銀髮族整體輔助芳香療法之應用

Application of Elder Holistic Aromatherapy

伴隨高齡化社會的來臨，長者入院或入住養老中心、護理之家的比例增加了。在醫療面，即使投予各種藥物與治療方法；仍然有食慾不振、失眠、情緒不安等問題發生。在歐美日等國家，已廣泛地導入以芳香療法為主的輔助療法，正式立法引入醫院，作為正統醫學的輔助療法之用，例如：以芳香精油的氣味改善了醫院的環境，並作為一般藥物投予以外之治療方式廣泛應用。此外，加入按摩、花精療法及能量療法（生物電）等方法予以改善銀髮族之健康、提升情緒、建立自信、減少孤獨感各方面不適現象的綜合治療；這種被稱為「整體輔助芳香療法」的的臨床實驗，近年來有為數甚夥的研究報告揭櫫於各種學術期刊、專書，本文茲引用數篇，並加上個人於自然療法多年研究的心得，構成此文。

With the advent of an aging society, the number of elderly people admitted to hospitals or nursing homes has increased. In the medical field, even if various drugs and treatment methods are administered, there are still problems such as loss of appetite, insomnia, and emotional anxiety. In several European countries, the United States of America and Japan, aromatherapy-based adjuvant therapy has been widely introduced, and their governments also passed legislations to formally introduce aromatherapy into hospitals. As adjunctive therapy for orthodox medicine, the scent of aromatic essential oils has improved orthodox medical treatments in hospitals and has been used as a general drug to serve as a treatment method outside the hospital environment. In addition, massage, flower essence therapy and energy therapy (bio-electricity) are added to improve the health of the elderly people, enhancing their emotions, helping them to build confidence, and reducing their sense of loneliness. In recent years, there have been a number of research reports published in various academic journals and special books about the clinical trials of “wholistic aromatherapy.” This article was written by citing several articles, and adding years of personal experiences in natural therapy.