美容護膚別亂搞，越來越多人因植物精油中毒

Essential oils are a popular choice for people keen to remedy a wide variety of ailments, from minor infections to stress. But new data indicate that people are increasingly putting their health at risk when they turn to these fragrant, volatile plant extracts.
人們在治療各種疾病（如輕微感染、壓力大）時喜歡選擇精油，但新的數據顯示這些芳香的具有揮發性的植物提取物的使用對健康的危害會越來越大。
A new analysis from Australia, based on records from a poisons centre in the state of New South Wales, has revealed an increase in the number of essential oil poisonings in recent years, with more than half of calls to the centre regarding children.
澳大利亞一項新的分析依據新南威爾士州毒藥中心的記錄發現，近年來精油中毒事件有增加的趨勢，該中心接到的來電中一半以上涉及兒童。
University of Sydney researchers identified 4,412 cases of essential oil exposure dating between July 2014 and June 2018, and broke them down into times, type of oil, changes over time, and the characteristics of the affected individual.
悉尼大學研究人員確認了在2014年7月份至2018年6月份之間有4,412例精油接觸病例，然後依據時間、精油類型、隨時間所產生的變化以及受影響個人的特徵進行了分析。
They found that from 2014 to 2015, 1,011 calls were made to the centre by individuals or parents representing a potential poisoning. In 2017 to 2018, that number was up by more than 16 percent, to 1,177 cases.
他們發現2014年至2015年間，中心接到了1,011通本人或父母來電，報告疑似中毒情況。2017年至2018年間病例漲幅超過16%，達到1,177例。
Most of the poisonings – 80 percent – were purely accidental, mistaking the bottle for another pharmaceutical like a cough syrup. Only around 2 percent resulted from intentionally taking the essential oil based on misinformation.
大多數中毒病例（80%）純屬偶然，將精油瓶誤當成止咳糖漿等藥物的瓶子了。只有約2%是因爲理解錯誤而服用精油。
Perhaps most concerning was that in 63 percent of cases, the person who was affected was under the age of 15.
可能最令人擔心的是在63%的病例中，受影響的人年齡都不到15歲。
"The onset of toxicity can be rapid, and small quantities (as little as 5 millilitres) can cause life-threatening toxicity in children," the researchers write in their report.
研究人員在報告中寫道：“毒性發作可能很快，小劑量（低至5毫升）的毒性都會威脅兒童的生命。”
Being essential doesn't make the oils important, so don't let the description fool you. The 'essence' refers to the volatility of the oils, which are removed by heating particular botanicals, often in a steam distillation process.
純植物的精油不一定就好，所以不要再被商品描述矇蔽了。“精油”通常是油在蒸汽蒸餾過程中的揮發性物質，通過加熱特定的植物去除。
That means a fragrant plant, such as lavender, peppermint, or eucalyptus, has its aromatic compounds concentrated into a form which is then sold for use in oil burners and vaporisers.
這就意味着是把薰衣草、薄荷或桉樹等香料植物的芳香化合物濃縮後出售，放在薰香器和香薰蒸發器中使用。
Not all oils are of equal concern, either. Most commonly essential oils produce skin irritations or contact dermatitis. Others contain naturally occurring compounds known as endocrine disruptors, which have the potential to interfere with our hormones in unwanted ways.
但也不是所有精油都有同樣的問題，大部分常見的精油會刺激皮膚或造成接觸性皮炎。其他的含有名爲內分泌干擾物的天然化合物，會干擾我們的激素分泌，對身體造成損害。