You can’t find a pizza parlor or Italian restaurant anywhere in the US that doesn’t have canisters filled with the pungent dry leaves of oregano. The spice is synonymous with Italy and Italian food. Lasagna, pizza, and even garlic bread wouldn’t be considered Italian without it.
EVERY PIZZA PARLOR IN THE US HAS CANISTERS FILLED WITH THE PUNGENT DRY LEAVES OF OREGANO.However, Oregano Nation #1 is not Italy. It’s Turkey, which annually exports 20 tons of oregano—with Turks using 1,000 tons a year themselves. And not just because they like the taste. The Turkish people are firm believers in the healing power of oregano.
Household kitchens are often equipped with distillation stills for making oregano water, which families drink to keep digestion running smoothly. The stills are constructed so they can sit safely on the stove, dispersing the vapors of oregano oil that are thought to relax nerves and maintain good health. Turks rub the condensed oil vapors of oregano on limbs when muscles ache or rheumatism sets in. And oregano is Turkey’s favorite tea.
Visit a scientific database, enter the keyword “oregano,” and you’ll find study after study supporting the Turkish tradition of using oregano as medicine.
Fighting Intestinal Infection
Modern gastrointestinal research points a finger at various bacteria, fungi, and parasites as common causes of intestinal troubles, from ulcers to irritable bowel syndrome. (In fact, microbial disturbances in the gut are now thought to cause or complicate many conditions, from allergies to arthritis.) The major components of oregano oil—carvacrol and thymol—are powerfully antibacterial, antiviral, anti-fungal—and anti-parasitic.
Putting parasites in their place. There are many different types of intestinal parasites, from one-celled organisms to full-grown worms. You can pick them up from food, water, a pet—or a passport (travelers to developing countries sometimes end up with a “souvenir” they wish they could have left behind).
Intestinal parasites can cause intestinal symptoms, of course. Chronic diarrhea is the most common, but bloating, gas, constipation, and bloody stools (as well as non-digestive symptoms such as fever and fatigue) are among other unpleasant possibilities.
Anti-parasitic medications are the best way to eradicate parasites, but they don’t always work. Doctors in the southwest US decided to try oregano oil on 34 people with persistent parasites. The treatment ended the reign of the invaders in most cases, and decreased the number of parasites in the rest.
Foiling food poisoning. Researchers have found that compounds in oregano can kill many of the bacteria that cause food poisoning, such as E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria, and Shigella. In a study from the US Department of Agriculture, oregano outperformed garlic and allspice in stopping those four nasty germs from multiplying.
Healing ulcers. Researchers in the Department of Food Science at the University of Massachusetts found that a combination of oregano and cranberry extracts could kill H. pylori bacteria, the cause of stomach ulcers.
Calming colitis. Slovakian researchers found that a combination or oregano and thyme reduced inflammation in the colons of animals with chemically induced colitis, a type of inflammatory bowel disease that strikes more than a million Americans.
Oregano may help prevent and/or treat:
Age spots
Alzheimer’s disease
Cancer
Candida infection (systemic fungal infection)
Cholesterol problems (high “bad” LDL cholesterol)
Colitis (inflammatory bowel disease)
Food poisoning
Heart disease
High blood pressure
Infection, parasitic
Insulin resistance (prediabetes)
Liver disease
Metabolic syndrome
Overweight
Staph infection
Thrush (oral candida infection)
Triglycerides, high
Ulcer
Vaginal yeast infection
More life for the liver. Several animal studies show that oregano oil can strengthen and heal the liver—good news for the tens of millions of Americans with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, hepatitis C, cirrhosis, and other liver diseases.
Fighting Vaginal Infections, Too
Infections aren’t limited to the digestive tract, of course. A vaginal yeast infection—what doctors call vulvovaginal candiasis—bothers three out of four women at least once in their life. About 45 percent have a second infection, and 5 to 8 percent have recurrent infections, returning four to five times a year. These itchy, sometimes painful infections are almost always caused by the yeast-like fungus Candida albicans.
And some clinicians—led by William C. Crook, MD, author of The Yeast Connection, published in 1987—think whole-body infection with C. albicans is a common problem, causing a wide range of symptoms that include fatigue, headache, and digestive upsets.
When C. albicans is bothering you, call oregano.
Researchers from Georgetown University Medical Center found that oregano oil could “completely inhibit” the growth of C. albicans in the test tube and killed 80 percent of the fungus in experimental animals. The oil stops the yeast from growing and also blunts the limb-like “filaments” it uses to burrow into tissue. They also note it works as well as powerful antifungal antibiotics such as nystatin. (When a team of Italian researchers tested oregano and nystatin together, they found the spice boosted the fungus-killing power of the drug.)
“It is interesting to note,” write the researchers in Molecular and Clinical Biochemistry, “that infections due to C. albicans in debilitated individuals such as those having diabetes and HIV infection may be prophylactically controlled by the daily intake of small amounts of oregano oil, either alone or added to a food.”
“Daily oral administration of origanum oil may be highly effective in the prevention and treatment of candidiasis,” they concluded.
Other researchers found that carvacrol and thymol could “significantly reduce” infection with oral candidiasis—a fungal infection of the tissues of the mouth—in animals.
More from Oregano
There is provocative research on oregano’s possible role in alleviating other diseases.
Metabolic syndrome. This condition is a combination of overweight, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, and high triglycerides, a blood fat (lipid). Researchers in Italy found that oregano extracts worked in the same way as drugs used for metabolic syndrome. Their study, said the researchers, showed the extracts could help with “weight reduction” (overweight), “prevent atherosclerosis” (from high blood pressure), and “ameliorate the lipid profile” (high triglycerides).
Making Sense of “Mexican Oregano”So-called “Mexican oregano” isn’t oregano. It’s not even in the same botanical family. When dried, however, it looks like oregano and tastes like oregano, except it’s stronger. And that makes a big difference when you add it to tacos or empanadas.
Like “real” oregano, it’s rich in carvacrol and thymol.
And like “real” oregano, it’s used in folk medicine throughout Mexico and South America for digestive and respiratory complaints, and research shows it’s a bacterial fighter, antioxidant, and anti-tumor agent.
“The results warrant further investigation of oregano extract for its potential to prevent and ameliorate metabolic syndrome and its complications,” concluded the researchers in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
High cholesterol. Turkish researchers studied 48 people with mildly elevated cholesterol, dividing them into two groups. One group took oregano extract after every meal, and one group didn’t. Three months later, the oregano group had greater decreases in “bad” LDL cholesterol and in C-reactive protein, a biomarker of artery-damaging inflammation. They also had greater increases in arterial blood flow. The findings were in the Journal of International Medical Research.
When researchers in Turkey tested spices in the laboratory for their ability to stop the oxidation of LDL cholesterol (the key step in the formation of artery-clogging plaque) they found oregano had “the most pronounced effect.”
Researchers in Spain took the process a step further: they measured the ability of oregano extract to stop the process that occurs after oxidation of cholesterol—the activation of immune components calledcytokines that attack the oxidized cholesterol as if it were a foreign invader, sparking the inflammation that worsens heart disease. The extracts stopped the release of three of those cytokines (TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, and IL-6).
“These results may suggest an anti-inflammatory effect of oregano extracts . . . in a cellular model of atherosclerosis [heart disease],” concluded the researchers in Food and Chemical Toxicology.
Colon cancer. “Oregano spice is widely used in the Mediterranean diet, which is associated with a low risk for colon cancer,” said Italian researchers in the journal Nutrition and Cancer. When they mixed oregano extract in a test tube with colon cancer cells, the spice stopped cellular growth and killed the cells, an effect the researchers labeled “oregano-triggered death.”
“Our findings suggest that oregano in the amounts found in the Mediterranean diet” can kill cancer cells, said the researchers.
Additional test tube and animal research on carvacrol and other compounds in oregano show they can slow or kill cancers of the lung, colon, blood, and uterus.
Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers screened 139 spices for their ability to possibly boost the brain chemical acetylcholine, the same action as drugs that slow Alzheimer’s disease—and only an oregano extract was as “potent” as the drugs.
Age spots. Researchers in Taiwan found that a compound in oregano can reverse the “hyperpigmentation” that causes age spots (solar lentigos) and “may be useful in skin-whitening agents.” The findings were in Journal of Dermatological Science.
Staph infections. Infections with Staphylococcus aureus usually start in the hospital and are sometimes fatal. Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center found oregano oil was “the most potent” killer of S. aureus among several compounds tested. Giving it daily to animals injected with the bacteria quadrupled their expected lifespan. Oregano oil “may prove to be useful” for the “prevention and therapy” of Staphylococcus aureus infections, concluded the researchers.
Getting to Know Oregano
Hippocrates, the “father of medicine” from ancient Greece, knew about oregano’s antiseptic properties, and used it to treat digestive and respiratory diseases. The ancient Egyptians also used it as a healing disinfectant. The Romans favored it for stimulating hair growth. In Turkish folk medicine, oregano oil is used for pain relief from tooth decay, as an antiseptic for wounds, and as a remedy for inflammation of all kinds—psoriasis, tonsillitis, mouth ulcers, and inflamed gums, to name a few.
Oregano pairs well with these spices:
Ajowan
Basil
Bay
Chile
Cumin
Garlic
Marjoram
Onion
Pumpkin seed
Rosemary
Sage
Sun-dried
tomato
Thyme
and complements recipes featuring:
Black beans
Cheese
Chowders and soups
Eggplant
Game
Grilled meat
Ground beef
Mushrooms
Pastas
Pizza
Poultry
Provolone cheese
Rabbit
Salsa
Seafood
Tomato sauces and
dishes
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Other recipes containing oregano:
Adobo
All-American Chili con Carne
By-the-Bay Fisherman’s Chowder
Chimichurri Sauce
Green Pumpkin Seed Sauce
Grilled Pork Chile Adobo
Pizza Spice Blend
Roasted Tomato Soup with Fennel and Mint
Yucatan Pickled Red Onions
is an easy-to-grow perennial that is cultivated in many areas of the world, including the United States.Oregano oil is a popular dietary supplement in the US, used for digestive upset, yeast infections, and as preventive therapy during cold and flu season.
Oregano is just as popular in American kitchens as it is everywhere else. Aside from being a staple in American pizzerias and Italian restaurants, it is a popular spice in Tex-Mex and Southwest cuisines. It is also popular as a flavoring in Mexican restaurants in the United States, where it’s used in soups, chili blends, salsas, and refried beans.
In Mexico, however, “Mexican oregano” is used—it’s not botanically related to European oregano, but has a similar (though stronger) taste.
How to Buy Oregano
Oregano is an easy-to-grow perennial that is cultivated in many areas of the world, including the United States. Spice-lovers say the best oregano comes from Turkey. The US is a major importer of Turkish oregano, so chances are that when you buy oregano, this is the type you’re buying. But Greek oregano is also imported into the US. The only way to know for sure where your oregano originated is to purchase the spice from a specialty retailer, who will know the country of origin.
You can purchase oregano fresh, dried, or ground. The flavor of the dried oregano is more robust than fresh. (And dried is preferred over ground because it’s more flavorful.) Dried oregano keeps for about a year in a dark, dry place, in an airtight container.
The flavor of oregano is pungent and balsamic, and comes from carvacrol and thymol oils, which vary in strength depending on where the plant was grown. The strongest oregano is from Turkey. Oregano grown and dried in backyard herb gardens in the US is delicate in comparison.
Chicken OreganataThe name says it’s Italian, but Turkey claims to have developed it first. Whatever its origin, this classic is enjoyed in many parts of the world.
2 boned chicken breasts, split
1 cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste
1. Wash and pat dry the chicken. Combine the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, oregano and pepper in a small mixing bowl. Put the mixture in a plastic ziplock bag, add the chicken, and seal. Shake the bag to make sure the chicken is evenly coated with the marinade. Refrigerate overnight.
2. Remove chicken from the marinade. Discard the marinade. Place the chicken in a shallow baking dish coated with non-stick spray. Bake the chicken in a 375°F oven for 30 minutes, turning once mid-way through.
Makes 4 servings.Oregano is also referred to as wild marjoram, and is often mistaken for marjoram (which is also called sweet marjoram). Though they both come from the same botanical family, and are often used interchangeably in the kitchen, there is only a vague resemblance in taste.
In the Kitchen with Oregano
Chefs prefer dried oregano to fresh because its flavor is more intense. You can intensify the flavor of fresh oregano, however, by rubbing the leaves between your palms and letting it drop in the dish.
Oregano is an easy spice to work with because it goes with just about everything. When experimenting, keep in mind that oregano is strong and can overpower a dish; it marries best with stronger flavors. It’s typically used in garlic-based and tomato-based dishes, rich meat and game dishes, chilies and salsas, and pasta dishes.
A few ideas to put more oregano in your diet:
• Use it in marinades.
• Use it as a rub for grilled meat. Combine 1 teaspoon of oregano with ½ teaspoon each of red pepper flakes, salt, and freshly ground pepper, and rub the mixture into a thick steak before grilling.
• Put it in salad dressing.
• Add it to olive- and vinegar-based recipes.
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