A few weeks ago I picked up a few bars of organic soap. This soap was a little different as it is infused with essential oils and such that is actually geared to treat a range of ‘ailments’. The soap was from a company called Zen Organic Soap and I received the whole line of soaps which were:

Nirvana Muscle Pain Soap
Mellow Anti-Stress Soap
Bliss Insomnia Soap
Karma Anti-Aging Soap
Wellness Anti-PMS Soap

I obviously picked up the anti-PMS soap for sake of checking out the whole line :). I also had to then explain to my wife that I wasn’t implying anything buy getting that soap!

Anyway, I took on the Nirvana Muscle Pain Soap as I do suffer from some various pains from work and hobbies, who doesn’t? So, I put it to the test and these are the results.

First the soaps arrived at it was quite obvious, my mailbox had strong natural senses coming from it that could be detected a couple feet away. Separately the soaps smell excellent and aren’t that strong, but 5 soaps and a little bit of heat makes for an excellent mailbox potpourri. As stated on the website the soaps come in minimal recycled packaging. A simple wrapping of some recycled cardboard or corrugated board and raffia not only makes for a green way to deliver products, but also looks quite nice.

I don’t know what the ingredients of the actual soap is because neither the website nor the package said anything, but I do know the essential oils added to the soap. The Nirvana contains Lavender, Rosemary and Juniper Berry.

Lavender essential oil is often used by many companies, but in my opinion defiantly still underestimated by many. Although Lavender is used in many forms and seems ‘common’ it unbelievable that common herbs are effective. However, in concentrated form such as an essential oil, Lavender has many positive effects. Lavender has a cool and healing nature to it which is good for many problems like burns, wounds, inflammation, etc. In fact, I commonly use it in many of my trauma, liniment, and other remedies for this use. It provides an excellent fragrance while being a top contender in effectiveness. As far as our soap is concerned the Lavender here is being used for its healing nature and soothing the sore muscles. Because Lavender is also commonly know for its relaxing properties and is top 5 in aromatics, by being in a hot shower combined with the soaps usage on your body you will actually be inhaling vaporized Lavender essential oils and will relax you from the inside as well. Although not a manly fragrance, the other oils balance out to a very nice smell.

Rosemary essential oil is an interesting choice. Rosemary is a common herb used in the West for headaches and arthritis and by reading from the site, it is the long use of joint pain relief that they chose Rosemary. While it is an excellent choice for its use in joint problems in the soap there are defiantly some alternative advantages of using Rosemary. Two of the biochemical active ingredients in the oil are Borneol and Camphor. If you have ever gotten something for your sore muscles you will see Camphor as an active ingredient for its analgesic properties (borneol being similar). Rosemary essential oil is absolutly chalk filled with Vitamins and Minerals that will be excellent for your skin, it is also renowned for its effects on hair

so, again, for the guys you will have some radiant body hair after a few weeks of using for sure!

Juniper Berry is the last essential choice and may definantly make you wonder on this one depending on what other things you have seemed Juniper used in. Juniper has anti-inflammatory properties are well known for its use in urinary tract problems and stones. Juniper is also a flavoring in Gin which is used to help ease the stomach, relieve indigestion, and a very minimal halucigenic effect if used in large quantities. These anti-inflammatory properties have also been used to treat arthritic problems. It is this use that Zen has chosen to use this oil in their Nirvana Soap. It is also this property that some of us that make liniment choose to use Gin for liniment for arthritis or anti-inflammatory problems.

I think this seems like a pretty decent combination, I wonder what a quality soap like this with essential oils like Cajuput or Clove oil would do for the effect of muscle pain relief?

As far as its day to day use, this is how it stacks up:
Here is a picture of how well the soap suds up, which is important in the actual ability to clean. There was alot more suds than that, probably double, that came off in my hand when I set it in the bowl.

You can also see here that the soap is a little darker in color and you can see that some of that comes off giving it a rust colored sud. This will also come off of you in the shower and on the walls. However, this washes off easily which is a common complaint of bar soap (soap scum).

The usage of the soap is excellent. The soap washes away clean, and my skin did not dry or any other issues from the soap after use. The cleaning is also excellent from the soap. Although you may find this hard to believe but I work on older cars as a hobby. Therefore I was able to put the soap to the test in its use against dirt, grime, and grease on my arms and there was no problem here! As far as muscle pain is concerned, I am defiantly unable to come up with a way to rate its effectiveness. Muscle pain is defiantly best treated many different ways, however it would defiantly be tough to find a different product you can use on your whole body!

Overall I am really pleased with product. The bar is only $9.80 each and is a large 4.4 ounces that lasts a long time. I am not even half way through the bar in 2 weeks, so I think a bar should last me 2 months maybe? My wife started to use the Mellow Anti-Stress Soap and she is very pleased as well.

She loves the scent, the product, and its properties as well.

Here is a quick rundown of the essential oils in the other soaps so you know:
Mellow Anti-Stress Soap
Bergomot, Ylang-Ylang, Geranium- to relax, open your senses, and balance emotions

Bliss Insomnia Soap
Mandarin, Lavender- to calm and sedate the mind

Karma Anti-Aging Soap
Frankincense, Lavender, Rose- to treat skin conditions, wrinkles and heal skin

Nirvana Muscle Pain Soap

Lavender, Rosemary, Juniper Berry- to relax the muscles and soothe the joints for any pains
Bergamot, Clary Sage, Rose- to relax nerves, tonic for the womb, balance problems also related to menopause, and treat actual PMS symptoms

More info, contact info and ordering can be found at Zen Organic Soaps

Ginkgo biloba is a plant of eastern origin more accurately ethnic Chinese and Korean, however this can also be found in countries like Argentina, Uruguay, United States and France, this tree has within its main features the longevity of it, because some data argue that this can last up to a millennium without losing their benefits for organic or natural medicine.
The ginkgo biloba plant has been used since ancient times by Chinese and Koreans to create some types of teas and bring it to a large number of teas, which for its medicinal properties are shown to them as an excellent way to improve some important systems such as blood and improve the central nervous system. The Chinese traditionally use the the seed, but the Ginkgo Biloba you are familiar with is the leaf. Exploring a little more on the use of ginkgo biloba in natural medicine is for good to stress that the presence of elements or compounds flavonoids in the leaves as quercetin, rutoside, kampferol, isorramnetol, lactones, bilobálidos, phytosterols and ginkgólidos A, B, C and F, allowing the use of ginkgo biloba and bring health benefits as:

• Promote the blood circulation through the body, thanks to the functions vasodilatation and vasoconstriction arterial venous.
• Significantly improve blood supply to the brain and particularly the lower limbs.

• Promote the care of the nervous system.
• Protect outstanding brain cells.
• Strengthen the capillary resistance.
• Improving health arterial and venous.
• Reduce cellular aging.
• Be an excellent antioxidant.

• Reduce the risk of evils such as thrombosis, strokes and cardiovascular problems.

At present, some studies have claimed that ginkgo biloba is also quite useful for people mature, as they showed that this had the skills to reduce the loss of memory and loss of intellectual performance, otherwise the ginkgo biloba also have preventive properties attributed to diminish the appearance of ills such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke and atherosclerotic disease. It can be said that this plant is also associated with some relaxing properties for the elimination of the annoying mental burdens such as depression and anxiety, because regular consumption of this element can improve aspects such as concentration, and muscle relaxation.

It is good to mention that before you begin using ginkgo biloba on your own you must visit to a specialist in the field, since in some cases the abuse of this element can bring adverse effects. The above shows that ginkgo biloba is not only a good option for treating some common ills such as those already mentioned in this article, but also relax and get a good state of mind, thanks to the benefits of this millennial plant.

It is also worth mentioning that you really shouldn’t bother buying this in loose leaf form. The leaf is a very dillute part and to be effective you should be using an extract of 50:1 in the use of Ginkgo Biloba. Therefore, I recommend using a trusted supplier such as dimmakherbs.com Chinese Herbal Remedies or other trusted sources out there.

Essential oils are quite popular these days for all types of ailments and usages. Essential oils are literally the ‘essential’ or ‘volatile’ oils found in many herbs. A large quantity of herbs are placed in a still and separate water form pure essential oils. The water is also used and Rose Water is a commonly used water from these extracts. It takes many pounds of herbs to get a few ounces of essential oils which makes for really concentrated oils.

These essential oils are normally used in a carrier oils. Carrier oils are simply other oils that you are going to use to ‘dilute’ the essential oils in. Essential oils are so strong you can often use 1-3 drops of essential oil in an ounce of other oil and use. Just a few drops of essential oil is all that is really used in shampoos and such. A carrier oil can be as simple as your kitchen olive oil. Grab and put some olive oil in a small bowl and add a few drops of essential oils and use. You can start your  experimentation there.

Some of the more commonly used essential oils are Lavender, Tea Tree, and Eucalyptus. Lavender has a very soothing and healing property to it. Add eucalyptus essential oil to some Grapeseed oil  and use for skin care, burns, and irritated skin. Use eucalyptus in some Grapeseed oil and use for acne. Tea Tree is very broad spectrum and can be used for normal skin care, in you and your pets ears, and for joint problems. Natural remedies like this are seen in very popular products. Tiger Balm is tagged as an herbal remedy and is a jelly base with the Essential Oils of Cajuput, Cassia, and Clove with added menthol and camphor.

Essential oils are also diluted in various other oils as use in massage. This is a form of aromatherapy. Although this is not the only form of aromatherapy, and it can be discussed alone at length massage is defiantly the most used FORM of aromatherapy. Oils like Myrrh and Frankincense are popular massage products for this use. These 2 oils are moving and are great for muscles and that is typically what you are doing with this form of Swedish Massage. Aromatherapy for stress relief can also combine with massage and while Frankincense has some stress relief properties you could also look into the oils of Lavender or Chamomile.

Essential oils are also diluted as a few drops of water and used as herbal remedies. For example you can get some quality mint essential oil and put some drops in some water and drink for use in upset stomach, red eyes, and  headache. Remember essential oils are very concentrated and therefore ‘less is more’ so you should take advantage of its powerful effects and ALWAYS remember to dilute to avoid irritating your skin or upsetting your stomach.