HEALTH Rosemary helps you study and remember

POWERFUL?Rosemary’s mental benefits have been the subject of recent research.

Smell your way to successful study


It’s that time of year again. All over the land, study timetables are being stuck to walls and exam cramming is starting in earnest. Creating the right atmosphere in which to study can be an excellent starting point for effective work. Burning essential oils can be just the thing to help.
Atlantic Aromatics’ Study Blend was created to help stimulate the mind, aiding both concentration and memory. The blend is primarily composed of basil, which helps quieten the mind’s mental chatter, and rosemary, which promotes alertness and memory.
A recent University of Northumbria study revealed that a whiff of rosemary may boost memory by as much as 75 percent. Not to be sniffed at! Even Shakespeare, it seems, was aware of rosemary’s properties. In Hamlet, Ophelia remarks: “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance: pray you, love, remember.”
Research has also shown that it can improve mental arithmetic – pretty useful, whether you’re grappling with tricky trigonometry, working out how much time to allocate to answers, or counting down the hours and minutes to the summer….
Atlantic Aromatics’ Study Blend, available from all good health-food stores (€5.25), also contains small amounts of calming Roman camomile and lavender and uplifting grapefruit.
The blend is also a good choice when preparing or giving a talk or a seminar, or in any situation where help in recall and concentration is appropriate.
Add around eight to ten drops into the bowl of an aromatherapy burner, fill with water and light the night light. Lighting the burner five minutes or so before sitting down to study will ensure the essential oils have already started to vaporise.
Alternatively put four drops on a tissue and inhale intermittently; dilute ten drops in a tablespoon of Aloe Vera Gel and apply to feet in the morning; or put six drops on the floor of the shower (away from the plug hole!).

COMPETITION Win a bottle of Atlantic Aromatics’ Study Blend