I can’t complain but sometimes I still do.
For instance, it’s good to be busy… I like it. But it seems like I just got back from Africa and now I’ve got to turn around and go right back to Malaysia. I’m the keynote speaker at the annual World Conference on Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine Malaysia.
Along the way I’m going to stop in to see my friends Westi and Lelir in Bali to help with the herbal healing center Westi wants to build on his father’s land.
And for my next trip? Well, there are really only two remaining areas in the world I haven’t been to. One is Australia, New Zealand and Tasmania. The other is in that same part of the world, but a little farther north: The remote and untamed areas of Borneo (which is right next to eastern Malaysia), Sumatra, and Papua New Guinea.
I can’t wait to see New Guinea in person because, and this might sound strange coming from a doctor, I have a great interest in trees … and New Guinea has one of the most amazing species in the world.
It’s the rainbow eucalyptus.
The bark sheds at different times, and the colors are the different ages of the bark. The light green is the most recently shed, and the colors get darker over time, turning purple, orange and maroon.
The eucalyptus is one of my favorite trees because the leaves are remarkable.
And I love the smell.
Like peppermint and other leaves with aromatic oils, they have an immediate effect on you. Break one open and you can get water from it, and if you chew on it for a very short time it will relieve a cough and a fever.
This fascinates me … how something can have that immediate of an effect. It means there must be something else going on there besides what we can detect with science.
Eucalyptus is well known for relieving respiratory issues. But when I sat down to study the uses for eucalyptus I found that most nutritionists and even many herbalists don’t know it also stimulates your immune system, is anti-inflammatory, is an antioxidant, has strong pain relieving effects1 and its main component kills cancer cells.
The compound, 1,8-cineole, kills leukemia cells2, and three different human tumor cells lines.3
Eucalyptus also boosts your immunity by enhancing the strength of white blood cells, especially monocytes and macrophages, giving them extra power to kill the pathogens that attack your body like strep, staph and E. coli bacteria.
1,8-cineole is also called eucalyptol, and it’s a part of the oil that relieves congestion. That’s why it’s an approved remedy of the German Government’s Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (Commission E) for treating the respiratory tract.
Eucalyptus also has compounds called tannins. Tannins have astringent properties that reduce swelling in the sinuses. Eucalyptol also loosens phlegm.
Inhalation of eucalyptus is one of the most effective methods of clearing out congestion. In a recent randomized, double-blind controlled clinical trial – the kind considered by scientists to be the most reliable – 60 people with respiratory infections got a spray containing eucalyptus and were supposed to use it 5 times a day for 3 days.
Only 20 minutes after using the spray just once, people reported a huge improvement in their symptom severity compared to people who got a placebo spray.4
A British study had twenty healthy subjects with a phlegmy cough inhale either eucalyptus or a placebo. Researchers found that the eucalyptus inhalant was the most effective at stopping the peoples’ coughs.5
Limonene is another main component of eucalyptus oil. It relieves heartburn.
Most health food stores carry the oil and leaves. Most oils are now standardized to contain 80% eucalyptol, but to be an effective expectorant, make sure the volatile oil has at least 70% eucalyptol.
To use it, place a few drops of medicinal eucalyptus oil or a couple dried eucalyptus leaves in pot of boiling water. Remove the water from the heat and inhale the rising vapor.
You can also get eucalyptus as a supplement in capsule form. Again, look for 70-90% cineole or eucalyptol and take up to 500mg a day.
1 Sadlon A, Lamson D. “Immune-modifying and antimicrobial effects of Eucalyptus oil and simple inhalation devices.” Altern Med Rev. 2010 Apr;15(1):33-47.
2 Moteki H, Hibasami H, Yamada Y, Katsuzaki H, Imai K, Komiya T. “Specific induction of apoptosis by 1,8-cineole in two human leukemia cell lines, but not a in human stomach cancer cell line.” Oncol Rep. 2002 Jul-Aug;9(4):757-60.
3 Wang W, Li N, Luo M, Zu Y, Efferth T. “Antibacterial activity and anticancer activity of Rosmarinus officinalis L. essential oil compared to that of its main components.” Molecules. 2012 Mar 5;17(3):2704-13.
4 Ben-Arye E, Dudai N, Eini A, Torem M, Schiff E, Rakover Y. “Treatment of upper respiratory tract infections in primary care: a randomized study using aromatic herbs.” Evid Based Comp Alternat Med. 2011;2011:690346.
5 Morice A., et al. Effect of inhaled menthol on citric acid induced cough in normal subjects. Thorax 1994 Oct; 49(10) : 1024-1026