Are you as cold and flu free as me? Could it be the natural perfume materials you use, either through inhalation or ingestion? Inquiring perfumers want to know!
I want to thank Christopher of White Lotus Aromatics for bringing the passage from Chapter XXL (quoted below) from George William Askinson's book Perfumes and their Preparation (1892) to my attention. Christopher added a link to this part of Askinson's book to his Facebook feed, and I wanted to quote it here, because this passage from Askinson's book shows that the antimicrobial value of airborne essential oils were recognized as killing the bugs for many centuries. When I tell people I haven't had a cold or flu since December 1970 - yes, 1970 - they are shocked. For many years, I told them that I think my use of fresh herbs and essential oils in my food and drinks built up my immune system. EOs are fabulously anti-microbial, and many aromatherapy/medical research studies have documented that fact. The studies, however, mostly address the inhalation or ingestion of oils after an affliction occurs, and do not speak of addressing the strengthening of the immu...