Dr Alan Huch, a neurologist, psychiatrist and also the director of Smell and Taste Research Centre in Chicago says, 0Smell acts directly on the brain, like a drug.0 Our nose has the capacity to distinguish 1,00,000 different smells, (many of which) affect us without our knowing about the same.
The aroma enters our nose and comes in contact with the cilia, the fine hair inside the nose lining. The receptors in the cilia are linked to the olfactory bulb which is at the end of the smell tract. The end of the tract is in turn connected to the brain itself Smells are converted by cilia into electrical impulses that are transmitted to the brain through olfactory system. All the impulses reach the limbic system. Limbic system is that part of the brain which is associated with our moods, emotions, memory and learning. All the smell that reaches the limbic system has a direct chemical effect on our moods.
For example smelling lavender increases alpha waves in the brain and it is this wave that helps us to relax. A whiff of jasmine increases beta waves in the brain and this wave is associated with an increased agile and alert state.
Limbic system […]
Anyone who has experienced having a pet, knows beyond a doubt of their vital importance for our lives and emotional health. Whether it’s a dog that warns us of danger, protects us or comforts us when we’re feeling “down” or it’s a cat in a hospice that curls up beside a dying patient to be with and comfort them in a time of deep, mystical transition beyond words and cognitive understanding. Pets have been a important part of providing companionship and comfort for elderly people. Dogs, cats, horses, and other animals have been our children’s teachers providing lessons of love, responsibility, confidence, sharing, comfort, strength, courage, play, communication, laughter and many other essential life lessons. It has been shown that the touch of a pet literally improves our physical health as well as our emotional health.We share so much in common with our animal friends. We realize that part of what we share with our pets are health concerns. Just as we do, our pets can suffer from allergies, infections, heart disease, asthma, arthritis, kidney and urinary distress, wounds, excess weight gain, joint pain, eye conditions, skin disorders and other health concerns or chronic disease. It […]
The body of evidence regarding the effectiveness of natural botanicals against a great variety of viruses is growing. Over twenty years ago, German scientists found extracts of more than 100 species of the Lamiaceae family of plants to have antiviral effects. This discovery lead to an increase in the examination of essential oils in Europe for the treatment of viral infections of all kinds.Essential oils from many plant families have now been demonstrated to have antiviral properties. Interestingly, different plant families exhibit varying degrees of effectiveness depending on the virus strain. This is due to the particular molecular structures found in each type of oil, which penetrate physical entities to varying degrees (different tissues, cell walls, mucous membranes, etc). The effect on each virus strain depends also on the virus structure (enveloped, non-enveloped, molecular symmetry, etc.)Certainly, one of the reasons for oils’ effectiveness en vivo is their lipophillic character - essential oils are easily absorbed into mammalian tissues, where they may produce the greatest results. In fact, when studying the anti-viral effects of essential oils, researchers found that normal cells seemed to acquire a special resistance to viral penetration, though the mechanism for this effect is not yet known.One of […]
