As a featured oil of the month We are offering European Juniper Berry Oil at a 40% discount £4.80 or US$7.75 for 10ml.
Also if you place an order for any other of our oils you can receive a bottle of Juniper oil for Free. And you only need to order one single bottle of oil to receive this special offer.
All orders for this featured oil must be received or posted by 10th March 1998
We also offer a range of 100% pure essential oils by Mail order.
Description
The genus juniperus contains more than 70 species of aromatic evergreens. The species most widely used in healing is common juniper and grows to between 6 & 20ft high. Its close, tangled spreading branches are covered with reddish brown bark, sticky gum and pointed half inch bluish-green stiff needles.
The male plant produces yellow flowers and the females green flowers. The females also produce a scaly, green quarter inch aromatic cones, (berries), which turn blue-black during their two year maturation. Immature and mature berries are produced simultaneously but it is only the mature ones which are harvested. There are them dried in the sun until they turn black and stored in airtight containers to preserve the volatile oil. The potency of the berries varies according to the region in which they were grown. Two types of essential oil are distilled from this shrub.
Juniper berry oil is the better quality and the one recommended for therapeutic use; distilled from the ripe berries that have been picked straight from the bush and dried. A cheaper and less effective alternative is juniper oil which includes the berries, leaves and branches. Occasionally a poorer- quality juniper oil is produced by adding berries that have been partially distilled in the making of Gin. Both types are sometimes, mistakenly, sold under the name of Juniper Berry Oil.
History & Traditions
Juniper has a long traditional history of use, Mary & Joesph were said to have sheltered under the branches of the tree when fleeing from King Herod.
It was used by the Ancient Egyptians and Greeks to ward off infections as well as being used as part of the embalming process. They also used juniper berries for a variety of medical purposes including flatulence and indigestion.
During the middle ages, Europeans believed planting a juniper bush beside the front door kept witches out. Unfortunately this did not work if the witch could correctly guess the number of needles on the bush !!!
Junipers protective reputation evolved into the belief that its smoke prevented leprosy and bubonic plague. As recently as the Second World War French nurses burnt juniper springs in hospital wards to fumigate them. The oil was used in body massage to treat fever and smallpox.
By the 17th century juniper was known as a powerful diuretic; the English herbalist Nicholas Culpeper wrote: "the herb provokes urine exceedingly ------- is so powerful a remedy against dropsy (heart failure) it cures the disease". He also prescribed it for coughs, shortness of breath, tuberculosis, menstruation and for "safe and speedy delivery to women with child".
In the 19th century the Americans dismissed the use of juniper in childbirth but endorsed it strongly for heart disease. They also prescribed it externally for eczema and psoriasis and internally for gonorrhoea, bladder and kidney infections another genito-urinary problems. Contemporary herbalists recommend juniper externally as an antiseptic and internally for bladder infections, arthritis, intestinal cramps, and gout.
It is currently listed in the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia for rheumatic pain and cystitis.
Extraction is by Steam distillation.
Juniper oil is colourless to pale yellow when freshly distilled but grows darker and thicker with age. Fresh, woody aroma is similar to cypress, (same family), but sharper and more peppery.
Constituents - Terpenes:- Camphene, pinene, limonene, myrcene, sabinene. Sesquiterpines:- Caryophllene, cadinene, elemene. Alcohols:- Borneol, terpineol.
Properties
Antirheumatic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antitoxic, aphrodisiac, astringent, carminative, cicatrisant, depurative, diuretic, nervine, emmenagogue, parasiticide, rebefacient, sedative, stomachic, sudorific, tonic and vulnerary.
Physical Effects
Circulatory: Stimulant and diuretic, helps to lower blood pressure, cleanses the body, relieving fluid retention, cellulite, varicose veins and haemorrhoids, strengthens the kidneys. Used in baths, applications or massage.
Genito-Urinary: Diuretic, helpful for irregular or painful menstruation, invaluable when breasts are swollen during menstruation. Used in compresses, baths or applications.
Digestive: Antiseptic and gas/wind relieving, relieves indigestion, flatulence, diarrhoea and colic. Cleanses the liver after too much rich food and alcohol. Used in baths, compresses, applications or massage.
Immune system: Colds, flu and infections. Used in baths, applications vaporizers or massage.
Muscular: Tonic and stimulant, useful for muscular aches and pains and rheumatism.
Skin: Astringent and cleansing, beneficial for acne, oily skin, greasy hair, dandruff, hair loss, weeping eczema and wounds. Used in masks, compresses or applications.
Emotional: Calming and a tonic, helpful in overcoming anxiety, insomnia and mental fatigue. Used in baths, vaporizers, applications and massage.
Juniper may have anti-inflammatory properties, suggesting it could be of value in treating arthritis, but in spite if ancient claims, juniper does not destroy all fungi and has never been shown to be effective for gonorrhoea and kidney infections.
Blends
It blends well with frankincense, rosemary, sandalwood, cedarwood, cypress, clary sage, pine, lavender and geranium.
SAFETY
Juniper is an abortifacient and so must not be used during pregnancy. High doses of juniper causes kidney irritation and possible kidney damage, so therefore, should not be used by anyone with kidney infection or a history of kidney impairment.
Other uses The berries and extracts are used in diuretic and laxative preparations, also veterinary preventatives of ticks and fleas. It is used as a fragrance component of soaps, detergents, cosmetics and perfumes, especially spicy fragrances and aftershaves. Also used extensively in many food products, alcoholic and soft drinks. In Holland medicinal claims for juniper take a back seat to its use in Gin making, which was discovered by the Dutch in the 17th century.
Componants
Cedarine 26.6%, Thujopsene 18.9%, other sesquiterpene hydrocarbons 13.3%, Cedrol 31.6% and Widdol 4.8%.
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