pepper, black - piper nigrum

Imagine adding the spice Black Pepper to your food.  Think of the scent of the pepper and the flavor it adds to your food.  Now, imagine the oil that comes from this spice -- it has that same earthy, warm, peppery aroma, and, just like the spice, brings warmth.  Just as using the spice in your food brings therapeutic properties, using the oil topically can concentrate and localize those same benefits.  Let's look at what those benefits are.

Black Pepper Essential Oil is rubefacient and a vasodilator -- that means it opens up the blood vessels which will bring more blood to an area, promote healing, and have a warming sensation.  With a significant percentage of the sesquiterpene β-caryophyllene, and the monoterpenes d-limonene, α- pinene,  β-pinene, and  δ-3-carene, Black Pepper has significant anti-inflammatory and analgesic therapeutic properties.  This makes it a good choice in blends for sore joints and muscles, massage, and the healing stages following injury.  

Black Pepper has antibacterial activity against several common pathogens (like the one involved in UTIs), and may help reduce fever.  If you have stuck congestion with thick mucus in your lungs, it can help with expectoration.   

As a digestive stimulant and anti-emetic, it can support proper digestion and reduce feelings of nausea or vomiting.  It can be added to an inhaler blend or blended for massage on the abdomen for these purposes.

Finally, smoking-cessation studies have shown that inhaling Black Pepper essential oil can help reduce the craving to smoke.  Blended with Angelica essential oil, it's even more effective.  Reading about these studies sparked the inspiration for my PQ Minder inhaler/diffuser blend - I combined the Black Pepper and Angelica, then added calming and grounding essential oils to reduce the anxiety and bad mood that  accompany quitting smoking.  Wearing a drop or two on diffuser jewelry has been most effective for me.  As long as I wear it, I have no urge to smoke, and I'm not a witch!  

When I first studied Black Pepper essential oil, I read that it could be irritating to the skin.  This is not totally accurate.  As long as it's not oxidized, it's fine to use (appropriately diluted) on the skin.  If it becomes oxidized, then it could irritate the skin.