Various cultures around the world have been using essential oils for health and medical purposes for thousands of years. They are nothing but naturally occurring oils that can be extracted from plants. Essential oils can be obtained from distilling or boiling various plant parts, like leaves, flowers, bark, resin, roots, and peels.
The diverse benefits of essential oils are attributed to their antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. These essential oils act as natural medicines that don’t cause any side effects. They are also widely available in the market and cheaper than chemically formulated medicines.
Here’s a list of how essential oils can be used as medicines for curing common illnesses:
- Severe headache and migraine
Headache is a common condition among millions of people across the world. Stress, allergies, fatigue, low blood sugar, poor posture, and other such factors will cause headaches. One of the best uses for essential oils is to cure headache. Next time when you have a headache or migraine, try the following simple remedy.
Mix 4–5 drops of lavender oil and 5–6 drops of peppermint oil. Take this mixture in the tip of your fingers and apply it on your temples. Massage your forehead gently for a few minutes. This will provide instant relief from headaches.
- Cold and cough
Allergies, cough, common cold, and other respiratory conditions can be quite a nuisance. Change in climate, dust allergens, dust, smoke, excess heating of the body, and many other factors lead to respiratory troubles. A blocked nose can give you hard time breathing. But with essential oils, you can easily cure such common troubles.
Eucalyptus oil is a natural fighter against cold and coughs. Add 8–9 drops of eucalyptus oil to boiling water and inhale the steam to clear nasal passages. This will also soothe rough coughs, and help you get rid of a runny nose and nose blocks.
- Improve your digestion
Your digestive system has to work hard to break down the food and convert them into raw nutrients. But we end up eating different hard-to-digest food in our daily routine. Your diet is the deciding factor for your digestive health. When you feel digestive discomfort or acid reflexes in your stomach, turn to essential oils.
Clove and ginger are known to soothe the digestive system. Try combining a few drops of ginger oil, peppermint oil, and clove oil with 10 ml of honey and swallow the mixture. This will clear your digestive system while soothing any irritation in the stomach.
- Bruises
We’re prone to bruises while attending to everyday chores. You might hurt yourselves while playing, cutting vegetables, walking around, and in many other ways. Whether it’s a nick or a wound, you can try using essential oils for a faster cure.
Essential oils can be used as hot compress to treat wounds and bruises. Take 4 ounces of warm water and add 4 drops of lavender and frankincense oil to it. You can clean your bruises and cuts in this mixture before applying an antiseptic. This is one of the best uses for essential oil.
- Asthma and bronchitis
Asthma can give you hard time breathing. It also causes shortness of breath, and induces coughing and wheezing. Essential oils have naturally occurring compounds that can help soothe the symptoms of asthma.
Take a few drops of peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil, and coconut oil and rub this mixture on your chest and neck. This essential oil vapor rub will eventually help you breathe easily. Use this daily to get relief from asthma.
- Common fever
When your immune system fights an infection it gives rise to fever. It can be caused by both viral and bacterial infections. However, when you have prolonged or high fever, it may lead to seizures, necrosis, and delirium. Essential oils can help cure the discomforts during a fever and help in healing.
Eucalyptus and lavender oil are the most popular essential oils for treating a fever. Mix 3–4 drops of lavender oil with 2–3 drops of eucalyptus oil and add this mixture to an ounce of ice cold water. Soak a clean cloth in this mixture and apply it on your forehead. Repeat the same when the cloth gets warm.
Follow these simple remedies for common illness to save your time and money. They don’t have any side effects and provide instant relief from your illness.
