Lavender aroma reduces anxiety, pain during childbirth — Experts

Labour pain could be very severe. However, in a new study, experts confirm that lavender aroma is effective in reducing anxiety and pain in women during childbirth.

This study aimed to determine the effect of lavender on the reduction of labour pain in Iran showed that lavender aroma causes a reduction in cortisol level, the stress hormone, and subsequent reduction in anxiety.

Researchers in this study, published in the journal, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, therefore, suggested that health policymakers and gynaecologists consider its use.

The research was a meta-analysis of 13 clinical studies published between 2006 and September, 2019; it looked at the effect of lavender on reducing labour pain. Those who entered in the intervention group were 794 and 795 individuals in the control group.

Controlling of this pain is important for a woman in labour. It leads to a decrease in fatigue and an increase in cooperation during labour while helping the woman keep her energy reserved for the second stage of labour.

Controlled use of essence oils for treatment is named aromatherapy. The aromatherapy approach is one of the methods of substitutive medicine in many countries, which is applied through various methods: massage, inhalation, bath, and compression.

Massage is a therapeutic and complementary method applied for various conditions and is of high interest among individuals. Oily essences show the same potency as medications.

Studies showed that aromatherapy by using oily essences extracted from aromatic herbs such as lavender, jasmine, and geranium through massage in labour is effective on the expectant woman’s mind.

In one of the studies, the mothers were asked to inhale it through cold incense mask during contractions. Women in the group of massage with lavender oil in each step underwent massage with inhalation of 2 ml of lavender oil. For this purpose, the severity of pain was measured. Both intervention and control groups were provided with the same standard of clinical care.

Even when oily essences such as lavender are released in the air and taken into the lungs during labour, they produce endorphins in the body to reduce natural pain. Also, using lavender and Salvia officinalis as a cold compress on the forehead can help with fatigue and recovery after pain.

Lavender, which has long been used in traditional medicine, is a traditional analgesic and massaging with it facilitates rapid absorption by the skin.

The researchers declared that “The high satisfaction resulted from aromatherapy in participants of this study, and the observed significant difference in the pain score of the intervention group indicated a high efficiency of aromatherapy by inhaling lavender essence aroma.

“Given the results of the current study, to decrease the growing trend of cesarean section which is mainly due to fear of prolonged childbirth and the pain of vaginal delivery, aromatherapy and massage with lavender can be helpful. This method should be involved in educational programmes of midwifery and nursing students, and also in the training classes of pregnancy performed for clients and their attendants.”

They, however, declared that  further studies are warranted regarding the safety and quality of specific oils on various patients.

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