With the arrival of a multitude of pet products claiming to be aromatherapeutic or simply targeted forthe spa grooming marketplace, it becomes valuable to make some clear distinctions in our thinking about the application of aromatherapy in pet grooming.
Fad Aromatherapy vs. Traditional Aromatherapy – Aromatherapy has become a fad, a popular marketing trend. It is so successful that simply having the word “aromatherapy” on a product label or description guarantees greater sales. Traditional aromatherapy relies on the established healing properties of pure essential oils. The delicate chemical balance of the components of each essential oil determines these properties. Traditional aromatherapy is a rather complex study. Fad aromatherapy has simply taken the concept “If it smells good, it feels good”, or the mood enhancement value of pleasant fragrances and run with it, all the way to the bank. Don’t get me wrong, mood enhancement is a good thing, and from my viewpoint, anything that encourages us to take a moment to take a deep breath is healthy. Fad aromatherapy, however, implies a therapeutic value that is often not present, because the ingredients are not the “real deal.”
Essential Oils vs. Fragrance Oils – True essential oils come from plants, each oil from a single plant, and usually a certain part of the plant, such as flowers, leaves, stems, roots. Each oil has its own chemical character that it inherits from the plant. Fragrance oils are synthetic fragrances, sometimes utilizing a combination of chemical isolates (fragments of essential oils) to achieve a certain fragrance value. Some fragrance oils contain a combination of some synthesized oils and essential oils. Others are essential oils that have been chemically manipulated for fragrance. Bottom line: fragrance oils have no “mojo”.
As consumers, we need to be wary of clever marketing lingo. There is no such thing as “essential fragrance oil”. If any part of an oil is not from a single plant, it cannot be an essential oil, it is simply a fragrance blend. Fruit fragrances, such as peach or cherry, are always fragrances. Citrus oils appear to be the exception, but these are distilled from the plant leaves, stems, or flowers, not the fruit itself.
What are hydrosols?
Hydrosols -- or Distillates as they are often called -- are the natural "plant waters" or "floral waters" that are produced during steam distillation or hydro-distillation. Hydrosols are considered to have some of the same therapeutic value as the essential oil, but are much less potent. That makes them safe for pets, especially cats. In the recent past, distillate water was considered the by-product of essential oil production and was discarded. More recently, these pure distillate waters - also called hydrosols - have been recognized for their own inherent characteristics and qualities. Hydrosols typically represent the water-soluble constituents of the botanical with some volatile components such as the essential oils.
How about Infusions? – The best way to explain herbal infusion is to think of tea. Tea is an infusion in water. Steeping dried plant material in boiling water creates infusions. Depending on the length of brewing, infusions can be very mild or very strong. There is no way of knowing the strength of infusions in cosmetics, but using a botanical “tea” is a formulating tactic often used to make the consumer think the product has more botanical value and less water.
Gaining an understanding of these terms and distinctions helps us separate the fact from fiction in how products are marketed to groomers.
Barbara Bird is a self-taught aromatherapist and founder of The Scented Groomer line of aromatherapy products for groomers and pets. The Scented Groomer products are available through Show Season or from the BBird Shopping Cart.
bbird, I would love to see you do an Aromatherapy online class like you did your Beyond Suds and Scent class!
Posted by: Cheri | November 27, 2008 at 12:55 PM