Aroma therapy as an infant sleep aid: Does it work?
If you trawl the internet for the perfect infant sleep aid you might find claims about lavender oil. A number of studies have shown that people exposed to the scent of lavender feel more relaxed and spend a greater percentage of time in deep sleep (e.g., Goel et al 2005). There is also a recent study reporting that mothers who bathed their young infants in water scented with lavender-scented bath oil were more relaxed, touched their infants more often, and smiled at their infants more often (Field et al 2007). The infants, in turn, looked at their mothers more. They cried less often and spent more time in deep sleep after the bath. Both mothers and infants showed reduced levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) after bath-time. These results make lavender sound like a great infant sleep aid, but its not clear that the lavender is directly responsible for the soothing effects. A study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology tested the possibility that lavender aromatherapy
