An ancient oil, used by African tribes for its culinary, medicinal and health beneficial properties, Argan oil, became in recent years the subject of studies and research from cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies that were looking for a way to make commercial use of all these health benefits of Argan oil.

Since ancient times, indigenous Berber groups made use of Argan tree for almost every possible use, in every way, shape or form, from carpentry to construction purposes. They also knew about the health benefits of Argan oil as well, including its cosmetic, culinary and traditional medicinal uses. Argan oil became one of the rarest and most uncommon oils in the world due to its very limited and specific growing conditions and the area where it is naturally found [2], being available in areas of different geographical origin as Tidzi, Tamanar, Benaiznassen, Ait mzal, Ait Baha, Ighrem or Aoulouz [19].

Argan oil is extracted from the fruit kernels of Argania spinosa or Argan tree, a wild forest tree that grows almost exclusively in the native region from where it originates, an area between 800,000 and 900,000 hectares in the south-west of Morocco. In later July the fruits are black and dry, ready for harvest, moment in which the story begins. Image left: Noix d'argan by Jeremy Couture under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0).

ARGANIA SPINOSA

Family: Sapotaceae
Genus: Argania
Common name: English, Argan almond, Argan fruit, Argan oil, Moroccan fodder tree [1].

Echinacea purpurea, a flower commonly known as conflower, has been widely known for many of its properties and health benefits, from the most commonly known as the treatment of common colds, to others not so popular as the use of Echinacea for the treatment of acne, to treat dizziness, snake bites and as an anti-infective agent until the advent of modern antibiotics. The most common use of Echinacea has been as a prophylactic treatment for upper respiratory infection [6]. Echinacea extracts possessed significant antiviral activity [1].

Many have been the treatments and remedies claimed to be effective against skin related problems as acne, a skin condition caused by inflammation that is mostly experienced during adolescence but that may also happen at later stages in life. We have published some of these traditional herbal remedies in recent articles, however it hasn't been until recently that we read about other possible traditional herbal remedies to fight acne, namely the use of Echinacea purpurea (Purple conflower).

ECHINACEA PURPUREA

Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Echinacea
Common name: Eastern purple coneflower, Purple coneflower, red sunflower and rudbeckia.

In previous articles we already mentioned some herbs with anti-acne properties. Neem, Thyme, Echinacea purpurea and Rawvolfia serpentina are some of them, being Thyme known to be number one in the list as it demonstrated to be an herb better than anti-acne creams. Now we can add another anti-acne herb to that list that will surprise some of us, green tea (Camelia sinensis).

To understand better the link between acne and green tea we need to explain fist that acne vulgaris is a highly prevalent skin disorder characterized by hyperseborrhea, inflammation and Propionibacterium acnes overgrowth [22]. Acne vulgaris is the most common disease of the pilosebaceous unit [23]. So far it was believed that only isotretinoin and hormonal therapy reduce sebum production [22].

Now, a group of researchers at the Acne Research Laboratory, National University Hospital in Seoul, has demonstrated how epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which has been widely investigated as an anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory agent [23], significantly improved acne in an 8-week randomized, split-face, clinical trial, and was well tolerated [22]. Image left: Tea leafs by sarahemcc under Creative Commons License (CC BY 2.0).

CAMELLIA SINENSIS

Family: Teaceae
Genus: Camellia
Common name: Green tea

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), a perennial herbaceous plant from the Lamiaceae family that grows up to approximately 40 cm tall [1] and is used nowadays as a flavoring agent of the Mediterranean diet.

Thyme was used by the Greeks in their baths and by the Egyptians who more than 2000 years ago used it to embalm their faraons and ancestors, probably due to the amount of antimicrobial active constituents found on Thyme essential oils, its most documented property and a quality that shares with other essential oils as for example lavender essential oil [2], both of them active against multi-drug resistant clinical strains of Escherichia coli bacteria [3,4].

Recently, researchers from Leeds Metropolitan University, driven by these known antibacterial properties of Thyme, tested the effects of this herb, marigold and myrrh tinctures on Propionibacterium acnes, the bacterium that causes acne by infecting skin pores and forming the well-known spots so characteristic from this bacterial infection. The results were published in a news release in the Society for General Microbiology website and are quite encouraging while not surprising. Image left: Wild thyme (NH) by David Short under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0).

THYMUS VULGARIS

Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Thymus
Common name: Thyme.