My word! It’s almost that time again! Where has the year gone?

As we gird our loins for the anticipated rush, I have been making sure that all is in place. I do not want a repeat of last year: I eventually emerged from the morass in mid-March (or so it seemed!).  It is somewhat like packing for an extended holiday: hanks, pants, shirts, ties...oils, bottles, carriers, packaging materials...what have I forgotten? Hopefully nothing, although I invariably arrive at our destination without a toothbrush or a razor! 
Open Day enjoyed, by one at least!

I don’t know about the ninety or so other souls who attended this year’s Open Day, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Of course I really had little to do, once I had checked that all the speakers were present and correct. In fact I had been a little sneaky, inviting them and their spouses to join us for dinner the previous evening.  It was a jolly occasion, and something that I shall definitely repeat.

In front of such a knowledgeable audience, which included several of the “good and the great” of British aromatherapy, I was relieved that I had selected a strong team of experts to address them. Years ago it might have been possible to “hack” it with little preparation, but today you really need to know your stuff.

Joy cuts the mustard.
Joy Bowles, whom I had only met a couple of days previously, having flown specially from Australia to be with us, romped through an hour of explaining the therapeutic effects of essential oils and why.  Although some of her conclusions might not necessarily convince the scientific establishment, it all made good sense to me and explained why her best-selling The Basic Chemistry of Aromatherapeutic Essential Oils has become a standard aromatherapy textbook in Australia.

Molecules of emotion.
Another whom I had not met before, but with whom I had enjoyed stimulating conversation on the telephone, was Tim Freer, who would probably describe himself as a latter-day shaman. Obviously well acquainted with his subject, he spoke gently and persuasively about the multidimensional role of therapy. I thought his talk redolent of Pert’s Molecules of emotion, a cutting-edge work in psychoneuroimmunology, which lends scientific credence to a current style of thinking that intertwines the nature of consciousness, energy and holism.  Mind, body, emotions and spirit, hitherto often discussed as distinct entities, are part of an interconnected whole person.  Multilevelled interconnectedness reminds us how primitive our understanding of healing has hitherto been, and that how we work with healing is intimately bound up with our conscious participation in it [Pert, C. 1997. Scribner, New York].

Sunday chefs delay creation.
Mark Brimicombe, our gifted ‘Dr. Cream’, I fear had left his preparation a tad too late. A stickler for cooking from scratch, rather than from a semi-prepared state [and here’s something I prepared earlier, as Delia might say], the local Electricity Board, with strain upon its current from other Sunday chefs, failed to bring his cosmetic creation to conclusion before all departed for a well-earned repast at the nearby Kingham Mill.

The Mill, with more than one hundred to cater for within ninety minutes, had wisely seen the light and closed its doors to others and so, hopefully, there was more room than usual in which to chew and chat.

Antimicrobial activity examined.
Replete, all returned to settle in for an afternoon of The antimicrobial activity of essential oils with Val Edwards-Jones. A scientific advisor for the Institute of Biomedical Sciences and a member of the executive committee of the Society of Applied Microbiology, Val is also a member of the research committee of the British Burns Association.  She was accompanied by her husband Geoff, a physicist, a Fellow of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences, a Member of the British Astronomical Association (of which, he tells me, he is most proud), and Chief Biomedical Scientist at The Royal Bolton Hospital.

Needless to say, Val and Geoff are no strangers to the threats posed by MRSA infection: increased patient isolation; increased patient stay; unit/ward closure; large scale staff screening; disruption of hospital amenities; individual patient hardship, and increased use of antbiotics.    

Her’s was a powerful talk: well researched, illuminating, thought-provoking, and succinctly expressed. She covered a lot of ground in ninety minutes: the history of antimicrobial therapy; antimicrobial agents, and what they are?; their desired properties and important features; bacteriocidal v. bacteriostatic; target site - cell wall synthesis, protein synthesis, nucleic acid synthesis, and cell membrane function; major wound pathogens; novel treatments such as papaya fruit, honey, tea tree oil, catonic peptides, and bacterial interference; and small ‘pheromone’ peptides/lactones.

She explained the mode of action of Tea Tree Oil (Melaleuca alternifolia Cheel), which by disruption of cell membrane causes potassium leakage.  It also causes inhibition in S. aureus, E. coli and C. albicans. The cyclic monoterpenes (lipophilic) integrate with membrane structures (phospholipid) which causes membrane leakage.  In C. albicans inhibition of ion processes and respiration causes increased membrane permeability [Cox et al. 2000. J. Applied Microbiol. 88; 170-175.]

A surprise.
Having touched briefly upon the antimicrobial activity of numerous essential oils, Val then turned more specifically to killing studies of five essential oils which she had investigated in single use, combinations, in direct and indirect contact. I was most interested to hear that certain oils can penetrate several layers of dressing and inhibit the growth of 105 orgs/ml for up to 48 hours, and was particularly surprised to learn about the not inconsiderable antimicrobial activity of Rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora var. amazonica Ducke). 

However in a research paper that I have read today I note that, of 73 essential oils tested for antibacterial activity against Streptococcus pneumoniae [organisms of this group produce lobar pneumonia and other acute pus-forming conditions, including middle ear infections and meningitis] with a paper disc diffusion assay, rosewood was amongst the three found to be highly inhibitory, the others being Oregano (Origanum vulgare L. ssp. hirtum (Link) letswaart) and Thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.).  Of the others, fifteen were moderately inhibitory and the remainder weakly or non-inhibitory [D. Horne et al. (2001) Antimicrobial Effects of Essential Oils on Streptococcus pneumoniae. JEOR, 13, 5; 387-392].

Be this the case, I am pleased that I have sought recently assurances about the sustainability of rosewood.

Open Forum.
The Open Forum, chaired by Bill Morden from the Laboratory of the Government Chemist at Runcorn, provided a reasonably lively debate, with the slightest hint of political undertones being firmly stamped upon, and I came away with the impression that several therapists did not wish aromatherapy to have a role within the NHS.  Perhaps I was mistaken.

To date, Val, who has done an aromatherapy course herself, remains only 15% convinced of the potential of essential oils in the clinical setting.  As long as toxicity issues persist, there is a need for further research and, if we are to get funding for the necessary research, we must first prove efficacy and safety, or at least try, through publication in the scientific literature. Joy took this point very much on board. 

However I think that Val would concede that, had we the research, there would be a probable role for oils in antisepsis and healing and even possibly on open wounds. Meanwhile I think that their role will be restricted to relaxation for hospitalisation stress, and for environmental cleaning.

Therefore, for the time being, it might be wiser to concentrate upon understanding better the placebo effect, for few would deny that any procedure which produces an effect in a patient because of its therapeutic intent and not its specific nature is placebo, and all agreed that there is a role for that.

United Aromatherapy Effort.
No sooner had I gone to press with last month’s Newsletter, in which I mentioned briefly the tragic Attack on America, than I received an e-mail from Sylla Sheppard-Hanger of The Atlantic Istitute of Aromatherapy. Please read, copy, share.  We need help!

As many [in the United States] know, our colleague Doug Rasmusson, The Institute’s Principle Tutor, is currently the head of the Carolina Emergency Response Massage Team (CERMT) and was the first state co-ordinator for the AMTA - Massage Emergency Rescue Team (MERT), and organized Florida’s team. During the recent severe floods, Doug was flown in by Government helicopter to co-ordinate the efforts of hundreds of massage therapists.  Many volunteers are students, but any therapist is welcome, everyone takes a shift 24/7.  A call for more therapists will be put out shortly, via associations, schools, health care facilities and the like, to assist in New York.

Anyone having a licence and/or portable chair/table is welcome to volunteer when the time comes.  It will be some time before it is all organized so we want to give notice to get people mobilized.

Although I do not know how many in the United States read my Newsletter, may I urge any in the region of Manhatten, who wish to volunteer, to e-mail Doug: <aromakey@juno.com>. Caring for the rescue workers is something many can, and do, help with.

Sylla has volunteered to co-ordinate aromatherapy efforts during the mission, and will be working closely with Doug in assembling the necessary materials to ensure that aromatherapy is available in both New York City and Washington.  She will arrange the collection/sorting/packaging and transport of all materials to both locations and will then co-ordinate the therapists, and work alongside them.  

Anyone wishing to donate materials, in the form of pre-made products or even single oils, should gather their thoughts and prepare to send them to Sylla at: The Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy, 16018 Saddlestring Drive, Tampa, Florida 33618, USA.  Phone/Fax: (813) 265 2222.  WWW:http://atlanticinstitute.com  E-mail: sylla@atlanticinstitute.com

Make sure your products are safe for application (i.e. no known sensitizers), and clearly labelled (especially any that can be given away for self-help).  Anything will be most welcome...ready-made blends of all types, diffusers, spray bottles, base oils, small bottles to be given away for home use, single essential oils, specific blends to treat specific injuries, etc., etc.

Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
(Emma Lazarus 1849-87: ‘The New Colossus’1883; inscribed on the Statue of Liberty)

Crested crane or scented stork?
The French overseas department of Reunion, formerly called Bourbon, located in the Indian Ocean, will be the first place to switch to the euro on January 1.  Apparently this distinction is not going down too well with the island’s 700,000 inhabitants.  According to a Banque de la Reunion official, there was enough difficulty 25 years ago when the island switched from CFA (African) francs to French francs. Hordes of elderly islanders swamped the bank counters to change vast quantities of coins that smelled of earth because they had been buried in backyards! All of which got me to thinking about Geranium Bourbon.  Where better place to start than in Jacques Lougnon’s helpful little leaflet Les Parfumes de Bourbon?

Son nom lui est venu de la forme du fruit qui ressemble a la tête de la grue....Its name derives from the shape of the fruit which looks like the head of the crane.  Crane?  Oh, the bird!  But which bird? There are several members of the Gruidae: large, long-legged, long-necked birds, with mainly white or grey plumage and coloured plumes and bare skin. 

Upon investigation, I thought that he might be referring to the Common Crane (Grus grus), which has a distinctive red cap and ranges throughout northern temperate Eurasia, but winters south to North Africa, India and Southeast Asia. Or could it be perhaps be the Demoiselle (Anthropoides virgo) or Black Crowned (Balearica pavonina) crane? Whatever, none’s name even vaguely resembles the word pelargonium or geranium.  

Wait a minute! Let’s look in a dictionary. Pelargonium: plant with showy flowers and usually fragrant leaves [L f. Gk pelargos stork].  Stork!  Why then did Jacques not use the French word cigogne rather than grue?  Back to the dictionary. Geranium: herb or shrub bearing fruit shaped like crane’s bill (sic); cultivated pelargonium. [L f. Gk geranos crane]. In fact, had I thought more carefully, there are many Geranium species whose trivial name is crane’s-bill, but my mind was upon Pelargonium and crane’s-head!
 
True geranium.
Stork or crane, the name geranium oil itself is a misnomer, since the commercial types of geranium oil are derived not from any Geranium, but from several species, varieties, and strains of Pelargonium.  “Geranium” has now become a rather vague horticultural term which has no relation to the botanical term Geranium.  The only true Geranium species, from which an essential oil is derived, is G. macrorrhizum L., or Zdravetz, which is grown in Bulgaria and other Balkan countries.  I believe that the oil is highly regarded as an aphrodisiac in its homeland and, being also semicrystalline at room temperature, may be used occasionally as an adulterant of the famous Rose Otto!

Interestingly, it gets an entry in The Aromatherapy Practitioner Reference Manual, being suggested for respiratory infections, diabetes (under medical direction), and genital infections.  It is said to be calming and relaxing.

Bourbon & Shingles.
About 10% of patients who have had acute shingles (herpes zoster) still experience pain one or more months after the rash has healed.  The elderly are the most susceptible. The pain of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is neurogenic resulting from peripheral nerve injury, and typically follows a dermatomal distribution commonly affecting the head, neck, and limbs. The affected area is extremely sensitive to any stimuli; even the pressure of cloathing can produce unbearable pain. Spontaneous remission of PHN occurs in many patients within a few months.  In a small percentage of patients the pain can last for several years.

PHN is difficult to treat. Antivirals and other drugs such as corticosteroids and local and regional anaesthesia have been tried but without noted success, although some drugs may reduce the duration. Treatment is therefore based on managing the neuralgia once it develops.

The value of conventional analgesics is limited because of the neurogenic character of the pain and treatment relies on the tricyclic antidepressants which appear to help some patients. Antiepileptics have been used, but their value in PHN is unclear, though they may help in those with sharp pain. However, their adverse effects make them unsuitable in the elderly.

Therefore I was not entirely surprised when, several years ago, The Shingles Support Society came up with a possible natural alternative: Geranium Bourbon (Pelargonium graveolens Heritier).  Quite from where this suggestion came I do not know, but several report that it has provided some relief.

A hot tip?!
Should Geranium Bourbon not assist, there is some evidence that capsaicin, the major compound in cayenne pepper, could help. 

Cayenne pepper (also known as chilli or red hot pepper) is the fruit of Capsicum annuum L. var. annuum.  Paprika is a milder and sweeter tasting fruit produced from a different variety of the Longum Group. Typically, cayenne pepper contains about 1.5% capsaicin and related principles.

The pharmacology of cayenne pepper centres around the capsaicin content. When topically applied to the skin or mucous membranes, capsaicin is known to stimulate and then block small-diameter pain fibres by depleting them of neurotransmitter substance P. Substance P is thought to be the principal chemomediator of pain impulses from the periphery. In addition, substance P has been shown to activate inflammatory mediators into joint tissues in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis [Cordell, G.A., Araujo, O.E. Capsaicin: identification, nomenclature, and pharmacotherapy. Ann. Pharmacother. 1993; 27: 330-336].

The first studies and approved use for topically applied capsaicin was in relieving PHN. Numerous studies now document this FDA approved application. For example, in one study 39 patients with chronic PHN (average duration 24 months) were treated with 0.025% capsaicin cream for 8 weeks.  During therapy, the patients rated their pain.  Nineteen patients (48.7%) substantially improved after the 8 week trial; five (12.8%) discontinued therapy due to side-effects such as intolerable capsaicin-induced burning sensations (four) or mastitis (one); and 15 (38.5%) reported no benefit. The decrease in pain ratings was significant after 2 weeks of continuous application.  Of the responders, 72.2% were still improved 10-12 months after the study; with most continuing to apply the cream regularly.

In general, the results of this study are consistent with other studies, i.e. 50% of people with PHN respond to topically applied capsaicin (0.025%) [e.g. Peikert, A. et al. Topical 0.025% capsaicin in chronic post-herpetic neuralgia. Efficacy, predictors of response and long-term course. J. Neurol. 1991; 238: 452-456].  Although this may not be a great response, it is better than the 10% response noted in the placebo group. Higher concentration (0.075 vs. 0.025%) may produce better results (as high as 75% response) [Bernstein, J.E. et al. Treatment of of chronic postherpetic neuralgia with topical capsaicin. A preliminary study. J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 1987; 17: 93-96].

Creams containing 0.025 or 0.075% capsaicin can be applied to affected areas up to four times daily. Topically applied capsaicin may produce a local burning sensation; however, this effect will go away with time and rarely is severe enough to mean that use of the cream cannot be continued. This was the only adverse effect noted.

Anthrax anguish.
Nerves in New York were already stretched tighter than piano wire before yesterday’s anthrax scare. Now they are snapping, wrote Philip Delves Broughton in Saturday’s (October 13th) Daily Telegraph. By Sunday more than 35,000 British General Practitioners were on anthrax alert.

However, understandable though it is, we must not let anguish totally obfuscate good judgment.  As panic-buying across America quickly depleted stocks of the anti-anthrax drug Ciprofloxacin, a broad-spectrum antibiotic manufactured by the German pharmacetical giant Bayer, and marketed under the brand name Cipro, health officials warned that widespread use of the antibiotic may negate its use by creating drug-resistant strains of anthrax. People are likely to use it as a prophylactic.  There is a very real risk that this will lead to resistance, said Stuart Levy, director of the centre for drug resistance at Tufts University School of Medicine at Boston, Massachusetts.

Antibody resistance occurs because bacteria naturally mutate, producing genetic traits that strengthen resistance to drugs. The changes speed up if patients do not complete antibiotic courses as it results in the weaker bacteria being killed off and only the most drug-resistant bacteria surviving.

Whilst I cannot comment specifically upon Bacillus anthracis, mutational resistance has developed in mycobacteria following monotherapy with ciprofloxacin [Wallace, R.J. et al. Activities of of ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin against rapidly growing mycobacteria with demonstration of acquired resistance following single-drug therapy. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 1990; 34: 65-70].
There is also a fear that doctors, pressed by worried patients to give them ciprofloxacin as a prophylactic in case of an anthrax attack, will issue unwarranted prescriptions.  Medical specialists are also concerned about unmonitored sales of the drug over the internet.   

Mind you it is not cheap.  In America a single dose costs about £2.85, making the necessary 60-day course of 500 milligrams, twice a day, a rather hefty £340 or so. In the event of infection, provided it is taken within the first few days of exposure but before the disease sets in and symptoms develop, which resemble common respiratory infection, high fever, vomiting, joint ache, laboured breathing and internal and external bleeding, ciprofloxacin is an effective countermeasure.  It is bactericidal and acts by inhibiting the A subunit of DNA gyrase (topoisomerase) which is essential in the reproduction of bacterial DNA.      

However I have read several reports that suggest that ciprofloxacin should be used with caution in patients with epilepsy or a history of CNS disorders. Also, since ciprofloxacin and related fluoroquinolones have been shown to cause degenerative changes in weight-bearing joints of young animals they should only be used in children and adolescents where their use may be justified if the benefits outweigh the risks [Green, S.D.R. Indications and restrictions of fluoroquinolone use in children. Br. J. Hosp. Med. 1996; 56: 420-3].  It is also best avoided in pregnant women, or breast-feeding mothers.

Care is necessary, I understand, in patients with impaired hepatic or renal function, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, or myasthenia gravis [Moore, B. et al. Possible exacerbation of myasthenia gravis by ciprofloxacin. Lancet 1988: i: 882]. Exposure to strong sunlight or sunlamps should also be avoided.  Loss of antibacterial activity has been reported following irradiation of ciprofloxacin solutions by ultraviolet light. In addition to the possible hazard of photosensitivity reactions, a reduction in both cutaneous and circulating levels of ciprofloxacin was predicted in patients exposed to sunlight through window glass or longer wavelength ultraviolet radiation from sunbeds [Phillips, G. et al. The loss of antibiotic activity of ciprofloxacin by photodegradation. J. Antimicrob. Chemother. 1990; 26: 783-9].

All of which has absolutely nothing to do with aromatherapy, but so many enquired....What is Cipro? As for the other question....Can essential oils help?  I’m working on it!

Scalded, and rightly so!
Jeanne Rose dropped me a line: In regards to your request for the essential oil & hydrosol of the same distillation, I wish that you had asked me this question [Quite right: I should have done. Jeanne knows more about the subject than most. Vide: 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols] during the harvest and distillation season, now just completed, as I could have furnished you with both the hydrosol and essential oils of the same distillation of Lavender, Rose, Geranium, Artemisia ludoviciana, Artemisia arborescens, Tea Tree, Rosemary, Catnip and several others as well. But the season is over and the hydrosol and essential oil has scattered to people all over the country [I really missed my opportunity. Stupid!].  BUT, I still have a batch of Lavender with the essential oil in a float on the top.  This I have bottled and sent to you by airmail - today! It has just arrived. Absolutely superb!

Distilled July 21st, 2001, from Lavandula x intermedia var. Grosso, grown at 300 metres in an area near Santa Barbara, where the earth has a diatomaceous base [in fact an area of one the largest diatomaceous earth deposits in the United States], the oil usually averages 40% linalool, 20+% linalyl acetate, no camphor, 8% borneol, and some cineole.

So I look forward to your comments.  I need no second bidding: it’s on its way to the lab!



charles@essentiallyoils.com
 

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