Doctor in a bottle: examining the increase in essential oil use

In recent years there has been a push for more natural medicine, attributed to the rise of the Internet and easy accessibility to information and misinformation. Unfounded claims leading to the antivaccination and anti-Big Pharma movements have caused patients to seek control over their own health care. Simple ingredient names and lack of larger "scary-sounding" chemicals also have attributed to this shift. The perceived benefits of essential oils are the lack of a prescription needed to obtain them and the guise that natural is better for the body. The dangers in these thought processes are the lack of prescriber supervision and the many natural chemicals that can be toxic to humans whether consumed or topically applied. However, recent interest in some of these ancient medicines has prompted research into unfounded health claims and has unearthed some potential for legitimacy and future treatment options.