Essential Oil of Japanese Cedar ( Cryptomeria japonica ) Wood Increases Salivary Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate Levels after Monotonous Work

Eri Matsubara, Yuko Tsunetsugu, Tatsuro Ohira and Masaki Sugiyama
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Eri Matsubara: Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba 305-8687, Japan
Yuko Tsunetsugu: Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba 305-8687, Japan
Tatsuro Ohira: Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba 305-8687, Japan
Masaki Sugiyama: Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba 305-8687, Japan

IJERPH, 2017, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Employee problems arising from mental illnesses have steadily increased and become a serious social problem in recent years. Wood is a widely available plant material, and knowledge of the psychophysiological effects of inhalation of woody volatile compounds has grown considerably. In this study, we established an experimental method to evaluate the effects of Japanese cedar wood essential oil on subjects performing monotonous work. Two experiment conditions, one with and another without diffusion of the essential oil were prepared. Salivary stress markers were determined during and after a calculation task followed by distribution of questionnaires to achieve subjective odor assessment. We found that inhalation of air containing the volatile compounds of Japanese cedar wood essential oil increased the secretion of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-s). Slight differences in the subjective assessment of the odor of the experiment rooms were observed. The results of the present study indicate that the volatile compounds of Japanese cedar wood essential oil affect the endocrine regulatory mechanism to facilitate stress responses. Thus, we suggest that this essential oil can improve employees’ mental health.

Keywords: Cryptomeria japonica; wood; essential oil; salivary biomarkers; DHEA-s (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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