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Sage essential oil as an alternative to Wormwood, clinical properties of Thuja, Absinthe and y-aminobutyric acid receptors

30 March, 2008 14:50

In relation to (sage essential oil as an alternative to wormwood), I have a couple resources you may find in interest related to Wormwood - Absinthe, following my Blog post text about Thujone displayed here:

"Wormwood essential oil is hard to come by.  Most often you have to import the oil from another country and hope thepicture of the Wormwood plant FDA doesn't take it has a digestible substance.  The reason for this, or the feature is absinthe.

This word meaning 'undrinkable' in Greek is an elixir containing the chemical thujone.  Thujone is known as a psychoactive drug causing hallucinations and addiction.  Current research concludes that thujone is a GABA antagonist.  Although it was banned in the united states by the FDA, (I am uncertain about DEA regulations) with no evidence to conclude such, thujone can be found in many other readily available essential oils.

Sage essential oil can contain as much as 50% thujone, however the FDA considers this a safe additive to food products and cosmetics.  Anis and Florence fennel also contain thujone and readily available to US consumers.

Sage essential oil is used as a food additive in Vermouth for flavoring.  Sage, as used by an aromatherapist can help treat stress related symptoms and act as a cerebral sedative.  Sage should be used with care however, because of the large amount of thujone it contains.  Thujone in large quantities is toxic, (causing renal failure and death) and any oil that contains thujone should be used with care.

Sage in conjunction with niacin, ginko biloba, or other herbs that improve circulation through vasodilation is known to help treat symptoms of Schizophrenia and other mental disorders.  Sage, and other camphor chemotypes can also have strong adverse reactions with those prown to epileptic seizures." -- My Blog post dated March the 2nd of 2007

"..thujone is found in plants of the Thuja genus, which is arborvitae and cedar.  They are in the conifer family Cupressa-cae, which also includes Juniperus (the source of gin), and nutmeg; the related Tsuga genus is hemlock (a well-known poison).

The newly noted connection with GABAA receptor channel antagonism should not be surprising in light of previous observations..."

-- Absinthe and y-aminobutyric acid receptors Richard W. Olsen* Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, University of California School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1735: This is a link to the PDF file.

"Arbor vitae (Thuja occidentalis L.) is a native European tree widely used in homeopathy and evidence-based phytotherapy. Many reviews and monographs have been published on the herbal substance’s descrip- tion, mode of action and clinical use. However, no comprehensive evidence-based review is available. Therefore, our aim was to search MEDLINE databases and survey manufacturers for further details or unpublished data. This review presents the botany, ethnobotany and phytochemistry, especially the different contents of essential oil (Thujone) in relation to different extraction procedures of this medic- inal plant. Thuja’s antiviral action and immunopharmacological potential, such as stimulatory and co-stimulatory effects on cytokine and antibody production and activation of macrophages and other immunocompetent cells, have been evaluated in numerous in vitro and in vivo investigations. Although no controlled trials have been conducted on Thuja occ alone, many clinical studies have been performed with a herbal medicinal product containing a special extract of Thuja occ and other immunostimulants, demonstrating its therapeutic efficacy and safety in respiratory tract infections."

-- Thuja occidentalis (Arbor vitae): A Review of its Pharmaceutical, Pharmacological and Clinical Properties, Belal Naser, Cornelia Bodinet, Martin Tegtmeier and Ulrike Lindequist: This is a link to the PDF file.

I often use Wormwood essential oil, which I was once afraid of, to ease stomach pains, muscle tension, and anxiety.  If it is not an Absinthe drink, their are a lot of safe uses that responsible, medically uneducated, yet aware people can take advantage of.

[Aromatherapy]
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Main Entry: spew
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Etymology: Middle English, from Old English spIwan; akin to Old High German spIwan to spit, Latin spuere, Greek ptyein intransitive verb
1 : VOMIT
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3 : to ooze out as if under pressure : EXUDE transitive verb
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