the aromaconnection blog

Pine Oil Tick and Mosquito Repellent

In one of those strange serendipitous moments that can happen with Google Alerts, I visited an article entitled "Tick and Mosquito Repellent Can Be Made Commercially from Pine Oil" which describes "a naturally-occurring compound prepared from pine oil" that deters mosquito biting and repels ticks.

After I read the press release, which contains the curious statement

Some segments of the public perceive efficient synthetic active ingredients as somehow more dangerous than botanical compounds, giving additional importance to the discovery of plant-based isolongifolenone.

my interest was piqued , so I read the patent which has been issued covering the preparation of the compound and "its use in repelling arthropods". Would this product meet the requirements of the NPA Natural Products standard? Would it meet the requirements of the NIRC definition of "Natural"? It's been over 40 years since I had my last chemistry course, but I think I can figure this out.

Reading through the patent, some interesting facts are revealed. Deet has long been considered the standard for mosquito repellency,

However, Deet is a plasticizer and clinical literature reports the association of Deet with neurotoxicity in humans (Robbins, P. J., and M. G. Cherniack. J. Toxicol. Environ. Health, 18: 503-525 (1986)). Thus, there is a great need for effective alternatives to Deet.

Essentially the process of producing takes isolongifolene, which is a naturally occurring component of Pinus longifolia, and converts it to isolongifolenone, which is also naturally occurring in smaller quantities. This is done via oxidation with tert-butyl hydroperoxide in the presence of a catalyst chromium hexacarbonyl. The process has a high yield but may not meet the natural standard because benzene is used to recover the catalyst (which itself is a considered toxic).

According to Wikipedia

In common with many of the other homoleptic metal carbonyls (e.g. nickel carbonyl and iron carbonyl), chromium hexacarbonyl is toxic and thought to be carcinogenic.

Tert-butyl hydroperoxide doesn't have its own entry in Wikipedia, but a search of the ToxSeek database reveals 143 entries.  Without detailed analysis, one can only conclude that it is a toxic hazard.

New Study Confirms psychoactive effect of [Frank]incense

A new study published in the The FASEB Journal, a journal of experimental biology

"found that incensole acetate, a Boswellia resin constituent, when tested in mice lowers anxiety and causes antidepressive-like behavior.” 

The press release goes on to cite this study as an explanation of how burning incense may have had a spiritual effect--a fact that is obvious to holistic aromatherapists. The significance of this study is that the study the mechanism that causes the effect was discovered.

There is an earlier study (2) on the anti-inflammatory effects of  Boswellia by the same authors that isolated the compound from Boswellia carterii, the common frankincense. The study authors suggest that the exact mechanism of the effect may be by activating TRPV3 that is found in neurons throughout the brain. TRPV3 is an ion channel implicated in the perception of warmth in the skin, as well as in the brain.

For this study, the incensole acetate was injected intraperitoneally into the mice, and then the mice were subjected to behavioral tests. A control group of mice that were known to be insensitive to TRPV3 stimulation was also used.

The psychoactive effects of frankincense are well known to aromatherapists, who are also aware that the the burnt resin has entirely different chemical composition than the essential oil components(3). Since the administration in this case was by injection and because incensole acetate is a (relatively minor - 2.3%) constituent of the essential oil there may be a different effect through inhalation of the essential oil; in any case this study did not address that. Reference (4) studied the Pyrolysates (burnt products) and found that insensole rises to 22% and incensyl acetate to 15.5%, so the effect may be greater when incense is used.

The study has been widely reported on in the scientific media, but as usual the press release was used as the major source and no one appears to have asked any interesting questions, which are answered in the full paper.

It would be interesting to see this study repeated using the essential oil.

References:

(1) Arieh Moussaieff et al. Incensole acetate, an incense component, elicits psychoactivity by activating TRPV3 channels in the brain, Published online before print May 20, 2008 as doi: 10.1096/fj.07-101865. Abstract at http://www.fasebj.org/cgi/content/abstract/fj.07-101865v1

(2) Arieh Moussaieff et al. Incensole acetate: a novel neuroprotective agent isolated from Boswellia carterii, Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism advance online publication 16 April 2008; doi: 10.1038/jcbfm.2008.28. Abstract at http://www.nature.com/jcbfm/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/jcbfm200828a.html

(3) Lis-Balchin, Maria.  Aromatherapy Science: A guide for healthcare professionals. Pharmaceutical Press: 2006. p. 193.

(4)  Basar, Simla. Phytochemical Investigations on Boswellia Species. Dr. dissertation. University of Hamberg 2005. Online at http://deposit.ddb.de/cgi-bin/dokserv?idn=975255932&dok_var=d1&dok_ext=pdf&filename=975255932.pdf

Technorati Tags: frankincense,aromatherapy,incense,how aromatherapy works

Is This The End of The Indie Beauty Products Boom as We Know It?

The past decade has seen an explosion of small, independent aromatics products companies emerge from the kitchens and basements of America.  From aromatherapy wellness products creators, indie natural perfumers,  sultry incense  formulators,  handmade soap makers and makers of bath products galore - creative entrepreneurs have conjured up myriad offerings from bath fizzies to sugar scrubs to pampering spa products. 

Then, along came the Food and Drug Administration Globalization Act of 2008, announced last month, proposing to give the FDA authority to affect new regulations that could stop the growth of this creative movement dead in its tracks.  For some, it could be the end.  Under the new rules proposed, The FDA could mandate an annual registration fee of no less than $2,000 (possibly more) per manufacturing facility.  This could put some out of business.    

The Personal Care Products Council (formerly the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association), has already testified before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, outlining the self-regulatory efforts of the major cosmetic industry over the past several decades.  From the written testimony of Pamela G. Bailey, CFO and President of the PCPC,   "The result of manufacturer safety practices and voluntary initiatives under a existing framework of Federal law has been an outstanding safety record that has been commended by previous FDA Commissioners.  Cosmetics and personal care products are the safest category of products regulated by the FDA."  Stephen F. Sundlof, D.V.M., Ph.D., Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, also submitted testimony which included the following:  "We believe the proposed legislation should be more closely targeted and prioritized according to risk. Several of the legislative sections appear not to be sufficiently focused on high-risk products. Some of these requirements would divert resources, which could detract from important product safety and security priorities."   While these larger entities are not arguing for or against the proposed legislation, these seem to be cautionary statements that would lead us to believe the larger industry has faith in existing industry efforts to self-regulate cosmetic safety via the CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) established by CFTA in 1976 and funded entirely by the industry, evaluating more than 1,300 ingredients and publishing peer-reviewed scientific literature, available to the public. 

We are fortunate to have Donnamaria Coles Johnson who because of her passion for cosmetics and beauty products has tirelessly championed for small beauty products companies.  If you are a small cosmetic manufacturer and are not a member of the Indie Beauty Network, you are missing a plethora of ideas, education and networking to assist your business development.  Donnamaria has put up a public page to address this latest FDA issue, open to the public for comments and suggestions.   She will be preparing a position paper, using members' comments that will carry our voice to be heard by the Committees in charge of vetting public comments.  You can find Donnamaria's message and governmental links here:  http://www.indiebusinessforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=41 

We urge all small natural cosmetic manufacturers to keep abreast of this issue and join efforts as needed to make sure that indie business doesn't get left behind.     

Cropwatch at the Cross-Roads

Cropwatch Statement

After 4 or 5 years of continuous activity, Cropwatch has some choices to make. Do we go on the way that we have been, snapping at the ankles of those who run & regulate the aroma industry so badly, or should we 'old dogs' learn some new tricks? Cropwatch supporters, and organisations sympathetic to our aims, regularly offer us donations and advise us of potential sources of grants, to which we have always said 'no thanks, we're non-financed'. Our current thinking is that this might be a mistake, since we are limiting our potential effectiveness. .

We are certainly not asking everyone for money, but we are asking you to help us with some feedback on how a financial input could potentially help the aroma world to become a better & fairer place, so please mail us if you have any thoughts or ideas.

Our initial list of ideas to use donated funding would be:

1. To finance risk/benefit studies on natural aromatic products. This research is needed because the existing major players such as IFRA/RIFM, are set up only to investigate the risks/hazards of fragrance ingredients (but not the benefits), & EFFA can only present the safety risks of essential oils, absolutes, resinoids etc in terms of the imagined hazards of the individual contained chemicals, rather than adopting a holistic approach for the aromatic ingredient as a whole. Therefore both organisations are badly positioned to defend natural aromatic ingredients against the current avalanche of restrictive legislation. The EU Commissioners have previously declined to accept safety-data based on risk/benefit considerations, although we believe this policy to be untenable in the long-term - it is the norm in virtually every other regulatory area (biocides, agricultural chemicals, pharmaceuticals etc).

[Neither is this just a European problem. The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce have just announced draft legislation (Global Harmonisation Act 2008) intended to stimulate discussion on how to provide adequate funding and authority for the FDA to ensure the safety of the nation's food, drug, medical device and cosmetic supply in an increasingly globalised marketplace. The draft legislation already highlights several areas which will affect the fragrance industry]. 

2. To develop statistical data on the adverse effects of restricted & prohibited aromatic materials. This data would be a potential bombshell to blow apart the over-precautionary approaches of the cosmetic regulators and career toxicologists, who are in such a powerful position in global regulatory circles. Where this data exists (e.g. the Schnuch data on alleged allergens) it is already causing red faces. The EU Commissioner has previously indicated to Cropwatch (Brussels 2007) that this type of adverse reaction data is inadmissible as safety evidence. But if you are familiar with English history, you might recall that King Canute failed to hold back the waves and so his followers realised he was not all-powerful. So too, the regulators will not be able to ignore the fact that many restrictions on natural products are based on corporate toxicological constructs which don't manifest in the great numbers of negative health effects predicted.

3. To assist with the growing & production of useful commodities from threatened aromatic plants, for cosmetic, aromatherapeutic, flavour & medicinal outlets, in a way that benefits the poor.

4. To set up or help set up a natural aromatics products professional body, with the help of other interested parties. Already we can identify several sub-divided areas which badly need assistance: natural perfumery, the use of naturals within conventional perfumery, natural biocides, herbal drugs & medicines, aromatherapy, natural cosmetics etc. 

5. The lobbying of officials & regulators. As we have seen, the more the establishment closes ranks (and its mind) to contrary & dissenting views, the more popular support we have been able to attract. In terms of numbers we are potentially a powerful force. However we have to ask ourselves whether there is any point in continuing the lobbying game. Many of the points we make go unanswered because the officials involved are not sufficiently technically adept or experienced to even understand the arguments put forward. So is it better to plough ahead with a voluntary regulatory system of our own making - at least we might have the experience, familiarity & resources to do a better job. The enormity of the task is detracting, but this is put more into perspective if sufficient funding were to be available.  

6. To keep the flame of our traditional perfumery heritage alight. When we read that several major aroma corporations are training fledgling perfumers in pure synthetic perfumery, it makes us wonder if the world has gone quite mad. Once perfumers used to be creative artists with forthright temperaments, views and opinions, passionate about their art. Now, are we all to be reduced to company drones? I was related a story recently concerning a certain essential oils salesman who offered unmarked samples of  real good quality Bulgarian lavender oil, and a synthetic lavender construct to a group of young perfumers at a certain megacorporation. The group preferred the artificial lavender construct because "it smelled like linalyl acetate, like its supposed to."  Heaven help us! But maybe some of us 'old-timers' should organise courses & lectures to pass on the 'ancient knowledge of the art of perfumery' before it is lost forever.   

OK, after 5 or so years of trying, we pretty much know what the problems facing us are - what we don't have is a consensus on the best way to solve them. Maybe you can help?

Cropwatch Team

Technorati Tags: Cropwatch,natural aromatic products,perfumery,natural perfumery

Earth Day 2008

"The President in Washington sends word that he wishes to buy our land. But how can you buy and sell the sky? The land? The idea is strange to us. If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them? Every part of this earth is sacred to my people. Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every meadow, every humming insect. All are holy in the memory and experience of my people. We know the sap which courses through the trees as we know the blood that courses through our veins. We are part of the earth and it is part of us. The perfumed flowers are our sisters. The bear, the deer, the great eagle, these are our brothers. the rocky crests, the juices in the meadow, the body heat of the pony, and man, all belong to the same family. The shining water that moves in the streams and rivers is not just water, but the blood of our ancestors. If we sell you our land, you must remember that it is sacred. Each ghostly reflection in the clear waters of the lakes tells of events and memories in the life of my people. The waters murmur is the voice of my fathers' father. The rivers are our brothers. They quench our thirst. They carry our canoes and feed our children. So you must give to the rivers the kindness you would give any brother. If we sell you our land, remember that the air is precious to us, that the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports. The wind that gave our grandfather his first breath also receives his last sigh. The wind also gives our children the spirit of life. So, if we sell you our land, you must keep it apart and sacred, as a place where man can go to taste the wind that is sweetened by the meadow flowers. Will you teach your children what we have taught our children? That the earth is our mother? What befalls the earth befalls all the sons of the earth. This we know: the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, his is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself. One thing we know: our god is also your god. The earth is precious to him and to harm the earth is to heap contempt on its creator. Your destiny is a mystery to us. What will happen when the buffalo are all slaughtered? The wild horses tamed? What will happen when the secret corners of the forest are heavy with the scent of many men and the view of the ripe hills is blotted by talking wires? Where will the thicket be? Gone? Where will the Eagle be? Gone! And what is it to say goodbye to the swift pony and the hunt? The end of living and the beginning of survival. When the last red man has vanished with his wilderness and his memory is only the shadow of a cloud moving across the prairie, will these shores and forests still be here? Will there be any of the spirit of my people left? We love this earth as a newborn loves its mothers heartbeat. So, if we sell you our land, love it as we have loved it. Care for it as we have cared for it. Hold in your mind the memory of the land as it is when you receive it. Preserve the land for all children and love it, as God loves us all. As we are part of the land, you too are part of the land. This earth is precious to us. It is also precious to you. One thing we know: there is only one God. No man, be he red man or white man, can be apart. We ARE all brothers after all."

      -Chief Seattle

The nature Conservancy Earth Day Ideas
Take action for climate crisis solutions at we
Recycle old computers, cell phones and other electronics
Earth Day official events and activities
Professional advice for business sustainability initiative
Earth Day Facts from Rochester, NY plus more links
Make every day Earth Day from Madison, Wisconsin
Adverse effects of palm oil by Dove from Greenpeace
We can do it! from Sierra Club
The Rainforest Initiative
Whitefeather Forest Initiative
The African Conservation Foundaton
Long list of intragovernmental, governmental and private (NGO) environmental orgs

That ought to keep us busy.

Happy Earth Day! from all of us at the aromaconnection group blog.  

Notes and News

• P&F has gleaned statistics from Datamonitor on the growth of  the Fair Trade market, stating that "ethical consumerism will increasingly come to the fore as people shop for products they feel akin to politically, ethically and aesthetically."  Aromatic extracts such as essential oils, CO2's and absolutes are not even on the radar screen with the  regulators such as Transfair  and flo-cert.  My report on Cote d'Ivoire cacao production revealed that determining abuses will not be an easy job. The P&F article predicts a 15.7% growth through 2012 for the countries covered, concluding that "transparency and trust will become increasingly important currency in the emerging  'green'  marketplace." 
• Insect repellent products made with  Nepeta cataria should carry a warning to caution people not to use when hiking in areas where Cougars, Lynx, Bobcats or other large cats are present.  All cats (even those big guys) are attracted to catnip, and forest rangers have begun using it to attract Cougars for tagging and research.  All cats will have a physiological reaction to the chemical compound nepetalactone in catnip which has been found to induce a psychosexual response in both male and female cats. One might say that catnip has an aphrodisiac effect, however some cats can be very possessive of their catnip, and some cats have been aggressive after use.  We highly recommend that product manufacturers alert their customers of this potential danger. 
• As reported by Jennifer Minigh, PhD, in ABC's (American Botanical Society) Herbclip, a recent double-blind, randomized and placebo-controlled trial published in BJOG (British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 2008) shows that saffron Crocus sativus L. looks promising for treating PMS (premenstrual syndrome).   Using the dried stigma encapsulated, saffron was effective in treating mild to moderate depression via serotonergic mechanisms.  This is likely the first study of saffron's effects on PMS, with 50 women participating ages 24-50 and comparisons to other studies are therefore probably not possible. 
• An upcoming Sandalwood Conference to be held in Kununurra, WA  promises to  "Revolutionize the Global Indian Sandalwood Supply."  Rob blogged about this briefly when news of the crop development and establishment of a production plant in Kununurra came out in December.  This news is creating new excitement, as expressed by Georges Ferrando, from Albert Vieille, who says with a processing plant due to be built in Kununurra next year, the region will become a world leader within five years.  "India is number one in supplying sandalwood oil, but I think very, very quickly, Kununurra will become the supplier number one in the world".  The growers are expecting the first harvest in 2014.  The conference will  present comparisons of plantation-grown Santalum album to that grown in the wild, an overview of the international fragrance market, the uses of naturals in fragrance, setting standards for a reliable supply, as well as cover issues of indigenous participation and environmental responsibilities.  In addition to featured presentations, there will be round table discussions and plantation tours.

Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy Response to OSU Aromatherapy Study

Dr. Kurt Schnaubelt responds in detail to the OSU Aromatherapy Study at the Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy site (scroll down the page to find the article entitled "Aromatherapy Won't Make You Well, Study Shows or creating sensations by omission"). He distinguishes three aspects of the paper: The factual paper itself; the popular rendition in the press release as reprinted "ad nauseam"; and thirdly the issues

that can be raised about the purpose and meaning of a recent trend, in which studies like the one discussed here aggressively prove the lack of efficacy of natural remedies. In recent times a number of well financed and immaculately organized studies have reported that the efficacy of various important phyto pharmacons does not exceed that of placebo. Plant medicines demoted in this fashion include St Johnswort, Echinacea, Saw Palmetto and Black Cohosh and soon probably also Gingko. Publication of the negative results generally appear in high level medical journals and spawn endless repetitions in scientific journals as well as the mainstream press generating the impression that somehow all the inherited wisdom about plant medicine is a figment of the imagination, unfit to perform under scientific scrutiny. The aspect entirely omitted from this discussion is that the methodology of the studies is entirely unsuitable to demonstrate the efficacy of neither the whole therapeutic approach of phytotherapy (or for that matter aromatherapy) nor that of a selected plant extract.

Dr. Schnaubelt points out some of the shortcomings of the study and that the parameters studied "do . . . not truly relate to suggestions the aromatherapy literature makes about these two oils."

He takes on the Science Daily rewrite (which, as we have pointed out here, is actually an almost verbatim copy of the OSU Press Release) with pithy analysis closing with "If cultural critics were to look for a perfect example of rampant scientism, here is one!"

He then goes into a detailed discussion of the definition of Aromatherapy, the rejection of plant medicine by the pharmacological industry, and goes on to suggest that liver detoxification enzymes evolved as a response to the need for mammals to process out the essential oils in new plants they are eating.

It is ironic that plants are the native substrates having triggered the evolution of this enzyme system, which also removes the vast majority of all synthetic drugs. In todays medical literature this very enzyme system is generally referred to as drug metabolizing (!) enzymes creating the impression that somehow the removal of the synthetic drug is a feature that comes with its purchase.

This article is well worth reading and deserves a large audience.  It's too bad we can't get it as widely exposed as the OSU press release that stimulated it.

Technorati Tags: aromatherapy,lavender oil,lemon oil,essential oils

The OSU Aromatherapy Study-- the real story

Two recent posts (here and here) have documented the publication of a study entitled "Olfactory influences on mood and autonomic, endocrine, and immune function"  and an accompanying press release about it entitled "AROMATHERAPY MAY MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD, BUT IT WON’T MAKE YOU WELL". There have been a number of comments from Aromatherapists on some blogs and mailing lists about the study--mainly based on the press release. Although we are not necessarily defending the study here we feel that the study should be judged on its own merits (or deficiencies) and not on what the OSU Public Relations department has released to the public.

What the study is about

In the introduction the the paper, the authors cite two main references (Price and Price, 1999) and (Hirsch, 2001) with a few others, to define what aromatherapy is, and effectively limit the scope to inhalation aromatherapy, although that is not specifically stated. They cite three mechanisms for how aromatherapy works: Systematic effect theory that "posits that essential oils act like a drug or enzyme", immune function enhancement, and relaxation. They state that "efficacy data are scant, and potential mechanisms of action are controversial." After briefly reviewing some of the literature for lavender, lemon, and placebo (the three oils of choice for the study) they then set forth the exact parameters that they felt defined the study:

To compare and contrast the diverse perspectives about whether and how odors affect health, we examined the autonomic, endocrine, and immune consequences of one purported sedating or relaxant odor, lavender, one activating or stimulant odor, lemon, and distilled water as a no-odor control during both resting and “challenge” or stress conditions in a mixed or between-within repeated measures design; each subject served as his or her own control during three separate 6 h[our] visits. Depending on their random assignment, participants were either given no information about what odors they would be smelling or what to expect (the “blind” group), or they were told what odors they would smell and what changes to expect from the relaxant, stimulant, or no odor exposures (the “primed” group).

Our protocol for each session included a cold pressor, a laboratory stressor that elevates stress-related hormones, heart rate, and blood pressure (Blandini et al., 1995; Hirsch and Liebert, 1998). Both before and after the cold pressor we performed tape stripping, a common dermatological paradigm for studying restoration of the skin barrier, a process mediated by both endocrine and immune systems (Choi et al., 2005). Our design thus provided a way to examine the ability of lemon and lavender odors to modulate stress and pain responses to the cold pressor, as well as wound healing via the speed of skin barrier repair.

In summary, they evaluated two essential oils and a water placebo via inhalation and measured some physiological parameters to determine if there were actual effects. The final paragraph of their introduction summarizes the predictions of results that they expected to obtain from the study and defines the parameters to be measured:

Specific predictions can be derived from the various theories posited to explain the effects of essential oils. For example, if the systemic effect theory is correct, even relatively short-term exposure to lavender would be expected to produce larger declines in the production of cortisol and catecholamines, faster skin barrier repair, lower pain ratings in response to the cold pressor, and smaller stress-related immunological changes compared to lemon and the no-odor control; short-term exposure to lemon oil should produce greater transient increases in positive affect, heart rate, blood pressure, and catecholamines than either lavender oil or the no-odor control. If expectancies determine the pattern of responses (Jellinek, 1997), then the primed group's mood and physiological responses to lemon and lavender odors would be greater than the blind group; similarly, those with positive expectancies about aromatherapy in advance of participation would be expected to show greater changes. By assessing olfactory influences on mood and autonomic, endocrine, and immune function, our design allowed us to contrast these diverse conceptual perspectives, clarify mechanisms, and assess possible clinical efficacy.

I'm probably push the boundaries of fair use in my quoting, but I want to be fair to the authors and it's really hard to summarize this stuff very well.  See what happened when they tried at the OSU Public Relations department, or even in the summary to the paper.

Methodology

I've reviewed the methodology and won't go into detail here, other than to summarize.  They had 56 participants in the study; they excluded people who might have adversely affected the study (such as those with no or a reduced sense of smell); they attempted to control any variations in methodology by standardizing the application of the oils and the measurements. One thing that I initially questioned was that they froze the essential oils (at -80C) and thawed only enough to use at the time of a session, but they did perform MSGC's on the oils at the beginning and periodically throughout the study to verify that there were no changes.  Dr. Robert Tisserand assured us that freezing should not be a problem causing variability. They obtained their essential oils from a Chemical Supplier, but they provided no specific lot or country of origin data. The vendor has online data available for other lavenders (a 40/42 that came from Russia, for example), but not for this one. The vendor has two lemon oils, but neither has the correctly spelled botanical name and it's not clear which one was used. There is no evidence in the paper that the oils used were appropriately of aromatherapy quality.

The paper describes in detail exactly how they measured each of the parameters; how the experimenters were blinded so they couldn't tell which odor was being used, and how the data were gathered. I'm not going to go into detail here; the methods appear to be adequate to the non-expert.  They've stated their methods of statistical analysis in general terms.  Since the study was peer-reviewed, we should probably assume that they got the data analysis right.

The method of application of the odors has been questioned. Since they applied the odor to the participants for a period of several hours, and during that time the participants were being tested, they needed a standardized way to apply it. So they applied 100 microLiter of the EO to a cotton ball and taped it between the nose and the upper lip on top of a piece of surgical tape barrier to avoid absorption through the skin. What wasn't made clear in the press release was that they replaced the cotton 4 times [at irregular intervals] during the study period to maintain odor strength and they removed the cotton ball for a lunch break, then applied a new cotton ball to complete the testing.

Another potential issue was the mention in the paper of placement of a "heparin well" in the arm of each participant at the beginning of the session and its removal at the end. Since heparin is a chemical anticoagulant (that has been in the news lately because of bad material imported from China), we were concerned that its presence might bias the results.  However, a Google search revealed that the well is merely an IV tube that is placed to allow easy access for taking blood samples during the study.  Apparently it's a common practice during research at OSU. There was no heparin introduced into the body during the testing.

Results

The results listed in the study summary were summarized so as to be difficult to understand to the lay reader.   The authors presented the results of each of the tests in either descriptive or graphical form. The results are subject to interpretation and that is done in part 4 of the paper, entitled Discussion. That will be covered in a future post.

Summary of Problems observed by me:

1. The source and characteristics of the Essential Oils used were not adequately stated and tracked. The authors took care to maintain the oil quality during the study, but there is no way to tell whether the oils were any good to start with. MSGC data should have been included in the paper as well. 
2. The odor strength was not uniformly and consistently maintained because the interval between changes was not standardized, and because of the lunch break. Even if it had been, it can be questioned as to whether it should have, since intermittent application is the usual mode in aromatherapy. 
3. The practice of continuous application of the odorant materials during the entire test is not in accord with my understanding of normal aromatherapy practice, although the paper seems confused on the issue, citing one intermittent study (Goel et al., 2005) and one with "short term inhalation," whatever that means. 
4. No trained aromatherapist was apparently consulted about the study. It might also have been useful to have the opinion of a trained aromatherapist as to the quality of the oils used and their suitability for aromatherapy.

References

(only these mentioned in this post are included here--the full paper has 41 references listed).

Blandini et al., 1995 F. Blandini, E. Martignoni, E. Sances, G. Bono and G. Nappi, Combined response of plasma and platelet catecholamines to different types of short-term stress, Life Sci. 56 (1995), pp. 1113–1120. Abstract | Full Text + Links | PDF (595 K) | View Record in Scopus | Cited By in Scopus (11) 

Choi et al., 2005 E.-H. Choi, B.E. Brown, D. Crumrine, S. Chang, M.-Q. Man, P.M. Elias and K.R. Feingold, Mechanisms by which psychologic stress alters cutaneous permeability barrier homeostasis and stratum corneum integrity, J. Invest. Dermatol. 124 (2005), pp. 587–595. View Record in Scopus | Cited By in Scopus (25) 

Hirsch, 2001 A.R. Hirsch, Aromatherapy: art, science, or myth?. In: M.I. Weintraub, Editor, Alternative and Complementary Treatment in Neurologic Illness, Churchill Livingstone, Philadelphia, PA (2001), pp. 128–150. 

Hirsch and Liebert, 1998 M.S. Hirsch and R.M. Liebert, The physical and psychological experience of pain: the effects of labeling and cold pressor temperature on three pain measures in college women, Pain 77 (1998), pp. 41–48. Abstract | Full Text + Links | PDF (60 K) | View Record in Scopus | Cited By in Scopus (13) 

Jellinek, 1997 J.S. Jellinek, Psychodynamic odor effects and their mechanisms, Cosmet. Toilet. 112 (1997), pp. 61–71. 

Price and Price, 1999 S. Price and L. Price, Aromatherapy for Health Professionals, Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh (1999). Here in Google Books. 

Tisserand, 2008 Robert Tisserand, Personal Communication to blog author.

Technorati Tags: aromatherapy,essential oils,lavender oil,lemon oil

Ultrasound Assisted Essential Oil Extraction

 Sample Preparation (an Online magazine) has reviewed a paper that has been accepted for publication in the journal Talanta entitled "Ultrasound-assisted dynamic extraction of valuable compounds from aromatic plants and flowers as compared with steam distillation and superheated liquid extraction." The system was used to extract essential oils from dried leaves of laurel, rosemary, thyme, oregano and tuberose, as well as tuberose flowers (it didn't work well for the tuberose). When compared to the SD and SWE extractions with MSGC, there were higher amounts of more volatile EO components, which the researchers say will be closer to the natural smell of the plants.

The team recommend UAE for the extraction of aroma compounds from natural products, due to its speed, low energy and equipment costs, and relatively high yields.

No information was presented in the review about how UAE extracted oils might work in aromatherapy, and they didn't compare them to CO2 extractions, but it sounds like they might be comparable to CO2 because there is no heat applied.

Technorati Tags: aromatherapy,essential oils,ultrasound,ultrasound assisted extraction,Talanta 2008

Aromatherapy Study portrayal on the blogs

The Ohio State University aromatherapy study press release referenced in the previous post, in spite of the fact that it actually confirmed that at least one essential oil, lemon, has an actual aromatherapy effect, is being reprinted or referenced in various blogs as proving that aromatherapy doesn't work.

Here are some of the titles of blog posts and Main Stream Media (MSM) articles picked up by a Google alert for the word "aromatherapy" (I'm not doing links, since most of the items are the same article):

• Aromatherapy may make you feel good, but it won't make you well (original Press Release Title currently at 892 hits--Click here to see the list) UPDATE: Wow! 13,100 hits at 5 pm Saturday UPDATE2: The number has dropped as of 3/25. Apparently Google refined the search.
• Study Finds Aromatherapy Doesn't Work 
• Aromatherapy can cheer, not heal 
• No advantages from Aromatherapy? 
• Aromatherapy Doesn't Fix Body, Study Says 
• Aromatherapy Stinks - kind of - and Other News 
• Aromatherapy's Effectiveness Questioned 
• Two Aromatherapies Don't Work 
• Aromatherapy Doesn't Work? 
• Aromatherapy can cheer, but not heal, says study 
• Does Aromatherapy Work? 
• Doubts cast over aromatherapy in new study 
• Does Aromatherapy Really Work? 
• Study Questions Effectiveness of Aromatherapy 
• Aromatherapy has no physical effects 
• Do Aromatherapy Products Work? 
• Aromatherapy Falls Short, Study Finds 
• Experimental Evidence Supports Runner's High; Aromatherapy...Not... 
• Aromatherapy is Woo 
• Aromatherapy, a Bunch of foolery? 
• Aromatherapy is Bullshit Malarkey, Sez Prof. Malarkey! (And He Should Know!) 
• No Advantages from Aromatherapy? 
• A whiff of scent is no cure for what ails you

I could continue for a long time if I go on to related stories that Google doesn't index directly. And I actually found a few benign headlines. Pravda, for example, has a neutral title: "New study evaluates efficacy of aromatherapy." Another article is entitled: "Aromatherapy makes you feel good, study."

These headlines are an indication that the authors of these blogs didn't actually read the article, or if they did read it selectively. It's a problem with blogging--you need to put a unique title (or so you think) and so you scan the article, throw out a title that reflects your first impressions, post the article, and move on. It's our policy on this blog not to directly reprint an article that someone else has already posted, without their permission. Particularly if we can link to it, which is usually the case.  But a lot of aromatherapy bloggers, or anti-aromatherapy bloggers, don't have those scruples.  Writing something original about something is hard work. Copying it and putting your name on something is easy--and it's also plagiarism. The several hundred newspaper reprints of the press release with the same title are probably not plagiarism, since it probably went out over the wire.

Anyway, this is what we have to put up with. . . .

Technorati Tags: Aromatherapy,media bias,lavender oil,lemon oil

Aromatherapy May Make You Feel Good, But It Won't Make You Well

Or so says a study by researchers at the Ohio State University that is spreading rapidly throughout the Main Stream Media and the Internet and is being cited as proof that aromatherapy doesn't work. Although I found it first on a blog about the convergence of Mormon beliefs and science, a little searching revealed that it has been extensively reported on MSM web sites and the OSU Press Release describing the study has been widely reprinted (621 Google hits for the title above), the most significant of which is ScienceDaily.

The study, published online in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, looked for evidence that such aromas go beyond increasing pleasure and actually have a positive medical impact on a person’s health.  While a massive commercial industry has embraced this notion in recent decades, little, if any, scientific proof has been offered supporting the products’ health claims.

This could have as wide spread a circulation as the NEJM article on Gynecomastia which has been discussed extensively on this blog a year ago. And unfortunately, as happened in the prior situation, there will probably be very little coverage of any intelligent criticism or further discussion that we might have about the results of the study.

Most of the wider media coverage is based on the press release, and it's likely that very few persons will read the actual study, because of the exorbitant fee charged to download a copy. The aromaconnection blog has sprung for the cost and I have actually read the paper. I'll need a couple of days to digest it but we will definitely be commenting further on it. My initial evaluation is that the methodology is valid, but that a study that is limited to only two essential oils is not the same thing as "Aromatherapy", but of course over-generalizations have never been rare in the media world or the Internet.

The abstract/summary of the paper is:

Despite aromatherapy's popularity, efficacy data are scant, and potential mechanisms are controversial. This randomized controlled trial examined the psychological, autonomic, endocrine, and immune consequences of one purported relaxant odor (lavender), one stimulant odor (lemon), and a no-odor control (water), before and after a stressor (cold pressor); 56 healthy men and women were exposed to each of the odors during three separate visits. To assess the effects of expectancies, participants randomized to the “blind” condition were given no information about the odors they would smell; “primed” individuals were told what odors they would smell during the session, and what changes to expect. Experimenters were blind.

Self-report and unobtrusive mood measures provided robust evidence that lemon oil reliably enhances positive mood compared to water and lavender regardless of expectancies or previous use of aromatherapy. Moreover, norepinephrine levels following the cold pressor remained elevated when subjects smelled lemon, compared to water or lavender. DTH responses to Candida were larger following inhalation of water than lemon or lavender. Odors did not reliably alter IL-6 and IL-10 production, salivary cortisol, heart rate or blood pressure, skin barrier repair following tape stripping, or pain ratings following the cold pressor.

If you'd like to find the paper on the Internet, you can find it on ScienceDirect by entering the keyword Aromatherapy. Right now it is the first entry.

Coumarin Again

We have a new developments over allegations of coumarin toxicity to humans. To recap, coumarin is commonly found in perfumes & cosmetics, because of its deliberate addition as a perfumery synthetic ingredient, and because of its widespread distribution in added natural aromatic materials (see Cropwatch article at http://www.cropwatch.org/nlet4art4.htm). Coumarin is not restricted IFRA, although it has been wrongly classified as a sensitiser by the SCCP [see Floc'h (2002) & Vocansen et al (2006)], but nevertheless must be labelled according to an adaptation of 7th Amendment of the Cosmetics Directive 76/768/EEC if its concentration in the final retailed product from whatever source is greater than 0.01% in products intended for rinsing off the skin, or 0.001% in leave-on products. 

In the EU, flavourings are regulated according to the Articles of the European Council’s Directive on food flavourings 88/388/EEC, amended by 91/71/EEC and implemented into UK national law in the Flavourings in Food Regulations 1992: You might remember, that coumarin had been restricted with respect to its allowable concentration in foodstuffs because of allegations of (non-linear dose related) rat & dog carcinogenicity which occurred at high levels of coumarin administration. These considerations caused the regulators to limit coumarin concentrations in food & beverages to 2 mg/Kg, except for limits for chewing gum (50 mg/Kg), alcoholic drinks (10mg/Kg) & caramel confectionery (10mg/Kg). However the EU Scientific Committee for Food (1997) recommended the lowering the coumarin limit to the limit of detection in food, 0.5mg/Kg. However, we know that the metabolism of coumarin proceeds through a different major route of 7-hydroxylation in humans compared with the 3-hydroxylation pathway in rats (Cohen 1979, Fentem & Fry 1993, Kaighen & Williams 1961, Lake et al 1989), further species to species differences being investigated for example by Fenton & Fry (1993), who found that a heptatoxic route involving 3-hydroxylation and involving a 3,4-epoxide occurs in the rat, but not in baboons, gerbils, some strains of mice, and man. This hypothesis had also been muted by Steensma (1994) amongst others, and was further explored in Lake's paper with Gray (1999), who fed dihydrocoumarin  to rats (which cannot form the 3,4 epoxide metabolite) and found no heptacarcinogenic effect. Lake's fairly thorough (1999) review paper pointed out (amongst other things) that dietary exposure to coumarin (0.02mg/day) plus cosmetic exposure to coumarin (0.04mg/day) sill adds up to a TDI which is still approx. 100 times less than the minimum figure causing observed adverse reactions in humans, and between 2000 and 3000 times lower than the dose necessary to produce liver tumours in rats. (Lake 1999). 

Now enter the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), who just recently (20.12.2007) have maintained that they have "evaluated the analytical results of the controlling bodies of the federal states in order to assess the scale on which cosmetics contribute to consumer exposure to coumarin." They find that "it has not been fully elucidated whether coumarin taken in via the skin has a similarly harmful effect on the liver to coumarin ingested from the gastro-intestinal tract". Presumably they would cite in their defence of this position, the paper by Yourick & Bronaugh (1997) who found that coumarin rapidly penetrated rat & human skin and is not metabolised by enzymes in the skin. Coumarin is thereby presumed by rapidly enter the systemic circulation to be metabolised by the liver. So what, you may ask? Humans still are not at risk from heptacarcinogenic effects according to figures given by Lake (1999). But the BfR also states that consumers could already exceed the tolerable daily intake (TDI) of coumarin just by using cosmetics with high coumarin levels, an opinion at therefore at variance with Lake's (1999) findings. The president of the BfR Prof. Hesel says that coumarin should not be used in products for infants & toddlers as a precautionary measure. That statement you might think, comes 130 years too late, since coumarin has been extensively used at fairly  high concentrations in many fragrances for infant care products, since its commercial production in 1876, and infant toxicity has not been revealed to be a problem thus far. 

At least one perfumery organisation has commented internally to its members that Prof. Hesel has not understood the species differences relevant to coumarin metabolism. However Cropwatch can take a broader view. Firstly we don't know for sure that detoxification mechanisms in babies/very young children are exactly similar to those for adults. Secondly, the perfumery organisation that made the comment was only slightly acquainted with coumarin metabolism (as I was until recently) and hadn't allowed for the fact that not all humans metabolise coumarin via the 7-hydroxylation route - there some may a proportion of 'low 7-hydroxylators' (see Hadidi et al 1997).who may be more at rise to coumarin exposure. Further, all of use may use a proportion of other routes other than the major 7-hydroxylation route to detoxify coumarin. Obviously we need more research.to properly assess the risks. It is a matter of judgement how precautionary we need to be on restricting coumarin levels in cosmetics -obviously a harsh coumarin limit would severely affect not only the types of perfumes that could be sold (i.e. no traditional chypres) and the number of essential oils & absolutes that could be used. One further piece for consideration is contained in a paper published by Givel in 2003, who gives an insight into information on coumarin toxicity in tobacco perfumes, who continued use until 10 or 20 years ago demonstrates the conflict between a duty to protect the health of the people of the nation against the right to keep trade secrets (tobacco fragrance formulation). Givel reports that "despite known severe toxic and carcinogenic risks to humans, coumarin was also reportedly used as an additive in pipe tobacco in the USA at least as late as 1996 (and from cigarettes supposedly in 1985).   

References: 

Cohen A.J. (1979) “Critical Review of the toxicology of coumarin with special reference to interspecies differences in metabolism and hepatoxic response & their significance  to man” Food Cosmet. Toxicol. 17, 277-289. 

Floc’h F. (2002) “Coumarin in Plants and Fruits: Implications in Perfumery.” Perf. & Flav. 27 (Mar/Apr 2002), 32-36. 

Givel M. (2003) “A comparison of US and Norwegian regulation of coumarin in tobacco products.” Tobacco Control 12, 401-405 

Hadidi H., Zalsen K., Idle J.R. & Cholerton S. (1997) "A single amino acid substitution (Leu160His) in Cytochrome P450 CYP2A6 

Kaighen M. & Williams R.T. (1961) "The metabolism of 3-14C Coumarin" Journal of Med. Chem 3, 25-43. 

Lake B.G., Gray T.B.G., Evans J.G., Lewis D.F.V., Beamand J.A. & Hue K.L. (1989) "Studies on the mechanism of coumarin-based toxicity in rat hepatocytes: comparison with dihydrocoumarin and other coumarin metabolites Toxicology & Applied Pharmacology 97, 311-323. 

Lake B.G. (1999) “Coumarin Metabolism, Toxicity & Carcinogenicity: Relevance for Human Risk Assessement.” Food & Chemical Toxicology 37(4), 423-453. 

Lake B.G., Gray T.J.B. (1999) "Studies on the mechanism of coumarin-induced toxicity in rat hepatocytes: Comparison with dihydrocoumarin and other coumarin metabolites." Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 97(2), 311-323. 

Steensma A., Beamand D.G., Walters D.G. et al. (1994) “Metabolism of Coumarin and 7-ethoxycoumatrin by rat, mouse, guinea pig, Cynomolgus monkey & human precusion-cut liver slices” Xenobiotica 24, 893-907. 

Vocanson M., Goujon C., Chabeau G., Castelain M., Valeyrie M., Floc’h F., Maliverney C., Gard A. & Nicolas J.F.  (2006) “The Skin Allergenic Properties of Chemicals may depend on Contaminants” Int Arch Allergy Immunol 140, 231-238 

Further to my previous comments, now lets look further at The National Toxic Encephalopathy Foundation (NTEF) case which continues to generate a considerable amount of media coverage in their campaign against L'Oreal and the coumarin-containing perfume Angel in particular. Their case looks increasingly badly realised - Cropwatch has been sifting through some of the published papers cited by the President of the NTEF, Angel de Fazio to support her case that coumarin is a harmful perfumery ingredient (in the NTEF news release of Oct 27th 2007), supported by Jack D. Thrasher, Ph.D., who is described as a "Toxicologist/Immunotoxicologist/Fetaltoxicologist". We have found that most of the references do not actually concern coumarin at all - they concern coumarins - a world of difference. Here they are in detail 

1. Albert RE Allergic contact sensitizing chemicals as environmental carcinogens. Environ Health Perspect. 1997 September; 105(9): 940–948.
2. Gerard Van Den Berg*, Marius L. De Winter†, Wybo A. De Boer and Wijbe Th. Nauta. Inhibition of ß-glucuronidase by 2-diarylmethyl- 1,3-indandiones. Received 23 June 1975; accepted 23 October 1975. Available online 5 November 2002. Biochem Pharmacol. 1976 Jun 15;25(12):1397-403.
3. http://www.usp.org/pdf/EN/veterinary/phenylbutazone.pdf
4. Peter G. Dayton, Yavuz Tarcan, Theodore Chenkin, and Murray Weiner
The Influence of Barbiturates on Coumarin Plasma Levels and Prothrombin Response, J Clin Invest. 1962 February; 41(2): 300.
5. Ren, P, Stark, PY, Johnson, RL, Bell, RG. Mechanism of action of anticoagulants: correlation between the inhibition of prothrombin synthesis and the regeneration of vitamin K1 from vitamin K1 epoxide. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 1977 201: 541-546.
6. Wallin R, Martin L F Vitamin K-dependent carboxylation and vitamin K metabolism in liver. Effects of warfarin. J Clin Invest. 1985 November; 76(5): 1879–1884.
7. Marek LJ, Koskinen WC. Multiresidue analysis of seven anticoagulant rodenticides by high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray/mass spectrometry. J Agric Food Chem. 2007 Feb 7;55(3):571-6.
8. A Taylor and M G Townsend, Some biochemical studies on warfarin resistance in the rat. Biochem J. 1970 July; 118(3): 56P–57P.
9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coumarin
10. Wesseling J, Van Driel D, Heymans HS, Van der Veer E, Sauer PJ, Touwen BC, Smirkovsky M. Behavioural outcome of school-age children after prenatal exposure to coumarins. Early Hum Dev. 2000 Jun;58(3):213-24
11. Wesseling J, Van Driel D, Smrkovsky M, Van der Veer E, Geven-Boere LM, Sauer PJ, Touwen BC. Neurological outcome in school-age children after in utero exposure to coumarins. Early Hum Dev. 2001 Jul;63(2):83-9 

Working in reverse order, reference 11 deals with acenocumarol & phenprocoumarol exposure, whilst reference 10 deals with the after-effects of acenocoumarol, phenprocoumon & coumadin (Warfarin) exposure to prenatal etc. children. These findings are of interest to rat-poison users, but making an inference that coumarin would behave similarly to say, warfarin, is to say the least, unproven, if not pure conjecture. Reference 9 deals with a Wikipedia entry which isn't particularly damning about coumarin. References 8, 7, 6 & 5 also relate more to warfarin and anti-coagulant coumarin derivatives. Reference 2 concerns 2-aryldimethyl-indandiones which we will assume are absent in most perfumes - unless proof is furnished to the contrary. 

So really then there are slim pickings for a case against coumarin here, and to make any sort of case, it might have been far wiser to expand the 'low 7-hydroylators' hypothesis and other troubling aspects of coumarin metabolism set out in the first section of this note. 

Tony Burfield.

Too Much Perfume may indicate Depression

Can’t smell the roses? Maybe you’re depressed. Smell too much like a rose yourself? Maybe you’ve got the same problem. Scientists from Tel Aviv University recently linked depression to a biological mechanism that affects the olfactory glands. It might explain why some women, without realizing it, wear too much perfume.

This according to research at Tel Aviv University reported in Science Daily that suggests that depressed women are also losing their sense of smell, and may use more perfume to overcompensate.

It appears that an autoimmune mechanism may be responsible:

In lupus patients and those with other autoimmune diseases, a particle known as an “autoantibody” attacks the person’s own immune system, appearing in the human body as an aberrant reaction to autoimmune diseases. This particle “is a real novelty,” says Prof. [Yehuda] Shoenfeld. “We have found that, when generated, it weakens a person’s sense of smell and can induce the feeling of depression.”

Unfortunately the original study wasn't cited. By some creative Googling, I was able to trace it back to the original press release (substantially the same as the Science Daily article) and eventually to this study published in the Journal of Autoimmunity, and to another study in Autoimmunity Reviews from 2006  that looks at the relationship between brain illnesses and olfaction. The latter study suggests that deterioration of the sense of smell may be used in the prediction of brain illnesses, and a number of other links from the abstract lead to other olfaction studies.

The Science Daily article and the press release mention the use of aromatherapy in the retail industry to change moods and encourage sales. Professor Schoenfeld suggests that this research may help change attitudes towards aromatherapy.

“I think that science is able to show that aromatherapy might not be just for quacks. After all, some of these remedies have been used since the time of the Egyptians to treat organic diseases.”

Best Treatment for MRSA uses essential oils

A laboratory study indicates that an antibacterial product that combines tea tree oil and white thyme oil with benzethonium chloride kills common types of non-hospital MRSA bacteria better than other compounds studied.  The findings were presented at a meeting of the American Society of Health-System  Pharmacists by an Oregon State University professor. The article I read stresses the benzethonium chloride as the main ingredient and barely mentions the essential oils, which are probably the active ingredients.

The other two compounds tested were standard antibacterial creams available over-the-counter at a pharmacy that contain antibiotics, and of course it makes sense that they wouldn't be very effective against MRSA, which stands for "methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus", ie. antibiotic resistant bacteria, and in fact actually contribute to the resistance due to the way they work.

The compound is sold by Tec Laboratories of Albany, Oregon, who funded the research study.

Some online research reveals that Benzethonium chloride, which is listed as an active ingredient on the MSDS for the compound, is a synthetic bactericide which apparently becomes an active ingredient "naturally" of Grapefruit Seed Extract when it is ammoniated during the manufacturing process (not used that way here). The same MSDS lists tea tree oil and thyme oil as "Inactive ingredients," which seems strange because if they are actually inactive they they probably aren't actually needed in the product, unless their purpose is to impart an odor that makes the product seem "medicinal."

So the question remains: is the Benzethonium chloride the primary bactericide here or is the effectiveness of the product actually due to the essential oils? Or perhaps it's the combination.

Knight Science Journalism Tracker » USA Today: Should we all worry over estrogen-mimicking pthalates, bisphenol A, etc? (A: looks like it)

This article summary of a USA Today article suggests that the tide of scientific opinion on pthalates is turning towards concern about their effects.  Long time readers of this blog will remember last February when there was an attempt to blame gynecomastia (enlarged breasts) on lavender and tea tree oil. At the time many of us wondered if perhaps some other ingredients of the materials or packaging might have caused the effects noted. I did a literature search on pthalates but could only conclude that there were lots of opinions on both sides of the issue. Eventually the gynecomastia question will need to be revisited to reach valid conclusions about whether essential oils or other factors were actually the causative.

November Cropwatch Newsletter is released and posted

Tony Burfield has been busy and prolific; just not here.  The November Cropwatch Newsletter is now out and posted on the Cropwatch Web Site. Tony has been so prolific that most of the newsletter is actually linked to long PDF documents discussing several issues:

• Update of the list of Threatened aromatic plants used in the aroma industry (PDF 62 pp).
• a presentation by Professor Jurgen Reichling of the University of Heidelberg given at the 38^th ISEO Symposium in Graz in Sept 2007, entitled “External application of essential oils in animals.” (both PDF and Power Point)
• a presentation by Dr. Hassan Khalid et. al. of CIMAP on “Trade of Sudanese natural medicinals and their role in human & wildlife healthcare” (PDF and Power Point)

Tony also includes some news and hints about materials coming up in the next issue.

We didn't link directly to the PDF links because you should go to the source site to get them and read them. These are definitely important and interesting papers, and the Power points have some great pictures, particularly from the Sudan.

Jonathan Treasure is actively blogging

Jonathan Treasure, an Herbologist active in southern Oregon, is busy blogging again at Jonathan Treasure’s Herblog. No direct essential oil blogs, but he has links to research showing the effects of 6-gingerol, a principal component of ginger (Zingiber officinale) and chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) on cancer cells. He also links to other herbal research, including a study on the use of valerian for sleeping. Well worth checking out, as well as some related herbal items on his site.

Seeking common scents

Researchers at Children's  Hospital  in Minneapolis are doing research on the response of children to various aromatherapy scents in order to better understand how different aromas affect children of different cultures.

The ongoing research project has revealed differences in response to odors from different cultures:

. . . even the same smell sparks different reactions among different kids, said Maura Fitzgerald, clinical nurse specialist for the program. For example, 56 percent of the Hispanic girls tested earlier said they found sweet orange oil to be calming, compared with 18 percent of Caucasian girls.

The Hospital's integrative medicine clinic has been using aromatherapy to complement traditional medicine for almost seven years.

ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF TEA TREE OIL

The Dr. Howell.net Blog provides an overview of tea tree antimicrobial activity, with several links to previous papers from the mid 90's that conclude that it does have antimicrobial activity.

A simple Google search on the same topic reveals a lot of additional research on the topic. One of the links brings up a number of papers from the Australian government Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.

This information becomes increasingly important as there is more publicity about antibiotic MRSA and the number of deaths that are being caused in hospitals. We've previously referenced news articles about aromatherapy and essential oils used to help deal with the resistant organisms.

How basil gets its zing

Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of Michigan are unlocking the aromatic secrets of Basil essential oils, as reported on Brightsurf.com. They've isolated an enzyme (Eugenol Synthase) that "takes a basic building block [lignin] that is usually employed to make wood" and instead makes Eugenol, a primary ingredient in Basil essential oil. The scientists are going beyond earlier genetic studies and getting back to chemistry--identifying the chemical mechanisms that are used by plants to make the secondary metabolites. In the study reported on (available via Open Access from PLoS), they have determined the structure of the enzyme by protein x-ray crystallography.

REFERENCE: Louie GV, Baiga TJ, Bowman ME, Koeduka T, Taylor JH, et al. (2007) Structure and Reaction Mechanism of Basil Eugenol Synthase. PLoS ONE 2(10): e993 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0000993

Research Notes

• A paper in the Journal of Food Protection, September 2007 reports on research into antimicrobial activity of several essential oils and EO constituents in apple cider in conjunction with mild heat treatments and at varying pH's. Cinnamon Oil and Clove oil strongly inhibited the growth of E.coli at neutral and acidic pH, while lemon oil didn't have much effect. Reference: Influence of Cinnamon and Clove Essential Oils on the D- and z-Values of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Apple Cider Authors: Knight, K.P.¹; McKellar, R.C.¹ Source: Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 70, Number 9, September 2007 , pp. 2089-2094(6).
• A study published in Altern Ther Health Med. 2007 Sep-Oct;13(5):54-9 by Luqman S, Dwivedi GR, Darokar MP, Kalra A, and Khanuja SP evaluated the "Potential of rosemary oil to be used in drug-resistant infections" and found that "Our findings suggest that characterization and isolation of the active compound(s) from the rosemary oil may be useful in counteracting gram-positive bacterial, fungal, and drug-resistant infections." The Abstract is at the Health Garden Articles database Essential Oil Research Paper Topics - Articles and Book Reviews blog.
• Another study abstracted at the aforementioned site looked at "Antiherpes activity of Artemisia arborescens essential oil and inhibition of lateral diffusion in Vero cells" and concluded that there is antiviral activity against HSV-1 and HSV-2. The authors found "the mode of action of the essential oil as antiherpesvirus agent seems to be particularly interesting in  consideration of its ability to inactivate the virus and to inhibit the cell-to-cell virus diffusion." REFERENCE: Ann Clin Microbiol Antimicrob. 2007 Sep 26;6(1):10. The full text of this study is available [PDF] under the OpenAccess policy of BioMed.

Aromatherapy Massages With Music Dramatically Reduced Stress Levels In Nurses

ScienceDaily reports on research done in Australia and published in the Journal of Clinical Nursing that found that nurses working in an emergency room reported that their anxiety levels fell "dramatically" when they were given aromatherapy massages while listening to music.

Researchers found that 60 per cent of the staff - 54 per cent in summer and 65 per cent in winter - suffered from moderate to extreme anxiety.

But this fell to just eight per cent, regardless of the season, once staff had received 15-minute aromatherapy massages while listening to relaxing new-age music.

Reference: "The effect of aromatherapy massage with music on the stress and anxiety levels of emergency nurses: comparison between summer and winter." Cooke et al. Journal of Clinical Nursing. 16, pages 1695-1703 (September 2007).

Essential Oil use in Food Packaging

Essential oils are increasingly being used in food packaging to kill microorganisms, infuse preservatives, enhance the aroma, or remove undesirable materials such as oxygen or ethylene.  These uses are subject to regulation because of safety and effective issues, and the EU has set limits on how much of certain compounds can be used. I've come across articles describing research into packaging methods and viability.

One article in Sample Preparation describes research into a method called HFLPME (hollow fibre liquid-phase microextraction) which helps obtain samples from the packaging headspace for measuring how the essential oils migrate through the packaging. The research described was published in the Journal of Chromatography.

Another study described in the Journal of Food Engineering on the "Effects of plant essential oils and oil compounds on mechanical, barrier and antimicrobial properties of alginate–apple puree edible films," discovered that carvacrol and  oregano oil were the most effective against E. coli, a foodborne pathogen (at least of the six essential oils products studied).

The data show that the antimicrobial activities were in the following order: carvacrol > oregano oil > citral > lemongrass oil > cinnamaldehyde > cinnamon oil. This study showed that plant-derived essential oils and their constituents could be used to prepare apple-based antimicrobial edible films for food applications.

It appears that there will be increasing use of essential oils in food packaging in the future, and that safety and dosage considerations will be required to assure that EU regulations are followed (in the EU, at least). No mention here of how the FDA will view these issues.