Aromatherapy apropos of normal flora: friend or foe?

Abstract

Aromatherapy was practiced since prehistory for alleviating diseases and/or stress relief. Recently, it bloomed after complementary and alternative medicine became popular among individuals seeking homeopathic treatment to evade side effects. Studies revealed that aromatherapy owes its efficacy to complex essential oils that show qualitative and quantitative variabilities depending on plant-related factors. Aromatherapy is delivered through inhalation and dermal contact where volatile oils act locally or penetrate to the circulation to exert systemic effect. Many essential oils possess antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral and/or cytotoxic activities which raises concern against their random use and believing they are completely safe. Also, little evidence exists depicting the selectivity of essential oils towards pathogenic rather than endogenous microbiota. Relevantly, microflora dysbiosis can negatively impact the host’s health. Therefore, this article aims to emphasize that long-term studies are required to regulate aromatherapy practice without endangering the body’s homeostasis and refute the misleading assumption of its unquestionable safety.