Worry Free Essential Oil Blend by Maharishi Ayurveda Products

INSUFFICIENT RELIABLE EVIDENCE to RATE

• Wound healing. Preliminary clinical research shows that using adhesive dressing strips (Band-Aid) as a skin sealing dressing on percutaneous intervention access sites is preferable to sterile cotton soaked in compound benzoin tincture. Subjective scores for ease of application, comfort, and avoidance of postoperative wound complications are higher, and rates of contact dermatitis and wound infection are lower, with adhesive strips when compared with compound benzoin tincture (103827). More evidence is needed to rate benzoin for this use.

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INSUFFICIENT RELIABLE EVIDENCE to RATE

• Dysmenorrhea. Clinical research in young women with moderate to severe dysmenorrhea shows that use of an aromatic massage cream containing lavender, clary sage, and marjoram oils daily during a menstrual cycle modestly reduces pain. On the second and third days of the next cycle, pain was reduced by 45% to 60% compared with a reduction of 20% to 40% with a placebo cream containing a synthetic fragrance. However, the aromatic cream did not reduce pain on the first day of the cycle, when pain was most severe (58095). It is not clear if these effects are due to topical application, aromatherapy, clary sage, the other ingredients, or a combination of these factors.
• Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). Preliminary clinical research in patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy shows that inhaling clary sage essential oil aromatherapy for 5 minutes immediately after the operation, and again 3 and 6 hours after, does not improve nausea or vomiting when compared with a control group not receiving aromatherapy (103872).
• Postoperative pain. Preliminary clinical research in patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy shows that inhaling clary sage essential oil aromatherapy for 5 minutes immediately after the operation, and again 3 and 6 hours after, does not reduce pain when compared with a control group not receiving aromatherapy (103872). More evidence is needed to rate the effectiveness of clary sage for these uses.

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INSUFFICIENT RELIABLE EVIDENCE to RATE

• Mental alertness. One preliminary clinical study shows that inhaling the aroma of jasmine essential oil while taking a visual vigilance test does not improve reaction time or accuracy when compared with placebo (57019). Another preliminary study in healthy male students shows that inhaling the aroma of jasmine essential oil for 30 minutes between concentration tests does not reduce mental fatigue when compared with placebo (56977). More evidence is needed to rate jasmine for this use.

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INSUFFICIENT RELIABLE EVIDENCE to RATE

• Allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Lemon has only been evaluated in combination with quince in a nasal spray for hay fever; its effect when used alone is unclear. Details: A small clinical study in patients with grass pollen allergy shows that using a specific nasal spray (Gencydo, Weleda AG) containing lemon and quince three times daily for 7 days does not improve the symptoms of allergic rhinitis when compared with placebo. In this study, using the nasal spray reduced airway resistance during inspiration at 10 and 20 minutes after pollen exposure, and reduced airway resistance during expiration at 20 minutes after pollen exposure (98826).
• Anxiety. It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon essential oil reduces anxiety. Details: A small clinical study in first year nursing students in Turkey shows that administering aromatherapy with lemon essential oil for 15 minutes prior to an exam reduces test anxiety scores when compared with control students (110779). However, it is unclear whether any improvements are clinically significant or lead to improved test scores. Lemon oil has also been evaluated in pregnancy. A small clinical trial in Turkey in pregnant adults in active labor shows that administering aromatherapy with lemon oil, 1 drop placed on a cotton ball, every hour until delivery does not reduce anxiety when compared with control (115746).
• Halitosis. Lemon essential oil has only been evaluated in combination with other essential oils; its effect when used alone is unclear. Details: Preliminary research in males with dementia in a long-term care facility shows that cleaning the tongue, gums, and teeth with a solution of lemon, peppermint, and tea tree essential oils twice daily for 7 days improves oral condition, measured on the Korean Oral Assessment Guide scale, increases salivary pH into the normal range, and decreases halitosis score when compared with saline control. On a scale of 0 to 5, the essential oil mixture reduced the halitosis score by 1.24 points, compared with 0.2 points for the control (112957).
• Hypertension. It is unclear if oral lemon is beneficial in patients with high blood pressure. Details: A small, prospective, population study in middle-aged Japanese women has found that increased lemon intake is associated with a modest reduction in systolic, but not diastolic, blood pressure (93471).
• Kidney stones (nephrolithiasis). It is unclear if oral lemon juice is beneficial for recurrent idiopathic calcium oxalate nephrolithiasis. Details: A randomized, controlled trial in patients with recurrent idiopathic calcium oxalate nephrolithiasis shows that taking fresh lemon juice 60 mL orally twice daily for 2 years with a standard diet does not improve the time to stone recurrence when compared with no supplementation. The validity of these findings is limited due to poor patient adherence, which declined from 79% at 6 months, to 68% at 1 year, and 48% at 2 years. When restricted to a 1-year follow-up, stone recurrence occurred in 10% of patients taking lemon juice, compared with 21% of patients in the control group; this difference was statistically significant (107489).
• Labor pain. It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon oil is beneficial for labor pain. Details: A small clinical trial in Turkey in pregnant adults in active labor shows that administering aromatherapy with lemon oil, 1 drop placed on a cotton ball every hour until delivery, modestly reduces patient-reported pain during the early phase (cervical dilation 5-7 cm) when compared with control (115746). However, clinical significance is unclear, and pain is not reduced during the later phase of active labor (cervical dilation 8-10 cm).
• Meniere disease. Although there is interest in using lemon orally for Meniere disease, there is insufficient reliable information about the clinical effects of lemon for this condition.
• Myocardial infarction (MI). It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon essential oil is beneficial in patients with acute MI. Details: A small clinical study in hospitalized patients with acute MI shows that administering aromatherapy with lemon essential oil over 3 days moderately reduces systolic blood pressure, but not diastolic blood pressure, when compared with a paraffin control. Heart rate and anxiety were reduced by a small amount the day following the completion of lemon aromatherapy (103455).
• Nausea and vomiting. It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon oil is beneficial in palliative care patients with nausea and vomiting. Details: A small observational study in hospitalized palliative care patients with advanced cancer has found that administering aromatherapy with lemon oil pads relieves nausea and vomiting in 73% of applications (110778). The interpretation of these findings is limited by the use of a retrospective chart review and the lack of a comparator group.
• Obesity. Although there is interest in using lemon orally for obesity, there is insufficient reliable information about the clinical effects of lemon for this condition.
• Oral mucositis. Lemon has only been evaluated in combination with other ingredients; its effect when used alone is unclear. Details: A randomized, controlled trial in patients with head and neck cancer receiving external beam radiotherapy 5 days weekly shows that using a 2:1 oral honey-lemon throat spray four to eight times daily, beginning 1 day prior to radiotherapy initiation and continuing for 5 weeks, does not improve severity of mucositis when compared with oral benzydamine hydrochloride throat spray applied four to eight times daily. The actual rate of oral mucositis occurrence is 65% in those receiving the honey-lemon spray, compared with 35% with the benzydamine hydrochloride spray; however, this difference was not statistically significant (107487). This study may have been inadequately powered to detect a difference between groups. Also, the validity of these findings is limited due to the lack of objective outcome measures.
• Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon essential oil is beneficial in patients with PONV. Details: Preliminary research in patients undergoing lower extremity fracture surgery shows that aromatherapy with lemon essential oil started the morning of surgery, then every 2 hours to the end of surgery, in the recovery room, and 16 hours after surgery reduces the frequency, severity, and amount of PONV, and the frequency of anti-emetic drug administration after surgery, when compared with control. The intensity of pain is also reduced, but not the amount of post-operative opioid needed (112956).
• Pregnancy-induced nausea and vomiting. It is unclear if aromatherapy with lemon essential oil is beneficial in patients with nausea and vomiting due to pregnancy. Details: A small clinical study in pregnant patients shows that practicing aromatherapy with 2 drops of lemon essential oil placed on a cotton ball as needed modestly reduces pregnancy-induced nausea and vomiting on 2 of 4 days of the study when compared with placebo (93475).
• Radiation-induced sialadenitis. Aromatherapy with lemon essential oil has only been evaluated in combination with other essential oils; its effect when used alone is unclear. Details: A small clinical study in patients with thyroid cancer shows that receiving 10-minute aromatherapy baths with lemon and ginger essential oils prior to meals for 2 weeks before treatment with radioactive iodine therapy attenuates damage to the salivary gland when compared with distilled water baths (98129).
• Respiratory tract infections. Although there is interest in using lemon orally for respiratory tract infections such as cold and flu, there is insufficient reliable information about the clinical effects of lemon for these conditions. More evidence is needed to rate lemon for these uses.

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INSUFFICIENT RELIABLE EVIDENCE to RATE

• Mosquito repellent. Clinical research shows that applying patchouli oil 20% to the skin provides complete protection against mosquitos for 123 minutes. When added to a mixture of turmeric oil and Zanthoxylum limonella oil, complete protection lasted for 390 minutes, indicating synergistic activity (100669).
• Stress. Preliminary clinical research in nurses shows that inhalation of patchouli oil for 20 minutes once daily for 2 doses reduces self-reported stress scores and increases compassion satisfaction scores when compared with placebo inhalation. Inhalation of patchouli oil did not appear to affect self-reported burnout or markers of stress such as blood pressure and heart rate (104776). More evidence is needed to rate patchouli oil for these uses.

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LIKELY SAFE ...when used orally in food amounts. Benzoin has generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status in the US (97997). The maximum concentration recommended as a flavoring in foods is 0.014% (11).

POSSIBLY SAFE ...when benzoin and compound benzoin tincture are used by inhalation (6002). ...when used topically (11). Benzoin can cause contact dermatitis in some people (11,12,103827).

POSSIBLY UNSAFE ...when benzoin and compound benzoin tincture are used orally in medicinal amounts. Accidental oral ingestion of compound benzoin tincture intended for inhalation has been reported to cause gastritis and gastrointestinal hemorrhage (6002).

PREGNANCY AND LACTATION:
Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

(Read more about BENZOIN)

LIKELY SAFE ...when used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. Clary sage has Generally Recognized As Safe status (GRAS) for use in foods in the US (4912). There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of clary sage when used as medicine.

PREGNANCY AND LACTATION:
Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

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LIKELY SAFE ...when used orally in the amounts commonly found in foods. Jasmine has Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status in the US (4912). There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of jasmine in medicinal amounts.

PREGNANCY AND LACTATION:
Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using in amounts greater than those found in food.

(Read more about JASMINE)

LIKELY SAFE ...when used in amounts commonly found in foods. Lemon has Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status in the US (4912).

POSSIBLY SAFE ...when inhaled in amounts used for aromatherapy, short-term. Lemon essential oil has been used with apparent safety as aromatherapy for up to 2 weeks in clinical research (93475,98128,98129). There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of lemon when used topically, or when used orally or intranasally in medicinal amounts.

PREGNANCY AND LACTATION:
Insufficient reliable information available. Avoid using in amounts greater than those typically found in foods.

(Read more about LEMON)

LIKELY SAFE ...when used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. Patchouli oil has Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) status for use as a food additive in the US (4912). There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of patchouli oil when used orally in medicinal amounts or when used topically or by inhalation.

PREGNANCY AND LACTATION:
Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

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ITRACONAZOLE (Sporanox) Interaction Rating = Minor Be watchful with this combination. Severity = Mild •  Occurrence = Possible •  Level of Evidence = D Theoretically, taking itraconazole capsules or tablets with a beverage containing lemon might increase the levels and clinical effects of itraconazole.  Details In one case report, dissolving itraconazole tablets in a small amount of specific beverages containing lemon prior to administration increased the level of itraconazole in a lung transplant patient. In this case, the increased bioavailability was desirable and was likely due to improved tablet dissolution in the acidic beverage (110781).

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General ...Orally, compound benzoin tincture has been reported to cause gastritis and gastrointestinal hemorrhage (6002). Topically, benzoin and compound benzoin tincture can cause contact dermatitis and other skin reactions (11,12,103827).

Dermatologic ...Benzoin can cause urticaria and skin discoloration (6002). Allergic contact dermatitis to benzoin and compound benzoin tincture has been reported and confirmed by patch testing (11,12,103827). In clinical research, the incidence of localized contact dermatitis with compound benzoin tincture is 8% to 9%, with a lower incidence of generalized allergic dermatitis (103827).

Gastrointestinal ...A case report describes gastritis and gastrointestinal hemorrhage in a young man who took compound benzoin tincture 2 teaspoons twice daily for 10 days orally, instead of by inhalation (6002).

Pulmonary/Respiratory ...Inhalation of compound benzoin tincture can cause asthmatic symptoms (6002).

(Read more about BENZOIN)

General ...No adverse effects reported. However, a thorough evaluation of safety outcomes has not been conducted.

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General ...Topically, jasmine may cause allergic contact dermatitis, delayed-type hypersensitivity, and type 1 hypersensitivity (56955,57027,57032,98684).

Immunologic ...Topically, jasmine essential oil and jasmine flower can cause allergic contact dermatitis (56955,57027,57032). Among patients who are sensitive to fragrance materials, jasmine may cause delayed-type hypersensitivity. The reported prevalence of this type of reaction ranges from 0.4% to 1.6% (89684). One case of type 1 hypersensitivity to jasmine has also been reported. The patient experienced chest tightness, wheezing, itchy skin, and macular erythematous eruption within minutes of exposure to jasmine. The eruption subsided within 20 minutes of moving away from the plant. An immunoblotting assay revealed IgE reactivity (98684).

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General ...Orally, lemon is well tolerated in amounts commonly found in foods. A thorough evaluation of safety outcomes has not been conducted on the use of larger amounts.
Most Common Adverse Effects:
Orally: Epigastralgia and heartburn with the regular consumption of fresh lemon juice.

Dermatologic ...Topically, the application of lemon oil might cause photosensitivity, due to furocoumarin derivative content. This occurs most often in fair-skinned people (11019).

Gastrointestinal ...Orally, fresh lemon juice, taken as 60 mL twice daily, has been reported to cause gastrointestinal disturbances in 37% of patients in one clinical trial, compared with 8% of patients in the placebo group. Specifically, of the patients consuming lemon juice, 21% experienced heartburn and 8% experienced epigastralgia, compared to 1% and 3%, respectively, in the placebo group (107489).

(Read more about LEMON)

General ...No adverse effects have been reported (104776). However, a thorough evaluation of safety outcomes has not been conducted.

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