TRUessence ESSENTIAL OILS ARE TRULY ANTIVIRAL

Truly  Antiviral
Essential oils are truly antiviral without risk of creating super-viruses. Even the medical professionals don’t have a remedy for viruses. They only attempt to mitigate the symptoms.

It is a fact that antibiotics as a rule have no effect on virus-based diseases.  These include colds, flu and herpes infections, among others.  Medical doctors are more or less helpless when it comes to stopping viral infections, and using antibiotics on viral infections only tends to create a greater likelihood for antibiotic resistant pathogens.  In contrast a number of essential oils have demonstrated significant—sometimes aggressive—action toward common viruses, including those that cause colds, flu and herpes infections.  With essential oils we can do more than just “take 2 aspirin and call the doctor in the morning.”

Among all the viral infections common to man, herpes simplex is even more common than the cold virus.  It comes in two varieties:  type 1 (cold sores) and type 2 (genital herpes).  Herpes infections have been known since ancient times and are one of the most common communicable diseases in humans. Although infections are often subclinical, they can cause mild to severe diseases, especially in immunocompromised patients. Herpes simplex viruses establish latency in the nuclei of nerve cells and may reactivate, with or without symptoms, throughout the host’s lifetime. Over one third of the world’s population suffers from recurrent herpes infections several times a year.  Thus these infections are regularly transmitted by close personal contact.  Herpes simplex viruses are, therefore, typically the primary ones studied when investigating whether a substance is antiviral or not.

Several significant studies have come out of the University of Heidelberg in Germany that are very specific to the antiviral properties of essential oils. In 2001, Tea tree oil and eucalyptus oil were tested against both types of herpes viruses.  Both essential oils “exhibited distinct antiviral activity,” but tea tree oil was particularly lethal, reducing the ability of the virus to infect cells by 98.2% for simplex 1 and 93.0% for simplex 2.  The researchers concluded that the “application [of tea tree and eucalyptus oils] as antiviral agents in recurrent herpes infection is promising.”1

In 2003 University of Heidelberg researchers tested peppermint oil against the two herpes viruses.  Here again, peppermint oil was impressive.  “A clearly time-dependent activity could be demonstrated.  After 3 hours of incubation of herpes simplex virus with peppermint oil, an antiviral activity of about 99% could be demonstrated.”2

Two studies from the University of Heidelberg were published in 2008.  The first tested six different essential oils against herpes simplex type 2.  All of the tested oils—anise, hyssop, thyme, ginger, chamomile and sandalwood—demonstrated virucidal activity in highly dilute concentrations ranging from 0.016% to 0.0015%.  Hyssop, thyme and ginger, in particular, reduced viral growth by more than 90%, while chamomile demonstrated a very high virucidal selectivity toward the type 2 herpes virus. 3   The second study examined melissa essential oil against both Type 1 and Type 2 herpes viruses.  At noncytotic  concentrations, the type 1 virus infectivity was reduced by 98.8% and the type 2 infectivity was reduced by 97.2%!  Even at extremely high dilutions of 0.0004% to 0.00008% the melissa oil lowered infectivity by 50%.4

In 2009 two more studies emerged from the University of Heidelberg. In the first, essential oils of eucalyptus, tea tree and thyme and their isolated monoterpene compounds were studied against herpes type 1 virus.  The results showed all the oils were able to reduce viral infectivity by more than 96%, while the isolated, individual compounds reduced infectivity by about 80%.  Tea tree, in particular, was found to be less toxic and 10 times more effective in destroying herpes type 1 than its isolated single monoterpenes.5  The second 2009 study found that sesquiterpenes such as trans-anethole, eugenol, betaeudesmol, farnesol and beta-caryophyllene, commonly found in many essential oils, including star anise, have significant antiviral properties.  In tests done on the herpes simplex type 1 virus, scientists found that “star anise essential oil reduced viral infectivity by over 99%” while other isolated sesquiterpene compounds reduced infectivity from 40-98%.  All the sesquiterpenes tested “exhibited anti-herpes activity by direct inactivation of free virus particles.”6

Similar research is occurring in places other than the University of Heidelberg.  In 2003, research done at the Kyoto University of Medicine in Japan showed the potential of essential oils as antiviral agents.  In this research, 12 different essential oils were tested on the herpes type 1 virus with stunning results:  all the essential oils suppressed the virus’ ability to reproduce in solutions of only 1%!  The most antiviral of all the oils studied was lemongrass, which “completely inhibited viral replication even at concentrations as low as 0.1%.”7

And finally, and significantly, research has begun to determine the effectiveness of essential oils in inhibiting other types of viruses, including one that is responsible for a major world disease— yellow fever.  This deadly virus is transmitted by female mosquitoes in the tropical and subtropical parts of South American and Africa.  It was once thought to have been nearly eradicated, but in the past three decades, cases have steadily risen.  It is a re-emerging disease in South America, and officials are concerned about the possibility of a major outbreak.  The World Health Organization estimates that 300,000 cases of yellow fever occur annually worldwide, resulting in 30,000 annual deaths.

Research being done in Colombia has demonstrated that the essential oils of Lippia alba (Lemon verbena), Lippia origanoides (Mexican oregano), Oreganum vulgare (wild marjoram), and Artemisia vulgaris (Mugwort)—all of which grow in Colombia—all produce a 100% inactivation of the virus when incubated in a 1% dilution for 24 hours.8

In reality, essential oils have the potential to become the saving element if a world viral epidemic should occur.

1. Schnitzier P, Schon K, Reichling J. “Antiviral activity of Australian tea tree oil and eucalyptus oil against herpes simplex virus in cell culture.” Pharmazie 2001 Apr;56(4):343-7.
2. Schuhmacher A, Reichling J, Schnitzier P. “Virucidal effect of peppermint oil on the enveloped viruses herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 in vitro.” Phytomedicine 2003;10(6-7):504-10.
3. Koch C, Reichling J, Schneele J, Schnitzier P. “Inhibitory effect of essential oils against herpes simplex virus type 2.” Phytomedicine 2008 Jan;15(1-2):71-8.
4. Schnitzier P, Schuhmacher A, Astani A, Reichling J. “Melissa officinalis oil affects infectivity of enveloped herpes viruses.” Phytomedicine 2008 Sep;15(9):734-40.
5. Astani A, Reichling J, Schnitzier P. “Comparative study on the antiviral activity of selected monoterpens derived from essential oils.” Phytotherapy Research 2009 Aug 3 [Epub ahead of print]
6. Astani A, Reichling J, Schnitzier P.  “Screening for Antiviral Activities of Isolated Compounds from Essential Oils.” Evidence-based Complement Alternat Med. [Epub ahead of print].
7. Minami M, et al. “The inhibitory effect of essential oils on herpes simplex virus type-1 replication in vitro.” Microbiol Immunol 2003;47(9):681-4.
8. Meneses R, Ocazionez R, Martinez J, Stashenko E. “Inhibitory Effect of Essential Oils obtained from Plants Grown in Colombia on Yellow Fever Virus Replication in vitro.” Annals of Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobials, December 18, 2009.