AromaticaLymphatica: A Synergistic Blending of Ancient Remedies and Modern Lymphology.

Apr 17
4 min read

The therapeutic use of essential oils is deeply rooted in ancient medicine where aromatic plants were revered for their scent and healing properties, and used in spiritual and purification rituals.

Massage practices using therapeutic or pleasant smelling aromatic extracts can also be seen in many traditional cultures spanning back millennia.

Modern Clinical Aromatherapy combines these time proven practices within a framework of research on essential oil constituents.

Molecular biology now reveals the minutia of physiological processes and interactions responsible for those millennia of observed effects, while informing us on the risk of adverse reactions, allergies, and unwanted interactions with medications or supplements.

Likewise, fascinating insights on molecular interactions between lymphatic vessels, wound healing and immune elements, connect the dots between decades of clinically observed benefits and the effects of MLD on autonomic balance and lymph-motoricity.

Combining modern scientific methods with the wisdom of the ages opens up a world of possibility in therapeutic fusions.

Vital Essences: An Intertwining Historical Timeline

10 000 years BC

Ancient manuscripts and carvings show that humans have used plant extracts for at least 12,000 years; to soften their skin and combat odour, for purifying, and sacrifice to the gods.

Woman wearing a perfume cone, 1350–1300 BC — Woman with perfume cone ~ 1300 BC

5000 years BC

Almost 7000 years ago, the Egyptians were using essential oils like aniseed and cedar to disinfectant their homes, in cosmetics and insects repellents, and for embalming, with evidence of essential oil distillation in China and India following less than 1000 years later.

The first mentions of the lymphatic organs join our timeline here, with a papyrus dated to 1600BC describing swollen lymph nodes, which had been copied from a original created at least a 1000 years earlier.

Modern History and the last 500 years BC

Incense, which is the burning of aromatic resins and woods, is commonly seen in spiritual practices, and frankincense and myrrh were famously brought to the baby Jesus as equal value offerings to gold and precious stones.

painting of the three wise men — The bible contains references to 33 different plant extracts and there are more than 600 mentions of 'incense'.

There are early descriptions of 'glandular corpuscles' and mesenteric vessels containing milky fluid by Hippocrates, Aristotle and Galen in 500BC, but we'll need to skip over the dark ages and the renaissance to the 16th and 17th centuries to find descriptions of the thoracic duct and cisterna chyle, made possible by changing attitudes towards the use of human cadavers in research.

Fig 1: J Anat. 2017 Jun 14;231(3):417–429. doi: 10.1111/joa.12644

17th & 18th Centuries: The 'Age of Enlightenment'

portrait of Gaspar Aeselli — Lacteals in dog's mesentery, from Aselli, De Lactibus..., 1627.

In 1622 Gaspar Aeselli described lacteals in the gut of dogs, and these were later found to be the same in humans, ultimately leading to the discovery of initial lymph vessels.

Aeselli's post-humous text, De lactibus sive Lacteis venis was the first publication to use coloured illustrations in the interest of scientific accuracy, allowing him to elegantly and clearly display the close relationship between the blood and lymph vessels in the mesentery.

20th Century: Holistic Partnerships

Small advances continue toward mapping the location of lymph vessels and nodes, and in the mid 20th century, another Italian physiologist, Mislin, discovered the neuromuscular-reflexes that co-ordinate lymphangion contraction and control lymph flow.

Meanwhile in 1920's France - the centre of the perfume world - a chemist named René-Maurice Gattefossé, was learning about the healing properties of essential oils after burning his hand in his laboratory.

The nearest liquid was a jar of lavender essential oil, so he plunged his hand into the jar noting an immediate effect on pain, and the rate and quality of healing over the following days.

By 1928 Gattefossé had demonstrated the therapeutic properties of lavender and many other essential oils, and modern 'Aromatherapy' was born.

Austrian biochemist, cosmetologist, and former student of Gattefossé, Madame Marguerite Maury pioneered an holistic aromatherapy massage which combined Swedish massage, lymphatic drainage and neuromuscular massage. A formula which is still followed closely today.

Publishing her work in English in 1961, Maury trained Madame Micheline Arcier who operated a Knightsbridge clinic during the 1960's alongside the pioneer of Medical Aromatherapy, Dr. Jean Valnet.

Valnet was interested in olfactory, oral and intravenous routes of administration, while Arcier prescribed bespoke massage blends applying them with the techniques learned from Madame Maury.

Long before the term 'holistic' became commonplace, Maury, Valnet and Arcier were using essential oils within an holistic framework to both promote wellness and remediate illness.

21st Century: Integrative Health Care

Today, as modern technology reveals the molecular world, especially in regard to the complex milieu of immune interactions, the evidence for and acceptant of an integrative medical model opens up the profound potential of these botanical allies, and begins to explain some of the synergies that we have observed across the ages.

"AromaticaLymphatica" is the modern synthesis of ancient aromatic arts, with advances in lymphology, to maximise the synergistic potential and create next level Lymphatic Therapy.

The Promise of AromaticaLymphatica and an Invitation:

With a world of possibilities for custom blending, targeted warm and cool compressing, and personalised inhalation and environmental delivery methods, there are endless synergies to be created. The AromaticaLympahtica Working Group is a member driven learning space where we will collectively develop an integrative course for Aromatherapists and Lymphatic Therapists in the creative combination of these modalities.