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Bergamot Reduces Stress AND Is a Potent Anti-Microbial

The effects of the inhalation method using essential oils on blood pressure and stress responses of clients with essential hypertension Hwang JH.Department of Nursing, Geochang Provincial College, Geochang-gun, Gyungnam, Korea. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of aromatherapy on blood pressure and stress responses of clients with essential hypertension. METHOD: [...]

December 5 2007

The effects of the inhalation method using essential oils on blood pressure and stress responses of clients with essential hypertension

Hwang JH.
Department of Nursing, Geochang Provincial College, Geochang-gun, Gyungnam, Korea.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of aromatherapy on blood pressure and stress responses of clients with essential hypertension. METHOD: There were fifty-two subjects divided into an essential oil group, placebo group, and control group by random assignment. The application of aromatherapy was the inhalation method of blending oils with lavender, ylangylang, and bergamot once daily for 4 weeks. To evaluate the effects of aromatherapy, blood pressure and pulse were measured two times a week and serum cortisol levels, catecholamine levels, subjective stress, and state anxiety were measured before and after treatment in the three groups. Data was analyzed by repeated measures of ANOVA, one-way ANOVA, and chi(2)-test using the SPSS 10.0 program. RESULTS: The blood pressure, pulse, subjective stress, state anxiety, and serum cortisol levels among the three groups were significantly statistically different. The differences of catecholamine among the three groups were not significant statistically.

CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the inhalation method using essential oils can be considered an effective nursing intervention that reduces psychological stress responses and serum cortisol levels, as well as the blood pressure of clients with essential hypertension.

Next Study: Antimicrobial activity of flavonoids extracted from bergamot (Citrus bergamia Risso) peel, a byproduct of the essential oil industry.

Mandalari G, Bennett RN, Bisignano G, Trombetta D, Saija A, Faulds CB, Gasson MJ, Narbad A.
Commensal and Microflora Programme, Institute of Food Research, Norwich Research Park, Colney, Norwich, UK, and Department of Pharmacology, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.

Aims: To evaluate the antimicrobial properties of flavonoid-rich fractions (ie. Bergamot essential oil) derived from bergamot peel, a byproduct from the Citrus fruit processing industry and the influence of enzymatic deglycosylation on their activity against different bacteria and yeast. Methods and Results: Bergamot ethanolic fractions were tested against Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas putida, Salmonella enterica), Gram-positive bacteria (Listeria innocua, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Lactococcus lactis) and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Bergamot fractions were found to be active against all the Gram-negative bacteria tested, and their antimicrobial potency increased after enzymatic deglycosylation. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of the fractions and the pure flavonoids, neohesperidin, hesperetin (aglycone), neoeriocitrin, eriodictyol (aglycone), naringin and naringenin (aglycone), were found to be in the range 200 to 800 mug ml(-1). The interactions between three bergamot flavonoids were also evaluated.

Conclusion: The enzyme preparation Pectinase 62L efficiently converted common glycosides into their aglycones from bergamot extracts, and this deglycosylation increased the antimicrobial potency of Citrus flavonoids. Pairwise combinations of eriodictyol, naringenin and hesperetin showed both synergistic and indifferent interactions that were dependent on the test indicator organism. Significance and Impact of the Study: Bergamot peel is a potential source of natural antimicrobials (found in the essential oil) that are active against Gram-negative bacteria.

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