The Healing Power of Essential Oils – Exploring Their Antiviral and Antibacterial Properties

Essential oils offer a natural way to treat anxiety and depression, balance hormones more evenly, relieve digestive distress, reduce inflammation and build immunity – as Eric Zielinski shows in this comprehensive guide on using these potency herbs for living a healthier life.

Essential oils have long been used to treat everything from colds and flus to headaches and nausea – but recent research indicates that some oils may even help combat cancer.

Antiviral

There are various essential oils that contain antiviral properties and are naturally capable of killing viruses, making them useful in treating colds, flus and other viral infections.

Essential oils contain aldehydes or phenols which have the power to neutralize bacteria and fungi, making them effective treatments for many infectious conditions – as has been proven in clinical trials.

Tea tree, eucalyptus and thyme essential oils have become widely-renowned as potency antiviral essential oils, being proven effective against drug-resistant strains of viruses.

Melissa (also known as lemon balm) oil has long been revered as an effective antiviral remedy, according to various studies. Melissa can significantly decrease avian flu virus replication rates; this is important given that this virus requires hosts in order to survive and flourish.

Eucalyptus essential oil has proven its antiviral capabilities when diffused into the air or applied directly to skin, making it useful in cough and chest rubs, cleaners and soaps.

Cinnamon essential oil has also proven itself effective at relieving viral symptoms, with multiple studies revealing it can combat various strains of viruses. Furthermore, its anti-inflammatory properties allow it to help relieve congestion and other respiratory ailments.

Gingerroot, manuka, niaouli and ravintsara essential oils have also been demonstrated to have antiviral properties, and these blends may be diffused or applied directly onto the body for use as antiviral treatments.

Antibacterial

Essential oils are potent antibacterial and antiviral compounds that can be used to fight germs on your body, in the air or even soaps and cleaners. Eucalyptus oil can be applied directly onto cold sores for relief while an aromatherapy diffuser may help alleviate respiratory infections.

Essential oils possessing antimicrobial properties are due mainly to the presence of various chemical constituents, including aldehydes, phenols and terpenes. These substances were designed to defend plants against pathogenic microbes by killing or inhibiting their growth; in other words, essential oils help keep bacteria, fungi, viruses at bay.

These chemicals have various effects on bacterial cells, such as altering the permeability of lipid fractions of bacterial plasma membrane and inducing leakage of intracellular material into extracellular space. Some essential oils contain higher concentrations of these chemicals than others – it’s essential to know what you can expect before beginning treatment with any particular essential oil.

Researchers have demonstrated that lemongrass essential oil possesses antibacterial properties. It contains high concentrations of aldehydes which act as broad spectrum disinfectants capable of killing bacteria, fungi and viruses.

Tea tree oil has also been demonstrated to possess antibacterial properties, proving effective against various strains of bacteria, providing relief for common colds and respiratory problems.

Essential oils’ antibacterial properties are one of their greatest strengths, making them essential additions to any collection. Some effective antibacterial oils include eucalyptus oil, lemongrass oil and tea tree oil; alternatively you could combine multiple oils together into a powerful blend tailored specifically for your needs.

Antifungal

Essential oils (EOs) are volatile and liquid mixtures of natural compounds produced from plants and herbs through secondary metabolism. Essential oils find wide application in folk medicine, food flavouring/preservation industries as well as perfumeries.

There are various essential oils (EOs) with antifungal properties, including thyme oil, tea tree oil, peppermint oil and clove oil. All four may be applied topically for treatment of fungal infections but should first be mixed with carrier oil prior to application directly on skin.

Essential oils (EOs) can also improve air quality in your home by reducing moldy airborne particles. You can diffuse EOs using a vapor diffuser to create a clean and healthy atmosphere for yourself and your family.

Certain essential oils may be harsh on the skin, so before using them on your body it is a good idea to conduct a patch test in order to ensure there are no allergic reactions caused by using an essential oil product.

Carvacrol and thymol, two popular antifungal essential oils, have proven highly effective against various types of fungi. Both chemicals work by targeting sterols present in their membrane, damaging and killing them as a result.

Oregano, thyme and rosemary essential oils contain antifungal properties which can be combined with other essential oils that boast these attributes to form tailored blends tailored specifically for you.

Importantly, some forms of fungi may be resistant to essential oils; so it’s wise to seek medical advice prior to trying essential oils on any fungal infection. If successful in using essential oils regularly in air vents around your home, that will only increase its efficacy further.

Anti-inflammatory

Essential oils are an effective natural remedy against inflammation. They reduce swelling by inhibiting various signal pathways associated with inflammation – such as NF-kB, MAPK and AKT – as well as alleviate oxidative stress and limit the release of various cytokines.

Thyme, clove, eugenol and peppermint essential oils are effective anti-inflammatory essential oils that work by decreasing COX-2 enzyme activity within the body – an enzyme responsible for producing prostaglandins responsible for inflammation, fever and pain.

An American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology study showed that essential oils like thyme, clove, eugenol or peppermint reduced COX-2 production by 75% in mice models of inflammation. Furthermore, their effectiveness could also be seen.

Essential oils such as ginger, helichrysum and Roman chamomile can also help alleviate inflammation symptoms in the body by increasing blood circulation to affected areas and providing a warming sensation that soothes.

Inflammation is your body’s way of protecting itself and trying to heal itself when something has gone amiss; whether that means overworking, stress or straining too hard. Your inflammation symptoms could be the body’s way of protecting itself against harm and trying to repair itself.

Uncontrolled inflammation can be dangerous; it can erode your immunity and make illness more likely. The key is identifying its source and treating it accordingly with anti-inflammatory medication.

Review of 15 articles showed that essential oils from traditional Chinese medicine show outstanding effectiveness at inhibiting inflammation-triggering signal pathways such as NF-kB, MAPK, AKT and oxidative stress. They could reduce TNF-a, IL-6 and IL-1b levels in inflammation models while simultaneously decreasing ROS levels under oxidative stress conditions.

Detoxifying

Essential oils can help detoxify the body through multiple means, most frequently through topical application to the skin as a massage oil, bath dilution or diffused diffusion in your home.

Essential oils can help detoxify the body if they’re used correctly and in an appropriate setting, like peppermint oil in your shower to unclog airways and flush away toxins from your system.

Lemon essential oil is an ideal way to cleanse the liver and increase hydration levels, while acting as a powerful antioxidant against free radicals, thus decreasing risks associated with oxidative stress and premature ageing.

As other detoxifying essential oils such as clove and cinnamon have both antibacterial and soothing digestive properties, helping soothe digestive issues while eliminating harmful pathogens from the body, they’re excellent tools to support better digestion and lower stress levels.

Rosemary essential oil offers many health and wellbeing advantages, from protecting DNA against damage to helping detoxify the body and strengthening immunity and memory performance. Furthermore, its use has also been found to decrease the risk of autoimmune conditions.

CBD oil is known for easing inflammation and improving mood. You can use it in various forms – for instance on your scalp with carrier oil and even in foot baths!

Reactions such as rashes, redness and blisters could be due to what’s known as a “detoxification response” (Marieb, 2014). This means the body is eliminating unwanted substances through perspiration – but less than 1% of toxins actually leave through this route.