ESSENTIAL OILS EXHIBITING ANTIVIRAL EFFECTS

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The list of essential oils exhibiting antiviral effects is extensive:
Melissa , tea tree, juniper, eucalyptus, thyme, palmarosa, lavender, rosemary, clove, laurel, cinnamon bark, anise, rose, lemongrass, geranium, neroli, bergamot, clary sage, and dill. The antiviral effect of an essential oil is due to particular components of the oil - some oils will work just as effectively on a particular infection as another, because they contain similar amounts of a certain component. The specific chemical structures in the oils known to exhibit antiviral action are (as noted by K. Schnaubelt, Ph.D. - Advanced Aromatherapy, p. 36):

• Anethol - found in Anise.
• Alpha-Sabines - found in Tea Tree, Laurel, and other oils.
• Beta-Caryophyllene - found in Lavender, Rosemary, Thyme Linalool, and other oils.
• Carvone - found in Dill.
• Cinnamic aldehyde - found in Cinnamon Bark.
• Citral - found in Melissa, Lemongrass and other oils.
• Citronellol - found in Rose and Geranium.
• Eugenol - found in Clove.
• Gamma-Terpinene - Found in Juniper, Eucalyptus, Niaouli, Tea Tree and other oils.
• Linalol - found in Lavender and Neroli.
• Linalyl acetate - found in Clary Sage, Lavender, Bergamot and other oils.

Good studies of application of these essential oils in cases of illness are difficult to come by, as infecting people with viruses in the laboratory to subsequently be treated with aromatics would be a difficult process at best. The oils and components above have mostly shown effectivenessin-vitro, though tests also indicate that the anti-viral effect should occur in-vivo as well. As with Melissa, it has been HSV that has been most thoroughly examined, because of the relative simplicity of doing so. But there is nothing particularly special about the herpes virus, and proper oil/pathogen paring should prove as effective.

There also exists a number of documented cases from medical aromatherapists from Europe (these are difficult to find in English, but are slowly being translated). Of importance in these studies is the oil/symptom relationship. Essential oils from plants of the Myrtaceae family - notably Eucalyptus Radiata and Tea Tree - and Ravensara (also high in Eucalyptol) seem to have helped in cases with respiratory symptoms. For the lower respiratory tract, Hyssop decumbens (from the same plant family as Melissa) has been of interest. Essential oils for such cases may be used either in a diffuser, being taken at regular intervals, or through massage, diluted in a carrier oil.