Aug 17, 2006 – Ladies’ Notice: Aromatherapy May Relieve Painful Periods, According to Recent Study1.
Korean researchers set out to test the effects of aromatherapy, used in some cultures for ages, on dysmenorrhea. To do this, women struggling with painful menstrual cramps received almond oil massages.2 containing 3% essential oils of lavender, clary sage and rose. They were compared to other subjects who received almond oil massages – without any essential oils – and to others who had no treatment.
These 67 participants, with an average age of 20.6 years, were selected because they rated their menstrual cramps as 6 and above on a scale of 0 to 10 (0 being no pain and 10 being the most pain possible. ). In addition, they did not suffer from any illness and did not take contraceptives. They were assigned by lot to one of the three groups studied.
The treatment, a 15-minute massage per day, began a week before the onset of menstruation and ended after the first day. Using the same scale of 0 to 10, women treated with essential oils described a decrease in cramps from the first and second days of menstruation. These pains were evaluated on average at 7 before the treatment, at 5 for the first day and at 3 for the second. This was not seen in the other groups.
In light of these results, the researchers believe that the use of essential oils should be considered an effective way to treat painful periods. According to them, aromatherapy has the advantage of being simple, inexpensive and without side effects.
Painful periods, or dysmenorrhea, affect 50% to 93% of women, report the authors of the study. In this regard, the Medical Council of Canada considers it to be the most important cause of absenteeism, both at work and at school, among young Canadian women.
Claudia Morissette – HealthPassport.net
1. Han SH, Hur MH, Buckle J, Choi J, Lee MS. Effect of aromatherapy on symptoms of dysmenorrhea in college students: a randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial, J Altern Complement Med, 2006 Jul-Aug; 12 (6): 535-41.
2. The massage oil used consisted of 5 ml of almond oil, two drops of lavender essential oil (Lavandula officinalis), a drop of sage essential oil (Salvia sclarea) and a drop of rose essential oil (Rosa centifolia).
