Essential oils are creating a ripple in the beauty world; and what’s more, they come minus the harmful chemical additives that have a lot of side effects, which you could easily do without. Yes, essential oils such as yarrow essential oils are incredibly effective. You can also grow them in your garden; yarrow is a small springtime herb that gluts your senses with its beautiful intoxicating fragrance.
Yarrow essential oil is not only about sense-teasing aroma, there is so much more to this small but precious herb. It treats allergies and is a great medium to combat stress. The brilliant deep blue color is another of its unique features. Yarrow has an interesting back story behind its biological name, which is Achillea millefolium. The first word Achillea comes from the word Achilles, stemming from the fact that the great Greek warrior used this potent herb to treat soldiers’ battle on the battlefield. Yarrow is known to staunch the blood and is a natural way to treat wounds.
The yarrow flowers and some of its other parts undergo a steam distillation process. The scientific name is Achillea millefolium. The color of this incredible plant ranges from pink to white. Each flower is a cluster of a number of minute flowers. Yarrow is the one essential oil that you must keep in the medicine cabinet. Yarrow was used in abundance in Europe to flavor drinks, substituting hops. Yarrow has myriad of benefits as it alleviates inflammation, pain, and reduces insomnia. The yarrow essential oil is composed of a higher concentration of a compound called ‘chamazulene’, which is effective in healing wounds. The color blue is its most unique feature, but yarrow oil is available in a greenish hue as well.
Yarrow essential oil has a simple processing technique where it is extracted with the distillation process and then derived from a solvent extraction and the supercritical carbon dioxide extraction. The first one comes with the maximum benefits.
Yarrow essential oil blends well with other essential oils such as Valerian essential oil and it is hugely effective in reducing stress. But there are other oils that blend with Yarrow oil such as Vetiver oil, Oakmoss oil, Cedar oil and Ylang-Ylang oil. Also, it blends with German chamomile, Lavender, and Calendula oil. It brings out the aroma of some essential oils such as black pepper essential oil, Bergamot essential oil, and Grapefruit essential oil.
Yarrow essential oil is also known by other names, such as thousand-leaf oil, milfoil, sanguinary oil, plumajillo oil and gordaldo oil.
The unique properties of Yarrow essential oil include tremendous healing properties and other unique properties such as the following,
Let us now discuss in details the wonderful Yarrow essential oil benefits.
The influx of social media and TV has had an enormous impact on our minds, and we are looking at instant gratification, that is trying to buy things that would provide solutions in a jiffy. But in our pursuit to find the perfect ‘everything, aren’t we compromising on our health?
Yes, instead of reaching out for a pill or a cosmetic from a bottle, we should try and find things which will provide us with relief, yet not affect our health in any way. Using essential oils for our health is one step towards ‘going green’ and choosing a holistic, natural solution for our everyday health need. So, what is yarrow used for? To answer this question, it is an extremely versatile oil and can be used for a number of skin and health issues. You can find this amazing plant in the temperate regions such as Northern Hemisphere regions like North America, Asia, and Europe.
The yarrow plan is steeped in history and if you believe in myths, then the centaur Chiron had gifted this very plant to Achilles to cure the wounds he had inflicted on the battlefield. The Yarrow plant has powerful healing properties, especially when it is processed and turned into an essential oil. When you apply on the wounds, it forms a sheath on the wounds to prevent it from turning septic. Thus, it is great for treating any kind of wounds.
If you are someone who suffers from spasms, then the yarrow essential oil can provide considerable relief, even when you have constant spasmodic attacks in your body.
Constantly popping antacid pills has long-term health repercussions, blue yarrow essential oil provides immense relief to people suffering from digestive problems. Of course, you have to consume it in moderation to reap the maximum benefits. What’s more, you will be able to take care of your intestinal health too with this essential oil.
Water retention is a health problem that many of us suffer from and it prevents us from reaching our weight loss goal. The yarrow healing properties help get rid of the accumulated toxins, salts and the excess water from your body, this will immediately have an effect on your body, helping you look all toned and fit.
Some of us suffer from regular respiratory problems and it gets worse in the winter season. Yarrow essential oil acts as a natural expectorant and helps get rid of excess phlegm. Just a few drops of the potent essential oil and you will recover from a bad case of congestion.
It is time to throw away all your expensive skin creams as you now have a natural solution for all your skin problems. Yarrow skin benefits do not only make your make your skin look young but also utterly gorgeous, and healthy from within. It clears up your skin for good and also helps get rid of skin infections.
The yarrow plant has some tranquilizing effects and hence soothes your nerves, brain, and muscles. This essential oil is said to have a soothing and calming effect on you. If you are feeling low and down in the dumps, this essential oil will help you pull out of the deep trenches of depression.
People suffering from hypertension can get relief from a mild dosage of Yarrow essential oil as it can regulate your blood pressure to a great extent. This is a holistic cure that helps stabilize fluctuating blood pressure levels.
Anti-mark creams? What’s that? Yarrow essential oil can replace all your anti-mark creams. The best part is, it can even lighten the post-pregnancy scars or acne-induced scars; and within, hold your breath, a week!
Also known as the febrifuge property, yarrow essential oil reduces the fever naturally by getting rid of infections.
This oil has hemostatic properties and stops the contractions in the blood vessels that causes hemorrhages.
If you have been suffering from flatulence or gas trouble for some time and tried everything in the book natural or otherwise without any results, try using yarrow oil. It stops the build-up of gas and helps eliminate it completely.
This essential oil has anti-rheumatic properties as it improves circulation and prevents the accumulation of uric acid in your joints and muscles that lead to rheumatism. Also, it helps get rid of the bodily toxins via perspiration, thus helping patients suffering from the debilitating condition of arthritis.
Yarrow has anti-inflammatory properties, it can cure a myriad of problems related to inflammation of the circulatory, respiratory or digestive system.
Yarrow essential oil is not the new fad on the block; in fact, it has been there for ages providing great solace to people who had to deal with numerous health conditions. The world has woken up to the yarrow uses and benefits, again and thank God for that, as yarrow’s versatility is time-tested and substantiated by most naturopaths. Right from a nagging cold to a skin problem, yarrow has a ready solution for all the small niggling problems and also some chronic health issues.
Before we round off, know exactly how you should store this essential oil and how you will use it.
You can buy it from an essential oil store or online. Make sure you buy the pure and unadulterated version of this oil. Store it in a cool place away from sunlight. Keep it in a relatively dry place away from moisture.
How to use it? It is generally safe and you can apply it directly on the skin (suitable for adults). However, it is better if you do a patch test before applying it to the skin. Yarrow essential oil should not be ingested internally and it is not safe for use for pregnant women. Prolonged exposure may lead to headaches. Also, some people may be allergic to yarrow essential oil. It is also flammable so be extra careful when you use it.
Manoja Kalakanti