The Northern Network Local Support Group

Belfast and District – Friday 31 May

The topic for the evening was looking at 5 essential oils, their properties, and uses. 

The speaker was Rosie Beasley, who has 16 years experience working with essential oils, is interested in following research into essential oils & plants… what are the scientists looking for and more importantly what have they found?

The evening began with Rosie sharing a little of her background then we delved into the essential oils, helichrysum, basil, bergamot, frankincense, and tea tree learning not only their properties and uses in aromatherapy, but any recent research – for instance a study in 2015 found that the use of boswellia based cream was well tolerated by breast cancer patients receiving radiotherapy, reducing the use of corticosteroids and reducing the grade of erythema (patchy redness of skin) & superficial skin symptoms. (Togni et al 2015; International Therapist, 2019) 

As the details of each oil was read out a spill with the oil applied was passed around so we could smell the scent.  

At the end of the talk, Rosie shared about the relatively new drug extracted from daffodil bulbs, called galantamine, which is helping to slow down the affects of Alzheimer’s disease. After the talk came the fun part, Rosie demonstrated an arm & hand massage then guided us as we massaged each other… relaxing and fun! At the close of evening, we each received a handout with all the information on the essential oils mentioned plus where to find the research articles if we wished to know more.