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Castor Oil Pack Health Benefits
Castor oil packs changed my life. I’m not exaggerating, I promise! When I first embarked on the mineral balancing journey, I had no idea how important liver health was. I dove straight into my protocol that I was given (which attacked copper, and I was copper dumping for about 4 months straight!). Unfortunately, the practitioner I saw had NO knowledge of how the body healed so I was struggling a lot until I started working on liver healing. This experience was what prompted me to become a health practitioner too- I was SO tired of others giving out horrible information and then they’d have no help at all if things went wrong.
When I first started castor oil packs, a lot of good changes happened. My sleep improved (which was a miracle since I was about 1 1/2 years postpartum and struggling horribly with sleep!). My skin looked clearer. My gut health improved. All of the issues I was having due to the copper dumping slowly calmed down FINALLY.
Today, castor oil packs are one of the biggest recommendations we make in our HTMA protocols. They are easy, cheap, and SUPER effective. Castor packs help with many different health issues like hormonal imbalances, chronic pain, and so much more.
Why Use Castor Oil Packs?
So what makes castor oil packs so effective?
According to this article by Dr Mercola, castor oil packs are anti-inflammatory, antifungal, anti microbial. They help gastrointestinal disorders, help the immune system, keep the lymph system moving, they are great for muscle pains, and they also help with infertility.
Castor oil is known to help with MS, arthritis, cancer, fibromyalgia, Parkinson’s, all liver ailments, and detoxification. Castor oil packs are also well-known for increasing T-cell production. They are also effective for those suffering with hormonal imbalances- everything from estrogen dominance/copper issues to infertility!
The Main Reasons why You Should Love Castor Oil Packs
- They are anti-inflammatory
- They’re anti-fungal
- They’re anti-microbial
- They can help with menstrual issues
- They can help with parasite removal
- They increase bile flow
- They help to HEAL your liver to function better
- They can help with infertility
- They’re amazing for supporting detox
- They support a healthy immune system
- They can help with kidney and adrenal issues as well!
- They are one of the BEST lymph helpers
- They can support weight loss
- They can help with pain management
- They are SO easy to use!
How to Use Castor oil Packs
The old school way of doing castor packs:
- When making castor oil packs, the best options are to get organic, cold-pressed, hexane free castor oil (or at least cold pressed and hexane free like this one) and to use a cotton flannel or an undyed plain white cotton tshirt.
- Castor oil packs-to make it as simple as I can: Get the recommended cotton flannel or an old, UN-dyed t-shirt, fold it to fit over your liver area. Then soak the entire material in castor oil, put the soaked pack over your liver and then put a small blanket, old t-shirt, rag or towel over the soaked pack to protect your clothes.
- Heating pads or hot water packs are personal choice- I like to lay on my right side with the pack for about an hour and the body heat seems to work. Then relax with the pack for about an hour. You can start out slowly with it, maybe doing ten minutes the first night and slowly increasing until you get to an hour. Now that I am used to them, sometimes I even fall asleep with them on- that does tend to stain my pajamas but I get such deep sleep!
- If you want to clean your skin off, use baking soda and water. I keep the pack in a sealed jar and add a little more oil each time, and I wash it once a month with a ton of baking soda and hot water.
For best results use at least 4 consecutive days a week. The more consistent you are with them, the more benefit you will get! You can rotate the packs around too- liver, adrenals/kidneys, thyroid, and even the colon if you have constipation. Some do use them daily safely, and I have known many to even sleep with the packs on.
Some people claim that castor oil packs are great for soothing menstrual pain, but others claim they can increase blood flow. I personally skip the packs during that time of the month, but I leave that choice up to you!
Earthley also has unique options for castor oil packs. They have castor oil that is infused with herbs to help with more specific issues. The warm formula is infused with cinnamon and ginger root, and can help those with joint pain, overall inflammation, or if you have a tendency to feel cold often. The cool formula is infused with peppermint leaf and rosemary, and can help with ovarian cysts, liver support, and if you have a tendency to feel overheated. Click here to check it out! You can also get a flax heating pad to use with whichever formula you choose.
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The body is a whole and we must treat it as such! I have my Bachelor of Science in Natural Health Sciences, certificates in Herbal Studies from Herbal Academy, and I am constantly learning more about health to help my clients and followers.
My goal is to help you unleash your own inner healer! You already hold the power to heal inside you. My role is as a guide to help you realize this potential.
i need help dear desperately. am in Zimbabwe where do i get these castor oil packs- chronic disease patient hyperthyrodism
We usually use Iherb.com for international recommendations so that is a possible place for you to get it!
Do you have thoughts about the safety of castor oil packs over the liver while breastfeeding? Wanting to continue my healing journey after working on minerals for a while now. Thinking of starting some detoxing, but don’t want it to be at the expense of my little guy. Having a hard time finding good info about this online. Thanks!
I usually don’t recommend them while breastfeeding honestly. I think working on nourishing and healing over detox is more important during that time 🙂
Is it safe to use them after gallbladder removal?
I haven’t seen any warnings about that, and I do know people that use them with success.
Thank you Kristin for your information that can have benefit to many people. It’s possible to use for hair issue?
Hi Izzy! Some do use the castor oil for hair. I don’t have a lot of info on how to apply it correctly to hair personally but I am sure you can find a good tutorial online!
Do you have any info on castor oil packs and cancer? Particular pancreatic metastatic to liver? Thx so much!
I haven’t seen anything about that, sorry!!
I am 4 months post-partum and diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. I have also had issues with my pituitary for several years and take cabergoline for that. Would castor oil help with both issues?
Hi Divinia- if you are breastfeeding at all then I would not do castor oil packs until you are done with that. If you are not nursing, then it’s possible the castor oil can help. It’s a great anti-inflammatory and I do see so many people do well with them.
I am wondering the pack we save in the jar is the soaked flannel right? Then use it the next night by adding more to the existing flannel pack?
Yes, that is usually how people use it. It’s the easiest way to keep that oil contained so it’s not staining anything else.
I use castor oil on my eyes I have floates in my right eye and the start of macular and had no eye lashes my eye lashes have grown back and the floaters are now very small
Hello! I recently started using them but I leave it over night since I like the skin effect afterwards, is this not safe? Do you massage? Also to remove the heaviness of the oil I use my regular body oil to spread and my skin hydrates very well.
You can definitely leave it on overnight- it’s not just something everyone can do, so these recommendations are the minimum for getting great results. You don’t have to massage it in though, it gets absorbed into the skin well 🙂
How would you use them for MS?
You would use them the same way as for anything else- right over the liver is great to help with support.
Hi! I took a HTMA test two years ago and know I’m a slow oxidizer. I’ve made many changes over the years (leaving lifelong veganism for 100g/protein-worth of animal foods every day, for example) and have finally started to be consistent with the recommendations my HTMA practitioner made two years ago, but I’m still largely dealing with bad skin, sunken eyes, and 20 extra more pounds than I know my body needs!
I’m starting to take liver health more seriously and have started castor oil packs for the past week (I use them overnight). How long does it take to see results with these things?
Hey Alex! I’m glad to hear that you’ve been on the healing journey. It can definitely be frustrating to be so stuck with some symptoms though. Once you start liver healing, it can take time to see huge shifts as it can take a good 1-2 years to really heal the liver. Some do notice good changes within a few weeks of starting items though!
Great article. will castor packs help with insomnia? Tried everything but still only sleeping 1-2 hours per night. Can high cortisol wake someone up at the 2 hour mark?
Hey Dee!
They can help insomnia if yours is due to liver issues (which is usually waking up between 2-5am). It sounds like maybe nervous system healing might be the better option for you if you’re only getting a few hours right now- https://www.sassyholistics.com/holistic-nervous-system-healing/
I have kidney problems and don’t know what to do for that Do u have any advice?
Hi Nita- I am sorry to hear about that! I do have a kidney health post that could help: https://www.sassyholistics.com/support-kidneys-naturally/
Thank you so much for all your help with this!!!!💜
I have stated last evening using castor oil packs. I soak a disposable facial towel covered by a waist band I bought to use with castor oil packs. Is the soaked facial towel OK to use?
I have found that towels don’t always impart the oil to the skin as well as an actual pack or with the cotton flannel. Towels tend to soak the oil up even more and keeps it there. I’d definitely try to get a flannel if you can!
Thank you, I will purchase a flannel cloth.