How Rosemary Aromatherapy Enhances Mood and Memory

“Look to the nervous system as the key to maximum health”

— Galen

Good Monday Morning,

Claudius Galenus, known as Galen or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, philosopher, and writer who is considered the most significant contributor to ancient medicine following Hippocrates.

Galen believed that a person's mental state could govern health. He recognized that nerves are the pathways connecting the brain to the body and that the nervous system governs sensation, movement, cognition, and health. He was correct.

We now know there are many ways that the bioactive chemicals from plants act as preventive medicines to enhance brain function, support the nervous system, and maintain health. These bioactive compounds can be consumed as food, spices, tinctures, tea, capsules, or aromatics.

One study in Chicago showed how aromatics work. They found that people who see a series of faces remember them better and two seconds faster when inhaling through the nose rather than the mouth. They found inhaling through the nose stimulates the area of the brain associated with memory. 1

Since studies show that the aromas of sage, rosemary, and peppermint are brain boosters, breathing in their aroma through the nose will enhance the memory-stimulating effect.

So this week, we let the herb that smells delightful do a little quiet preventive medicine.

Add one intentional aromatherapy to your day.

You can easily add a few drops of essential oils where it best serves your physiology. Diffuse for aromatherapy through inhalation:

• In a diffuser, add 2 drops of rosemary essential oil and 2 drops of peppermint essential oil.

• Add a few drops of rosemary and mint essential oils to your shampoo.

• As a massage oil, add 2 drops of rosemary and peppermint essential oils to one tablespoon of a base oil to enhance relaxation and cognition.

The key is intention. You’re choosing a specific herbal ally for mental focus and memory enhancement all in one simple action.

Whether it helps you specifically comes down to how and why it works. You decide. Here’s the exact mechanism…

Start small, make it easy, and repeat it all week.

Have a great week — see you Thursday.

Live life well ♡

Mary Ann Rollano

Creator of Quiet Acts of Healing

Want more? My Thursday Prevention Briefs offer the science behind the practice. The mechanism. The why. And with that knowledge, you can evaluate what’s actually working for you. Upgrade for the whole experience.

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• Mountain Rose Herbs is my favorite place to buy herbs and tinctures. They source their herbs sustainably, and they’re just impeccable at what they do. They’re the only brand doing this independently.

• Mountain Rose Herb Essential Oils offer a large selection of pure, certified organic, high-quality essential oils from farm to bottle.

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• Klio Tea offers organically grown Greek herbs. I’ve written about their Greek Mountain tea, chamomile, lemon verbena, and sea buckthorn. They also provide Greek sage, mint, oregano, and olive oil. And I am in love with their Greek honey!

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• Adagio Tea sells a large variety of loose-leaf teas. I’ve written about their English Breakfast tea here, which is excellent. You will find rare Chinese teas such as Black Dragon Pearl, my favorite morning tea. Adagio sources directly from artisan growers and sells everything from oolong to white teas.

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• Matcha is a category by itself. Pique Tea offers ceremonial-grade matcha that is pure and tested for specific microbes, heavy metals, radioactivity, and mycotoxins. What I like most about their matcha is that it comes from organic loose-leaf teas. Every product is heavily tested for purity.