| Title: | The effect of essential oil on heart rate and blood pressure among solus por aqua workers |
| Author(s): | Chuang KJ; Chen HW; Liu IJ; Chuang HC; Lin LY; |
| Address: | "Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan School of Public Health, College of Public Health and Nutrition, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan kjc@tmu.edu.tw. Department of Cosmetic Application and Management, St. Mary's Medicine, Nursing and Management College, Yi-Lan County, Taiwan. Department of Nursing, Cardinal Tien College of Healthcare and Management, New Taipei City, Taiwan. School of Respiratory Therapy, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan. Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 2047-4881 (Electronic) 2047-4873 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "BACKGROUND: Aromatherapy is widely used around the world for stress relief. Whether exposure to essential oil increases the risk of cardiovascular events is still unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of essential oil on heart rate and blood pressure among solus por aqua (spa) workers. METHODS: We recruited 100 healthy workers from various spa centres in Taipei, Taiwan. Between July and August of 2010, three repeated measurements - resting heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) - were taken of each spa worker in our study room. Participants were exposed to essential oil vapour generated from an ultrasonic atomizer in the study room for two consecutive hours. The total volatile organic compound (VOC) level in the study room was measured during the study period. We used a linear mixed-effect model to determine the association between the total VOC level and the participants' HR, SBP, and DBP. RESULTS: For the times from 15 to 60 min after start of exposure, we found that the VOC level was significantly associated with reduced 15-min mean BP and HR. After exposure for more than 1 hour, from 75 to 120 min after start of exposure, we found that the VOC levels were associated with increased 15-min mean BP and HR. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to essential oil for 1 hour was found to be an effective method of relaxation, as indicated by decreases in the HR and BP. Prolonged exposure for longer than 1 hour to essential oils may be harmful to cardiovascular health among spa workers" |
| Keywords: | "Adult Aromatherapy/*adverse effects/methods Balneology Blood Pressure/*drug effects Blood Pressure Determination Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory Female Heart Rate/*drug effects Humans Male Oils, Volatile/*adverse effects Taiwan Workforce Young Adult;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineChuang, Kai-Jen Chen, Hua-Wei Liu, I-Jung Chuang, Hsiao-Chi Lin, Lian-Yu eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2012/12/01 Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2014 Jul; 21(7):823-8. doi: 10.1177/2047487312469474. Epub 2012 Nov 29" |
