Oregano Home Remedies

Herb: OREGANO Origanum vulgare


When I think oregano, I think pizza, Italy and the Simpson's episode when Marge didn't think "Or-uh-gahn-o' was a real spice (Simpson's Chili Cook Off Episode). But oregano is used for more than just food, by more people than just Italians, and has very little to do with a sassy cartoon family.

Oregano is a close relative of marjoram (often called wild marjoram) and is savory herb with a powerful, peppery flavor. Oregano has been prescribed as a home remedy by both the ancient Greeks and Chinese. Hippocrates used the herb as an antiseptic and a cure for stomach and respiratory problems. In China, it was used to relieve fevers, vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice and even itchy skin. There are compounds found in oregano that help loosen phlegm in the lungs and relieve spasms in bronchial passages, therefore, it is an expectorant.

How can oregano be used as a home remedy?

• Digestion: Well, you have most likely already used it to cook with, but now you will know it will help aid in digestion and may help reduce heartburn. 
• Mood Lifter: Adding it to pizza or pasta dishes (anything really) will help lift your spirits. If you're feeling a little down in the dumps eating some oregano could help boost your happiness. You can even put some in a glass of water and drink it down. 
•  Brunette Hair Color: Not that you have grey hairs, but when you get some (years from now, of course) and if you have brown hair, then oregano is the herb for you. Oregano, sage, black tea, rosemary, and/or instant coffee. Pick one or a combination of the above, mix with boiling water, let steep for 30 minutes (not instant coffee though), let cool. Strain the water, pour over hair - try and catch the runoff in a bowl or basin so that you can repeat the rinse over and over until you get your desired color. 
• Nervous Stomach: Stomach all tied up in knots over something? A tea brewed with 1/4 tsp of oregano and 1/2 tsp of marjoram, steeped in 1 cup of boiling water for 10 minutes should settle that feeling. If it doesn't work within two hours, go ahead and have another cup of the same tea - that should do the trick. 
• Toothache Relief: If you happen to be lucky enough to have a green thumb (surprisingly enough, I have been cursed with instant-plant-death-thumb) and you grow oregano in your garden you can chew the leaves for temporary relief for a toothache. 
• Wrinkles: I'm an essential oil cheerleader. I love them. If you do too and happen to have oregano oil, it is said to help prevent wrinkles. 

I hope you enjoy these and please let me know if you have any more ideas, suggestions or if you try one of them out. Cheers to oregano!

References:

www.herbworld.com/learningherbs

Healing Remedies, Joan Wilen and Lydia Wilen ISBN 978-0-345-52150-7

Herbs (Eyewitness handbook), Lesley Bremness ISBN 1-56458-497-6

Rosemary Home Remedies

Herb: ROSEMARY Rosmarinus officinalis

The first time I fell in love with rosemary is when my college roommate used it to season some fresh, aquaponic tilapia. You’re thinking, college? Really? Well, I have never been much of a cook and I was just lucky enough to have a roomie who loved it, er, well, was at least good at it. Many recipes and meals later, I have had my fair share of rosemary but just recently I found a way to use rosemary in a different way – as a home remedy.

Rosemary has been used for more than just cooking for years.  Rosemary has tremendous home remedy powers. Not only has it often been thought of as an herb to improve the memory but it has an old reputation as a symbol of remembrance. It has been used for its symbolism in both weddings and funerals – either a sprig thrown into the grave for memory of the loved one or a crown of rosemary on a bride’s head as a love charm.  The use of rosemary in weddings dates back all the way to the Middle Ages!

This savory herb is antiseptic, which helps fight infections, and is full of antioxidants, which helps both, preserve food and aids in the digestion of fats.  It’s high in iron, calcium and B6.  Studies show rosemary leaves increase circulation, reduce headaches and fight bacterial and fungal infections.  Rosemary is rejuvenating and aids in clear thinking by increasing the flow of blood to the head.  It also helps with colds that come with a nasty fever and headaches by clearing mucus and relieving air passages and lungs.

I’m sure you have some rosemary in your kitchen cabinet or spice rack, so now what can you do with it besides cooking?

•  Cellulite Remover:  If you’re feeling adventurous and have some time on your hands – rosemary stimulates circulation and drains impurities and it’s said it can help with that unsightly cellulite (that none of us have….). Take 1 TB of crushed dried rosemary with 2 TB extra virgin olive oil – smooth over thighs, wrap in plastic wrap and leave on for 10 min – rinse off – repeat once a week
•  Eye Wash:  Ever have tired, stressed eyes? 1tsp of rosemary in boiling water, steep for 10 min, saturate cotton pads with tea and put on eyes for 15 min, rosemary should help draw out that tired eye feeling. Try doing this while taking a relaxing bath!
•  Throat Gargle: Suffering from a sore throat? Steep rosemary in boiling water for 30 minutes (preferably longer if you can) and keep the cup or bowl covered. Let cool and gargle with what we call an ‘infusion.’ Do this a few times throughout the day.
•  Fixture Cleaner: Need a cleanser for your fixtures in a pinch? Boil a handful of rosemary in 2 cups of water for 10 minutes to make an antiseptic solution for washing bathroom fixtures.
•  Headache Ease: If you have a headache, rub some rosemary essential oil on your temples and at the nape of your neck. No essential oil on hand? Boil some water, pour it over some dried rosemary leave but don’t let them soak! Put the wet leaves in cheesecloth or even a paper towel or thin cloth. This will be a compress – put this on your head or where ever your headache is coming from.

      

     *Books I used during research advised - avoid consuming large quantities if pregnant or breast feeding; don’t use during first trimester – could cause miscarriage*

      References:
      www.herbworld.com/learningherbs
      Herbs (Eyewitness Handbook), Lesley Bremness ISBN 1-56458-497-6
      Healing Remedies, Joan Wilen and Lydia Wilen, ISBN 978-0-345-52150-7
      Traditional Home RemediesSearch Amazon.com for herbs, Martha White, ISBN 078354868-0

Body Scrub & Sugar Face Scrub

Ok, I know my first blog post ever promised a Kitchen Series - and I warn you, this is not the first post for the kitchen series. No, I didn't start my blog career off with a lie - I plan to start and complete the kitchen series fully but I know a lot of things will come up between posts. This blog will serve as sort of a public journal of my trial and errors of making herbal remedies. There is no specific timeline for imagination and sporadic motivation so you'll just have to keep checking back for the beginning of the kitchen series!

Onward to my Sunday night experiments -

Body Scrub:

This body scrub recipe came from an e-book I downloaded from www.herbmentor.com. A great and wonderful resource for aspiring herbalists! The ingredients said you could use course or fine salt. I only had course so I took my chances. I also used rose hip oil for the first time (I LOVE rose hips and make infusions out of them all the time but that is for another post). It has quite the strong scent, not bad, but strong - strong enough to overpower my essential oils, which in this batch, I chose eucalyptus and lavender.

The rose hip oil turned the whole scrub orange, which is fine, but it makes me want to make another batch and use orange essential oil. The process of making the scrub was very simple. When I finally got the chance to try it out, I was careful not to literally scrub my body with it. Since it's course salt I wanted to make sure not to damage or irritate my sensitive skin. But I did go to town on my heels and my feet and they feel absolutely heavenly now! In the shower you want to watch out for the salt that's rinsing from your body - make sure it goes down the drain and you're not stepping all over it through the rest of shower. Also, I would recommend you use the scrub after you use your regular soap or body wash. This scrub will leave you feeling a bit oily, but I say embrace it! Our skin is like a big sponge - and in the shower or bath our pores are even more susceptible to the lotions, soaps and washes we put on it.

Although I felt slightly oily (not overwhelmingly so) for a bit after my shower, my skin absorbed it right up. And with that, my body took in vitamin A - which can help delay the effects of aging skin, promotes collagen, and assists with cell regeneration. The high amounts of vitamin E and fatty acids help promote beautiful, healthy skin too.

Next time, what will I do different? A different, less pungent carrier oil - possibly sweet almond oil or grapeseed oil. And a different, stronger essential oil.

Sugar Face Scrub:

This recipe came from the same e-book as the recipe for the body scrub. It called for organic fine sugar. Well, unfortunately this product wasn't already in my cabinet and I wasn't quite sure where to find it. I went to a local store that sells local products along with other natural and organic products. They had organic sugar - made from evaporate cane juice. I decided to roll with it.

I mixed this with rose hip oil and tea tree essential oil (it varies from person to person but my face responds well to tea tree). This was all I had to do - but as I mixed the oil and the sugar, the sugar would start to dissolve. I used a lot more oil than the recipe called for, and I even added a bit of sweet almond oil because I ran out of my rose hip oil. The final product still looked more sugar heavy than it ought to have been but I put it in a jar and labeled it done.

When I used it, it did feel dry but I could feel the oil on my face as it rinsed. My face felt well exfoliated and moisturized for the night. We will see in a few weeks how my skin actually responds to it (will acne decide to rear its ugly head?).

If you have naturally oily skin (and most likely you hate it and try to avoid any kind of extra oil) don't be afraid of these products! These kinds of oils carry essential vitamins, fatty acids and other nutrients that the body and face just crave. If I'm wrong about you in particular, which could happen because every one is different, we'll work together to find a more drying product for you. That sounds like a future post.....

What to change for next time? Probably buy a different kind of sugar. But maybe all sugar will dissolve like that - I just won't know until I try it again, and I intend to.

Kitchen Series

Did you know that herbs in your kitchen cabinets or spice racks can be used for more than just spicing up your meals? Cinnamon, rosemary, black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic, parsley and others all can be used to treat ailments, prevent certain conditions and much more.

For about a year now I have been reading books, websites and other blogs about herbs and their medicinal uses. Some herbs I didn't even know existed in the world and some I can't even properly pronounce! It's nice to have this new, interesting knowledge but sometimes I just want to know - what can I do with the stuff I already have?

I will start my new blog career off with a 10 part Kitchen Series - a blog post dedicated to one herb you most likely already have and if you don't, you can just visit your local grocery store and pick some up.

Be on the look out for the first Kitchen Series herb - Rosemary!