What a genuine delight to be able to sit out late on these balmy summer evenings: it makes one feel so much better. Long may it last!

Recently, whilst reflecting with Birdie upon the day’s events over a shared glass of vin rouge as the late-sucking bees noisily hummed hivewards, making way at the lavender for flittering moths, I thought it a splendid idea to plan a short trip to the hillsides and mountain slopes of the Basse-Alpes, Drome, Vaucluse and Haute-Alpes where the lavender and lavandin grow freely.

I haven’t been for quite a while, yet speak to our supplier there several times a week but have never met him, and I feel a touch of Continental travel coming on. Now where is he located? My first glance at the Michelin reveals nothing, or have Birdie and I been imbibing too long? Good Lord, he’s in the back of beyond at the end of a rural “white”: no wonder it takes so long to get everything to Lyon for shipment.  Nevertheless it could provide some challenging motoring.

Jan and Justin, however, wisely distance themselves from the tour, suggesting that our Open Day looms large and requires preparation, Birdie has no passport and Mungu’s is not valid for another week, and so it seems that I shall not enjoy the cushioned comfort of Jan’s Jeep [which I had planned] but instead a solo spine-rattling ride aboard one of my older vehicles. That’s the problem with these late evening plans.  Still, who knows what I might dream of next....?!
GCP award credits for Open Day.
Meanwhile response to our annual Open Day bodes exceeding well for a most stimulating occasion.  As I write, there are still a few places left.

I am further greatly heartened by the information that the Guild of Complementary Practitioners, “the largest and most articulate multidisciplinary body”[Professional Organisation of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United Kingdom 2000: A Second Report to the Department of Health], will award members of the Guild attending the day 5 credits towards their Continuing Professional Development.  

Oxford’s crow bends the rules.
Few can have missed the amazing wire-bending antics of Betty, Oxford University’s New Caledonian crow (Corvus moneduloides), making hooks to retrieve food from places she could not reach with her beak and claws. As Alex Kacelnik, professor of behavioural ecology at Oxford, points out, although many animals use tools, purposeful modification of objects to solve new problems, without training or prior experience, is virtually unknown.

Experiments with primates, which are much closer relatives of humans than birds, have failed to show any deliberate, specific tool-making and human-like understanding of basic physical laws. Could it be that New Caledonian crows are exceptionally clever, or do their brains have a specific capacity for the use and manufacture of tools? 

North-north-west of New Caledonia lie the fascinating Mariana Islands. They also have an indigenous crow: Corvus kubaryi.  Does it, I wonder, have anything to offer us?

Meanwhile, back in the lab at Oxford, researchers have finally confirmed, by extracting DNA from the preserved remains of a dodo (Raphus cucullatus) in the Natural History Museum, that this historic symbol of Mauritius was nothing more than a fat flightless pigeon.  Some pigeon!   

I recollect that while Justin was at Oxford he always seemed to be in the lab, when he wasn’t in the pub! What on earth are they doing?  Obviously calculating that, on the basis of genetic mutation rates, the dodo lineage diverged from the rest of the pigeon family 42m years ago.  Bet you didn’t know that, but did you even want to know?!

A question of research.
Often I wonder who decides to research what, and why?  Fascinated though I may be by the tool-making skills of Pacific crows and extinct fat flightless pigeons, I do query how relevant it is to today’s world and how much it costs.

The Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly have recently announced £10m apiece of new money for university science in Scotland and Wales.  According to Peter Cotgreave, director of Save British Science, that now leaves English research lagging behind. He urges Margaret Hodge, the education minister, to follow suit.  Fine, but what are they going to spend the money on?

For example do you want to know that babywalkers delay unassisted standing and walking in infants?  Well they do, according to researchers at University College, Dublin.  Having had a look at 190 healthy babies attending day care centres, they found strong associations between babywalker use and developmental delay. Every 24 hours of aggregated babywalker use was associated, on average, with a delay of 3.7 days in standing alone and 3.3 days walking alone.

This study provides additional evidence that babywalkers are associated with significant delay in achieving normal locomotor milestones, concluded the researchers. Staggering!

Or how about research that proves that homoeopathy doesn’t help allergic diseases such as hay fever and asthma? Researchers at the Royal South Hampshire Hospital identified 242 asthmatic people allergic to house dust mite and assessed their response over 16 weeks either to homoeopathic therapy or to placebo.  They found no difference. That puts paid to previous research that suggested that it could help!

I empathize with Kate Miller, the former editor of Natural Products, who e-mailed recently the Checkout section of the magazine [usually amusing, and well worth a glance] to point out that it had been failing in one of its main duties - to publish supremely daft research findings at regular intervals. We always do a story every so often about how being a couch potato is good for you, or why staring at women’s breasts lowers blood pressure levels in middle-aged men, she comments. Well I’m not too sure about that, but that’s research for you! 

So much for some of the topics upon which research money has been spent, but I cannot resist one final piece of fascinating trivia sent recently to me by Haytham El-Doueik, which combines ideally my interest in ornithology with aromatherapy.

It seems that French blue tits love the scent of perfumed nests. Female blue tits gather lavender, yarrow, curry, mint and other scented plants for their nests shortly after laying eggs, and continue to do so until the chicks leave home. They weave the plants into their nests to keep them clean and bug-free for raising the family.  They are real botanists and do a great job exploiting their environment to protect their chicks, says Marcel Lambrechts of the Centre for Functional Ecology and Evolution in Montpelier.  The birds make a pot-pourri of 10 aromatic plants from the 250 species in their habitat [Corsica], the chemicals in which ward of bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi and insects. They can even smell when it’s time to refresh the nest.  Pretty smart these birds, except perhaps the dodo!

Free research, and far more practical!
I have long-promised you my feedback on various oils I have been using over the past few months, e-mailed Jacqui Le Sueur from under a purple-grey sky in Devon.
Argan: How did my face survive without this miracle oil? I bought this a few months back to experiment with on my own eczema-prone skin.  I have since used it with great success, on its own or blended, on several different and chronic eczemas - discoid, atopic and stasis. I use it undiluted on my face, adding whatever oils, if any, I feel my skin needs.

I am amazed at the way in which this oil is absorbed.  No trace almost immediately and it leaves the skin with such a silky-smooth feel. Very anti-inflammatory too. 

On others I have blended it, usually as follows - 50% Sweet Almond (Prunus amygdalus L.) with 20% Argan (Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels), 20% Evening Primrose Oil (Oenothera biennis L.) and 10% Sea Buckthorn seed oil (Hippophae rhamnoides L.), or 5% Sea Buckthorn and 5% Tamanu (Calophyllum inophyllum L.) [another of my favourite skin base oils].

Sea Buckthorn Seed: Expensive but well worth the money. Blended as above, usually with Melissa (Melissa officinalis L.), Immortelle (Helichrysum italicum (Roth.) G. Don. f.) and Roman Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile (L.) All.).  Seems to bring a strength and vitality to the skin, as well as being anti-inflammatory.

Tamanu: A must for dry skins, eczema and psoriasis I think.  Odd smell but then again, not all in aromatherapy can be sweet smelling. At least not as bad as Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss.)!  Extremely anti-inflammatory, I have found, and soothing.  Also, I use this in my anti-bug preparations.

Neem: Much maligned, I think, due to its aroma.  Blend 10% with 5% Tamanu, 20% Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis (Link) C. Schneider), 65% Sweet Almond. In 50ml I use 10 drops Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus (D.C.) Stapf.) [can also use Plai (Zingiber cassumunar Roxb.) or, as I have discovered this week, May Chang (Litsea cubeba Lour.)] and 10 drops of Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin Benth.).  I also add Lavender (Lavandula vera D.C.) occasionally, or Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.).

I have used this blend, and variations of it, for years when I lived in India, Thailand and the Maldives.  The oils I burn to keep insects at bay, and also put the same dilutions in spring water and a spray to mist on my hair.

Phrai (or Plai as you spell it): Delighted was I when you obtained this essential oil. I have used the rhizome so much in Thailand and had it used on me, steamed with turmeric, prior to having a traditional Thai massage.  So warming, invigorating, relaxing and yet stimulating. Cleansing and detoxifying too. Without a doubt, the essential oil of opposites. A vigorous and physical oil, and yet subtle energetically.

I have been using the essential oil now for a couple of months - on my family and clients, with huge success. In sports injury treatments I blend 2 drops with 2 drops Rosemary and 1 drop Black Pepper (Piper nigrum L.) in 10ml. For the digestive system, with 2 drops Red Manadarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco var. “Mandarin”) and 2 drops Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum L.) in 10ml.  For M.E., I blend 10 drops, with 10 drops May Chang, 8 drops Howood (Cinnamomum camphora L.) and 8 drops Spanish Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia Mill.) in 250ml Sweet Almond. I use this in massage and also give it to the client to use at home as bath and body oil.  She burns the oils separately and blends as she needs. The blend is cleansing and stimulating but, as I say, appears to be energetically very subtle.

Eczema examined.
What would you suggest for eczema? I would think that I am asked this more frequently than any other question.

First, however, what is eczema?  The term eczema is used for a variety of skin conditions characterised by epidermal inflammation. The term dermatitis is used synonymously with eczema, although dermatitis may sometimes be used in a broader sense to describe any skin inflammation.

There are many different types of eczema and they may be categorised as exogenous (of external origin) or endogenous (originating within a structure, organ, or organism) depending on the cause.  Examples of exogenous eczemas include allergic, irritant, and photosensitivity eczema. Endogenous eczemas include atopic, discoid (coin-shaped), gravitational, and seborrhoeic eczema. However, this classification is not always helpful, as there may be many different causes of eczema, both endogenous and exogenous in an individual patient.


The areas of skin affected vary in the different types of eczema, but the skin lesions share certain common features. In acute eczema the skin is typically red and inflamed with papules, vesicles, and blisters.  In chronic eczema the skin may show the same features but be more scaly, pigmented and thickened. Two of the most common forms of eczema are atopic eczema and seborrhoeic dermatitis.

Atopic eczema predominantly affects infants and children although adults may also suffer.  The skin is itchy and there is chronic or relapsing dermatitis in which the face and neck and flexures of the elbows and knees are involved most often and are excoriated and lichenified.

Cure of atopic eczema is said to be unrealistic, but good control can be achieved with proper management.

Seborrhoeic dermatitis is a common eczematous skin disorder in which erythematous pruritic patches of skin may become either scaly or exudative and crusted. Scaling lesions are the type most commonly observed. In some cases, known as seborrhoeic folliculitis, there may also be follicular papules or pustules. 

Seborrhoeic dermatitis occurs in regions of the body where sebaceous glands are plentiful, such as the scalp, face, and chest, although the condition is not associated with increased sebum production. The cause of seborrhoeic dermatitis is unknown, although it might be related to overgrowth with Pityrosporum ovale, a normal commensal yeast.

Treatment is suppressive rather than curative. Dandruff due to normal shedding of scalp skin is treated similarly to seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp.

Tinkler’s Tips.
Another interesting newsletter!  I was particularly interested in the eczema article - having suffered from this from a baby - until my thirties - when it more or less disappeared - only for my asthma to worsen, writes Wendy Tinkler.  An interesting point. Has anyone had a similar experience?

My son - 41 - has severe bouts of eczema.  My grandson also has eczema (obviously an inherited trait here). Another interesting point. Any comments?

Nevertheless who better to ask about possible treatments?  A nurse of long-standing, and no champion of corticosteroids, Wendy kindly sent me a couple of her Case Studies.

When her grandson was a baby she used to look after him quite a lot and, when his skin was dry, scabby, itchy, and well scratched, she used: 5 drops Blue Chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.), 3 drops Frankincense (Boswellia carteri Birdw.), and 3 drops Myrrh (Commiphora myrrha Holmes ssp. bisabol) in 50g base cream. This was very helpful, and reduced the irritation and calmed the eczema right down.

On another occasion, when he was staying with her, his skin was extremely dry: on his right hand he had twelve skin splits, and three on his left hand.  For this, she used: 2 drops Neroli (Citrus aurantium L. ssp. amara L.), 3 drops Benzoin (Styrax benzoin Dryander), 3 drops Lavender (Lavandula vera D.C.) in 50g base cream. The next day saw a huge improvement, which continued. She also massaged him daily with Sweet Almond Oil (Prunus amygdalus L.), before bedtime.

The 16-year-old daughter of a local G.P. in Oxford developed eczema after having done some hairdressing. She was prescribed Betnovate - a cream, containing Betamethasone valearate, which is used as a standard steroid to treat psoriasis, eczema, etc., but it can have side effects such as fluid retention, suppression of adrenal glands, and thinning of the skin.

The girl, a student, was stressed and anxious, and so her mother booked her in with Wendy for an aromatherapy massage. Wendy decided to treat the stress and anxiety first. She used: 4 drops Patchouli, 6 drops Red Mandarin, and 6 drops Ylang Ylang (Cananga odorata genuina Hook & Thom. f.) in 35ml Macadamia Nut Oil (Macadamia integrifolia Maiden & Betche).

Whilst Wendy was still working on her back and legs, the girl fell asleep. Ten days later, when talking to her mother, her mother mentioned that her sleep patterns had improved but, as a bonus, her eczema had completely cleared!  Apparently Betnovate had brought no improvement at all. Wendy thinks that stress was a major factor in her skin condition. Would you agree?

Righting wrongs.
A letter sent in recently from Steven Ransom, Research Director at Credence Publications, pointed out that the references used in my May Newsletter [No. 122: A look at laetrile] were all derived from conventional sources.  Steven questioned the balance of the article, as did several others by the way, and in his letter included the following very interesting quotation.

Science and research must be studied in the context of all the interested parties involved.  The questions centre on determining the relative weight of the various allies in the ‘fact-creating’process - e.g., funding bodies, businesses, departments of state, professions and other scientists.  In analysing scientific debates, one should always ask what social, institutional and political interests lie behind often apparently ‘neutral’ and ‘technical’ knowledge claims [University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology (UMIST) research methodology course handout, 1994].

Steven has recently published a book entitleed Great News on Cancer in the 21st Century, the details of which can be found at <www.credence.org/greatnews/greatnews.htm>.

Steven’s book includes many testimonies as to the efficacy of laetrile in the treatment of cancer and also spells out the huge amounts of money being made on conventional cancer treatments today. By 2005, it is estimated that US$27 billion per annum will be spent on cancer drugs worldwide.

These huge amounts of money being paid directly to conventional health institutes should warn us all against becoming too reliant on the information these same institutes distribute on any cancer treatments that directly affect their profit margins - laetrile, Vitamin C, Hoxsey and Gerson therapy, a case in point.

I enjoyed thoroughly Steven’s book, and would recommend strongly anyone who is concerned about cancer to read it but, as he himself readily admits, he shines a harsh [perhaps too harsh] spotlight on conventional medicine. 

On the one hand....It is well said in the old proverb, ‘a lie will go round the world while truth is pulling its boots on’ [C.H. Spurgeon 1834-92]....but on the other....An abomination unto the Lord, but a very present help in time of trouble [often attributed to Adlai Stevenson 1900-65].  I’m still thinking about it.

Hemp seed oil, health or hype?
Were you to believe the nutritional journals you would think that hemp (Cannabis sativa L.)  is a wonder food but, according to Proof! magazine, hempseed oil and hemp seeds have never been proven to benefit any health condition.  True, hemp seeds are full of polyunsaturated fatty acids but they are not the richest source of this in the plant kingdom. Pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita pepo L.) have a higher essential fatty acid (EFA) content, as do many nuts, though these can also be high in saturated fats as well.

Where hemp seeds probably score in consumers’ minds is that they have a particularly high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 [but pumpkin seeds have nearly the same] and also contain GLA which, for those who cannot produce their own (something that is difficult to prove), could be a useful way of getting some. However Borage (Borago officinalis L.), Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis L.) and Blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) seeds have even more, and may be a better choice.  

Because of its EFA content hemp seed oil must be considered a healthy fat, but it should not be forgotten that Western diets are already very high in omega-6 fatty acids and there is good evidence linking diets with an excess of omega-6 in relation to omega-3 to heart disease, cancer and autoimmune diseases. Nowadays our diets are much more likely to be deficient in omega-3, found in fish oils and flaxseed oils. Adding supplemental hemp seed oil to a diet already high in omega-6 may further increase the imbalance in relation to the omega-3 fatty acids. The two work in synergy in the body to promote health in ways that we don’t yet understand, but only when they are in balanced proportions in the diet.

Nevertheless hemp is still not a major player in the food supplement market mainly because there is no US market for it.  Also the US Drug Enforcement Agency has taken the unusual - some would say irrational - step of banning the sale of hemp-containing foods, although hemp-containing cosmetics are, for the moment, still legal. 

Personally I think it not bad at all as part of a carrier oil blend!

Hemp: the essential oil.
When I was offered recently Hemp essential oil I was extremely wary, despite assurances that it contained less than 1ppm THC, because the last time I had analysed a sample I could have ended up in the slammer.  From Holland, it was a very fine hemp oil indeed! I recollect writing to the innocent aromatherapist who had sent it to me....I am obliged to remind you of the Misuse of Drugs Act which classes Cannabinol and derivatives, such as THC, as Class A except when contained in Cannabis Resin, when they become Class B. I would think that your essential oil would be Class A!

Until recently hemp essential oil was produced only in Switzerland, but Swiss essential oils invariably tested at unacceptable levels of THC for most markets, including the UK.  Now a Canadian company has succeeded in extracting the oil by steam distillation from the blooms of low-THC hemp that complies with UK regulations. 

It has a strong, distinctive, warm, woody smell - a base note that lingers for some hours. It blends well with citrus oils, and it is suggested that for an extremely relaxing blend it should be combined with frankincense.

Aromatherapy use to date suggests that it is anti-spasmodic and analgesic, and helps to alleviate spasm in stroke victims. Muscular stiffness and fatigue from ME were greatly reduced after a massage with hemp, frankincense and neroli.

A 70-year-old, female, stroke victim with a left hemiplegia noted a relaxation of the trapezius and the sternocleidomastoid muscle after a massage with hemp, lemon and mandarin, which also improved her posture and alleviated pain.

Immediately following massage, patients report feelings of extreme peace and tranquility, followed later by increased energy and optimism, underlined by a stess-free and relaxed mood.  Generally, most comment that the oil is very relaxing for muscles, but the emotional response seems to be more significant. All patients had a reduction in emotional tension and were uplifted, which left them feeling more confident and relaxed.

I can find nothing in the oil’s chemical composition [GC/MS analysis available on request] to suggest that it is anything other than ordinary.  It contains no THC by the way!  Is it a powerful placebo perhaps?

Finally.....
Anorak wearers always look a little unhealthy. Now researchers can confirm that it’s because - indeed - they are.

But its nothing to do with germs that might be cagooled in.  It’s all to do with the hood of the anorak and road safety.

When wearers pull the anorak’s hood over their head, they restrict their field of vision.  This is fine if you’re only trekking across Antarctica, but dangerous if you’re trying to cross Hammersmith Broadway.

Researchers studied the field of vision of ‘healthy volunteers’ who tried on four different types of anorak. In each case, these articles of clothing restricted the wearer’s vision.

So presumably, these volunteers can no longer be considered healthy - they’re all in hospital after being run over [J. Roy. Soc. Med., 2002; 95: 192-3].
 

charles@essentiallyoils.com
 

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