Contents:
- Medical Video: Aromatherapy Basics : Lavender Aromatherapy for Hypertension
- Stress can worsen hypertension
- Aromatherapy helps reduce blood pressure
- Carefully select aromatherapy oil for hypertension
- How do you use aromatherapy for hypertension?
Medical Video: Aromatherapy Basics : Lavender Aromatherapy for Hypertension
Aromatherapy is usually used to calm the mind and relax the body. Aromatherapy utilizes essential oils made from various medicinal plants, flowers, herbs, roots, fruits, and trees which are said to be beneficial for the body. Well, did you know that in addition to getting rid of stress, are there also hidden benefits of aromatherapy for hypertension?
Stress can worsen hypertension
Stress and excessive anxiety can worsen the condition of chronic hypertension. This is because stress makes the brain release stress hormones such as adrenaline, cortisol, and norepinephrine which causes an increase in heart rate and widening of the diameter of blood vessels. This can make blood pressure rise suddenly up to 30-40% - even if only temporarily.
Although only briefly, the effect of increasing tension is still potentially dangerous for people who already have hypertension. The reason is that severe mental stress stimulates the sympathetic system of the brain to overreact causing tension and ultimately increasing blood pressure. If stress continues to occur repeatedly, over time it can cause damage to blood vessels, heart, and kidneys, which can trigger blood pressure to always remain high over time.
In addition, people who are under severe stress are very vulnerable to unhealthy habits that can increase blood pressure, such as smoking and drinking alcohol to overeat.
Aromatherapy helps reduce blood pressure
There have been many studies that prove that using aromatherapy can make a person feel more calm, happy, and have a more stable blood pressure.
Some essential oils used in aromatherapy, such as lavender oil, sandalwoodchamomile, to nutmeg oil, has a calming scent that can control the sympathetic nervous system which is responsible for regulating stress responses and decreasing cortisol hormone levels.
Instead, the relaxing effects of aromatherapy will activate the parasympathetic nervous system which makes the heart rate slowly decrease stably. In addition, lavender aromatherapy also contains a component of linalyl acetate which plays a role in muscle relaxation.
When used as massage oil, essential oils are reported to be able to help stimulate blood flow more smoothly and activate the lymphatic system which can reduce pain, tension andbad mood.
In addition, the benefits of using aromatherapy for hypertension also believed to help a person can sleep better. Stress has long been associated with problems with insomnia or insomnia, which in turn worsens stress as a result of lack of sleep. Deep sleep itself is one way to reduce stress, which ultimately can also help control tension.
Carefully select aromatherapy oil for hypertension
The effect of reducing blood pressure from aromatherapy for hypertension only appears in certain oils, such as lavender oil, rose oil, sandalwood, chamomile, and nutmeg oil. Meanwhile, lemon oil, ginger, chiral, and mint leaves actually stimulate the heart to pump blood which can raise blood pressure.
How do you use aromatherapy for hypertension?
Essential oils can be used for aromatherapy in various ways, as follows:
- Using toolsdiffuser which converts essential oil into fragrant steam.
- Inhaling oil through the nose, first dropping into clothes, a basin of warm water, or directly from a bottle of packaging.
- Massage your body using essential oils.
- Soak warm water that has been mixed with essential oils.
- Apply essential oils directly to your skin.
