system to give an instant pain relief.
Bakhtshirin, F., Abedi, S., YusefiZoj, P., & Razmjooee, D. (2015). The effect of
aromatherapy massage with lavender oil on severity of primary dysmenorrhea in Arsanjan
students. Iranian journal of nursing and midwifery research, 20(1), 156.
This paper stated that there was a decreased level of primary dysmenorrhea in the study
participants who were treated by aromatherapy. Visual analogue scale or the VAS has been
used in order to evaluate the pain level after the application of aromatherapy. Lavender oil
massage has been found to suppress the pain receptors associated with primary
dysmenorrhea.

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Gok Metin, Z., Arikan Donmez, A., Izgu, N., Ozdemir, L., & Arslan, I. E. (2017).
Aromatherapy massage for neuropathic pain and quality of life in diabetic patients. Journal
of Nursing Scholarship, 49(4), 379-388.
Aromatherapy massage has been used as an effective and simple nonpharmacological
nursing intervention to manage neuropathic pain in patients suffering from a painful
neuropathy. The most essential components used in aromatherapy include oils, balms and
resins. These compounds have been known to have both psychological and physical benefits.
In the 10th century, essential oil distillation has been found to be attributed to the Persians and
the practice has been found to be used for a very long time before the above-stated function.
These information has been found to be essential for the use of aromatherapy in present-day
life. This process has been found to be a feasible, well-tolerated and safe nonpharmacological
method which includes treatment with eucalyptus and rosemary.
Metin, Z. G., & Ozdemir, L. (2016). The effects of aromatherapy massage and reflexology on
pain and fatigue in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized controlled trial. Pain
Management Nursing, 17(2), 140-149.
In the same mechanism, as discussed previously, aromatherapy has been used in
reducing the pain and fatigue among the patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.
Aromatherapy has been found to use essential oils for the improvement of the body and
minds of a human being. This therapy has been found to enhance both emotional and physical
health. Aromatherapy has been thought of as a piece of science and art which has gained
huge recognition in the field of medicinal science. The pleasant smells of essential oils and
their anti-inflammatory effect has been found to induce a pain reduction among the patients
suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.

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Mahantesh, P. S., Ravi, Y., Anupama, G., Eragegowda, M., Bhat, D. S., & Mohankumar, G.
P. (2018). Aromatherapy complementary and alternative medicine. Journal of
Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, 7(4), 436-439.
This paper states that in various healthcare settings, aromatherapy has been used as an
alternative and complementary medicine in order to reduce strain and stress due to anxiety. In
many cases, it has been observed that allopathic medicine or synthetic drugs fail to function
or are intolerable to patients. This condition has been found to be evident in various disorders
primarily including chronic pains in the body including back pain or knee pain. This paper
has also stated that aromatherapy cannot relief a specific pain alone. This therapy needs to be
combined with medicinal drugs in order to get the full synergistic effect of pain relief.
Conclusion
On a concluding note, it can be said that aromatherapy has been found to use essential
oils for the improvement of the body and minds of a human being. This therapy has been
found to enhance both emotional and physical health. Chronic back and knee pains have
predominated the human community for years. Chronic pain has been found to be treated
with a hand massage with lavender oil in a case-control study, which proved to be very much
effective. Thus it can be stated that aromatherapy is a piece of science and art which has
gained huge recognition in the field of medicinal science. Finally, it can be said that more
pain and relief synergies must be researched in future and the relationship between medicines
and aromatherapy to jointly reduce the pain and enhance healing process is to be discovered
in near future.

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References
Ali, B., Al-Wabel, N. A., Shams, S., Ahamad, A., Khan, S. A., & Anwar, F. (2015). Essential
oils used in aromatherapy: A systemic review. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical
Biomedicine, 5(8), 601-611.
Bakhtshirin, F., Abedi, S., YusefiZoj, P., & Razmjooee, D. (2015). The effect of
aromatherapy massage with lavender oil on severity of primary dysmenorrhea in
Arsanjan students. Iranian journal of nursing and midwifery research, 20(1), 156.
Gok Metin, Z., Arikan Donmez, A., Izgu, N., Ozdemir, L., & Arslan, I. E. (2017).
Aromatherapy massage for neuropathic pain and quality of life in diabetic
patients. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 49(4), 379-388.
Hines, S., Steels, E., Chang, A., & Gibbons, K. (2018). Aromatherapy for treatment of
postoperative nausea and vomiting. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (3).
Lakhan, S. E., Sheafer, H., & Tepper, D. (2016). The effectiveness of aromatherapy in
reducing pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Pain research and
treatment, 2016.
Mahantesh, P. S., Ravi, Y., Anupama, G., Eragegowda, M., Bhat, D. S., & Mohankumar, G.
P. (2018). Aromatherapy complementary and alternative medicine. Journal of
Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, 7(4), 436-439.
Metin, Z. G., & Ozdemir, L. (2016). The effects of aromatherapy massage and reflexology on
pain and fatigue in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized controlled
trial. Pain Management Nursing, 17(2), 140-149.

8BIOLOGY
Sánchez-Vidaña, D. I., Ngai, S. P. C., He, W., Chow, J. K. W., Lau, B. W. M., & Tsang, H.
W. H. (2017). The effectiveness of aromatherapy for depressive symptoms: a
systematic review. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2017.