Nature's First Aid - the medicinal and therapeutic uses of lavender

Few flowers or plants have been used in the multitude of ways lavender has been.  First harvested in the wild by inhabitants of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea – its native habitat – lavender came to be specifically cultivated in herb gardens for its many medicinal and therapeutic properties.

Lavender was notably featured in “Physica” – the 12th century treatise written by the extraordinary medieval abbess, Hildegard von Bingen and believed to be the first definitive European manual on the use of herbal medicines.  She found it particularly beneficial in the treatment of what appear to be migraine headaches that accompanied some of the visions she described in her writings.

 

In addition to these soothing properties that led to its widespread use as a sleep inducer, lavender’s all-natural disinfectant properties also found widespread use in the prevention of skin and wound infection, long before anyone knew anything about microorganisms, let alone antibiotics.  Similarly, the discovery of its dramatic topical anesthetic properties led to its use as a salve for treating burns, insect bites, skin irritations and other symptomatic rashes.  Lavender's anti-inflammatory properties also assist in skin healing and reducing scar formation.  These interesting and well documented natural therapeutic uses of lavender have received increasing attention, particularly in an age when many are looking away from artificial chemicals for both therapeutic and preventative healthcare products.

Taking lavender's powerful medicinal and therapeutic properties into consideration, we've curated a list of our favorite products to include in your lavender first aid kit.

Organic Lavender Essential Oil

It all starts here.  All of lavender's medicinal and therapeutic properties are derived from it's essential oil.  Among all the herbal essential oils, Lavender Essential Oil is somewhat unique in that it is one of the very few essential oils that can be applied undiluted directly onto the skin with no toxic effects.  As such, it is highly effective as a topical antiseptic, anesthetic and anti-inflammatory in many common therapeutic situations.

As a topical anesthetic:

• superficial cooking or baking burns
  
• bee stings or bug bites
  
• abrasions
• pimples
  

As a topical antiseptic and anti-inflammatory:

• preventing wound infection
  
• treating pimples (utilizing lavender's natural solvent property as well!)
• minimizing scar formation during healing processes
  

Lavender essential oil is also a known anxiolytic —a highly effective anxiety reducing agent in both people and animals.  As an added benefit, apply a couple drops of lavender essential oil under your patient's nose to help soothe them with each inhalation.

To ensure optimum quality, unlike many others who buy their oil from "bulk sources" with no clear production history, all our essential oil is Certified Organic by Washington State Department of Agriculture and distilled right here on the farm exclusively from the lavender flowers we grow ourselves in our own San Juan Island, WA fields.

Organic Lavender Hydrosol

Our organically certified 100% pure Lavender Hydrosol is produced during the steam distillation of essential lavender oil on the farm.  Lavender hydrosol is a natural and (technically speaking) permanent colloidal suspension of a small amount of essential lavender oil in a large volume of water.  Also known as floral water, it is an ideal vehicle for bringing the properties of lavender essential oil to a variety of therapeutic needs.

• For rinsing, cleaning, and promoting rapid healing of skin abrasions and cuts
• For soothing on itching skin associated with sun or wind burn, eczema, dryness and aging
• As a preferred wet wipe for infant and adult personal hygiene (particularly useful in healing and preventing diaper rashes)

In addition to these uses, lavender hydrosol brings the solvent, disinfectant and insect repellent properties of lavender essential oil to an equally wide range of household, work space, pet, plant, automobile, boat and other care applications.

 

Lavender Treatment Stick

This is our must-have for deploying the natural antiseptic and powerful topical anesthetic properties of lavender essential oil in a convenient stick delivery system for easy application and portability.  For quick, on-the-go care, our Lavender Treatment Stick is an excellent way to treat cuts, bug bites, abrasions and burns and to soothe headaches, joint aches, sprains and bruises.  It also doubles as a skin and lip moisturizer as needed.  

Parents and caregivers especially appreciate this easy-to-apply delivery system for use with little ones.

Lavender Hand Sanitizer

A means of sanitizing the hands is a must for any first aid kit.  Our alcohol-free and alcohol-based versions of Lavender Hand Sanitizer take full advantage of the naturally-occurring antiseptic,  disinfectant and solvent properties of lavender essential oil. 

Note: Given that lavender’s efficacy specifically against the Covid-19 causative agent has not yet been definitively tested under laboratory conditions, we cannot and do not make the claim that the alcohol-free version of our hand sanitizer offerings is appropriate for protection against that agent.  To learn more about lavender as a sanitizing agent - click here.

For centuries, the ability of lavender essential oil to treat, limit or even prevent a wide spectrum of diseases and disorders caused by antimicrobial agents — bacterial, fungal and viral — was informed by everyday observation by healthcare deliverers and populations at large.  The arrival, over the past two to three hundred years, of synthetic chemical alternatives that were easier or less expensive to produce in large quantities largely displaced this use of lavender essential oil.  People in general turned to synthetics because they were more readily available, less expensive or indeed in some cases more effective.  As many are now looking for alternatives to artificial chemicals in everyday use products, lavender is — as it has been for millennia — ready to provide preventative and therapeutic care.