The rise of essential oils
We ask if the growth in use of essential oils leads to over-exploitation of some plants.
We ask if the growth in use of essential oils leads to over-exploitation of some plants. Aromatherapist and massage therapist Kiki Watkin tells us she has had to turn down work as demand for reflexology and massage has grown. Agnes Gendry is in charge of purchasing essential oils for cosmetics chain Lush, and explains her company's concern that sandalwood may be being over-harvested in India. Edzard Ernst was professor emeritus of complementary medicine at Exeter University and argues consumers need to be educated about the lack of evidence for many health claims about essential oils. And we get further perspective from Dr Caitjan Gainty, a historian of 20th Century medicine at King's College London.
Also in the programme, the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's Ed Butler has been looking into claims that ethnic Uighurs in China's Xinjiang province are being put into forced labour after release from re-education camps. Plus the UK government has announced it will allow technology from China's Huawei to be used in the UK's fifth generation mobile networks, but with restrictions. The Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's Zoe Kleinman discusses the implications.
(Photo: A dropper of essential oil. Credit: Getty Images)
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- Tue 28 Jan 2020 15:32GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service except Australasia