Shanghai Star. 2001-07-12

This young woman's loneliness is dispelled by rose petals at the salon.

Obesity, sterility, depression all banished by fragrant plant oils

SUMMER is not lenient with obese people. The slightest movement of their bodies results in a great deal of sweating, which makes an embarrassing situation worse.

There are various methods to lose weight. But choosing the perfect way sometimes seems even more important than the amount of weight lost, said Xu Chenhua, a physician.

Try lying in the tub, washing the plump body with warm water mingled with essential oils exstracted from plants, which give off an aroma - this is a novel way to lose weight.

Li, a young woman in her 20s, has bitter memories of her frustrating efforts to lose weight.

However, after a friend's recommendation that she go to an aromatherapy salon, Li not only regained mental calm but is improving her figure.

"Aromatherapy is a totally different weight-loss method," Li said. "The process seems more poetic and treatment from the therapist dispels the loneliness you encounter."

Li added that the fragrance of Lavender oil wiped away her anxiety and bestowed on her a feeling of security.

Li is one of over 300 members of Yi Ling Aromatherapy Salon, the first aromatherapy salon in Shanghai.

Rose Bi, founder of Yi Ling, said aromatherapy was unheard of until 1998; it was a rare method, as its unique way of using the fragrance of plants was regarded by many as dubious.

However, after years of development and promotion, many celebrities take it as one of the most effective ways of keeping fit, and, more people are turning to the treatment just as Li did.

The core part of the therapy is to apply several kinds of plant oil essential to the specific part of the body.

"Fragrance is the soul or spirit of the plants; it has the magic to awaken the body from a dormant and lazy state," Bi said.

China is the first country in history to use aroma as a treatment. Two thousand years ago information about the treatment was recorded.

However, the treatment was later forgotten. Aromatherapy was more often read about as being the privilege of Egyptian queens than as a method of treating the common people.

Post-modern society's anxiety about chemicals and synthetics has revived aromatherapy.

In the late 1980s, it came back to the ordinary life of Europeans, with the most advanced equipment and technologies to make the treatment's effects more obvious, Bi said.

The magic ability of plants to cure is rediscovered and employed in the process of reshaping the body.

During treatment, which lasts 90 minutes, the first step is aromatic fumigation. With the help of a set of steamers, several drops of essential oil and clean water will penetrate the pores of the skin.

Black pepper and lemon can help the body evacuate extra fat without even slightly harming the skin or tissue.

The therapist will then tell the person to open up not only physically but mentally.

The mood of the person will certainly affect absorption of the essentials. It is a kind of body-and-mind treatment.

The second step is to let the person perspire with the help of the steamers.

Through sweat, the body can release superficial dirt and toxins in the hypoderm. And the water drops condensed from the steam will wash waste off the body.

After the two steps, the person will have a feeling of relief, so a short period of rest is arranged to prolong such feelings.

About 15 to 20 minutes later, the last and most important step will start. The therapist will smear the combination of several essential oils on the parts that need slimming. Then therapists will employ a well-trained method to scrub specific parts.

To be an aromatherapist requires one to a good beautician. Hand massage is crucial to the treatment, so only years of experience as an beautician can guarantee the quality of hand massage.

After 20 such massages, all members receiving treatment gained more slender waists.

One female private enterprise owner's waist measurement reached 2.2 chi (0.73 metres) from the previous 2.8 chi (0.93 metres).

"Obesity injured my self-confidence, so I came. After 15 treatments, I lost 15 kilograms and I can now buy middle-sized clothing," Li said.

Apart from losing weight, aromatherapy has other magic effects. It can revive female bodies and endow them with the chance of pregnancy.

As has been mentioned, the essential oil acts as a plant hormone. It helps awaken the dormant hormone in the human being's body, Rose Bi said.

Another member, surnamed Chen, used to suffer from sterility, but after a year of treatment involving uterus massage, she conceived.

"Chen has given birth and is receiving postpartum slimming treatment," Rose Bi said.

Yi Lin Aromatherapy Salon

Add: 5F, Jianguo Hotel,

439 Caoxi Beilu

One year's membership: 1,000 yuan ($120)

Tel: 6439-9299 ext 3617, 64431067