TITLE:
Effects of Aromatherapy of Himekuromoji (Lindera lancea), Essential Oil on Vital and Stress, Emotion and Cognitive Function of the Elderly in Need of Care
AUTHORS:
Hiroyuki Kikukawa, Seigo Koura, Matsuyo Kuge, Kunioki Miwa, Masayuki Yao
KEYWORDS:
Pulse, Blood Pressure, Salivary Cortisol, MMSE-J, Day Service Center
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation,
Vol.9 No.2,
May
26,
2021
ABSTRACT: Although there are limited means of delaying the cognitive decline in
patients with dementia, aromatherapy contributes to alleviating the pain manifested through
peripheral symptoms and psychological expression of dementia as part of
dementia control. However, there are no studies that comprehensively verify the
stress reduction effect, cognitive function, vital signs, etc. in the elderly
requiring long-term care. In this study, we focused on Himekuromoji (Lindera lancea ), which grows
naturally in Japan and has no verification cases and decided to verify the
possibility of aromatherapy using that essential oil. As a result, olfactory stimulation
by Lindera lancea aroma stabilizes the mood and emotions of the client and suppressed the rise in
blood pressure. In sentiment analysis, four emotions were quantified using a
wearable device. Although the effects of worker emotions on labor productivity
have already been elucidated using the same device as in this study, emotional
quantification by aromatherapy intervention is unprecedented. There were no
significant differences in the four emotions depending on the intervention
period and test section, but we were able to capture changes in emotions due to
differences in recreational activities. In addition, it is considered that the
client was able to spend about 30% of the activity time in a relaxed manner. It
was expected that this aromatherapy as complementary and alternative medicine
could contribute to the good emotional control of all the people involved. The
COVID 19 pandemic has led to restrictions on human-to-human interaction, so the
importance of emotional control represented by stress control is increasing for
all humankind. Therefore, it was expected that this aromatherapy as
complementary and alternative medicine could contribute to the good emotional
control of all the people involved.