Customer Reviews

Aromatherapy A-Z (Hay House Lifestyles)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The information contained in this book, is to the point without reading paragraphs of useless information or scientific mumbo-jumbo. We are a family of ten and we use this book daily, even my six year old is able to use this book by herself. The illustrations and the colors are refreshing and make this a book an excellent yet easy to read reference guide. A must-have for anyone trying to incorporate the healing power of aromatherapy in their lives.

I thought this book was absolutely wonderful. It is highly informative. It has been well written and easy to understand. The authors have made an extra effort so that the inexperienced can readily understand this information and how to apply it in everyday life. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in aromatherapy as well as essential oils.

This book is simply written, and because of that, it is easy to read, and understand. The colorful alphabetical tabs make it easy and quick to find the oils that you are looking for. Although the book does not go into a great deal of research, what is there was very helpful and interesting to me. It is a great quick reference tool!

The appearance of this book is reminiscent of a cookbook when looking at the design of its colourful cover and spiral bound contents, separated by index-type pages. The contents of the book are mainly made up of notes from lectures, conferences, videos and audiotapes , according to Pat Leatham, one of the authors who has certifications in Rapid Eye Technology as well as Principles of Personology (I mention this not because it is necessary relevant, but because I never heard of these areas of study and would love to be enlightened!)... Back to the review. In the first chapter 'Basic Facts about Essential Oils' the authors tell us that "Essential oils were humankind's first medicine." When the very first sentence of a book is factually incorrect, one has to wonder. It doesn't get much better I am afraid. Indeed, this work is a disservice to the subject area . There was a time when publishers and particularly the editors they employeed, were knowledgeable about the subject areas of the books that they dealt with. Alas that is no longer the case and this title is one of the best examples of that that I have seen in aromatherapy. Many of the entries in the a-z portion (which in fact is most of the book except for ten pages) has just one word. For example under 'Irritable Bowel Syndrom' it simply "Peppermint". In fact most of the entries are made up of names of essential oils. For example for 'Jealousy' there is "Bergamot, eucalyptus, frankincense, lemon, marjoram, orange , rose, rosemary, sandalwood, thyme." The entry on 'Lung' which falls under the heading of 'Cancer' is more informative. It tells us: "Blend: 15 drops frankincense, 5 drops clove, 6 drops ravensara, 4 drops myrrh, and 2 drops sage. It is best when inserted into rectum." (I'm not kidding.) There are no references whatsoever as to the botanical names of the plants that the oils came from! It is obvious that the authors of this book take no notice, if indeed they are aware, of the various concerns of the industry. For example under the heading 'Direct Application' it states: "Essential oils can be applied directly on the area of concern using one to six drops. More oil is not necessarily better; one to three drops is usually adequate. Some oils may need to be diluted with a pure vegetable oil." That's it. Now for those who may be wondering exactly what lectures, conferences and other sources were used by Pat Leatham when compiling her notes, the references to Grade A oils (not a common term in the aromatherapy industry), frequency of oils and information about how 'raindrop therapy' which is described as dropping essential oils on the spine to help bring the body into balance, may give you a clue. My recommendation about this book is that the authors actually read the titles they list in their bibliography, for a start. A Dangerous book.

This book is easy to follow and is very colorful. I was reading my friends book and now I'm putting it on my wish list for the
holiday!

This is an incredibly badly researched book with so many mistakes. So Sad.