Our immune system protects our body from toxins and other foreign substances. When out of balance, the immune system can fail to protect the body and even attack it, mistaking “self” cells for invading pathogens, resulting in autoimmune diseases. Continue reading this blog post to learn about essential oils for your immune system.
Essential Oils for your Immune System
Immune modulation can bring the immune system back in to balance and help us heal. Critical to this healing is balancing a chaotic immune system which can present as either over-reactive or under-reactive.
An over-reactive immune system can over-responds to every threat, resulting in symptoms like allergies, asthma, eczema, multiple food sensitivities, or even autoimmune conditions or cancer. Autoimmune diseases, sometimes called inflammatory diseases, can be triggered by an overactive immune system that is out-of-balance. For example, when the immune system attacks the body’s joints, the result is rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
A down-regulated or under-reactive immune system can expose the body to increased susceptibility to infections and disease. Many things can weaken the immune system, including external toxins, viruses and physical or emotional stress
While many remedies can boost the immune system, a constant state of stimulation is not necessarily ideal. For example, over stimulated immune cells, like T-cells, may enhance the pathology associated with inflammatory bowel disease or other inflammatory conditions. Similarly, we don’t want to simply suppress an overactive or hyper-responsive immune system.
Instead, the goal is to modulate or balance the system and natural remedies, like essential oils allow the immune system to return to balance and function in a coordinated manner
Therefore, there is a need to balance the immune system; not to boost or to suppress it. Natural products have a chance of maintaining balance in healthy individuals
Essential Oils for Immune Modulation
Essential oils have long been recognized for their immune modulating properties. Recent research found that an essential oil blend of wild orange, clove, cinnamon, eucalyptus, and rosemary “exhibited significant effects on the levels of protein biomarkers that are critically involved in inflammation, immune modulation, and tissue remodeling processes. The overall inhibitory effect of EOB on these protein biomarkers suggests that it has anti-inflammatory and immune modulating properties.” The study also found that the essential oils “robustly affected signaling pathways related to inflammation, immune function, and cell cycle control.”
8 Oils to Modulate Your Immune System
Vibrant Blue Oils have been specifically formulated to help modulate the immune system, including:
1. Parasympathetic®: The autonomic nervous system has two states: the “fight-or flight” sympathetic state and the “rest-and-digest” parasympathetic state. The parasympathetic state helps to reset the immune system and switch off production of proteins that fuel inflammation. Another key impediment to immune modulation is an impaired digestive system. If you are not absorbing and assimilating nutrients that are the raw materials to support the immune system, it is hard to heal. To ensure optimal immune function, you can apply the Parasympathetic® blend, which contains clove oil found to support immune modulation, to the vagus nerve (behind the earlobe on the mastoid bone) before meals to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system “rest-and-digest” state.
2. Lymph™ : Your lymphatic system supports the immune response by both bringing nutrients to and helping to clear toxins and waste from every cell in the body. It works as the body’s septic system, removing and destroying the byproducts and wastes created from metabolizing nutrients, including dead blood cells, pathogens, toxins, excess fluid, and waste products from the cells and the interstitial spaces between the cells. Just like the drains in your home, the lymphatic system can get congested and stagnant, and toxins can build up. Lymph stagnation, when the fluid isn’t flowing, can impede the body’s ability to mount an immune response.
The more you can help the lymph fluid flow, the more quickly you can return the body to balance and help modulate the immune system. Unlike the cardiovascular system, the lymphatic system does not have a central pump—it only moves as the muscles squeeze it along. So the lack of movement makes the lymphatic system stagnant, with waste accumulating and excessive toxins building up. Lymph™ blend helps keep lymph flowing to move toxins out of the body. Liberally apply 2 to 3 drops of Lymph™ to both sides of the neck, the lymph nodes under the arms, and around inguinal ligament (bikini line area—think where your leg creases when you lift it) to ensure optimal drainage and health.
3. Immune Support™ – This blend traces its origins to the bubonic plague when thieves were stealing the gold teeth out of the mouths of the dead. When they were apprehended, they were offered a lesser sentence in exchange for sharing how they avoided the illness. Their secret was this blend of hot oils that strengthen the immune system against flu, colds, and coughs as well as infections, viruses, bacteria, fungus, parasites, and microbes. To prevent illness or nip it in the bud once it starts, apply Immune Support™ 2- 3 times daily on the throat (diluted) or the bottom of the feet. To keep the family healthy, rub the oil on the bottom of the feet prior to bed (kids can even be asleep when you apply it).
4. Thymus™ – The thymus gland, located in front of the heart, plays an important role in the immune system, maturing infection-fighting white blood cells made in the bone marrow. Stimulating the thymus by gently tapping on the gland (thymus thumping) or using Thymus™ essential oils is thought to increase the release of white blood cells. To stimulate immune function against infections, viruses and bacteria, apply 2-3 drops on the thymus (on breastbone at third rib) in a clockwise motion for 30 seconds and then stimulate the thymus by gently tapping.
5. Spleen Support™ – The spleen, located in the left upper abdomen, is an important part of the immune system. It helps fight certain bacteria, like those that cause pneumonia and meningitis and serves as a reservoir for blood, filtering and purifying the blood and lymph fluid that flow through it. A damaged spleen makes you more susceptible to infections. You can support the spleen and assists with the distribution of healthy blood cells by applying 2- 3 drops of Spleen Support™ blend over the spleen (left side of the body, under breast) or around the earlobes.
6. Histamine Balance™ – Histamine is a chemical compound released by the cells in response to injury, allergic or inflammatory reactions, causing contraction of smooth muscle and dilation of capillaries. Histamine plays a role in immune responses, regulates physiological function in the gut, and acts as a neurotransmitter in the brain. While the release of histamine is a normal defense mechanism, an exaggerated histamine response can bind to cell receptor sites, causing irritation and chronic inflammation. This alters the cells immune regulation, and causes them to attack the body even when there is not a foreign substance present. For example, you might experience being allergic to and reacting to everything including taste, touch, smell and even things that are not inherently dangerous such as food or pollen. Histamine also performs critical functions in body, contributing to HCL production and neurotransmitter signals. That said, the goal is to balance, not block, the histamine responses. Read more about Histamine HERE.
To modulate excess histamine excretion, balance histamine levels and help to reset the immune response and reduce allergic reactions, apply 1 -2 drops of Histamine Balance™ on the bottom of the feet. For allergic reactions, smell or apply 1 – 2 drops behind your ears, on the back of your neck, or on your sternum to open airways. For the gut and food intolerance support, apply in a clockwise direction around belly button. For brain congestion, apply 1-2 drops at base of skull on the back of the head.
Gut Repair Kit™ – 80% of the immune system resides in the gut, where intestinal bacteria is monitored and analyzed to prevent the growth of harmful pathogens. Healthy gut flora is needed to maintain the healthy balance of bacteria in the intestines. Read more about supporting immunity through the gut HERE.
Vibrant Blue Oils Gut Repair Kit™ contains 3 powerful oils to help support gut immunity, including:
7. Intestinal Mucosa™ – The intestines are lined with a mucosal barrier that can be damaged by anti-biotics, food intolerances and other digestive stress. The mucosal lining plays a key role in optimal immune function. It contains several immune antibodies known as immunoglobulins (sIgA, IgA, IgG and IgM) and is critical for healthy gut function, plays host to healthy gut flora and proper digestion, absorption and assimilation of nutrients. To help balance and heal the intestinal mucosal lining, apply Vibrant Blue Oils Intestinal Mucosa™ blend in a clockwise around the belly button 2 – 3 x daily. This helps restore the integrity of the mucosal lining to restore optimal balance of healthy intestinal flora. Once the integrity of the intestinal mucosal wall has been re-established, the small intestine can do its job neutralizing the histamines and other toxins and in essence preventing allergies, inflammation and other immune responses.
8. Anti-Inflammatory™ – In order for the gut to heal, you need to remove the source of damage. This could include inflammatory foods, medications, alcohol and intestinal infections. Consider a strict elimination diets that remove all grains, sugar, dairy, corn, soy (and in some cases nuts, eggs and nightshades). You can also help to reduce inflammation through topical application of Vibrant Blue Anti-Inflammatory™ oil rubbed clockwise around the belly button 2 – 3 x daily.
Resources
Ready to get started? Click the links below to order today:
- Parasympathetic® available here
- Lymph™ available here
- Immune Support™ available here
- Thymus™ available here
- Spleen Support™ available here
- Histamine Balance™ available here
- Gut Repair Kit™ available here
- Intestinal Mucosa™ available here
- Anti-Inflammatory™ available here
