The Effectiveness of Juniper and Thyme Essential Oils in Reducing the Physiological Symptoms of Test Anxiety in Medical Students

Objective: Medical students struggle with exam anxiety, which negatively affects cognitive and academic performance. Aromatherapy has become popular as an alternative to pharmacological treatments. This study examines how juniper and thyme essential oils psychophysiologically affect undergraduate students' exam anxiety. Juniper and thyme aroma inhalation was tested on asprosin, cyclic guanosine monophosphate response element binding protein (CREB), cortisol, and exam anxiety in students taking exams. Method: A random sample of 80 healthy students aged 18-25 from the Faculty of Medicine was collected during final exams. Participants were their own controls, and saliva was collected before and after aromatherapy. Saliva samples were tested for asprosin, CREB, and cortisol using ELISA. Heart rate, oxygen saturation, systolic pressure, diastolic pressure, and body temperature were monitored before and after aroma inhalation. Findings: According to the findings of this study, juniper and thyme aromatherapy were effective in increasing the average saliva levels of Asprosin, CREB, and cortisol hormones, with the most significant decrease observed in the groups receiving juniper aromatherapy (p