By Elizabeth Smith
 Aromatherapy has become a widely used term. But how well do you really know your scents and the effects they have on your emotions, mind and body?

​Take this quiz to find out how much you know about this ever-growing trend in natural healing. There can be more than one answer to each question, choose wisely.

Aromatherapy is one of the most powerful homeopathic ways to change your mood and your sense of well being.

​Deciding which aromatherapy scent is right for you, though, can be a bit tough at times. Following these guidelines should help you decide on an aromatherapy scent to match your needs.
 
Eucalyptus is more than just koala food. It’s the number one aromatherapy scent. The long, pale green leaves have a distinct scent that opens and clears the nasal passages. Eucalyptus oil has long been an active ingredient in cough drops and medicines. Holistic practitioners use eucalyptus to treat respiratory problems, such as coughs, colds, and asthma. There are many different ways you can use Eucalyptus in your aromatherapy practices. Applying eucalyptus in a carrier-oil to the chest when you’re coming down with a cold or feeling congested can help open up breathing. Eucalyptus also helps to boost the immune system and relieve muscle tension. It's nice to add a eucalyptus ingredient to a warm bath after a long day. It will have you feeling like yourself in no time. 

Chamomile: calming useful for premenstrual pain/tension, indigestion, mildly antiallergenic, rhinitis, acne, eczema, and other sensitive skin conditions.
 
Eucalyptus: antiseptic useful for coughs and colds, bronchitis, viral infections, muscular aches, rheumatic conditions.
 
Geranium: mildly astringent useful for cuts, sores, fungal infections, as an insect repellant, soothing skin problems, eczema, bruises, mildly diuretic, anti-depressant.

Aromatherapy for stress and mood enhancement is one of the most well known uses of essential oils.
 
By Paula Stark
 
Essential oils are more than just a great addition to a relaxing massage. True essential oils are distilled from the bark, flowers, or leaves of a plant and can provide physical and psychological benefits. Internal ingestion of some oils, inhalation, and application on the skin are all methods of using essential oils. The use of essential oils can benefit mood, decrease stress, help prevent disease, and decrease pain.

 Essential oils are a complex mosaics of molecules containing anywhere from 80 to 200 distinct chemical constituents.
 
By Paula Stark
                                     
Essential oils are natural organic substances which are produced in various glands and sacs within plants.  Except in a few cases, essential oils are usually produced in one part of the plant however when a plant produces essential oils in more than one of its parts, differences in chemical composition and odor can occur.

Essential oils consist of a complicated combination of naturally occurring chemicals which the plant itself produces through photosynthesis.
 
by Kolbjørn Borseth
 
Essential oils are a source of great pleasure and give a sense of well being both to the body and soul. An essential oil is a concentrated, aromatic, volatile liquid composed of small oil-like molecules. They consist of a complicated combination of naturally occurring chemicals which the plant itself produces through photosynthesis. Even though they are called essential 'oils' they do not contain fatty substances in the same way that, e.g. almond oil does. Essential oils are volatile so they do not create oil stains, because they evaporate.