Lavender Kimberly Templeton

Chem 104Lab 6-9 Thur.

Lavender

Kimberly TempletonChem 104 6-9 Thur. Lab

Lavender : Story behind why I use it.

• My best friend suggested the use of lavender one day when I was very sick. She let me barrow her humidifier and recommended I place a few drops of lavender on a cotton square and place it on top of the humidifier. Somewhat of a therapeutic idea. I didn’t think it helped me breath better but perhaps it did. So out of curiosity I looked up the uses for Lavender and it became more useful then I had ever imagined. I actually never liked the smell that much before but have now grown to love it.

Lavender

How I use it:• I use it as a stress aid; before I

go to sleep I put a drop on my chest and maybe my wrists. I focus on my breathing and helps me to eventually fall asleep.

• I use it on bug bites, especially mosquito bites to help with inching and swelling.

What I want to try next:• Alaska is so dry and I have read

that Lavender can be helpful with dry skin and eczema. Just massage a drop or few on dry areas.

• Put some lavender oil on a cotton ball in the linen closet to help repel moths and keep the closet smelling fresh.

I buy it at the store as an essential oil.

Health Benefits of Lavender: According to the University of Maryland, Medical Center

May 7th 2013

• Lavender can be used to help with anxiety, insomnia, joint and muscle pain, fungal infections, acne and much more.

• A study of 86 people with Alopecia Areata (autoimmune disease- causing hair to fall out) who used Lavender with other oils used by massaging their scalp for 7 months noticed significant hair regrowth than those who did not use essential oils. However there is no hard evidence that it is the lavender alone that created such an outcome.

• 50 patients tested the theory that lavender helped with pain control after surgery. After their breast biopsy they received oxygen some supplemented with lavender and others without. The people who received the oxygen infused with lavender reported better pain control then those in the control group.

• Info found on the following website: http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/lavender