All about lavender > Medicinal properties

Folk medicine attributes sedative, antiseptic, healing, stomachic and relaxant properties to Lavandula officinalis.

It is also antispasmodic and diuretic.

A light infusion will provide relief from headaches and stabilize blood pressure.

Its benefits have been recognized since antiquity. The Romans used lavender in their baths, the relaxing effects of which they enjoyed after battle.

Its insecticide properties are legendary. Lavender was used to purify the air of houses in the Middle Ages, and still today in Provence, hunters rub lavender leaves or flowers on dogs' wounds if they are bitten by a snake. In fact, lavender juice immediately minimizes the effect of venom. 

During the time of the Crusades, St. Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century German mystic and polymath, advocated the use of lavender in treating sword wounds.  

In the 14th century, because of its disinfectant properties, lavender was used in fumigation, plasters and perfumed carpets in houses and churches to keep away the plague. 

Note that many properties are related to the essential oil and not to the fresh flower.