Breathe Easier This Winter: Make a Lavender and Sage Chest Rub Recipe

As the weather shifts and swings from autumn to winter to spring, we need herbal recipes in our repertoire to help combat stuffy sinuses. We have nothing against the standard mentholated chest rubs we all know and love, but they tend to have a very distinct smell that can err on the side of medicinal, which may be unappealing for some people. This lavender (Lavandula spp.) and sage (Salvia officinalis) chest rub is an alternative recipe you can make at home to help open your airways without leaving a lingering odor reminiscent of sick days. 

To achieve this we want something powerful and soothing, pleasant and invigorating. This end goal brought to mind my early experiences with herbal steams using kitchen herbs on hand, such as sage, thyme (Thymus vulgaris), and lavender. Using the warm and inviting aromatics of such herbs in a chest rub to soothe sinus inflammation makes for a lovely recipe.

Herbal Formulating for Lavender and Sage Chest Rub

The lavender and sage combination leaps out as both invigorating and soothing. For the lavender portion of the recipe, using lavender essential oil would be a safe and effective option. However, after considering potential toxicity concerns caused by the high levels of thujone in sage essential oil, which is toxic to nerve tissue in excess, we will use safe and ultra-gentle sage-infused oil as a base and add our safe essential oils to that (Chevallier, 2000). 

After some experimenting and experiencing, we found the sage and lavender combination alone turned out to need something additional. The final product’s scent had a top and a bottom but no middle, so we’ll add one in to round it out and enhance the fragrance and effects. For the third herbal ally in our recipe, let’s employ some age-old folk wisdom: “What grows together, goes together,” and look for another Mediterranean kitchen herb. 

Marjoram (Origanum majorana) immediately comes to mind as a Mediterranean herb with safe and effective aromatherapy use, especially for easing stress and tension. Studies on mice have confirmed the historical uses of marjoram for anxiety and depression, and will hopefully inspire more in depth human research (Amaghnouje et al, 2020). One small human study showed that nurses working in a COVID-19 ICU had lower levels of perceived stress after inhaling a 3% dilution of marjoram essential oil (Lee et al., 2023). 

When you put these three together, the Mediterranean trio really sings and delivers a host of aromatherapeutic benefits. Lavender helps to reduce pain, marjoram soothes tension, and sage lessens  mucus secretions (Chevallier, 2000), making these three a winning combo. Furthermore, they all have  antibacterial, antiseptic, or antimicrobial benefits in their volatile oils (Hoffmann, 2003).

Tips 

Line the work area where you’ll be filtering your infused oil with a kitchen towel. This will remove excess moisture from the bottom of your double boiler vessel and soak up any spills for easier clean up. This will prevent your work surface from getting covered in oil and becoming slippery.

Here is a simple consistency test for salves: Dip a spoon into the melted salve mixture and stick that spoon in the freezer for 2 minutes. This gives the maker a little mini sample to test the consistency. Perform this test when making salves to find the texture and consistency that works for you.

It might seem as if we are adding quite a bit of essential oil to this recipe. This is intentional; the final product needs to pack an aromatic punch to assist in the clearing of blocked sinuses. This recipe will produce a 2% dilution of essential oil.

Contraindications

Sage is to be avoided during pregnancy (Chevallier, 2000).

In Closing,

This chest rub recipe soothes sinus inflammation along with offering a calming, comforting floral and woodsy scent that won’t smell like a medicine cabinet. By heeding the precautions set forth by professionals, we are able to craft a safe and effective alternative to a store-bought staple. Using our understanding of herbal allies to guide us and our senses to hone in, we are able to craft a DIY solution to what ails us.

REFERENCES

Amaghnouje, A., Mechchate, H., Es-safi, I., Alotaibi, A. A., Noman, O. M., Nasr, F. A., … & Bousta, D. (2020). Anxiolytic, antidepressant-like proprieties and impact on the memory of the hydro-ethanolic extract of Origanum majorana L. on mice. Applied Sciences, 10(23), 8420. https://doi.org/10.3390/app10238420

Chevallier, A. (2000). Encyclopedia of herbal medicine. DK.

Dhiman, N., & Bhasin, A. (2022). Marjoram (Origanum majorana): An essential oil with potential pharmacological properties and health benefits. The Pharma Innovation Journal, 11(7), 4454–4460. https://www.thepharmajournal.com/archives/2022/vol11issue7S/PartAZ/S-11-7-456-440.pdf

Hoffmann, D. (2003). Medical herbalism: The science and practice of herbal medicine. Healing Arts Press. 

Lee, S. W., Shin, Y. K., Lee, J. M., & Seol, G. H. (2023). Inhalation of Origanum majorana L. essential oil while working reduces perceived stress and anxiety levels of nurses in a COVID-19 intensive care unit: a randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in psychiatry, 14, 1287282. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1287282