Mother earth has graced us with some incredibly healing herbs and plants to tend to our physical needs and ailments. *Thank you, Mother Earth.* To know that we live among foliage that has amazing healing properties is a gift, and to know what those healing properties are can be really empowering when it comes to your own wellness. While it is always recommended to visit a doctor when something ails you, it also doesn’t hurt to know just how helpful some of these herbs can be. One of the strongest and most helpful of the herbs is oregano. If you have a vagina, you’ll want to know just how helpful, healing, and preventative oil of oregano is for your vaginal health.
Benefits of Oil of Oregano
Oregano is a powerhouse of an herb! It has strong and potent natural healing properties, contains vitamins and minerals, and has the ability to stimulate or curb appetite. It also has phytonutrients (thymol and carvacrol) and is chalk full of antioxidants. There are four different types of oregano species. It has been used as a healing property for centuries, for things like colds, stomach ailments, GI symptoms, organs, and joints, headaches and muscle pain.
Various studies have validated the powerful benefits of oil of oregano, including taking down bacteria, pathogens, and fungi. Oil of oregano contains phenols and flavonoids, garantin and quercetin, which not only stop oxidative stress on the body but also eradicate the microbes that cause candida (yeast).
Oil of oregano has been considered to be a powerful antifungal, taking action against candida. It is also known to be powerful antibacterial against 25 different bacteria. Dr. Harry G. Preuss of Georgetown University Medical Center found that ‘low doses of oil of oregano inhibited the growth of staphylococcus as effectively as standard antibiotics.’
This is huge news to anybody graced with a vagina! Other benefits of oil of oregano include:
-Antibiotic/antibacterial properties
-Anti-fungal properties
-Antioxidant properties
-Can improve gut health
-Can lower cholesterol
-Can decrease seasonal allergies
Vaginal Flora
Now let’s talk about the vagina. If you have been blessed with the holy grail of crevices, then you know just how gentle you need to be with your vagina, taking into consideration the soaps, condoms, lubes, and scents you use down there. The vagina has a sensitive microbiome, or the microbes that make up a healthy and balanced vagina. Many things can disrupt the balance of bacteria down in your nethers, and sometimes your vagina communicates to you in uncomfortable ways when things are out of balance.
Yeast Infections
Yeast infections happen when an overgrowth of candida takes over your vaginal flora, and they are uncomfortable. If you have had one, you know that the itching, burning, and general discomfort is difficult to ignore, and you aren’t alone! It is estimated that almost 75% of women will experience at least one in their lifetime. While it is important to consider your diet and lifestyle when healing a yeast infection, you may benefit from the potent healing benefit of oregano. Since oil of oregano is an anti-fungal, it can possibly give your vaginal flora a fighting chance against the overgrowth of candida.
Bacterial Vaginosis
Vaginal pH is maintained when the good bacteria is more prominent than the bad bacteria. When there is an imbalance, you can get a bacterial overgrowth called bacterial vaginosis. This is also uncomfortable and similar to a yeast infection in that it is an overgrowth and imbalance of vaginal flora.
UTI
A urinary tract infection, or UTI, is caused by bacteria overcoming the body’s urinary tract. Since oil of oregano is known to inhibit the growth of bacteria strains, you might want to consider becoming acquainted with it if you have experienced a UTI.
How To Use It For Your Vagina
There are a couple of ways to get the healing benefits from oil of oregano.
Orally
You can take oil of oregano orally. There are great brands like this one, which is called oreganol and is a higher potency and can be taken orally. Here is another organic brand. I highly recommend having water to wash it down, as the flavor is as potent as its compounds. You can also take encapsulated oregano like this brand since the potency in flavor of oil is very earthy.
Vaginally
You can take a drop of oil of oregano and mix it with an oil (I recommend coconut oil), and soak a tampon in the mixture for a few minutes. Insert the tampon in for 2-4 hours. I wouldn’t recommend applying oil of oregano to your vulva or vagina without a carrier oil.
While oil of oregano can be incredibly beneficial for the health of your vagina, don’t forget to see these imbalances as a sign that your diet and lifestyle may be causing this imbalance. Whether it is stress, too much sugar, or consuming highly processed foods, be sure to address the root of the problem as well as healing the uncomfortable symptoms.
