Myrrh comes from the reddish-brown resin of Commiphora Myrrha, native to Africa, collected from the tree’s resin and extracted with CO2 to keep all the values in the essential oil. The word “myrrh” comes from the Arabic word “murr,” meaning bitter, due to its sharp taste. The resin has been prized since ancient times, not only for the use in spiritual applications and as a natural incense, but also for healing properties it demonstrated when applied on skin. It was mentioned in the Bible several times, used in traditional Chinese medicine and in Ayurvedic medicine.
In aromatherapy, the rich, warm, sweet, earthy scent of myrrh is especially grounding and balancing oil. It helps center the mind and calm the spirit. It is the perfect aromatic to promote feelings of spirituality during mindfulness practices, meditation and yoga, as well as root chakra work.
Myrrh has strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties, it kills harmful bacteria and stimulates the immune system to produce more white blood cells. Even used as an incense, especially combined with frankincense, it helps purify the air from airborne microbes. It was clinically proven that myrrh oil has strong efficacy against several infectious bacteria, including some drug-resistant ones (source 1, source 2, source 3) and – even at a low dilution of 0.1% – kill all dormant Lyme disease bacteria, which can persist in some people after antibiotic treatment and continue to cause illness (source).
In skincare, myrrh is used mostly for treating wounds and skin infections. It was tested on human skin cells and confirmed the efficacy in healing (source). In another study myrrh oil inhibited 43–61% of the growth of five fungi that cause skin conditions, including ringworm and athlete’s foot (source). Being a powerful antioxidant, even more efficient than vitamin E (source), myrrh essential oil protects skin’s own squalene against oxidation and combats oxidative damage. It is perfect for relieving dry, inflamed, irritated skin, preventing skin aging, retaining moisture in skin. The secret is terpenes. Myrrh also contains skin-soothing limonene, bacteria-fighting germacrene, anti-fungal curzerene and magnesium.
Benefits for skin:
- anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-fungal
- combats oxidative damage
- stimulates the immune system
- soothing, treats wounds and skin infections
- prevents skin aging
- retains moisture in skin