Organic wild oregano ethereal oil

Botanical name: Origanum Minutiflorum

Origin: Turkey

Extraction: Steam distilled

Plant part : Leaves

Scent: A dark brownish-red oil with herbaceous, spicy and strong aroma.

Aromatherapy: Highly antiseptic and an excellent anti-microbial, anti-oxidant and antibiotic. Mood uplifting; improves mental clarity and alertness, Helps open breathing passages. Disinfectant and repels insects.

Skin/bodycare: Loosens tight muscles, relieves muscle aches and pains, increases physical endurance and energy. Helps improve digestion. Promising anti-cancer activties. Heating; improves circulation, promotes perspiration, purifying, helps in the reduction of cellulite, waste material and excessive fluids from the body.

Blends well with: Lavender, pine, sage, citronella, rosemary, cedarwood, citrus oils.

Precaution:

• Dermal toxin, skin irritant, mucous membrane irritant. Avoid during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
• Not suitable for children under 2 years old.
• Do not use on hypersensitive, diseased or damaged skin. Maximum dilution on skin is 1.1%.
• Do not use with anti diabetic or anti coagulant medication because of cardiovascular effects.

There is much confusion concerning the exact botanical classification of the oregano species. There are over 70 varieties of oregano and plenty of subspecies; which only some of which are used to produce essential oils. Most of the commercial "oregano oil" is derived from the Spanish oregano (thymus capitatus) and to a lesser degree from the common oregano or wild marjoram.

Medicinal uses for oregano date back to the ancient Greek and Roman empires where applications of the leaves were used to treat such maladies as skin sores and relieve aching muscles and as an antiseptic. Oregano also has been used in traditional medicines for such ailments as asthma, cramping, diarrhea, and indigestion. In Greece and Turkey, an oregano infusion is still used as a folk remedy against colds and upset stomach and to maintain general health.

Origanum comes from the Greek words "oros" meaning mountain and "ganos", meaning joy. Oregano is a term that refers to members of Lamiaceae with many common characteristics, all of which contain carvacrol as the major component in their essential oils. Turkey is an important gene center for Lamiaceae family which is presented by 546 species. The endemism rate of Lamiaceae family in Turkey is 53%.

VIZÜ's oregano essential oil is wild harvested from one of Turkey's wild endemic species, known as minutiflorum. This endemic species are mainly found in mountainous areas of the Mediterrenean region of Turkey. Oregano Minutiflorum contains the highest level of carvacrol comparing to the other species of the plant. Carvacrol, the main active compound in oregano oil, is responsible for the strong pungent flavour that we associate with oregano, which is high anti bacterial and anti-fungal. This is perhaps why traditionally oregano is associated with purification and cleansing rituals.

Oregano herb has been traditionally used in the treatment of respiratory ailments, mouth and throat inflammation, headaches, toothaches, rheumatism, as an antibiotic, expectorant in bronchitis, antispasmodic, appetite stimulant, diuretic, diaphoretic, and as a mild sedative.

A number of studies support antibiotic, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and immune-stimulant properties, as well as carvacrol’s effects on digestive and cardiovascular health. Carvacrol is also used in the United States as a food additive, with demonstrated antiseptic and antioxidant properties in food preservation.

Today, oregano is one of the most widely used and researched herbs online. The antioxidant content of oregano is particularly noteworthy. In a U.S. Department of Agriculture study, oregano ranked higher than any other fruit or herb in antioxidant activity. Oregano has 42 times more antioxidants than apples, 12 times as much as those found in oranges, and 4 times the antioxidant content of blueberries. With its high antioxidant content, oregano may prove useful in combating the free radicals responsible for causing Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

As a folk remedy, oregano has been used to relieve colic, cough, headaches, nervousness, and toothaches. Modern herbalists use oregano as an oral antiseptic, to treat viral and bacterial infections, and as an anti-cancer agent. You can find our wild oregano essential oil as one of the many immuno-stimulent oils in VIZÜ's IMMUNITY aromatherapy blend.

Herbal Folk Tradition
Origanum comes from the Greek words "oros" meaning mountain and "ganos", meaning joy. The vast majority of wild oregano is concentrated in the Mediterranean, though it grows in Irano-Turanian and Euro-Siberian regions of the world, too. It also widely cultivated throughout the world.

Throughout most of history, oregano was more likely an apotherary's herb rather than the shelves of the kitchen cabinet. Medicinal uses for oregano date back to the ancient Greek and Roman empires, where leaves were used to treat different conditions, such as skin sores, aching muscles and as an antiseptic.

Hippocrates (500 BC) was aware of the antiseptic properties of oregano, and it is used for respiratory diseases and stomach pain. Dioscorides (1st century AD), the author of the famous for Materia Medica, has proposed oregano tea for snakebites. Paracelsus (16th century AD) suggested using oregano for the treatment of diarrhoea, psoriasis, and fungal diseases.

Historically, oregano was often associated with good luck and happiness. In Greek and Roman wedding ceremonies, brides and grooms often wore crowns fashioned from oregano branches. And oregano growing on a loved-one’s grave signified a happy afterlife for the deceased. Oregano has a long history as an aromatic flavouring for beer, before hops became the favored herb of mead-makers. Oregano flowers were also occasionally used to dye wool and linen cloth, though the resulting colour was not

particularly brilliant or lasting.

Mountain peasants in Sweden add oregano leaves to their ale to give it a more intoxicating quality and also preventing the ale from turning sour.

In China, diluted oregano oil is used to treat fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, jaundice and itchy skin conditions.