SNIFFING lavender for three minutes is being tested as a way to make trips to the dentist less scary for children.
Dental anxiety affects up to 43 per cent of children, say researchers at Erdogan University Training and Research Hospital in Turkey. They are running a clinical trial of the treatment involving 120 children, half of whom will inhale lavender oil for three minutes prior to dental work while the others will have a placebo.
Doctors conducting the trial say previous research has suggested lavender has a sedative effect. This is the first study to investigate the use of inhaled lavender oil during a surgical dental intervention.
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