Essential Oils as an EHM

By Anonymous

 



    This photo is from a blog in which the author is discussing her preferences for essential oils. This screenshot is from the section on "top oil choices for viruses," and includes a written blurb that explains why "Young Living" is her top choice, as well as a photo from an advertisement from "Young Living." It reads: "Viruses (including Ebola) are no match for Young Living Essential Oils." I am applying this image and the general movement around essential oils as medical care as a form of embodied health movements as outlined by Claire Decoteau.

    Decoteau defines embodied health movements (EHMs) as the following: "they introduce the biological body into social movements, challenge existing medical knowledge and practice, and involve collaborations between activists and scientists" (Decoteau 2017: 170). Starting first with bringing the body into social movements, one can see this reflected in the image through the author's statement that oils helped people with the Black Plague, and thus it could help with Ebola. They are bringing in the "bodied" experiences to the forefront of the movement for essential oils. Just as the Somali discussed their personal experiences with changes in autism to argue for its Western basis, this author is discussing personal experiences with using essential oils to argue for its use in virus protection. In challenging existing medical knowledge and practice, the blurb in the image can be seen doing that when it states "I don't think they know everything about this rapidly mutating virus." Essential oils in and of themselves are criticized by science when used for medicine and thus the movement itself goes against medical knowledge, but the quote is more of an intentional movement. The author is undermining the medical idea that Ebola is not airborne. Finally, when looking at the collaborations between activists and scientists, one can look at the narrative that Young Living places forward. On their website they claim that their oils, specifically the ones pictured, are backed up by science. All in all, each part of the EHM is represented within the essential oil movement and this photo.









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