Aromatherapy for stress reduction in healthy adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Hur, Myung-Haeng; Song, Ji-Ah; Lee, Jeonghee; Lee, Myeong Soo

doi:10.1016/j.maturitas.2014.08.006

Cited by 74 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Aromatherapy is the therapeutic use of essential oils from plants. Essential oils can be absorbed into the body via the skin or the olfactory system [6]. Lavender is often mentioned as the "mother" of essential oils [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Strong is the Evidence for the Anxiolytic Efficacy of Lavender?: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Kang

Nam

Lee

et al. 2019

Asian Nursing Research

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Purpose: Although lavender is purported to possess anxiolytic and sedative properties and is often recommended for relieving anxiety, the efficacy of lavender has not been well established. Thus, this review aimed to evaluate the anxiolytic effects of lavender aromatherapy. Methods: Ten data bases were searched for studies published between 2000 and 2018. Randomized controlled trials investigating the anxiolytic effects of lavender aromatherapy with any type of application for persons with or without clinical anxiety were included. The outcome variables included selfrated anxiety, vital signs, and salivary cortisol and chromogranin A (CgA) levels. In the meta-analysis, standardized mean difference and 95% confidence interval were calculated as effect measures by applying the random effect model and inverse variance method. Results: Twenty-two trials met our inclusion criteria. Lavender aromatherapy was found to have favorable effects in relieving anxiety (Hedges'ĝ ¼ À0.65; 95% CI, À0.84 to À0.46) and decreasing systolic blood pressure (ĝ ¼ À0.22; 95% CI, À0.43 to À0.02), heart rate (ĝ ¼ À0.53; 95% CI, À0.74 to À0.32), and salivary cortisol (ĝ ¼ À1.29; 95% CI, À2.23 to À0.35) and CgA (ĝ ¼ À2.29; 95% CI, À3.24 to À1.34) levels. However, the meta-analysis did not reveal any significant effects of lavender on diastolic blood pressure (effect size: À0.17; 95% CI, À0.37e0.04). Conclusion: Aromatherapy using lavender oil might have favorable effects on anxiety and its physiological manifestations. Future studies are recommended with an emphasis on methodological quality. In nursing practice, it is suggested that lavender aromatherapy be included in programs intended to manage anxiety in patients across diverse healthcare settings.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Strong is the Evidence for the Anxiolytic Efficacy of Lavender?: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Kang

Nam

Lee

et al. 2019

Asian Nursing Research

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“…Increasing popularity of aromatherapy has been reported in the UK as one of the most commonly used CAM therapies [52]. Due to the increasing popularity of aromatherapy this modality of CAM was chosen to carry out a systematic review on its effectiveness [53].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effectiveness of Aromatherapy for Depressive Symptoms: A Systematic Review

Sánchez-Vidaña

Ngai

et al. 2017

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

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Background. Depression is one of the greatest health concerns affecting 350 million people globally. Aromatherapy is a popular CAM intervention chosen by people with depression. Due to the growing popularity of aromatherapy for alleviating depressive symptoms, in-depth evaluation of the evidence-based clinical efficacy of aromatherapy is urgently needed. Purpose. This systematic review aims to provide an analysis of the clinical evidence on the efficacy of aromatherapy for depressive symptoms on any type of patients. Methods. A systematic database search was carried out using predefined search terms in 5 databases: AMED, CINHAL, CCRCT, MEDLINE, and PsycINFO. Outcome measures included scales measuring depressive symptoms levels. Results. Twelve randomized controlled trials were included and two administration methods for the aromatherapy intervention including inhaled aromatherapy (5 studies) and massage aromatherapy (7 studies) were identified. Seven studies showed improvement in depressive symptoms. Limitations. The quality of half of the studies included is low, and the administration protocols among the studies varied considerably. Different assessment tools were also employed among the studies. Conclusions. Aromatherapy showed potential to be used as an effective therapeutic option for the relief of depressive symptoms in a wide variety of subjects. Particularly, aromatherapy massage showed to have more beneficial effects than inhalation aromatherapy.

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“…Instead, it reduced subjective vicarious stress and state anxiety in response to observing a stressful situation. This indicates a stress-buffering effect of Hedione as it has been reported for odorants that are used in aromatherapy (Herz, 2009;Hur et al, 2014). The effects of aromatherapy are best accounted for by a psychological explanation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 59%