Thursday, May 28, 2009

Appetite Control in Weight Loss

Though there has not been much research in the United States on aromatherapy, more research has been done in Europe indicating that the use of scent can affect physical and psychological changes in humans.

One study done in the United States found that inhalation of certain aromas appeared to be able to induce sustained weight loss over a six-month period. The research was published in the Journal of Neurological and Orthopedic Medicine and Surgery (1995).

The study involved over 3,000 subjects and Alan R. Hirsch, M.D., neurologist and director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, Illinois conducted it. Dr. Hirsch wanted to see if smelling pleasant food aromas would help reduce appetite and food cravings in people, thereby helping them lose weight by reducing their food intake.

Subjects were given plastic nasal inhalers scented with banana, green apple and peppermint. They sniffed the inhalers before, during and between meals. They recorded how often they sniffed. It was found that those who sniffed more frequently lost weight faster than those who did not.

Dr. Hirsch explained that it worked because "Odors have a direct effect on the satiety center in the brain, which is the area that tells your body when you've had enough to eat." Continual exposure to pleasant food aromas indicates to the brain that the body is satisfied and does not need to eat. It was shown in the study that there was successful weight loss.

Maybe that's why Grapefruit Essential Oil has helped with weight loss? I have used Peppermint Essential Oil while driving to stay awake and it also takes my ravenous driving appetite away. A study led by Dr. Mark Norrish at Coventry University in the UK, and published in the International Journal of Psychophysiology in 2004, found that peppermint oil was effective in reducing day-time sleepiness.




Peppermint Essential Oil

No comments:

Share This Post