EDITORIAL

摘要

Discussions that explore the validity of attributing specific therapeutic activities to individual chemical components within an essential oil have lead to heated debates in the past and no doubt will continue to do so for some time. It all started about 15 years ago with the introduction of functional group theory, which ascribed specific therapeutic or toxicological properties to individual functional group families. It originated in France and quickly became adopted in many countries as an easy method of linking chemistry with therapeutic activity. Until this time, the effects of the composition of essential oils upon their activity had not been explored to any extent and as a teaching tool, the theory proved a useful introduction to this complex field. However, it soon became apparent to many that the theory made sweeping generalisations and was inaccurate. Even today, there are some educators who cling rigidly to the original concept and it has been reproduced in many text books.