Children who grew up during the early part of the 20th century came to hate the name "castor oil" for the foul taste and unpleasant side effects it had. Still, castor oil has been with mankind for thousands of years and has found many uses during that time. Understanding what castor oil was and is used for is important to maintaining good health.
History
Ancient Egyptians used castor oil extensively in protecting their eyes and lips from the dry desert winds as well as in oil lamps for illumination. The Egyptians also believed the oil had special healing properties and included it in many medicinal rubs and poultices (a mixture of herbs and oils that was placed on wounds or sites of inflammation to cure them and prevent infection). Castor oil is derived from the castor plant by harvesting and grinding its beans. The result is a slightly yellowish oil with an unpleasant taste. Currently, castor oil has many mainstream, New Age, and other uses both for the health of the human body and for disease prevention.
Function
Though traveling medicine shows have used castor oil, sometimes called "snake oil," to augment any number of questionable "miracle cures," castor oil does offer some relief for at least a few patients. Currently, castor oil is used as a laxative for those with severe constipation, particularly to clear the bowels of spoiled food which may be a cause for food poisoning. Sometimes administered rectally, castor oil stimulates peristalsis (the movement of the digestive system) and causes the bowels to contract, thus expelling a large or hard stool.
Externally, castor oil is used to treat a number of skin afflictions including corns, warts, ringworm, and sunburn, to ease pain and cause the afflicted area to be deprived of air and/or softened for removal by other means. Throughout most of human history, bandages were soaked in castor oil and placed ("packed") onto wounds to prevent infection and speed healing.
Considerations
Some alternative medicine practitioners believe that castor oil has other benefits outside those used by Western, or scientific, medicine. For instance, a pad soaked with castor oil can be placed on the abdomen and heated slightly to reduce menstrual cramps or fibroids. A similar treatment is also prescribes for breast pain, hemorrhoids, and to increase lymphatic circulation. Though there is some evidence to support alternative medicine's claim that castor oil is an anti-inflammatory, such uses as treatment of epilepsy, migraines, and appendicitis are not accepted by the mainstream medical community.
Warning
Though castor oil is beneficial for most people, there is a possibility of overdose if too much castor oil is ingested or introduced into the body. Signs of overdose include nausea, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and in some cases, hallucinations. Still, castor oil is not considered toxic, and large amounts of the oil are required to cause adverse reactions.
A byproduct of castor oil production is the toxin called "ricin." The compound is found in the hulls and skin of the castor bean, but because the toxin remains in the bean after processing, castor oil does not contain ricin. Chewing castor beans, on the other hand, is extremely dangerous. At the very least, it can cause serious illness and at worst, death. Ricin is considered 12,000 times more deadly than cyanide, and as little as 70 grams can kill a 160-pound person. Ricin interrupts the body's cells from making the proteins they need to continue functioning, and the cells die.
Potential
In addition to castor oil's benefits, ricin may also be of benefit to humans despite its extremely toxic nature. Currently, research is underway aimed at using ricin to kill cancerous tumors. It is hoped that certain sub-compounds of ricin can be engineered so as to attach directly to cancer tumors while leaving healthy tissue alone. The result would be an interruption of the cancer cell's ability to grow, replicate, and continue the infection.
Tags: castor used, alternative medicine, castor does, castor placed, Currently castor, prevent infection