Lavender Esssential Oil, excellent results

[Guest guest]

I just wanted to report very good results that I had with the Lavender

Essential Oil as far as killing mold is concerned. To my surprise, it

turned out to be a very powerful antifungal, and in my experience it

puts to shame other much more touted anti-mold herbal and chemical

compounds.

I also tried tea tree essential oil, oregano essential oil and

grapefruit seed extract. These are my impressions about them.*

Lavender Essential Oil - smells fantastic, unlikely to cause headaches

or nausea even after prolonged exposure. It was able to completely

destroy mold on many objects, both porous and non-porous. Its action

seems to be mild but persistent: it won't stop suffocating mold until

the very last spore and living mold cell have been disintegrated. This

is in contrast to e.g. Oregano Oil which seems to kill all mold on

first contact but lacks prolonged activity. It can be used directly on

contaminated objects, on the skin and on clothes. It has saved me

several times when I would usually have to change the clothes and

decontaminate. Furthermore, if your mold symptoms include stomach

upset, nausea or vomiting, Lavender is very likely to significantly

alleviate these symptoms. It also acts as a mild sedative and promotes

sleep, but can be useful in mornings as well to clear the head and

soothe the nerves. It is among the few essential oils that can be

applied undiluted onto the skin. You can also ingest it (diluted in

water), but don't overdo it.

However, and unfortunately, I am pretty sure it is NOT able to

decompose mycotoxins. Perhaps it can decompose some, perhaps many more

mycotoxins than other herbs, but not all. It might be the closest

thing to what I'd call a 'magic bullet' for the mold problem, at least

as a first help and as the first line of defence for those of us who

can't avoid all mold hits. In that respect it is a very good " shield " .

But don't ever think there is such a thing as a magic bullet for mold!

There were and still are situations when even this oil couldn't help.

I suppose it is not wise to rely on any thing like this if you have a

lot of visible mold inside your house. This is more helpful in

situations when a sensitive person is constantly being hit by mold in

public places, at work etc. and finds it unbearable and exhausting to

decontaminate every single time.

Oregano Oil - I read about its antifungal properties on this group

some time ago and decided to give it a try. It really is very strong

and powerful antifungal. Only two or three drops in a glass of water

will be quite enough. I had very good results using it on non-porous

objects, but not so great results when used on porous materials. In my

experience it is able to promptly kill most molds when something has

just been hit by mold. But as I stated above, it seems to lack

the prolonged effect. It's not likely it is able to decompose

mycotoxins. It is also a strong skin irritant and can actually cause

your hands to develop scars that bleed if you expose them for a long

time, but if you are careful it's nothing serious. I need to

experiment with it more in order to draw some more definite

conclusions, it deserves attention.

Tea Tree Oil - It does have antifungal properties, but in my

experience not as much as it is advertised. It can be used to wash

laundry, but not always with success. It also lacks prolonged

activity. Its smell is bearable at first, but after some time it

becomes too strong and can cause headaches or nausea.

Grapefruit Seed Extract - Tried it a few times, and was not impressed.

It does kill some molds... but IMHO there are cheaper things one can

try instead of it. It definitely cannot cope with stonger molds and

certainly has no effect whatsoever on mycotoxins. It was very

effective in treating colds and flu, though. Maybe I should try some

other brand.

*Have in mind that I am not sure what exact type of mold I am dealing with

I would be very glad if this advice can help someone to at least

alleviate his/her mold problem.