I love lavender… It’s no wonder I’ve written so many articles about it. The extraordinary properties and benefits of lavender are undeniable, and its uses are limitless. I speak about lavender so enthusiastically because I use it almost daily—in homemade creams and lotions (I add lavender oil), brew tea, and incorporate it into baking.
Potted lavender grows wonderfully on a sunny windowsill or balcony.
In the sacred gardens of Thebes, the Egyptians cultivated Indian spikes, which the Romans referred to as lavender. Lavender’s popularity lies not only in its aroma; its essential oil and leaves are incredibly rich in composition.
Chemical Composition of Lavender
- Valeric acid - used in the production of Validol, Bromural, sleeping pills, and pain relievers, as well as in the preparation of fruit essences.
- Caproic acid - has hemostatic and anti-inflammatory effects.
- Cineole - a component of essential oil, acts as an antiseptic and expectorant, and serves as an aromatic component in synthetic essential oils, with a camphor-like smell.
- Geraniol - a fragrant substance with a rose scent.
- Borneol - a fragrant substance, a component of perfume compositions.
- Tannin - a tannin that protects the plant from pests, used in medicine as an antidote, an antidiarrheal, and an antihemorrhoidal agent.
- Resins
- Ursolic acid - helps with muscle atrophy, reduces fat in tissues, blood glucose, cholesterol, and triglycerides.
- Coumarin - a fragrant substance.
- Herniarin - a derivative of coumarin, a fragrant substance.
- Amyl alcohol - an aromatic substance.
- Citral - an ideal aromatic substance for creams and lotions, acts as an antiseptic and anti-inflammatory agent, and lowers blood pressure.
- Lavandulol - a component of perfume compositions.
Lavender is highly valued in medicine . Particularly prized is lavender essential oil. It possesses bactericidal, calming, wound-healing, and antiseptic properties. Baths with lavender flowers relax and soothe the nerves, promote a good night’s sleep, and are also beneficial for treating joints. The scent of lavender repels mosquitoes. If you dilute a few drops of lavender essential oil in any cosmetic carrier oil, this solution can heal wounds and reduce scars. Inhalations with lavender help the lungs and throat combat infections.
