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The use of lemon balm for medicinal purposes. Consuming lemon balm: benefits and harms

This plant has several names, popularly known as lemon aroma, lemon grass or lemon balm. Melissa – medicinal properties and the contraindications are well known to healers; the herb was used to treat insomnia, neurosis, and was added to drinks in some recipes for weight loss. This medicine is taken in the form of infusions, decoctions, the herb is added to baths, tea; in cosmetology, lemon balm essential oil is often used, which has a beneficial effect. therapeutic effect on the skin.

What is lemon balm

Melissa officinalis is a plant that belongs to the Lamiaceae family; it reaches a height of more than 50 centimeters. This perennial herb has an erect branching with a tetrahedral stem, opposite petiolate, heart-shaped, ovate, coarsely toothed leaves covered with soft hairs. Small pale pink or white flowers are located on short stalks. The plant blooms in the 2nd year of life in mid-summer. The fruits of the grass are 4 brownish ovoid nuts. The Mediterranean region is considered to be the birthplace of lemon balm.

The flower spread across Europe from Ancient Rome, where it was grown several thousand years ago. In the homeland of lemon balm, the grass is considered a weed; it grows, as a rule, in grassy areas, open forests, in shady bushes, on river banks and along roadsides. Now lemon balm grows actively in Russia, Central Asia, Ukraine, Caucasus, Crimea.

Chemical composition

Useful properties lemongrass have made it one of the most common medicines available to everyone. Few contraindications wide range medicinal positive effects associated with chemical composition herbs. The plant includes the following components:

  • resins;
  • flavonoids;
  • bitterness;
  • essential oils;
  • vitamins B, C, D;
  • tannins;
  • biologically active substances;
  • caffeic, rosmarinic acids;
  • macro- and microelements, for example: potassium, iron, zinc, selenium, copper, calcium, nickel, vanadium, molybdenum, chromium, manganese.

Benefits for the body

The beneficial properties of lemon balm extend to many body systems. The plant has sedative effect, has antispasmodic, sedative, hypnotic effect. It is recommended to take lemon balm tea to lower blood pressure or for heart disease; the herb has expectorant, anticonvulsant, astringent, and hypoglycemic medicinal properties.

Decoctions and infusions of this plant have proven themselves well in anti-inflammatory, antiviral and antimicrobial therapy; lemon balm has antiallergic and antioxidant effects. Medicines based on this herb contribute to:

  • decrease in heart rate;
  • improves appetite;
  • elimination of fermentation anomalies;
  • stimulate secretion gastric juice;
  • reductions blood pressure;
  • increased gastric motility (improves digestion);
  • activation of the intrasecretory function of the thyroid gland;
  • getting rid of unpleasant odor from the mouth;
  • normalization menstrual cycle;
  • migraine therapy, nervous disorders, insomnia, rheumatism, atherosclerosis, anemia, gout, bruises, flatulence, dermatitis, trophic ulcers, dyskinesia, pyelonephritis, cholecystitis.

Application of lemon balm

In folk medicine and many pharmaceutical drugs The medicinal properties of lemon balm are used. At different types pathologies use certain dosage forms plants. In some cases, baths with the addition of herbs will be much more effective than taking a decoction or infusion. Traditional medicine recipes are aimed at treating specific pathologies or maintaining the general health of the human body.

Treatment of viral diseases

The medicinal properties of medicinal mixtures from lemon balm help to cope with inflammation and colds. For respiratory ailments, flu, and fever, this herb is used. The plant has properties that help relieve fever, increase diaphoretic processes, and effectively fight almost all colds. Children over 3 years of age and adults are allowed to take decoctions and infusions (without alcohol).

For the kidneys

From medicinal raw materials based on lemon balm, you can prepare a solution that will help cope with hepatic colic. You need to take 125 g of dry herb and leave it in 0.5 liters of water for 1 hour. Drink the infusion on an empty stomach 3 times a day. There are no contraindications for taking the herb for kidney stones. The plant has an astringent effect. Has a diuretic and analgesic effect.

Melissa is not independent means treatment of this pathology, it is part of complex therapy. To enhance therapeutic effect herbs, additional components and plants are used. For the treatment of kidney stones, it is recommended to take a tincture of the herb according to the following recipe:

  • mix mint, lemon balm, chamomile flowers 1 tbsp. l.;
  • pour the collection with 200 ml of boiling water;
  • let it brew for about 30 minutes;
  • drink 200 ml per day.

For the nervous system

Folk recipes cooking plants have sedative effect. Infusions and decoctions are used in complex therapy for the treatment of nervous diseases. Plant components soothe nervous system, the medicine helps to cope with:

  • stress;
  • insomnia;
  • neuroses;
  • irritability.

Strengthening the immune system

Often the impetus for the activation of a cold or nervous disease is a weakened immune defense person. As long as the body is able to resist microbes, viruses do not manifest diseases in any way, so it is very important to maintain immunity. Melissa contains elements that help strengthen immune status, vitamins strengthen protection. Recommended during periods of possible epidemics colds drink lemon balm tincture for preventive purposes.

Melissa in folk medicine

The plant was originally used by traditional healers who noticed the wide range of medicinal properties of lemon balm. This is one of the most popular plants in folk medicine for preparing infusions, decoctions, and essential oils. The plant is used for tachycardia, melancholy, neuralgia, and, if necessary, to reduce the heart rate, relieve spasms and pain in the stomach, dizziness, and slow down breathing. Women often use lemon balm essential oils for rejuvenating baths.

Decoctions and infusions

There are several options for preparing lemon balm for oral administration. An infusion, decoction or tincture is prepared from medicinal raw materials. The preparation method is selected depending on the disease. The following cooking rules exist:

  1. Infusion. This option does not use alcohol; you will need water heated to 60 degrees Celsius. For 0.5 liters, add 8 teaspoons of lemon balm leaves. Pour everything into a thermos and leave for 6 hours so that the liquid is saturated with the medicinal properties of the plant. You need to drink 100 ml of the product 3 times a day. The infusion is recommended for use for: nervous diseases, overwork, gastrointestinal dysfunction, overexcitation, irritability, insomnia, gum pathologies. The remaining inflorescence of the plant is used to apply compresses for radiculitis, muscle pain, and bruises.
  2. Melissa tincture. The essential oil of the plant is highly soluble in alcohol. This is the basis for preparing tinctures. For 3 parts of vodka or 40% alcohol you need 1 part of raw materials. Infuse for 2 weeks in a sealed container. You need to drink the tincture orally for the treatment of pathologies that are included in the list of indications for treatment with lemon balm. The frequency of administration and dosage is selected individually by the doctor or traditional healer. The tincture has healing properties in the treatment of tinnitus, in this case it is instilled using a pipette, 4 drops in each ear canal.
  3. Decoction. For preparation you will need 500 ml of boiling water and 2 tablespoons of dry lemon balm leaves. After boiling, let the water cool for 5 minutes, place the herbs on the bottom of the glass container and fill with liquid. Cover the container with a lid and let the product brew for 30 minutes.

Melissa tea

Tea with this ingredient is excellent antiviral agent. It is acceptable to combine black or green varieties for brewing. This remedy is an option for the prevention of bronchopulmonary and colds. Good for brewing plants green tea and honey, it turns out delicious drink with lemon scent. Raw materials can be grown directly on your own plot at the dacha or found in some fields; ready-made harvests are also sold. Preparing tea is no different from the usual process of brewing a drink.

Contraindications

The medicinal properties of the plant are very versatile, they are used effectively traditional medicine. There are also some limitations that you need to know before use. It is not recommended to drink an infusion or decoction if:

  • There is a need to drive or control complex mechanisms. The medicine has a sedative effect, which can interfere with concentration and lead to an accident.
  • The child is less than 3 years old, fragile organism may react non-standardly to some properties of the plant;
  • Epilepsy has been diagnosed; this is a contraindication for taking the medication.
  • A person has allergic reaction or increased sensitivity to the components of the herb.
  • Diagnosed renal failure, this is a contraindication for taking the drug;
  • A person has low blood pressure sedatives for such pathology are contraindicated;
  • There are problems with potency. Frequent use of this drug leads to a decrease in sexual activity.

Video

Melissae folium is often called lemon balm - its smell is very similar to peppermint (Méntha piperita), but it has a spicy and tangy aroma of lemon. Other names for this plant are queenwort, bee mint, honeywort, “ladies' happiness.” The word “melissa” itself is translated from Greek as “bee” because it attracts and calms honey-bearing insects. If you are afraid of bee stings, rub it on the exposed parts of your body and no bees will sting you! Melissa tincture works in exactly the same way.

The experience of using lemon balm goes back over 3000 years. Avicenna believed that mint infusions and decoctions improve health and help get rid of brain blockage (that is, relieve spasms cerebral vessels) and from halitosis. Paracelsus, the founder of the modern pharmacopoeia, called this herb “gold among plants and the best that the earth has produced for the heart.”

Melissa is non-toxic and has no side effects. But her drugs are contraindicated in low blood pressure blood pressure and bradycardia (slow heart rate).

Whether in the garden, in the vegetable garden...

In nature, lemon balm grows in the Mediterranean, the Balkans, Asia and North Africa- there it is used not only for treatment, but also as a seasoning for national dishes and put its leaves in salads. In temperate climates, lemon balm is grown on plantations to obtain medicinal raw materials, bred in garden plots, and even grown as a houseplant.

Melissa is a perennial herb with a branched stem ranging from 30 to 70-80 centimeters in height and dark green leaves. From June-July to August it blooms with small white flowers collected in whorls on the tops of plants.

Lemon balm is collected before flowering - at this time it has the most pleasant aroma and has the strongest healing properties. In medicine, only the above-ground part of the plant is used - leaves and stems, cut not at the roots, but at a height of 15-20 cm from the ground.

Composition and medicinal properties

Lemon balm essential oil contains more than two hundred ingredients, one of which, citral, gives the plant its spicy lemon scent. The plant contains organic acids(coffee, rosemary, ferulic and others), trace elements (calcium, potassium, iron and magnesium, manganese, selenium, zinc, copper, chromium), flavonoids, vitamins C and B.

Unique complex biologically active substances lemon balm affects all systems of the body. Preparations made from it calm the nerves, relieve spasms and convulsions, act as a mild sedative for insomnia, nervous excitement and increased sexual excitability, cardiac neuroses, asthma, hypertension, migraines.

Melissa is also used in the following cases:

1 In coursework complex treatment digestive system, lemon balm is prescribed to increase appetite, it also reduces nausea and helps with flatulence.

2 For kidney inflammation, it is recommended as a natural antispasmodic and mild diuretic.

3 Externally, decoctions, infusions and tinctures of lemon balm are used for diseases of the joints, for fungus on the nails and skin and for other skin diseases(dandruff, enlarged pores, acne, rashes, pimples).

One of folk names lemon balm is a “mother liquor”, since preparations of this herb have been used since ancient times to treat female diseases. They are prescribed for painful periods and disorders monthly cycle due to ovarian dysfunction, with toxicosis of pregnant women (to reduce nausea) and with menopause.

How to make and use the tincture

Ready-made lemon balm tincture can be bought at a pharmacy, and its price is low. But if you have a dozen lemon balm bushes in your garden, you can prepare it at home. Alcoholic extract of lemon balm is made with vodka or alcohol diluted to vodka strength.

Grind the leaves and stems of the plant with a knife, scissors or in a coffee grinder (by the way, some herbalists advise grinding the herb with your hands, “asking” it for healing power). The better the raw material is crushed, the more useful substances will pass from it into the extract.

Prepare the tincture You can follow two recipes - with vodka or forty-proof alcohol and with diluted vodka.

1 A quarter glass (approximately 50 g) of the prepared raw material is poured with a glass (200 g) of vodka or alcohol. You can take less vodka, 100-150 grams, then the tincture will be more concentrated.

2 Required quantity chopped herbs pour 0.5 cups of vodka and 0.5 cups of water.

Regardless of the instructions you followed to make the tincture, seal the jar tightly and leave to infuse in a dark, dry place. Alcohol and vodka liqueurs prepare from a week to two weeks, a mixture of vodka and water - 2 weeks. The jar must be shaken daily, and when the tincture is ready, it must be strained and poured into a dark bottle.

Take the tincture 15-20 drops (depending on the strength of the infusion) three times a day before meals, like everyone else medicinal herbs. The course of treatment is from two weeks to a month, although it can be longer if the body responds well to it. Externally, lemon balm tincture is used for rubbing and compresses for gout, rheumatism, and for wiping the skin for pimples and acne. For compresses, it is recommended to dilute it so as not to burn the skin.

This medicinal plant known to people since ancient times. Many people wrote about him in their works. famous men, among whom were Avicenna, Pedanius Dioscorides and Pliny the Elder. Why is lemon balm tincture so useful? After reading the article, you will find out the answer to this question, and also familiarize yourself with several ways to make this healing remedy.

Medicinal herb, bearing the Latin name Melissa officinalis, grows almost everywhere in Russia. Its delicate citrus aroma makes it especially attractive to lovers of herbal teas, as well as excellent honey plant. Appearance it looks a little like ordinary mint. For future use, the plant should be harvested during its flowering, since at this time it contains the highest concentration of useful substances.

You can find out more about how this should be done by reading our other article.

Alcohol tincture differs from other methods of consuming medicinal herbs in that during its preparation all beneficial substances are preserved.

Melissa tincture: use in the treatment of various diseases

Melissa has a lot of healing qualities. Its use will have great benefit your body in the treatment of the following diseases:

You can learn more about the drug from our other article.

An alcohol-based infusion of lemon balm requires special application. Below are ways to use it: various diseases.

  • The tincture should be taken internally, about fifteen drops, mixing them with a small amount water. This should be done three times a day, fifteen minutes before meals. The duration of treatment is a month, then you should take a break for two weeks, and you can resume the course if necessary.

This method is perfect for treating diseases of the cardiovascular system, hypertension, headache and muscle pain, insomnia, nervous disorders, problems with memory and learning new material, diseases gastrointestinal tract, “female” diseases, increased irritability.

  • Externally, the product can be used for rubbing, compresses, and treating diseased areas of the skin. If the skin is very tender and sensitive, you need to dilute the drug with water.

This is how you should fight skin diseases, pimples, acne and other skin irritations, insect bites, joint pain, bruises and cuts.

Melissa tincture with vodka: recipe for oral administration

This remedy, not a drink, and should be taken according to the instructions above.

  • Fifty grams fresh leaves lemon balm
  • Two hundred fifty milliliters of vodka

Chop the leaves as finely as possible. They need to be ground in a mortar or simply crushed using sharp knife. Place the finished raw material in a bottle or jar and add the specified amount of vodka.

The future tincture should be placed in a place where there is no lighting and the temperature does not rise above +10°. A basement or cellar is suitable for this purpose. She should be there no less three weeks. Also, the bottle needs to be shaken every day to extract all the beneficial substances from the herb. When the product is ready, strain it through several layers of gauze.

Alcohol tincture of lemon balm: recipe for external use

This remedy is more for external use and is not recommended to be taken orally.

  • Two hundred milliliters medical alcohol
  • Fifty grams of fresh or dried lemon balm

If the herb is dry, you can grind it with your hands or grind it using a coffee grinder. Finely chop the raw grass. Pour the prepared base with alcohol and put it in a cool, dark place for two to three weeks. As in the previous recipe, the solution must be shaken every day, and then, after straining, pour into the prepared opaque glass container.

Tincture of lemon balm on moonshine - to the delight of you and your guests!

This is exactly a drink, and it can be consumed not as a medicine, but for the joy of the soul and body. Your guests will undoubtedly appreciate its mild taste and delicate citrus aroma.

  • Thirty grams of dry lemon balm herb
  • Two hundred grams of granulated sugar
  • One glass of boiling water
  • One liter of moonshine

Pour boiling water over the herb and leave for thirty minutes. Then add granulated sugar and stir until it is completely dissolved. When the base is ready, fill it with moonshine and leave in a cool place for several days.

Melissae folium is often called lemon balm - its smell is very similar to peppermint (Méntha piperita), but it has a spicy and tangy lemon scent. Other names for this plant are queenwort, bee mint, honeywort, “ladies' happiness.” The word “melissa” itself is translated from Greek as “bee” because it attracts and calms honey-bearing insects. If you are afraid of bee stings, rub it on the exposed parts of your body and no bees will sting you! Melissa tincture works in exactly the same way.

The experience of using lemon balm goes back over 3000 years. Avicenna believed that mint infusions and decoctions improve health and help get rid of brain blockage (that is, relieve spasms of cerebral vessels) and bad breath. Paracelsus, the founder of the modern pharmacopoeia, called this herb “gold among plants and the best that the earth has produced for the heart.”

Melissa is non-toxic and has no side effects. But her medications are contraindicated for low blood pressure and bradycardia (slow heart rate).

Whether in the garden, in the vegetable garden...

In nature, lemon balm grows in the Mediterranean, the Balkans, Asia and North Africa - there it is used not only for treatment, but also as a seasoning for national dishes and its leaves are put in salads. In temperate climates, lemon balm is grown on plantations to obtain medicinal raw materials, bred in garden plots, and even grown as a houseplant.

Melissa is a perennial herb with a branched stem ranging from 30 to 70–80 centimeters in height and dark green leaves. From June-July to August it blooms with small white flowers collected in whorls on the tops of plants.

Lemon balm is collected before flowering - at this time it has the most pleasant aroma and has the most powerful healing properties. In medicine, only the aboveground part of the plant is used - leaves and stems, cut not at the roots, but at a height of 15–20 cm from the ground.

Composition and medicinal properties

Lemon balm essential oil contains more than two hundred ingredients, one of which, citral, gives the plant its spicy lemon scent. The plant contains organic acids (caffeic acid, rosemary acid, ferulic acid and others), trace elements (calcium, potassium, iron and magnesium, manganese, selenium, zinc, copper, chromium), flavonoids, vitamins C and B.

The unique complex of biologically active substances in lemon balm affects all systems of the body. Preparations made from it calm the nerves, relieve spasms and convulsions, act as a mild sedative for insomnia, nervous excitement and increased sexual excitability, heart neuroses, asthma, hypertension, migraines. Melissa is also used in the following cases:

  1. In a course of complex treatment of the digestive system, lemon balm is prescribed to increase appetite, it also reduces nausea and helps with flatulence.
  2. For kidney inflammation, it is recommended as a natural antispasmodic and mild diuretic.
  3. Externally, decoctions, infusions and tinctures of lemon balm are used for diseases of the joints, for fungus on the nails and skin and for other skin diseases (dandruff, enlarged pores, acne, rashes, pimples).

One of the popular names for lemon balm is “mother plant,” since preparations of this herb have been used since ancient times to treat female diseases. They are prescribed for painful periods and irregularities in the menstrual cycle due to ovarian dysfunction, for toxicosis of pregnancy (to reduce nausea) and for menopause.

How to make and use the tincture

Ready-made lemon balm tincture can be bought at a pharmacy, and its price is low. But if you have a dozen lemon balm bushes in your garden, you can prepare it at home. Alcoholic extract of lemon balm is made with vodka or alcohol diluted to vodka strength.

Grind the leaves and stems of the plant with a knife, scissors or in a coffee grinder (by the way, some herbalists advise grinding the herb with your hands, “asking” for its healing power). The better the raw material is crushed, the more useful substances will pass from it into the extract. You can prepare the tincture according to two recipes - with vodka or forty-proof alcohol and with diluted vodka.

  1. A quarter glass (approximately 50 g) of the prepared raw material is poured with a glass (200 g) of vodka or alcohol. You can take less vodka, 100–150 grams, then the tincture will be more concentrated.
  2. The required amount of chopped herb is poured into 0.5 cups of vodka and 0.5 cups of water.

Regardless of the instructions you followed to make the tincture, seal the jar tightly and leave to infuse in a dark, dry place. Alcohol and vodka tinctures are prepared from a week to two weeks, a mixture of vodka and water - 2 weeks. The jar must be shaken daily, and when the tincture is ready, it must be strained and poured into a dark bottle.

Take the tincture 15–20 drops (depending on the strength of the infusion) three times a day before meals, like all medicinal herbs. The course of treatment is from two weeks to a month, although it can be longer if the body responds well to it. Externally, lemon balm tincture is used for rubbing and compresses for gout, rheumatism, and for wiping the skin for pimples and acne. For compresses, it is recommended to dilute it so as not to burn the skin.

Lemon balm oil and extracts are known for calming nerves and reducing stress. And lemon balm has exactly the same effect on our skin!

Synonyms: Melissa officinalis, Melissa Oil, Hydroessential Melissa, Oil Of Melissa Officinalis L., Melissa Officinalis Leaf Oil, Melissa officinalis (Melissa) Water, Melissa Officinalis Extract, Lemon Balm Extract. Patented formulas: Extrapone® Melissa, Bulgarian Melissa Oil, Melissa Hydrosol, Herbal Extract Melissa EG, Allplant Essence® Organic Melissa, Neo Extrapone® Organic Melissa, Akorganic® Lemon Balm, Herbalia® Balm Mint, Balm Leaf CO2-to extract (organic) , Botanical Complex SCA™, Specialty Lemon Balm, Premier Rosmarinic Acid 50%.

Effect of lemon balm in cosmetics

The action of lemon balm is determined by its unique composition - these are various kinds of terpenes and their aldehydes, as well as esters: nerol, citronellol, geraniol, β-pinene, sabinene, cymene, humulene, curcumene, germacrene citrol nellol acetate, geraniol acetate, caryophyllene oxide, etc. these substances allowed lemon balm oil and extracts become famous as powerful antioxidants and stimulators of epidermal regeneration. Thanks to these phytocompounds, lemon balm extract also has pronounced soothing, tonic, softening and anti-inflammatory properties.

Also, any products based on lemon balm have an anti-irritant and analgesic effect, and high concentrations oils or extracts impart to the final product quite pronounced antimicrobial and antifungal properties. Melissa essential oil also has a pronounced antiherpetic effect.

Water-soluble fraction essential oil lemon balm is used in perfumery - for the production of aromatic waters and tonics (completely natural, without solvents or solubilizers), but is especially well suited for the preparation of hydrosols, which are then added to lotions, tonics, etc. In addition to the function of creating the main smell of the product, this component also acts as an amplifier of other flavors. The aroma of lemon balm goes well with bergamot, mandarin, orange, neroli, patchouli, lavender, German chamomile, geranium, jasmine, ylang-ylang, kaput, Ravensara.

Who should use lemon balm?

This component is indicated for irritation and inflammation, and also perfectly helps with “tired skin” syndrome, acting as an anti-inflammatory tonic and relaxant at the same time. Melissa perfectly reduces skin itching, which allows it to be used for excessively dry or atopic skin. At the same time antibacterial properties lemon balm allows you to achieve good results in caring for oily skin with large pores or comedones.

The therapeutic properties of lemon balm (antimicrobial, fungicidal, antiviral, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antihistamine, immunostimulating) make it possible to successfully use it for various dermatological diseases allergic nature (for example, eczema). The components of lemon balm are recommended to be used medicinally for skin itching of various natures (urticaria or neurogenic skin itching).

Melissa is also used in aromatherapy: as a rule, for relaxation it is recommended to use a complex of lemon balm and lavender in a ratio of approximately 30% to 70%.

For whom is lemon balm contraindicated?

Melissa officinalis, which is used in cosmetics, is absolutely safe and does not cause irritation, toxic effects, etc. A strict contraindication is an individual hypersensitivity reaction.

Cosmetics containing lemon balm

As a rule, the commercial use of lemon balm is limited to skin care products, including cosmeceuticals, SPA segment, and massage products. It is also widely represented in perfumery and aromatherapy segment. As for hair care products, in this case lemon balm is used as a decoction or infusion at home - they perfectly relieve itching, dryness and prevent flaking of the scalp. According to the European Union Regulation, the maximum permissible concentration of this component in finished cosmetic products is 5%, hydroessence - from 0.005 to 0.3%.

Sources of lemon balm

Melissa officinalis is an unpretentious plant with many subspecies, which is found in many climatic zones. Melissa is cultivated as a garden plant for home use; for the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries it is grown in bioorganic fields. The collection of raw materials (leaves or lemon balm grass) is carried out immediately before the plant blooms, since during flowering its aroma and key characteristics are transformed.

100% pure lemon balm oil is one of the most valuable and expensive essential oils, since obtaining pure essential oil requires incredible large number raw materials. Thus, usually from 6,000-8,000 kg of raw materials, only one kilogram of high-quality essential oil is obtained at the output (mainly by steam distillation, less often by cold pressing, which most fully preserves unique properties raw materials). The water-soluble fraction of lemon balm essential oil is obtained through the molecular distillation method.

Melissa extracts are usually obtained using the CO2 extraction method. An aqueous glycol preparation is also obtained from the herb lemon balm, which is used in combination with a complex of water-based surfactants to create emulsions and hydroalcoholic cosmetic products.