Have you ever heard of this plant, Skullcap? It is known and used for hundreds of years in traditional Chinese medicine for its remarkable anti-inflammatory and regulating properties. However, it is known in the West too. It is why you can find properties of Skullcap in the form of oil, beauty creams, food supplements, and lotions. It has other therapeutic benefits.
What is Skullcap essential oil?
Essential oil is a liquid (obtained from certain parts of certain plants) that is not water-soluble. It is used both in aromatherapy and in pharmacology and in the manufacture of cosmetics and perfumes. Skullcap lagunamoon essential oils provides various bioactive compounds, including flavonoids that have significant anti-inflammatory and anti-eczema properties besides their many pharmacological properties.
A natural anti-inflammatory
The majority of current research focuses on the micronutrients that naturally occur in skullcap root. There are more than thirty of them, but three of them stand out for their powerful anti-inflammatory activity. Their joint action strongly limits the proliferation of inflammatory agents. These effects are particularly noticeable at the joint level. Skullcap urpower essential oil diffuser relieves arthritis and osteoarthritis, especially in the hips and knees, which avoids the overuse of conventional painkillers, with harmful cumulative side effects.
Anti-aging and brain protector
Baicalein (one of the three essential micronutrients in Skullcap) is known for its antioxidant properties, which protect synaptic function in the brain. The failure of which would be the cause of degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Studies have shown that oral intake in drinking water improved synaptic plasticity and at the same time reduced the loss of memory.
A tranquilizer without side effects
This is probably its most well-known and proven use, both in Native American and Chinese traditions and in the modern era. The calming, relaxing, and balancing properties of the Skullcap essential oil primarily replace the chemical molecules in the nervous system. It is also beneficial to combine it with conventional treatments for serious anxiety disorders. Skullcap and its common extracts do not induce drowsiness while boosting cognitive performance.
Anti-cancer virtues
In this area too, studies follow one another to verify the properties of Skullcap, and they do not contradict each other. In all cancer cell lines tested, the skullcap strongly inhibits their proliferation. Two of them are particularly sensitive – breast and prostate cancer cells. More targeted research has also shed light on the efficacy of Glioblastoma, which represents the most frequent and aggressive primary brain tumor to date. The deadliest too since the survival rate remains one of the lowest among all cancers.
A plant with antiviral and antibacterial properties
The significant antiviral and antibacterial properties of the Skullcap plant have also been extensively researched. Baicalin has thus been associated with the penicillin/amoxicillin binomial in the treatment against various resistant strains of the famous and dreaded staphylococcus aureus.
Penicillin-resistant strains produce an enzyme, which renders the antibiotic ineffective. Baicalin is suspected of inhibiting the latter, therefore helping to overcome staphylococcus. Other studies have worked on the dengue virus, carried by the tiger mosquito. Long confined to the tropical zones of Central America, Asia, and the French territories of the South Pacific (Polynesia, New Caledonia, etc.) where it infects several million people each year.
An important study made it possible to highlight the inhibitory effect of Baicalin on one of the five variants of the dengue virus and its duplication. Herpes or Chicken poxviruses are also the subject of investigations, which confirm the very promising antiviral potential of the flavonoids present in Skullcap essential oil.
Better protection of mitochondria
Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells. At the end of the chain, they are the ones that convert the energy of the molecules resulting from digestion into energy that can be used by the cell. Nevertheless, mitochondria would also play a decisive role in the life cycle of cells, and in particular in apoptosis.
Many scientific studies also show that the antioxidant power of natural essential micronutrients is one of the best protections for mitochondrial activity. Among these, Baicalin and Baicalein demonstrate a particularly interesting ability to attenuate the damage by oxidative stress on our famous mitochondria.
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Skullcap, future star of food supplements
The applications of the skullcap are still far from being fully known. From ancient Native American traditions, which also used it to stimulate the menstrual cycle, relieve breast pain and facilitate the expulsion of the placenta, to more recent discoveries that would even help fight alopecia, the field is vast, as you can see it. In the meantime, the skullcap is making its way into the great family of food supplements. If you want to learn about Essential Oil Wizardry, click here