Ylang Ylang Health Benefits And Uses

Ylang Ylang Health Benefits And Uses

Ylang ylang (Cananga odorata) has a sweet, soft, flowery fragrance that has made it a romantic favorite. It has an exotic, sweet smell and is slightly yellow in color. In Indonesia, the flower petals are strewn upon the bed on wedding nights. The oil was once a popular ingredient of hair preparations in Europe and was known as macassar oil. The word "anti-macassar" originated from this, since an anti-maccasar was used to keep hair oil from staining upholstered furniture.

The essential oil of ylang-ylang is extracted by steam distillation of fresh flowers of ylang-ylang tree, which bears a scientific name Cananga Odorata and is an inhabitant of the rain forests of certain Asia-Pacific Islands like Indonesia, Philippines, Java, Sumatra, Comoro and Polynesia etc. The chief components of the essential oil of ylang-ylang are benzyl acetate, benzyl benzoate linalool, caryophyllene, geranyl acetate, methyl benzoate, p-cresyl methyl ether and certain other components called Sesquiterpenes, which attribute to its aroma and medicinal properties. Hence, apart from its widespread use in perfumes and aromatherapy, due to its very pleasing and delicate fragrance, it is used in medicines too.

 

Ylang Ylang I, II and III Essential Oils
After oil classified as Ylang Ylang Extra is collected, the distillation process then continues. After a period of time, the distillation process is stopped and the resulting oil is then again collected. That oil is then referred to as Ylang Ylang I. The process repeats, resulting in Ylang Ylang II and Ylang Ylang III. The duration between distillations and the details can vary between distillers. The distillations are generally referred to as fractions and are typically used within fragrancing and perfumery applications.

The therapeutic properties of ylang-ylang oil are antidepressant, antiseborrhoeic, antiseptic, aphrodisiac, hypotensive, nervine and sedative.

Health benefits of ylang-ylang
•Antidepressant: This is one of the oldest known medicinal properties of Ylang-Ylang and it comes in its essential oil too. It fights depression and relaxes body and soul, thereby driving away anxiety, sadness etc. It also has an uplifting effect on mood and induces and feeling of joy and hope. It may be an effective treatment for those undergoing nervous breakdown and acute depression after a shock, accident etc.

• Anti-seborrhoeic: Seborrhoea or Seborrhoeic Eczema is a dreaded disease which is caused due to malfunctioning of sebaceous glands resulting in irregular sebum production and consequent infection of the epidermal cells. It looks very ugly as the skin, colored white or pale yellow, dry or greasy, starts peeling off, particularly from the scalp, eyebrows and wherever there are hair follicles. Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil can be beneficial in curing this inflammatory situation and reduce peeling off of skin by regularizing sebum production and treating infection thereof.

• Anti Septic: Any wound from cut, abrasion or burn comes with the fear of the wound getting septic from bacterial infection. The fear is doubled when the wound is from an iron object as there remains a chance of it getting infected by tetanus germs. Essential Oil of Ylang-Ylang might help us avoid both septic and tetanus as it inhibits microbial growth and disinfects the wounds. This property of Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil protects your wounds from infections from bacteria, virus and fungus and does not let it go septic. This way it helps it heal quicker too.

• Aphrodisiac: The Essential Oil derived from Ylang-Ylang can really activate that Cupid in couples and can give you a good time. This can be very beneficial for those people who are losing interest in sex due to tremendous work load, professional stress, worries and effects of pollution. The loss of libido or frigidity is an alarmingly growing problem in metropolitan lives. Here, this oil can be a real help.

• Hypotensive: This oil is a very good and effective agent for lowering blood pressure. In a scenario, where high blood pressure is an alarmingly growing problem among young and the old, and the drugs for lowering it having serious adverse side effects on the health, the Ylang-Ylang oil can be a safe refuge. It is natural and has no adverse side effects on health, if taken in prescribed quantities.

• Nervine: The Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil is a health booster for the nerves. It strengthens the nervous system and restores it from damages. Further, it also reduces stress on nerves and protects them. It can also help heal nervous disorders.

• Sedative: This oil sedates or calms nervous afflictions, stress, anger and anxiety and induces a relaxing feeling.

• Other Benefits: It can be used to cure infections in internal organs such as stomach, intestines, colon, urinary tracts etc. It is also good for people suffering from insomnia, fatigue, frigidity and other stress related factors. It is extremely effective in maintaining moisture and oil balance of the skin and takes very good care of it.

Few Words of Caution: Some cases of sensitivity, nausea and headache have been observed when taken in excess amount. Otherwise it is non-toxic and non-irritant.

 

Ylang-ylang oil blends well with
Although most essential oils blend well together, ylang-ylang oil blends particularly well with bergamot, grapefruit, lavender and sandalwood.