Effect of aromatherapy using Salvia officinalis on sleep quality of postmenopausal women

One of the most common problems in menopausal women is sleep disturbance that can lead to reduced quality of life. Therefore this study was performed with aim to investigate the effect of Salvia officinalisaroma on sleep quality of postmenopausal women.

This double-blind randomized clinical trial study was performed on 60 postmenopausal women referred to Kermanshah health centers in 2019. The subjects were randomly assigned into two groups of intervention and control (n=30 in each group). The subjects in the intervention group, for 3 consecutive nights in a week, for one month, 2 drops of essential oil of salvia that existed in a dropper poured on a cotton ball in the form of a neck pendant, and inhaled before sleep and removed from the neck after awakening. The control group also used placebo in the same way. Before and after the intervention, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was completed by both groups. Data were analyzed by SPSS software (version 20) and Chi-square, Kolmogorov Smirnov, independent t, Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney tests. P

The mean score of sleep quality before the intervention was similar in both groups (p = 0.191). But after the intervention, the mean score of sleep quality in aromatherapy group (3 ± 1.57) was significantly decreased compared with control group (7.13± 1.33) (p <0.001) and aromatherapy led to the improvement of sleep quality in the intervention group.

Aromatherapy using salvia officinalishas a significant effect on improving sleep quality in postmenopausal women. Therefore, given that postmenopausal women have sleep disorder, it is suggested that this method be used as a useful method for improving sleep quality and health promotion.