- - - - - - - - - - - FACTS ON THE ORIGANUM'S by Butch Owen - - - - - - - - - -

All of the Origanum's except the Origanum dubium Linalool Type are
Carvacrol rich and Carvacrol is the active therapeutic component most
people seek.

Origanum vulgare is the best seller though its really no better or worse
than any other Origanum. Maybe people think its the best because there
is one company making health claims and selling it as "Oil of Oregano"
in a 10% Oregano/90% Olive Oil mixture for as much as $39.95 per 2/3
ounce bottle. People see mine as being less costly. With mine, one can
mix their own and create a dozen bottles of the $39.95 product for less
than half the price. And that company is NOT selling ONLY Origanum
vulgare .. I was once their supplier .. had a contract for a metric ton
per month till they shafted me and left me holding a lot of oil they did
not purchase .. and I know their current supplier and they are producing
as much Origanum dubium Carvacrol and Origanum onites as anything else.

I will add that the company I speak of above was charged with false
advertising and taken to court by the FTC. On 31 July 2008, they were
fined 2.5 million dollars and had many, many other restrictions placed
on them. I believe that they will probably have to close their
company. Did that make me sad? ;-)

Origanum onites has been the next best seller and that might be due to
some things I've written on it and a portion of a lecture I gave at an
Aromatherapy Conference in Toronto in September 1999. I presented some
research conducted by five prominent professors in Turkey using Origanum
onites in a project involving lung tumors in rats, using three different
groups and three treatments, one being a normal cancer treatment. I
presented the study and showed the audience colored micro slides of the
lung tissues. The Origanum onites not only stopped the growth but also
caused recession of the growths! The lung tissue was reverting to its
previously normal pink and clear state!! I made it clear that this is
not an indication that it will cure cancer in humans but it shows a
great need for further research.

Origanum dubium Carvacrol is the next best seller, possibly because it
appears to have a milder odor than the others. Turkish folks generally
prefer it and Origanum onites for home medication.

Contrary to the marketing claims of many fad sales companies .. to
include the one I mentioned above, Origanum onites and Origanum dubium
Carvacrol have the exact same therapeutic properties as does Origanum
vulgare. In fact, they are not all selling Origanum vulgare anyway ..
the world supply is not sufficient to supply all those who make such
claims. To take it a bit further .. I have supplied companies who make
claims of selling ONLY Origanum vulgare .. but that is NOT all they
purchased from me.

Origanum dubium (Linalool type) is in its own class .. a very nice odor
and dual therapeutic value. It's high in linalool, as is lavender, and
high in carvacrol, as is oregano. It has properties of both oregano and
lavender .. so much so that the common name in Turkey is Lavanta Kekik
(Lavender Oregano.) It's endemic to Turkey - it is not found elsewhere
and even in Turkey it's only found in a very small corner of the
Southeast. When people get samples of it from us, they buy it. I
normally use it for inhalation and it is great for diffusion - I love
the odor. Unfortunately, it is out of stock .. there is none in the
market this year.

Any of the Carvacrol rich Origanum's will assist in kicking Big Bad Bug
Butts (cold, flu, sinuses) and I personally believe they help me and
mine but I make no claims that they can kill these critters. I do have
results of a number of double blind studied and peer reviewed research
projects that indicate they can do this .. but as far as I know they are
not technically FDA approved studies. Likewise, I have never and will
never make recommendations or even suggestions to others on ingestion of
essential oils. When asked about this, I recommend buyers consult
their doctor prior to considering this manner of usage.

For diffusion any one of these oils will do a super fine job.

All Origanum's have reported antiseptic, anti microbial, anti fungal,
anti-spasmodic properties and they are believed to be capable of
stimulating the immune system .. which can assist the body to overcome
viral infections by putting the virus in a retrograde mode.. by stopping
its reproduction so it goes back into defilade position. The above
statement is based on in vivo and in vitro studies on the properties of
Carvacrol and again, it would be a violation of government regulations
to extrapolate information from those lab studies and attempt to apply
the results to human beings .. accordingly, I make no such claims.

So - one can choose based on the above descriptions of each oil.