Chamomile Oil Showing Promise in the Fight Against Cancer
Chamomile Essential Oil Shows Amazing Promise In Cancer Fight
Chamomile, a healing plant well known for its proven ability to calm and soothe, is the source for an essential oil that has many health benefits.
The name “chamomile” is derived from a Greek word meaning “earth apple.” It has been used for centuries in herbal medicine practice, and these days it is very popular in aromatherapy. Modern scientific research is revealing more and more fascinating details about how and why the ingredients in this herb have such significant healing properties.
One of the most interesting benefits of chamomile oil extract is this – research indicates that it holds promise for aiding in the battle against cancer.
There are two main types of chamomile – Roman chamomile and German chamomile. The aromatherapy essential oil can be extracted from both. The chamomile oil is extracted from the flowering leaves using a steam distillation process. The oil may be packaged as is, or blended with massage oils, or perhaps mixed with lotions and creams.
Chamomile has many powerful healing uses, including:
- antibiotic properties
- antiseptic properties
- antidepressant properties
- analgesic properties
- anxiety relief
- allergy relief
- help with insomnia
Quite an amazing oil, this one is! The oil can be applied topically to the skin (best diluted in a carrier oil first). In can be used in the bath or in a bowl of steaming water for inhalation. It can also be used in the different aromatherapy diffusers that are available.
Bottom line, chamomile essential oil is powerful and should be part of every aromatherapy practitioner’s stock. Below is an excerpt from an article that discusses how the oil shows promise for treatment of cancer. Please enjoy and share.
Chamomile’s work doesn’t stop at pain reduction, however. It also shows promise as a useful remedy in the fight against cancer. “Inhibition of cancerous cells is believed to be due to chamomile’s antioxidants called apigenin, which are bioactive constituents that appear to help fight skin, prostate, breast and ovarian cancers,” writes Dr. Axe.
A study out of Ohio State University found that apigenin can stop breast cancer cells from reproducing and spreading. “In its relationship with a set of specific proteins, apigenin re-establishes the normal profile in cancer cells,” study co-leader Andrea Doseff said in a press release. “We think this can have great value clinically as a potential cancer-prevention strategy.”
The apigenin works by blocking a certain type of cell-splicing that cancer uses to reproduce itself. “By applying this nutrient, we can activate that killing machinery. The nutrient eliminated the splicing form that inhibited cell death,” Doseff said. “Thus, this suggests that when we eat healthfully, we are actually promoting more normal splice forms inside the cells in our bodies.”
Another study, published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, found that chamomile extracts can cause apoptosis, or self-destruction, in various types of cancer cells. “Exposure of chamomile extracts caused minimal growth inhibitory responses in normal cells, whereas a significant decrease in cell viability was observed in various human cancer cell lines,” the study states. “Chamomile exposure resulted in differential apoptosis in cancer cells but not in normal cells at similar doses.” More research is sure to broaden our understanding of this plant and its amazing healing properties.
