Thieve's Oil

Put your spices to work for you....

With the daily onslaught of dire warnings about a "Swine Flu" epidemic, and the real problem of growing anti-biotic bacterial resistance due to today's overwhelming focus on anti-bacterial soaps and hand creams, here's a simple way that you can use common kitchen spices to protect yourself and your family without contributing to the problem of bacterial resistance.....it's kid-friendly too.

As reported by Anahad O'Onnor in the NY Times:

A recent study by a team of surgeons, for example, found that a solution made with cinnamon oil killed a number of common and hospital-acquired infections, like streptococcus and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. The study found it was just as effective as several antiseptics widely used in hospitals. Another study by French researchers in 2008 had similar results, showing that at concentrations of 10 percent or less, cinnamon oil was effective against Staphylococcus, E. coli and several antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.

 It turns out that there's a really great, natural, plant-based recipe that takes the cinnamon oil one step further - "Thieves Oil" so named because grave robbers in the Middle Ages used it when they were engaged in "harvesting" their treasure, and never got sick.  Here's a video demonstrating it's mixing, followed by a recipe.

Video

Recipe (Video and recipe Courtesy Dr. Lawrence Rosen's blog)
Natural Hand Sanitizer

1. In a small bowl, put one drop each of the following essential oils: cinnamon, clove, rosemary and eucalyptus.

2. Add five drops of lemon essential oil. Mix in 1 ounce of water and 1/2 teaspoon aloe vera gel (available at pharmacies and health food stores).

3. Store in an airtight container or a small travel-size bottle.

Note: Essential oils can be purchased online or at health food stores.

Alternative: Instead of purchasing the 5 separate essential oils, use 5 drops of the "Thieves" blend from Young Living Essential Oils (youngliving.com)