Description
Wild oregano
L’origan fait partie de la famille des Lamiacées, qui regroupe également le thym, le romarin, la lavande, le basilic et la menthe. Originaires de la Méditerranée, ces plantes y sont utilisées en cuisine tout comme en recours alternatif depuis des siècles pour ses multiples effets. L'huile d'origan sauvage est une panacée aux multiples vertus qui trouve sa place dans toutes les pharmacies naturelles.
Composition
Huile d'origan, issue de l'Origanum vulgare poussant à l'état sauvage dans les montagnes de Grèce et de Turquie, cueilli à la main et élaboré selon les procédés ancestraux ; huile d'olive vierge biologique 1ère pression à froid.
25 ml bottle in tinted glass with pipette.
Use
This oil is not an essential oil. Thanks to a patented process, it is possible to benefit from the power of an essential oil without having the deleterious effects internally.
Recommended daily dosage
3 drops in the morning and at noon 5 days a week diluted in a spoon of honey or vegetable oil or in a glass of water, fruit juice or vegetable milk. Or put on a neutral tablet to be swallowed with a glass of water.
History
"Oregano" is a word derived from the Greek meaning "joy of the mountains" and is probably an allusion to the euphoric effect it had on the ancient Greeks when it bloomed on the mountain slopes. However, this connotation can certainly have a physiological dimension because the Greeks used this plant abundantly in medicine. It will be remembered that the Greek people showed qualities of excellence as well on the level of the body as on the level of the spirit.
In the markets of Baghdad in the ninth century, wild oregano was sprayed on food to keep it fresh; one historian of the time noted that vegetables remained intact for two weeks without refrigeration. In medieval Europe, braids of oregano were hung over milk jugs to prevent the growth of microbes.
Its particularly strong smell and spicy, almost bitter taste make oregano unique in the plant kingdom. These properties are largely preserved in the dried plant. The leaves of oregano are filled with an oil contained in vesicles that can be seen if you look at the plant in the light. The oil is found mainly on wild-grown oregano. Oregano grown in the garden or on farms are devoid of these vesicles. When the leaves are dried, the oil is preserved and can be kept for a long time without becoming rancid. Once the plant has dried, the oil, which is about two percent of the weight of the dry plant, can be extracted by distillation.
In the Mediterranean basin, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, oregano has been widely used as a food for thousands of years. While Westerners put oregano in their salads, in the Middle East people put their food on oregano; that is, they eat it almost as a staple, just as we eat wheat. A dish found in Egypt, Lebanon and Syria is a spread of crushed oregano soaked in olive oil on pita bread. The remarkable thing is that the layer of oregano can be as thick as the bread! Thus, the ancients valued it for its nutritional value.
Nutritional value
L’origan est une épice qui pousse à l’état sauvage sur des sols caillouteux et riches en calcaire. C’est dire que cette plante prospère sur des terrains riches en minéraux. C’est à ce terreau minéral que l’origan doit sa richesse nutritionnelle.
Wild oregano contains an extraordinary mineral diversity and density, capable of rivaling or even surpassing any existing food. The minerals it contains are numerous and cannot be listed in their entirety; however, among the most important are calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, copper, zinc, boron, potassium and manganese. Such mineral density makes oregano one of the richest sources of minerals among plants. Gram for gram, oregano contains more calcium than cheese, green vegetables, salmon, sardines, and milk. The fact is that oregano contains sixteen times more calcium than milk. As a source of calcium, green vegetables are not even comparable to oregano. Thus, a dietary supplement based on oregano represents a natural concentrate of calcium and magnesium.
Despite its high calcium value, its iron pool is even more impressive. Oregano contains 50 mg of iron per 100 g of plant, which is a lot of iron in its organic state. Ensminger(Food and Nutrition Encyclopedia, CRC Press, 1994) lists it as one of the 8 most important food sources of iron, well ahead of traditional sources such as liver, red meat and eggs. There are some varieties of oregano such as the one used in OregaMax that have an even higher iron content, making oregano, just after parsley, the highest source of iron available.
Some kinds of iron are bad for the body. Research has shown that the synthesized iron found in many multivitamin formulas and other pills can be toxic. This is especially true for men and postmenopausal women. Iron in its natural state found in plants is not toxic and is suitable for consumption by men and women of all ages.
Oregano contains a relatively large amount of magnesium. With 280 mg of magnesium per 100 g of plant, oregano ranks among the top 20 food sources of magnesium on the market. This means that oregano is richer in magnesium than conventional sources such as cashews, peanuts, whole grains and spinach.
The amount of zinc found in oregano is impressive. The plant contains about 4 mg per 100 grams, making it a more important source of this mineral than sardines, salmon, cheese and whole grains. Zinc deficiency concerns many people, you can refer to books and articles about this element.
Copper is another mineral found in unexpected amounts in oregano. Oregano can contain up to 1 mg of copper per 100 g of plant, which is a lot. Copper is difficult to find in the food chain. According to Ensminger, the only common foods that yield the same amount of copper as oregano are oysters (by far the richest source of the substance), liver, molasses, cocoa powder, black pepper, Brazil nuts, sunflower seeds, olives, hazelnuts, almonds, pecans, and whole wheat. The copper in whole wheat is difficult to absorb while the copper in oregano is bioavailable and easily absorbed.
Like many other spices, oregano contains potassium in large quantities: 1700 mg of potassium per 100 g of plant, which places it well above many traditional sources such as orange juice, bananas, apricots, dates and green vegetables. It should be noted that the potassium contained in oregano is absorbed efficiently and therefore this plant can be used as a food supplement. It is easy to understand the importance of oregano and the role it can play as a food supplement for multiple minerals.
Le contenu en vitamines de l’origan reste encore à élucider. Cependant, selon Taintu’s Spices and Seasonings l’origan contient plus de 6 mg de niacine pour 100 g. Cela signifie que l’origan contient autant de niacine que la viande bœuf, le riz du commerce et le blé complet. Parmi les autres vitamines que l’on retrouve dans l’origan on retrouve le bétacarotène, la vitamine C, la vitamine K, riboflavine et thiamine.
The different species of oregano are a source of flavonoids whose qualities are now recognized. There are many more flavonoids in wild oregano than in cultivated oregano. Flavonoids have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving properties. It is believed that certain types of flavonoids may help fight cancer and assist the body in eliminating cancer cells.
Chemical composition
Hundreds of components make up oregano oil; some are known to scientists, others are not yet known. The majority of the components can be classified into four main categories:
a) les phénols : ce sont des composés chimiques aromatiques portant une fonction alcool -OH. On retrouve les phénols dans de nombreuses plantes. Les principaux phénols contenus naturellement dans l’origan sont le carvacrol et le thymol. Tous deux sont de puissants éléments chimiques naturels. Comme tous les phénols, ils agissent par un effet caustique sur les tissus. L’on comprend à partir de cette propriété caustique l’action destructive de l’origan sur les microbes ainsi que sur les cellules cancéreuses. Les phénols possèdent également une action anti-oxydante.
b) les terpènes : ce sont des hydrates de carbone à longue chaîne moléculaire (ils contiennent au moins 10 atomes de carbone) que l’on retrouve dans une grande variété d’huiles végétales. Les terpènes sont hautement solubles dans la graisse, c’est-à -dire qu’ils pénètrent rapidement dans les graisses, y compris les membranes riches en lipides des cellules vivantes. C’est pourquoi les huiles riches en terpènes font d’excellentes huiles de massage.
Terpenes are the main active components of citrus oils. For example, limonene is a terpene found in lemon oil. Oregano oil contains dozens of terpenes including pinene (similar to that found in pine oil), bisabolene, caryophyllene, cymene and terpinene.
c) les alcools : tous les alcools ne se ressemblent pas. Cette catégorie dans la chimie recouvre un grand nombre de composants. Si l’action de l’alcool éthylique est plutôt limitée, la nature fournit une vaste gamme de grosses molécules d’alcool aux propriétés significatives et dont l’effet toxique est minimal voire absent.
The types of alcohols contained in oil of oregano are devoid of toxic effects; they are called long chain alcohols. Long chain alcohols are relatively effective, especially for their properties. The long chain alcohols in oregano are linalool and borneol.
d) les esters : les esters contenus en grande quantité dans l’huile d’origan sont l’acétate de géranyl et l’acétate de linalyl. On retrouve également ces substances dans l’huile de sauge et l’huile de lavande. Les esters sont connus pour leurs diverses qualités.
De même que pour l'Oreganol P73, le lieu, la méthode, les conditions de la cueillette et de la fabrication sont absolument essentiels pour parvenir à une huile de grande qualité. Parmi la soixantaine de sortes différentes d’origan, ce sont celles qui poussent dans les montagnes en Grèce et en Turquie qui produisent la plante aux vertus les plus élevées. Ces terres fertiles, qui n’ont jamais connu la glaciation, comptent parmi les plus riches en minéraux de la planète. L’origan utilisé pour l’huile d'origan C80 pousse sur des roches riches en calcium, phosphore et magnésium. La charge en ions négatifs de la Méditerranée, couplée à l’altitude élevée où pousse l’origan font de cette plante l’une des plus vibrantes énergétiquement sur la planète.
The plant is picked by hand at altitudes that preclude any means of transport other than walking. The villagers carry it down the mountain on donkeys. To preserve this natural flora, a conservation program has been put in place to let the plants grow for two years without picking; the villagers who make a living from picking are paid during this time or pick other plants to have productive lives. It takes 1000 kg of oregano to produce a few liters of oil.
Le mode d’extraction utilisé est la méthode ancienne de la distillation à la vapeur. L’eau utilisée pour la distillation vient d’une source située à 200 pieds sous la terre, ce qui garantit sa pureté et sa richesse en minéraux. Toute cette attention au processus de fabrication permet d’obtenir une huile de grande qualité qui contient tous les éléments nutritionnels et les composants chimiques qui confèrent à l'huile d'origan C80 son énorme potentiel.
Wild oregano in its crushed form (OregaMax) will also be useful. Vegetarians can also benefit from wild oregano whose calcium and magnesium content covers the nutritional needs in these two minerals.
In cooking, wild oregano oil can be used for its antimicrobial power. Mixing a little oregano oil or the contents of OregaMax capsules with food will preserve it from bacteria and keep it fresh. In addition, oregano is a pleasant condiment that will add flavor to soups, sauces, main dishes and salads. Oregano can also keep your kitchen clean by adding a few drops of oil to cleaning products. By mixing it with a soap solution, it does not emit the toxic vapors that commercial household products can have for an equal effectiveness. Its antiseptic powers will be very useful for example in the refrigerator: after cleaning, the natural residue of the product will be able to hinder the growth of germs and fungus.
By its composition, oregano oil is closer to a food oil than an essential oil. The crushed herb is suitable for consumption by everyone, regardless of age. The only precaution to be taken is for people prone to heart problems, as wild oregano oil has a certain effect.
Wild oregano oil is only useful if it is made from species of oregano growing in the wild and selected for their chemical composition (especially the high content of Carvacrol).
Depuis 2010, nous commercialisons l’huile d’origan sauvage C80 élaborée par un autre laboratoire et utilisant exactement la même matière première que celle mise en œuvre pour la confection de l’Oreganol P73.
La société Apoticaria diffuse l’huile d’origan sauvage Oreganol P73 et Oreganol P73 Super Strength dont la concentration est 3 fois supérieure à l’Oreganol P73.