Lavender essential oil aromatherapy in modulating psychological and clinical factors in smokers: a randomized double-blind clinical trial

Fallah, Maliheh; Zamani-Badi, Tayyebeh; Bakhshi-Kashi, Mostafa; Omidi, Abdollah; Esmaili-Shahzade-Ali-Akbari, Peyman; Ghaderi, Amir; Simani, Mehrdad

doi:10.22038/ajp.2026.27762

Lavender essential oil aromatherapy in modulating psychological and clinical factors in smokers: a randomized double-blind clinical trial

Articles in Press

Document Type : Short communication

Authors

Maliheh Fallah ¹

Tayyebeh Zamani-Badi ²

Mostafa Bakhshi-Kashi ³

Abdollah Omidi ⁴

Peyman Esmaili-Shahzade-Ali-Akbari ¹

amir ghaderi ⁵

Mehrdad Simani ⁶

¹ Department of Addiction Studies, School of Medical, AND Clinical Research Development Unit-Matini, Kargarnejad Hospital, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

² Anatomical Sciences Research Center, Institute for Basic Sciences, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

³ Student Research Committee, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

⁴ Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Kashan University of Medical Science, Kashan, Iran

⁵ Social Determinants of Health (SDH) Research Center, kashan University of Medical Sciences, kashan, Iran.

⁶ Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran.

10.22038/ajp.2026.27762

Abstract

Objective: Smoking is one of the major health issues in Iran and the rest of the world. Smokers deal with a number of medical problems. This study looked at how aromatherapy with lavender essential oil (Lavandula angustifolia) affected smoker's physiological and psychological markers.
Materials and Methods: This double-blind clinical trial included 80 smokers between the ages of 18 and 49. Participants were allocated at random to an intervention group receiving lavender essential oil and a control group receiving a placebo. They inhaled the assigned substance each night for 15 consecutive nights before bedtime. Primary outcomes included boredom, sleep quality, anxiety levels, and cognitive function, while secondary outcomes comprised physiological parameters like heart rate and blood pressure. All outcomes were assessed prior to and following the intervention.
Results: The findings indicated that the intervention group exhibited a significant decrease in anxiety, as quantified by the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS) (p=0.01), and an enhancement in sleep quality, as evaluated by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) (p=0.01). A notable reduction in systolic blood pressure was recorded in the intervention group (p=0.03). No significant changes were observed in heart rate, diastolic blood pressure, or other indices.
Conclusion: The findings of this research indicated that lavender essential oil can significantly alleviate anxiety and enhance sleep quality in smokers. This remedy can be considered a safe and effective alternative to pharmaceutical supplements for the psychological and physiological problems of smokers.

Keywords

Aromatherapy

Lavender

Anxiety

Sleep quality

Cognitive function

Smoking

Subjects