Carvacrol

What is Carvacrol?

The essential oil of the wild oregano plant has been found to have two active ingredients. One of them is carvacrol, and the other is thymol.

This was confirmed through several laboratory experiments and studies conducted by a number of universities in the United States. The wild oregano plant has been widely used in the past for treating many common diseases ranging from digestive, skin and respiratory disorders. The recent laboratory experiments and studies just confirmed that these two ingredients in the oil were the ones responsible for these curative properties. They act synergistically to kill virus, bacteria, fungus and parasites.

It is the wild oregano plant, Origanum vulgare where the oil of oregano is extracted from and not the common oregano, Origanum marjoram. The common oregano is the one used as spice for cooking while the oil of oregano used for treatment comes from the wild plant grown in Mediterranean countries like Greece, Portugal and Turkey. Oregano oil’s potent curative powers come from the special combination of the minerals and climate of the hilltops where these wild plants grow. An advantage of using this oil is that it has virtually no side effects at all. Added to that, pathogens are not able to develop resistance against them. This could not be said about conventional medicines such as antibiotics.

Modern research has found that carvacrol belongs to a class of plant chemicals known as monoterpenoid phenols. Thymol is also a member of this class of chemical substances. These plant chemicals have natural potent antimicrobial abilities and have long been used for antibacterial purposes. The properties of carvacrol include antimicrobial, antimutagenic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, insecticidal and many more. It is a colorless liquid that is slightly soluble in ether, ethanol and water. Aside from its uses in alternative medicine, this substance is also being used in the cosmetic industry, It can also be used as a disinfectant and a food preservative.

In a recent study, carvacrol was also found to give relief from pain due to arthritis. Researchers have found that carvacrol relieves arthritis pain by acting as an anti-inflammatory agent. When your joints and tendons are infected, inflammation will result. With the use of oregano oil, your immunity will be enhanced and you’ll be able to fight off these infections. As a result your joint inflammation will subside and the pain will be gone.

Carvacrol also enhances the activity of your heat shock proteins (HSP) as shown by a recent study.

Your T cells are actually the ones that activate your HSPs and it has been proven that carvacrol can increase the response of your T-cells against stress proteins – thereby reducing inflammation. Oregano oil also has the ability to penetrate deeply into your skin down to your synovial fluid in the joints. This will result in lessening of the pain coming from these joints.

Like other essential oils, carvacrol does not have many long term toxic risks. Actually, its pro-oxidant and cytotoxic abilities are the reason why it is a potent antimicrobial and antiseptic agent. It can control the growth of 25 different periodontopathic bacteria and strains (substances which can cause disease in the structure and tissues of the teeth), fungi including R. Solani, S. Sclerotirum, P. capisci and F. moniliforme.

Laboratory researches and experiments have proven that carvacrol’s effectiveness lies in its ability to act synergistically with other essential oils. This is the key to oregano oil’s potency against harmful microorganisms.  It is this synergistic mixture of natural substances in proper proportion, as nature designed them to be, that makes oil of oregano better than most of the chemically manufactured drugs and pills.