Massage and High Blood Pressure - Bath and Body Aromatherapy

Although some alternative health practitioners advise their clients to never use essential oils to treat high blood pressure, there are certainly essential oils that can make a difference to the condition.

The key to doing it safely is to avoid the types of essential oil therapies that involve ingesting the oils, especially in their undiluted forms. This does not mean that essential oils can not be used to treat high blood pressure, it simply means that they should be used as aromatherapy, skin care, and bath scents instead of ingesting the oils themselves.

A popular form of ingesting essential oils is to put a drop or two in hot water to make a tea. A smarter and possibly safer way to reap the benefits of a particular element is to buy a tea that is already infused with that element. For example, if you are tempted to make peppermint tea using peppermint essential oil, take the safer route and simply buy the tea from a health food store. This is a much safer route to ingesting herbs rather than using essential oils, which are extremely potent.

Beyond ingesting essential oils, there are many ways to use them ON the body as opposed to IN the body. Probably the two most popular methods for using essential oils to reduce high blood pressure are by infusing bath water with oils or by making up massage oils.

For baths, you first need is a large bathtub in which you can fully immerse your body. The water in the bath should be at body temperature. You then need some essential oils to add to the bath water. To that end, some of the most effective essential oils for high blood pressure treatment are -

• Lemon
• Marjoram
• Rosemary
• Geranium Lavender
• Ginger

It is also possible to combine some essential oils such as lemon and ginger or rosemary and marjoram. Lavender is nice enough to be used all by itself and is best not used with other floral scents, especially musky ones like rose. Bathing in an essential oil infused bath helps to lower blood pressure and also increase circulation. The ideal time for this type of therapeutic bath is right before bedtime.

Massage is also a very effective way of treating high blood pressure by applying essential oils to the body. Generally, massage oils are more effective because the oil is much more concentrated in essential oil than bath water. Also, the synergy of the essential oil and the massage creates an effect that is better than the result of the two used independently of one another.

In order to make a nice massage oil, use some of the beneficial scents listed above, diluted in a carrier oil. Almond is a good choice of carrier oil for massage as it is sweet to the skin. Once you have made your oil, massage it into your pulse points yourself, as well as your chest. An extra benefit can be gained from having someone massage it into your back as well.

Although high blood pressure can be helped with essential oils, the best way to get results is to combine these essential oil tactics with a healthy, low cholesterol diet and a proper amount of exercise.

Combining these three healthy elements will make your blood pressure start dropping almost immediately, and you will find that life is so much more enjoyable.