Westchester Oral Surgery - January 2020

Over the last few years, essential oils have become a staple of “alternative” medicine. It seems like everyone has an aunt who swears tea tree oil can clear up acne or that a little peppermint oil can fix a headache. Despite an astounding lack of scientific evidence to back up these claims, essential oils remain popular. One of the most prevalent essential oil remedies is lavender oil, said to help reduce anxiety. In 2019, researchers in Turkey put lavender oil to the test. They executed a single-blind, randomized, prospective study comprised of 90 patients (43 men and 47 women) scheduled to undergo orthognathic surgery. The surgeries included bilateral sagittal split, Le Fort I, and bimaxillary osteotomies. Patients were divided into three groups. Researchers noted that, “no significant differences were found between groups concerning gender, age, working status, educational background, and surgical operation to be performed.” Each group was exposed to different concentrations of lavender oil diffusions in 120 mL of water during a one-hour period before surgery. The first group was exposed to 0.1 mL of lavender

oil, the second group was exposed to 0.3 mL of oil, and the third group was exposed to no oil. Researchers used the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) to assess patient anxiety. The STAI-2 was used to assess trait anxiety scores, and the STAI-1 assessed state anxiety scores at the time of admittance (STAI-1-A) and after one hour, before operating room transfer (STAI-1-OR). When the demographic data and STAI scores were compared, no statistically significant difference was found between the groups. Researchers concluded, “The results of this study suggested that one hour of presurgical inhalation of 0.1 mL and 0.3 mL lavender oil diffusions in 120 mL of water did not have an anxiolytic effect on patients undergoing orthognathic surgery.” If patients struggle with presurgery anxiety, the results of this study recommend leaving the essential oil at home and talking to their doctor about more effective treatments for managing anxiety.

Turkish Study Examines Effect of Lavender Oil Inhalation on Reducing Presurgical Anxiety

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How to Make Your Own Sauerkraut

INGREDIENTS

EQUIPMENT

• •

● 2 lbs cabbage

• • •

Jar

● 4 tsp fine sea salt

● Lid with airlock

● Something to weigh down cabbage, ideally made of a nonreactive material like glass

DIRECTIONS

1. Remove outer leaves from cabbage. Slice very thinly. 2. In a large bowl, combine cabbage and salt. Let stand for 20 minutes. 3. Squeeze cabbage to release juices. Let the cabbage continue to soak and release juices for another 20 minutes. 4. Transfer to a jar and press down cabbage until completely submerged in its juices. Weigh down cabbage. 5. Seal jar with airlock. Let cabbage sit at room temperature and away from sunlight for one month. Once fermented, transfer to the fridge. Sauerkraut will keep for six months to one year.

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