The Sandalwood HRT Brouhaha Or How Bad AT Info Spreads

[Guest guest]

Thinking about this whole Sandalwood thing and folks being concerned

over whether Martha's story was true or not and all the misinformation

out there in the world of AT and how it shouldn't appear on this list

without major castigation .. yada yada ...

 

Well, here is my take on that ... I TOO often see misinformation just as

untrue as Martha's tall tale was, but published in EO books, and posted

on web sites, and in posts here even .. and they are just as intense

tales too ... like the one that says Rosemary oil can cause miscarriages

- which is untrue. It has never happened that anyone knows of, and there

is scientific data to back it up. So, we hear every day in the world of

AT that Rosemary can make babies in the womb die and it should be

avoided during pregnancy, and its just not true. For the record, it also

doesn't cause epileptic seizures ;-p

 

Then we have Martha's tall tale " dumb joke " , blatant malicious lie,

(whatever you want to call it) in which she said some lady died after

rubbing sandalwood lotion on her legs ... Now, I truly have to ask, is

the most scary part about that story the fact that you'll probably soon

hear it out there in the land of AT rumors, and then it'll end up in

books and on websites, etc, being spread around like fact, with no proof

to back it up ... like so much of the Aromatherapy information out there

... like the Rosemary thing?

 

There is so much bad AT info out there, and if someone's dumb & ss story

on the internet about Sandalwood lotion killing somebody is taken as

fact and gets spread around .. it proves once again that the AT

community is willing to believe anything without any shred of proof and

we don't deserve to ever become more than the little cottage industry

that we are.

 

Now, we'll being seeing this on CSI in a month or two .. ;-p

 

*Smile*

Chris (list mom)

http://www.alittleolfactory.com <http://www.alittleolfactory.com/>

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I get so much pleasure from this list - THANKS so much to everyone who

posts and shares and cares if we're getting it right.

 

Except for the part where people feel anxious and want Martha shamed

or punished, this has worked out almost pretty well:

 

1. If you're a newbie, you saw how quickly misinformation gets

corrected on this list. Hopefully, soon, some of the folks on this

list who sell reliable books about EO safety will chime in and steer

you in the RIGHT direction so you can learn more. If we get really

lucky, someone will explain why that is so unlikely to have happened.

Also, you've seen how our list mother responds to list controversy -

and if you think her response was kind, even handed, and helpful (as I

do) then you know you can probably trust her to be fair if you make a

mistake or if someone else grossly misinforms you.

 

2. If you're like me, you know more about AT than the average person

on the street but still a lot less than someone who has really studied

essential oils. I think that maybe 2 or 3 years ago, when I knew less

about oils, that kind of story would have worried me a little bit

more. As it was, it sounded ridiculous - so I re-read the letter and

noticed that the story had a coroner issuing a report a week after a

death!! Which municipality does that? Also, I noticed she was bored by

this list. Well, I like the list, but it has been slow lately - so I

had time...Then, because my books are packed and I felt a twinge of

worry, I searched the Internet for any corroboration for her story or

for sandalwood being implicated in any organ failure or death. Then, I

could let it go. Maybe some others of us also did a little research

and learned something new. That's not so bad.

 

3. If you're an old hand at this, you are in the luckiest category -

the people who could lean back,smile wisely as you shook your head -

anticipating the tempest in a teacup that would almost certainly ensue

- and just enjoy being the superior creature you certainly are.;-)

 

4. If you're Martha, most likely, you're not bored anymore! :-D

 

So, that's win, win, win, win!

 

Ok, I'm off to finish my taxes - which has the potential to finish off

my sunny POV, so I'm vaporizing a bit of expressed pink grapefruit oil

and if I hit the same bumps that addled my brain back when I began

avoiding my tax return, I am armed with Rose otto AND Rescue Remedy

and I'm not afraid to use them. ;-) No, if everyone stays out of my

way until this is finished, I expect my whole family to survive the

tax season Grand Finale. ;-D

 

Smiling and feeling happy,

Gail Rice

[Guest guest]

Hi Chris,

 

I'm a newbie on this list and panicked when I read Martha's poor attempt

at humor. For one reason I love Sandalwood and use it often - the other

reason is I take HRT. Also after dealing with adult behaviors for 23 years I

have to question Martha's motive other than being bored. I felt it was a

complete mockary to the trade and this post. I totally agree with your

position

in saying " don't internalize " " anger is non-productive " " learn from this

and let it roll off " " But as I read all the listings on this I convinced

myself that if we're going to use EO's and FO's we need to know any and all

adverse affects they might have on someone. I too have read where pregnant

woman

should not use Rosemary ??? you state for good reasons that there's no

conclusive research data to support this. I also read recently where fennel

can

cause seizures ???? My sister-in-law has epilepsy and loves my products -

what else might affect her?????? I have no other resources but the

internet and books to learn from ( well - now I have this post). So where do

we

go for the truth?? Especially when we sincerely care about the health and

well-being of our friends, family and customers. Evie M.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I have no other resources but the

internet and books to learn from ( well - now I have this post). So where

do we

go for the truth?? Especially when we sincerely care about the health and

well-being of our friends, family and customers. Evie M.

 

[Dave:] Those of us who are making natural products are, for the most

part, sharing them with others, and many times we are asked to address some

condition of the skin, hair, emotions etc. that has for some reason not

responded satisfactorily to standard allopathic treatment. Even if this is

not the case, when we present our products to others either as gifts or when

we accept money, there is often an implied or stated benefit. Without

getting into liability and legalities, we have a moral burden to be sure

that our products at the very least do no harm. Ultimately, it is the

responsibility of each of us to research and learn as much as possible about

the materials we are using. Generally, if a soap or lotion aggravates the

condition or irritates the skin, it can be washed off and no harm is done.

But even without lame attempts at humor, there are plenty of apocryphal

horror stories.

 

It is foolish to expect more of our materials than they can provide. We

should never use words such as “cure.” If a cure occurs, we can rejoice –

but ultimately we must thank the Provider (however we may think of Him) for

this. It would be hubris to take the credit ourselves.

 

The answer to all of this is research, humility, and dedication first and

foremost to the good. Several times I’ve had feedback from friends or

customers that one or another of my soaps has been wonderfully effective for

some skin condition. I’ve also been asked to formulate soaps for that

purpose. I always tell people that while I know I am capable of making some

wonderful soaps, I cannot and never do make claims for healing. I trust

natural ingredients, but that doesn’t mean I use them indiscriminately. I

use EOs sparingly. Some of my soaps have wonderful scents, but they are

never perfumey. I hope for my products to bless others in some small way,

but I do remember that they are soaps, not medicines. It would be each of

our worst nightmare for someone to have a severe negative reaction to

something that we made. Fortunately, it seems to be a rule of life that our

worst fears seldom come to pass.

[Guest guest]

Hi Listmates,

I get digest so I missed the initial post because I was a few days behind

and started on the most recent...which were the responses. I was impressed

on how this whole situation was handled by our list mom and moderators.

From looking beyond someones bad behavior and seeing the real potential

problem of AT misinformation to new people etc...you guys did

great....keep up the good work.

I liked Gails win-win-win view too:).

Paula

[Guest guest]

________________________________

 

On Behalf Of Eviemat52

Tuesday, April 11, 2006 5:05 AM

 

Re: The Sandalwood HRT Brouhaha Or How Bad AT Info

Spreads

 

 

 

I too have read where pregnant woman

should not use Rosemary ??? you state for good reasons that

there's no

conclusive research data to support this. I also read recently

where fennel can

cause seizures ???? My sister-in-law has epilepsy and loves my

products -

what else might affect her?????? I have no other resources but

the

internet and books to learn from ( well - now I have this post).

So where do we

go for the truth?? Especially when we sincerely care about the

health and

well-being of our friends, family and customers. Evie M.

 

 

Hi Evie,

 

Many of us have basic safety information on our websites

http://www.wingedseed.com/Information/BE_SAFE_AND_SMART.htm

 

There is absolutely no evidence that rosemary is contraindicated for

pregnancy and I've not heard that fennel causes seizures in the proper

dilution. Many recommend that essential oils (especially if not previously

used) be avoided in the first three months of pregnancy just as a

precautionary measure. I also recommend that they be avoided for the first

couple months after the baby is born so that parental bonding can occur, in

which case the odor of the parents should not be masked. All essential oils

affect humans via neural pathways; every individual is different and some

person *could* have a reaction outside the norm. Remember that many

essential oils are used in foods and flavoring and used in the proper

dilution essential oils topically are safer than some synthetic body care

products.

 

Be Well,

Marcia Elston http://www.wingedseed.com

" Give thanks for a little and you will find a lot. " Hausa Saying from

Nigeria