A few years ago we did a radio with Dr Marisol Teijeiro from Queen of Thrones where we did a deep dive into all things castor oil. I’ll embed that interview below so you can have a listen if you’d like.

Prior to this radio show, Kate and I have been doing castor oil packs for liver health for a few years. So this concept of doing castor oil packs wasn’t anything new to us.

But for your benefit I’ll go ahead and embed that show below so you can take a listen.

I want to talk specifically about how castor oil can benefit your liver but before we do that, let’s talk about castor oil itself.

What Is Castor Oil?

Castor oil is an amazing vegetable oil with tons of uses both internally and externally. It botanical name is Ricinus communis. Mostly it is composed of ricinoleic acid which is a pretty unique fatty acid that’s responsible for just about all of the unique benefits of castor oil. It’s also really rich in triglycerides  which accounts for about 90% of its fatty acid content.

Ricinus communis, or the castor bean plant, is a flowering plant originally from tropical regions like Africa and India, but it’s now grown all over the world. This plant really is best known for its seeds, which are used to produce castor oil. The seeds are super high in ricinoleic acid, a fatty acid responsible for the oil’s healing properties.

The plant itself can grow into a large shrub or even a small tree, with glossy leaves and spiky seed pods. While the seeds are useful, they also contain ricin, a dangerous toxin. Fortunately, during the oil extraction process, the ricin is removed, making castor oil safe for you to use.

Most all castor oil on the market has had the ricin removed.

Castor oil has a really wide rang of health benefits in both traditional and modern medicines which is pretty unique. Over the centuries castor oil has been used for skin care, digestion related issues and pain relief (it is a powerful anti-inflammatory medicine). Along with being anti-inflammatory in nature it is also antibacterial and is works really well at moisturizing your skin.

What I like about it, is that castor oil is really unique in its ability to stimulate my lymphatic system while at the same time enhancing blood circulation. More blood moving, means more oxygen and nutrients get delivered to your tissues. As a result castor oil can aid in any healing needs you may have.

Castor oil is helps promote detoxification processes by activating enzyme function to do so.

Despite there being tons of castor oil packs for liver health benefits there are a lot of industrial uses and applications for it. It’s known for its versatility in cosmetics, lubricants and even pharmaceuticals since it’s extremely viscous and thick which makes it very stable.

Castor oil goes back to ancient Egyptian medicine (I still want to know how they built the pyramids don’t you?) and Indian Ayurvedic medicine. In more recent times it was popularized by Edgar Cayce for all the health benefits of castor oil.

Why Detox Your Liver?

Your liver has over 500 functions which is why some people state that it’s your most important organ. Maybe that’s why it’s the only organ that can regenerate itself if some of it were removed. A lot of natural educators that I follow state that if you can keep your liver healthy, you can live to be over 100 years old.

I don’t think there’s anyway to prove that but there is a link between liver health and overall health of your body.

Here are just “some” of the functions of your liver.

Regulation of Fat Stores

• Cleansing the blood and discharging waste products.
• Neutralizing and destroying poisons.
• Protein metabolism, including manufacturing of new body proteins.
• Metabolizing alcohol.
• Managing chemicals and drugs in the blood.

Metabolizing Proteins, Fats, and Carbohydrates

• Providing energy and nutrients.
• Storing vitamins, minerals, and sugars.
• Filtrating the blood and helping remove harmful chemicals and bacteria.

Effects on Emotions and Detoxification

• Cleanses the blood.
• Helps regulate blood sugar.
• Metabolizes fats.
• Synthesizes vitamin A.
• Breaks down toxic substances.
• Stores iron for the body.
• Stores glycogen (converted glucose).
• Metabolizes carbohydrates.
• Metabolizes proteins.

Production and Storage Functions

• Produces glucose from carbs and starches.
• Stores B12 and iron.
• Manufactures and stores vitamins A, B-12, D, E, K.
• Makes amino acids, which become protein in the body.
• Makes steroid and sex hormones.
• Makes blood clotting elements.
• Creates digestive fluids to digest foods.
• Breaks down fat (creates bile for gall bladder).
• Removes cholesterol and harmful fats.
• Kills bacteria and viruses.
• Produces interferon, a powerful germ killer.
• Produces most of the body’s lymph fluid, which has germ-killing lymphocytes and white blood cells.
• Stores immune cells.

Blood and Waste Processing

• Refining and purifying blood.
• Delivering nutrition and oxygen at a cellular level.
• Processing several pounds per year of human-derived toxins.

Additional Functions

• Assists with puffiness, swelling, and weight loss.
• Metabolizing essential fats (cholesterol, triglycerides, lipoproteins) and thus preventing their accumulation in the bloodstream.
• Synthesizing the bulk of the body’s cholesterol.

Castor Oil Packs For Liver Benefits

So now that we’ve discussed just how important your liver is let’s talk about the benefits of castor oil packs for liver health. 

Liver Detoxification

Castor oil packs enhance liver detoxification by stimulating the lymphatic system. Research demonstrates castor oil’s effect on increasing lymphocyte production, which really helps the liver’s detoxification process.

You can find this detailed in books like McGarey’s “The Oil That Heals” and its references in the Edgar Cayce readings.

Improved Circulation

Castor oil packs can improve your circulation, particularly lymphatic circulation, which supports the liver in cleansing the blood and removing toxins. You have more lymphatic fluid in your body than you do blood, which is interesting because nobody really talks about how important it is to keep your lymphatic system running. Castor oil helps to do just that.

See studies referenced in this review on the lymphatic effects of castor oil.

Reduction of Inflammation

Ricinoleic acid in castor oil has well-documented anti-inflammatory effects, which help reduce liver inflammation.

For a more detailed look at ricinoleic acid’s impact on inflammation, refer to this study.

Support for Fat Metabolism

Castor oil helps with fat metabolism in the small intestine, easing the burden on the liver.

The effect of castor oil on digestion and fat metabolism is discussed in this article.

Healing and Regeneration

Castor oil promotes tissue healing and regeneration, which is beneficial for repairing liver damage.

For a deeper dive, checkout research on ricinoleic acid that covers its regenerative effects.

How To Use Castor Oil Packs For Liver Health

What You’ll Need

• 1-2 tablespoons of organic Golden Castor Oil
• The compress from your Original Castor Oil Pack

Instructions

• Prepare the Pack: Lay out the compress with the soft side facing up.
• Apply the Oil: Drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of organic Golden Castor Oil in the center of the pack, taking care to avoid the seams to prevent leakage.
• Place the Pack: Position the oil-soaked part of the pack on your abdominal area.
• Secure and Relax: You can either secure the pack with a wrap or wear an old shirt to prevent oil stains on other garments. Leave the pack on for 1 hour or for an overnight session.

Conclusion

For some reason I tend to focus on castor oil packs for liver more in the Fall and Winter. I think that I’m just more inclined to focus on health practices more when the weather is cold for some reason. During the Spring and Summer I’m in the garden much more and spending more time surfing at the beach getting sunlight. I’d rather be outside connected to nature so the Summer is best for me to do that.

What I really like about the Queen of  Thrones castor oil packs is that they don’t require heating with a hot water bottle or warm compress. You can literally slap one on and go to bed and get all the benefits of castor oil on your liver for 8 hours of sleep. You don’t have to worry about the mess and clean up nearly as much as using the old style castor oil pack recipes.

The easier something is to use, the more often I’m inclined to actually to it, which means I’ll get all those amazing liver health benefits from it.

This is something you can do while you’re sitting in your infrared sauna and getting all those benefits of sweating. If you work from home, you can have your castor oil pack on during the day as you’re working under your shirt.

Questions: 

1. Have you ever used castor oil packs for your liver?
2. If so, what results did you notice?
3. If not, why not?
4. What do you do to take care of your liver?

Comment below!