Interesting study, but I’m a little skeptical about the self-reported outcomes like better sleep and less stress. Since everyone knew which group they were in (because of the oil’s smell and feel), couldn’t the placebo effect play a big role here? How do we know the improvements weren’t just because people expected the oil to help, rather than it actually working? The objective measures (like gene stuff) seem solid, but the subjective ones feel shaky without blinding. Did the authors address this anywhere?
