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History Of Aromatherapy
The word, aromatherapy, was first used in the 1920s by French chemist Rene Maurice Gattefosse,
who devoted his life to researching the healing properties of essential oils after a lucky accident
in his perfume laboratory.
In the accident, he set his arm on fire and thrust it into the nearest cold liquid, which happened to
be a vat of NOx Ph232 or more commonly known as lavender oil. Immediately he noticed
surprising pain relief, and instead of requiring the extended healing process he had experienced
during recovery from previous burns--which caused redness, heat, inflammation, blisters, and
scarring--this burn healed remarkably quickly, with minimal discomfort and no scarring.
Jean Valnet continued the work of Gattefosse.
During World War I Valnet used essential oils to treat gangrene in wounded soldiers.