Myrrh maintains healthy skin and tissues. A natural outcome of that action is myrrh’s ability to help mitigate visible signs of aging in the skin. For this reason, it's commonly added to many skincare products today, especially those that treat more mature skin. The botanical name for myrrh is Commiphora mukul and its extract is formulated in the facial serum inside PHYTO5’s Ageless La Cure Facial Serum and Cream kit for a 3-week cure.
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Antioxidant rich, myrrh is a natural choice for anti-aging, facial acne, redness, irritation, skin rejuvenation, and wound healing products. It encourages new cell growth and is effective in the prevention and treatment of facial lines. Myrrh offers skin nourishing benefits in hot dry climates.
Myrrh has been shown to improve circulation so vital for combatting signs of aging. Improved circulation creates an overall improved complexion with a healthy glow.
Myrrh essential oil, when added properly to a carrier oil and applied topically, can help ease muscle aches when experiencing a cold or flu or for aching joints not associated with these conditions. When used in a diffuser, it can help break up mucus associated with colds.
Myrrh resin is a natural gum which seeps from the bark of the Commiphora tree once it is cut.
The word myrrh comes from the Arabic word "murr" which translates to “bitter.” Myrrh is actually one of many bitters that offers all kinds of health benefits from curbing sugar cravings to supporting liver function to encouraging healthy, radiant skin.
Myrrh essential oil is a safe essential oil overall but should be avoided during pregnancy because of its potency.
Myrrh as an essential oil is very powerful, its use dating back many centuries having been traded in the Middle East and North Africa for more than 5,000 years. Myrrh has a long history of medical use along the Silk Road from Arabia into China.
Myrrh essential oil has been part of medical practice in traditional therapies for millennia. It has been used throughout history as a perfume, incense and medicine. It was so valuable in ancient times that it was, at times, equal in weight value to gold.
Throughout time myrrh has been known to offer all manner of healing benefits for conditions like asthma, athlete’s foot, cough, candida, ringworm, eczema, gingivitis, gum infections, hemorrhoids, mouth ulcers, ringworm, wounds, wrinkles, and chapped or cracked skin.
The enormously gifted Benedictine abbess and polymath Hildegard von Bingen (1098–1179) included myrrh as a healing tool in her book of medicines.
The Vedas, the large body of knowledge texts originating in the ancient Indian subcontinent from 1500 to 400 BC, prescribed myrrh for healing.
The ancient Egyptians procured huge boat shipments of myrrh resin from the Phoenicians and used it in incense, insect repellent, salves for wounds and sores, and as a key ingredient in the embalming process. History indicates they also used it to treat hay fever and herpes. Even back then, Egyptian women abhorred wrinkles and aging skin and used myrrh oil as a rejuvenating facial treatment in their cosmetic preparations.
An ointment of myrrh was carried by Greek soldiers into battle to counter infections.
Alain Touwaide, the Smithsonian’s scientific director of the Institute for the Preservation of Medical Traditions, tells us the Greek physician Hippocrates known for revolutionizing the practice of medicine (c.460–377 BC), wrote about myrrh for healing more than any other plant substance. He relates that myrrh was also used as an antiseptic, antibiotic, and anti-inflammatory agent and calls myrrh one of the “antibiotics of history.”
Today myrrh is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda and aromatherapy. Many natural toothpastes contain myrrh and there’s a reason for that: myrrh benefits dental and gum health and helps keep the mouth clean and gums free of infection. Many Egyptian skeletons have been found with teeth completely intact and archeologists and historians often point to the use of myrrh as a key factor.
Myrrh contains a high content of sesquiterpenes, a class of compounds that have a direct effect on the pituitary,(1) hypothalamus,(2)and amygdala in the brain.(3) Research has shown that sesquiterpenes have the ability to surpass the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain tissue. Research from the Universities of Berlin and Vienna show increased oxygenation around the pineal and pituitary glands when myrrh is used.
(Read more about terpenes and sesquiterpenes in our blog, The Terpene: Most Fundamental Fragrance, Flavor and Healing Component of Essential Oils.)
Myrrh is purifying, restorative, revitalizing, and uplifting and can be a supportive component used in meditation.
The properties of warm and spicy myrrh resin helps to calm stress and help bring us back to our center.
Myrrh as an extract or essential oil is excellent to use in daily skin and dental care. It rejuvenates damaged skin, soothes skin irritation, supports clear breathing, and promotes emotional peace and tranquility.
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Endnotes:
(1)Pituitary: receptor of intuition and vision and the master gland of the body
(2)Hypothalamus: region of the forebrain that coordinates both the autonomic nervous system and the activity of the pituitary, homeostatic systems, and involved in sleep and emotional activity
(3)Amygdala: a roughly almond-shaped mass of gray matter inside each cerebral hemisphere involved with the experiencing of emotions
Young, Kac. The Healing Art of Essential Oils: A Guide to 50 Oils for Remedy, Ritual, and Everyday Use. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2017. Print.
Jacknin, Jeanette. Smart Medicine for Your Skin: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding Conventional and Alternative Therapies to Heal Common Skin Problems. New York: Avery, 2001. Print.
Butje, Andrea. The Heart of Aromatherapy: An Easy-to-Use Guide for Essential Oils. United States, Hay House, Incorporated, 2017.
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