Home Made Eucalyptus Rub For Sore Joints

Eucalyptus Soothing Rub

Eucalyptus globulus can be used to make a home-made remedy which can be used externally as a massage oil to soothe aching muscles and joints,  rheumatic aches and pains, or to rub on tired feet. “Herbs For Health And Beauty”, by Margaret Roberts, Lowry Publishers, South Africa, 1986, recommends the use of eucalyptus leaves infused in oil to relieve aches and pains.

Simply take  half a dozen freshly picked eucalyptus leaves, put them in a jar, and cover with cooking oil, such as grape seed oil, or olive oil.  Let steep in a warm place for three days.  Drain, and your massage oil is ready to use.

If you live in Australia, where gum trees are indigenous natives, you will have many varieties of gum to experiment with.  The lemon-scented gum has a beautiful fragrance which is carried through in a home made oil infusion such as is used in this method above.

Eucalyptus Inhalation From Gum Leaves: Eucalyptus leaves, or gum leaves,  can be used fresh off the tree to make a hot inhalation for the relief of colds, flu, and other bronchial complaints.  Simply put a handful of fresh eucalyptus leaves into a bowl, pour hot water over, and your steam inhalation is ready.  I have used this steam inhalation many times to relieve conditions such as croup and other bronchial ailments, in combination with homeopathic remedies.  For young children, it is often a help just make the eucalyptus steam inhalation up, and to leave it in the child’s room at night.  Make sure that your children cannot reach the inhalation, and make sure that it is not too hot, just in case of spillage.

It is a while since I used eucalyptus gum leaves to make an inhalation, or to leave in a bowl in a room to treat an illness.  I often used a branch of leaves and simmered these in a pot of water for about ten minutes.  The pot can be left on the stove with the lid off, and the heat turned off.  The eucalyptus vapours will travel through the house.   This is a lovely technique for cleansing the house of anything negative.

Personally, I find herbs infused in oil to be very potent:  The active ingredients in the herbs are made more potent by soaking them in oils or water.  They will work homeopathically – the more these oils are diluted, the stronger the effect of the active ingredients will become.  So use just a little of your home-made eucalyptus oil at first, to try out its effect.  There is no danger of toxicity, used externally,  if the directions above are followed. If you find you cannot tolerate diluted eucalyptus oil,  made in this way from fresh leaves,  simply wash it off the skin.