When my two youngest kids started to cough in the midst of my daugher’s illness I diffused frankincense in their bedroom a few nights.  Thankfully the frankincense was enough to stop the spread of germs, their coughs disappeared and really didn’t turn into anything.

Frankincense has been used for hundreds of years, historically it was first given as a gift to the Christ Child.  It is one of the most valued essential oils and in Ancient Times it was worth more than gold.  It’s most common uses have been as a cough medicine and for asthma, and most recently it’s been included in the Journal of Royal Society Medicine (1991).  It has also been researched for it’s benefits in rejuvenating the skin.  Frankincense is gentle enough for babies, but only if it is the highest Therapeutic Grade like Young Living’s food grade Frankincense (Boswellia Carterri)  and Sacred Frankincense (Boswellia Sacra). Research is finding that the boswellic acid in frankincense is highly anti-inflammatory and blocks  the biosynthesis of leukotriene acids. Boswellic acid can have a positive affect on the body whether it is inhaled for respiratory issues, or applied topically to rejuvenate the skin and soothe arthritic joints.  Not all frankincense, however, contains boswellic acid.  Buyers should beware when shopping for frankincense as there is a great tendency to add fillers and additives to extend the volume of frankincense essential oil.  Boswellia frereana for example, is a species of frankincense that contains no boswellic acid and is only useful for perfumes or fragrance and has no therapeutic benefit.

Young Living offers 2 species of Frankincense, Boswellia Carteri and Boswellia Sacra: Sacred Frankincense.  Boswellia Sacra has higher levels of incensole acetate, found to have anti-anxiety effects.  The Sacra species also has higher levels of Alpha-pinene.  Young Living exclusively distills Boswellia Sacra frankincense from Oman, a region known in the essential oil industry to produce this superior species of frankincense.  Boswellia carteri contains higher levels of limonene, a component found effective against cancer cells.  Both species of frankincense support a healthy immune system and may even repair damaged DNA cells.

Frankincense (Boswellia carteri)            15ml   whsl  $69.75     retail $91.78

Sacred Frankincense (Boswellia sacra) 15ml whls    $89.75     retail $118.09

You can order Young Living oils at wholesale (select Independent Distributor and order a $40 Start Living Kit for lifetime wholesale pricing, and no monthly minimums, enter sponsor #1003003)  or retail (select customer).

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.  I am not a medical doctor, and I’m not prescribing treatment, I’m just a mom trying to keep her kids healthy.  This information is for educational purposes only and is not meant as a substitute for medical advise. If you need medical attention seek the counsel of your doctor.

Farid A. Badria, Eman A. Mohammad, Mohammed K. El-Badrawy, et al (2004). Natural Leukotriene Inhibitor from Boswellia: A Potential New Alternative for Treating Bronchial Asthma. Altern & Comp Therapies. 10 (5) 257-265.

Houssen M, Ragab A, Mesbah A, El-Samanoudy A, Othman G, Moustafa A, Badria F. (2010). Natural anti-inflammatory products and leukotriene inhibitors as complementary therapy for bronchial asthma. Clin Biochem 43 (10-11) 887-890.

Safayhi H, Rail B, Sailer E, Ammon H. (1997). Inhibition by Boswellic acids of Human Leukocyte Elastase. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 281 (1). 460-463.

Ziment I, Tashkin D. (2000). Alternative medicine for allergy and asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 106: 603-614.

The most important steps include frequent hand washings ( Thieves foaming hand sanitizer), washing bed lines and towels (I add a drop of Thieves or Purification essential oil to my laundry soap for extra disinfecting), cleaning my bathrooms with Thieves wipes (you can make your own wipes with Thieves household cleaner and tough paper towels, store them in an old baby wipes container for convenience) and diffusing highly anti-bacterial blends like Thieves, Purification, Christmas Spirit and Frankincense to kill airborne bacteria.    Young Living essential oils are also the most important items in our medicine cabinet.  In fact, we really don’t have anything else in our medicine chest – no ibuprofen, acetaminophen,  or over the counter cough syrups with artificial flavors & colors.  This is what  we use for colds & flu symptoms:

1st onset:  For adults, make up a  capsule of Thieves:  2 drops of Thieves essential oil plus 3-6 drops of lemon in gel cap.  For kids  under 6, a spoonful of agave nectar with 1 drop of lemon essential oil added and 1-2 drops of R.C applied to the bottoms of feet.  Use Thieves hand sanitizer to keep germs from spreading.  Keep mouth clean where germs multiply with Thieves mouthwash.

Cough medicine -  1 tsp agave nectar with 1 drop of lemon essential oil.  For adults add 1 drop Thieves for extra boost. Suck on Thieves lozenges.

Fever – Adults, 3-5 drops peppermint essential oil on each foot.   Repeat as needed until fever is gone.  Children under 7 – Lavender & Frankincense on bottoms of feet or along spine – repeat as needed until the fever is gone.

Sore Throat – 1 tsp agave nectar with 1 drop of lemon essential oil (Lemon essential oil contains many more nutrients and antioxidants than just lemon juice as the essential oil is distilled from the rind – use only food grade lemon essential oil for ingesting) .  For adults and children over 6 add 1 drop of  Thieves oil to the spoonful of lemon/agave nectar.  Thieves lozenges are also helpful.   Gargle with Thieves mouthwash.

Sinus & Chest congestion – R.C. applied to the bottoms of feet, rubbed on the chest or inhaled.  Add a  few drops to bath water and breath deeply.  Frankincense supports the respiratory tract and viruses.  Apply to the chest and throat area on lymph glands.  Place a drop of frankincense on the tongue to fight viruses.  Raven is a Young Living blend made of Ravensara, wintergreen, eucalyptus radiata, lemon and peppermint.   It is especially effective when layered with the R.C blend.  Breathe Again Roll-on is a convenient blend to apply directly to the chest or Vita-Flex points for breathing relief due to cold and asthma.

Cold/Canker Sores – suck on a Thieves lozenge or apply a drop of Thieves essential oil directly to the spot to alleviate pain and speed healing.  Peppermint oil also may help when applied directly.

Headache /body aches – Raindrop Technique, apply peppermint or Panaway on the forehead and temples or  lemon essential oil on the big toe.  Soak in a mineral bath like Ancient Minerals with 3-4 drops of lavender essential oils added.

Vomiting/diarrhea - peppermint essential oil applied to bottoms of feet, on the belly and 1 drop in water to sip.  Children under 6 should not use peppermint oil, instead use Frankincense or ginger essential oil on the feet and belly.  After 1 hour of no vomiting, gradually introduce liquids. Dilute 1 oz. Ningxia Red with 4-5 ounces of water is a gentle way to start adding nutrients.

Inner Defense is a supplement that contains 4 different types of Oregano.  This is highly antibacterial, research shows this blend is as powerful as some antibiotics.  When using Inner Defense, 10-12 hours later take a probiotic likeLife 5.   For example, Inner Defense in the morning, Life 5 at bedtime to replenish healthy intestinal flora.

In addition to some of these suggestion make sure to add some homemade chicken soup, drinking plenty of  high quality fluids, rest and some common sense to ensure a quick recovery.  Always seek the advice of your doctor for serious illness.

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are meant for educational purposes only, they are not a substitute for medical care.

And yes, you can even make Lemonade with Young Living’s food-grade lemon essential oil.  Just add 1 drop of lemon essential oil to a glass, fill with 8 – 10 oz of purified water, sweeten to taste with agave nectar or stevia liquid.  Add ice if desired, Enjoy!  For a special treat instead of soda, use sparkling water like San Pellegrino.

Select research on effects of limonene (found in lemon essential oil) on cancer:

• Cancer Chemoprevention by Phytochemicals and their related compounds.  Nishino H, et al.  Asian Pac J. Cancer Prevention.  2000;1(1):49-55
• Involvement of YY1 and its correlation with c-myc in NDEA induced hepatocarcinogenesis, it’s prevention by d-limonene. Parija T, Das BR. Mol Biol Rep.  2003 Mar 30;(1)41-6
• Inhibition by D-limonene of gastric carcinogenesis induced by N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitroguanidine.  Cancer Lett.  1999 April 1;137(2):161-8

These statements are for educational purposes only and  have not been evaluated by the FDA and Pure Home and Body LLC and it’s associates do not attempt to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.  The uses in this video are only editorial and not meant to be prescriptive.    For medical treatment, consult your doctor.  Essential oils should not be ingested unless you are under the guidance of a licensed practitioner, and should only be done with Therapeutic, food grade oils in  quantities as directed by a professional.

Buyer Beware! There is a caveat to “healthy living”:  there are a lot of products claiming to be “natural” and many are filled with toxic chemicals that many people are trying to avoid.  A study at the  University of Minnesota found many products listed as “healthy” tainted with pharmaceuticals, the biggest offenders were weight loss, sexual enhancement and body building supplements.   Read labels and go with a name brand you trust.  If a product promises unrealistic results or with no effort on your part to change your lifestyle it may be too good to be true and probably will be a waste of your money.

Switching to healthier living requires changing your perspective. Someone once mentioned they could not afford essential oils. At first glance they do seem expensive when you look at packaging size which is pretty small.  In the U.S. we are used to buying chemical loaded products filled with water in big packages to make us feel like we are getting our money’s worth.   Organic foods might seem more expensive, but so are convenient, nutritionless foods  used as entertainment.   The truth is if you compare apples to apples the healthy products win out by far.  Plus, some healthy options like Therapeutic Grade essential oils have been around for thousands of years and are still used in other cultures today, keeping people healthy without chemicals. For what they offer, essential oils are really economical.   Let’s look at a bottle of food grade lemon essential oil that costs $12 for a 15ml bottle.  This little bottle contains the equivalent of 250 bottles of synthetic vitamin flavored water, or can make 15 bottles of cough syrup.  Obviously the savings is with the essential oil – in dollars and in health value.

Where is your money going for healthcare? I thought I had gotten rid of most of the “drugs” in my medicine cabinet and to my surprise the other day I found a drawer full of unused products.  They were all expired, the oldest one a brand new bottle of indigestion medicine  that expired in 2005, another a tube of “anti-itch” medication that never worked.  And honestly, I was so thankful to toss out the chemical, red colored acetaminophen syrup for my kids that I never had to use.  So let me ask you, where is the savings in unused – expired – chemical filled products?  You might even think I’m extreme in saying you should factor in the potential cost of Chemo, ADD drugs, Anti-depressents, Thyroid medication, anti-biotics, name your medication,  whenever you use those drugs with additives, colors and products with unknown or harmful ingredients and packaged foods with controversial additives like  high fructose corn syrup, MSG and aspartame.   I can also say it’s a lot more fun spending money in the health food store and farmer’s markets than the local pharmacy (and there are plenty of them to choose from, becoming as common as those golden arches fast food restaurants)

Do you want to be healthier but don’t know where to begin? Einstein said “Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results”  What are you trying to change in your life?  health? weight? energy? less toxins?   There are essential oils that can help with all of these issues and more.  The great thing is the essential oils are versatile, many are antibacterial and they don’t expire (unless they have chemicals or fillers in them).  You can use peppermint oil for joint and muscle pain, headaches, energy, cold sores, fevers and more.  Each essential oil can replace dozens of over the counter products that have 1  use.  Are you ready to clean out your medicine cabinet and invest in products that will support your immune system?  I’m glad I’ve made the transition to investing in our health and I can help you do the same.    In the weeks to come I’ll be sharing specific ways to save money on health care costs including my next article, a video post on my favorite uses of lemon essential oil.

There are specific essential oils that are helpful for coughs: Eucalyptus Radiata, Eucalyptus Globulus, Ravansara, and wintergreen are especially effective.  Young Living has made a couple of essential oil blends that we use for coughs and colds in the winter.  R.C. is one of the most used oil blends in our home – it has four different kinds of eucalyptus in it  plus peppermint, lavender, cypress and pine essential oils.  At the first sign of a cold or cough, we apply a drop or two to each foot.   Eucalyptus on it’s own can be too potent for children, but when it is combined with more gentle oils of lavender and cypress it is a great choice for kid’s colds & coughs.  For children under 3 dilute a drop with a 1/2 teaspoon of a carrier oil and massage onto the feet.   

Raven is another Young Living blend of ravansara, wintergreen, Eucalyptus radiata, lemon and peppermint essential oils.    The ravansara encourages expectoration and the wintergreen, eucalyptus and peppermint essential oils open up airways.  We find just one application of the oils onto the feet at bedtime is enough to settle a cough for sleep.  For children and those with asthma apply the oils to the soles of the feet.  For adults, massage the oils into the chest, add to bath water or place a drop in a bowl of warm water and breathe deeply.

Alternating application of R.C with Raven may be a powerful remedy with coughs.  Layering the oils increases the synergy between the oils.  For adults, apply 2 drops of R.C. mixed with V-6 oil to the chest area, then 2 drops of Raven on top.  This can also be done on the bottoms of the feet concentrating on the lung area points of reflexology.  I did this just the other week after trying R.C. for a few days, adding the Raven brought me relief within minutes.  I repeated this application, once an hour for 4 hours and finally my chest congestion completely went away.   For children, mix 1 drop of essential oil with a tsp of V-6 carrier oil or olive oil, massage onto the bottoms of feet, cover with cotton socks and rest. 

Drinking plenty of fluids and foods rich in vitamin C are essential to feeling better.  For those with asthma, always apply essential oils to the soles of the feet.  For any persistant cough or difficulty breathing make sure to seek medical care right away.