Essential oil characteristics and effects, but also the products of the very same tree can vary grossly. Lavender oil has long been used in the production of perfume. However, it can be estrogenic and antiandrogenic, causing problems for prepubescent boys and pregnant women, in particular. Lavender essential oil is also used as an insect repellent. Rose oil is produced from the petals of "Rosa damascena" and "Rosa centifolia". Steam-distilled rose oil is known as "rose otto", while the solvent extracted product is known as "rose absolute". The potential danger of an essential oil is sometimes relative to its level or grade of
Essential oil themselves, modern works typically discuss specific chemical compounds of which the essential oils are composed. For example: methyl salicylate rather than "oil of wintergreen". Interest in essential oils has revived in recent decades with the popularity of aromatherapy, a branch of alternative medicine that uses essential oils and other aromatic compounds. Oils are volatilized, diluted in a carrier oil and used in massage, diffused in the air by a nebulizer, heated over a candle flame, or burned as incense. Medical applications proposed by those who sell medicinal oils range from skin treatments to remedies for cancer and often are based