Mother Earth Living – September-October 2019

Sept/Oct 2019 13

HEALTH PLANTS

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Copaiba & Cancer

While research into the effects of

copaiba on cancer is in its early

stages, the oil has already shown

great potential to fight cancers,

given its supportive effects on the

immune system. In a study pub-

lished in the European Journal of

Pharmaceutical Sciences, research-

ers found that copaiba stops skin

cancer cells from proliferating.

Researchers also found that copaiba

interfered with the division of colon

cancer cells, thereby reducing their

ability to multiply. Authors of this

study, published in Biomedical

Pharmacotherapy, concluded that

copaiba may play a role in the sup-

pression of colon cancer, attributing

these benefits — at least in part — to

copaiba’s anti-inflammatory prop-

erties. Copaiba may be beneficial

in treating other types of cancers,

including melanoma, lung, lymph,

and breast cancers, but studies of

copaiba’s effects on these cancers

are still in the preliminary phases.

For the healers of the indigenous

Amazon tribes, copaiba oil is nothing

new. They’ve long used it mixed

with honey to ease sore throats and

tonsillitis, as well as to treat topical

pain and wounds; as an antiseptic

to kill bacteria in urinary tract and

respiratory infections; and as an

antibacterial remedy to treat bronchitis

and tuberculosis. In addition, they’ve

utilized the copaiba resin to heal

stomach ulcers, syphilis, tetanus, and a

variety of other afflictions.

Copaiba resin was first recorded in

European medicine in 1625, after early

Jesuit travelers brought it back from the

New World under the name “Jesuit’s

Balsam.” Throughout the early 1800s,

Dr. R. La Roche praised copaiba in med-

ical journals, particularly for its potential

cure in a case of bronchitis. In the 200

years since his findings, almost no men-

tion of copaiba appeared in medical

journals again. In the last several years,

though, a growing body of researchers

has revived the study of copaiba and

revealed what the indigenous people

have known for centuries: Copaiba has

widespread health benefits.

Unlocking the

Endocannabinoid System

Recent research reveals copaiba’s

effectiveness in relieving pain, reducing

inflammation, killing germs and

bacteria, inhibiting tumor growth,

protecting the gastrointestinal (GI)

tract, acting as a mild laxative,

suppressing coughs, and expelling

phlegm. According to extensive

research compiled in Leslie Taylor’s

book, The Healing Power of Rainforest

Herbs, copaiba supports a healthy

cardiovascular, immune, digestive,

nervous, and respiratory system, and

acts as an antioxidant that helps destroy

harmful disease-causing free radicals.

The main reason for copaiba’s many

health benefits stems from its ability to

interact with the body’s powerful endo-

cannabinoid system (ECS). Most people

aren’t familiar with this recently discov-

ered body system, as it’s only been stud-

ied in-depth within the last decade.

If you’ve heard of cannabis, you’re

already somewhat familiar with the

ECS; it’s the same system that allows

the active compounds in cannabis — the

cannabinoids — to interact within the

body via cannabinoid receptors on

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In the last several years, a growing body of

researchers has revived the study of copaiba

and revealed what the indigenous people

of the Amazon have known for centuries:

Copaiba has widespread health benefits.