Basic Facts About Frankincense Essential Oil

Frankincense holds a special place in the field of natural medicine. It has been prized for hundreds and hundreds of years, being part of both spiritual and healing practices for nearly every major historic culture on earth. Even at this time, scientists around the globe are investigating the number of health benefits of Frankincense, ranging from pain relief and swelling reduction, to immune system stimulation and cancer killing action.

The word Frankincense refers to the resin from any one of four trees or shrubs of the Boswellia type. The most common are Boswellia carteri and Boswellia seratta. The carteri species is believed by some to provide the highest grade raw material; the essential oil has lovely, surprising citrus notes and is incredibly uplifting. The seratta produces an oil with a deeper, richer aroma, considered the finest of the fragrances by some aromatherapy experts, and lending itself to meditative and religious practices.

The essential oils are actually distilled from the dried drops of resin, often known as "tears". Modern technology is producing another pure essential oil than was available only some years ago. Now the aromatherapy buyer will find an almost dizzying selection of Frankincense types at well-stocked on-line merchants. Distillation procedures are now producing what are often known as "CO2's", in addition to the much more common steam distillates. The CO2 extracted oils are in fact considered by leading medical aromatherapists to have important medicinal qualities.

The very wide range of therapeutic applications is likely one of the most appealing features of Frankincense essential oil. First off, it's extremely valued for its use in skin care, specifically for mature pores and skin that may be prematurely aging due to sun exposure. Extracts of the resin have even been the topic of double-blind studies, where 1/2 of each participant's face received the preparation having the "active ingredient". The end result was a major improvement in skin texture, and a reduction in the appearance of fine lines. To benefit from the oil this way, you can add 4 to 12 drops per ounce to a cream or lotion you are already using, or to any skincare formula you might be preparing.

Resin extracts are actually finding their way into many pain relieving lotions also, usually with the labels indicating the tree genus "Boswellia" on the label. Boswellic acids have powerful anti-inflammatory and painkilling effects, particularly by inhibiting the pro-inflammatory enzyme 5-lipoxygenase. Adding a CO2-distilled oil in massage formulas for relief of joint pain is an excellent idea.

Maybe the most spectacular healing potential of Frankincense lay in its now widely researched anti-cancer activity. The resin plus its extracts have been proven to specifically target most cancer cells in a number of totally different organs, causing normal cell death (which doesn't "usually" occur in most cancer, leaving healthy ones unaffected.

The usual "aromatherapy" uses of the essential oil to focus on its antidepressant and grounding quality. Salvatore Battaglia in "The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy" notes that it "has the power to deepen the breath -- that is, to slow down the speed of breathing, and improve the amplitude of breathing. This is an excellent choice for someone with an asthmatic condition associated with nervousness".

As you could see, Frankincense has an extremely worthy diverse line of therapeutic activity -- so much so that the addition to your very own collection of oils is extremely worth considering. Whether for skincare, pain relief, better immune system function, cancer prevention, or mood and emotional support, using this type of incredible medicine revered throughout history is a brilliant choice for the natural health enthusiast.

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