Benefits of Castor Oil Packs: The Miracle Remedy

Guest Post by Dr. Jean Paul (JP) Amonte DC, CMT, Cht

Lead Clinician & Instructor of Edgar Cayce’s ARE

In today’s fast-paced societies with everyone looking for instant results at minimal cost and time, there is a continual stream of sales-pitchy products, promising results and “miracle cures.”  It is quite rare to find a simple, home remedy that has been used throughout history and produces legitimate results backed by scientific evidence.  The incredible health benefits of Castor Oil Packs such as anti inflammatory effects have been documented in countless experiences and published in several books, including The Oil That Heals (by Dr. William McGary) and The Miracle Oil: Secrets of Edgar Cayce’s Palma Christi Castor Oil (by David Kukor).  Castor was even called the “Palma Christi” by the ancient Greeks because its healing power and uniquely-shaped leaf was like the palm of Christ.  The castor oil plant grows naturally in many parts of the world, but please be cautious as the castor beans are very poisonous if ingested!  One of Nature’s many ironies is seen in the castor bean that when the oil is extracted, what was once poisonous becomes very safe and healing, especially when the oil is applied to the body as a pack.  

There isn’t anything mysterious or fancy about potential health benefits of castor oil packs.  Simply saturate a wool or cotton flannel (of two to three-fold thickness) in castor plant oil, apply it directly to body, and heat it up until it’s comfortably warm and apply it over the abdomen for 30 to 90 mins.  It’s best to be in a relaxed, calm state of mind and focus on healing the condition(s) in the body. So use this time while the pack in on to meditate and/or pray.  For best results, use the pack for 2-5 days in a row and afterwards, take a small dose (1/2 - 1 tablespoon) of olive oil before falling asleep.  To help clean the oil off the skin health, use 1 teaspoon of common baking soda in a pint of warm water, then use a cloth soaked in this water to wipe the skin and surrounding area.  The pack can be stored in a plastic bag or container anywhere in your home and each time you use the pack, apply a little more oil to keep the cloth saturated.  The most common area on the body to apply the pack is across the abdomen between your ribs and pelvis, especially over the right side where is liver is located.  Though castor oil pack can be used over ANY area of the body that’s injured or needs healing.

My first experience with castor oil pack was in 2004 when I began to notice multiple rashes around my torso that itched like crazy and were getting worse! A doctor diagnosed them as pityriasis rosea and told me it would take about six weeks for them to go away.  That evening I found the book The Edgar Cayce Remedies by Dr. William McGary and learned about pure castor oil packs.  The next day I bought the supplies and did my first pack that night.  I found that the natural wool flannel felt a little itchy, but once the pack warmed up it was SO soothing and the itchiness began to subside.  When I woke up the next morning I noticed I felt better and already some of the rashes were less pronounced.  I did another pack that night, and by the next morning the rashes were 80% gone! It was, to me, a miracle cure.  After doing five castor oil pack in a row, I then began to change my diet and address the stressors that were present in my life.  A week after seeing the doctor, my rashes were gone and never came back.  I have since dedicated my life to studying, teaching, and applying the natural healing methods from the Edgar Cayce Readings.  Since then, I’ve witnessed many conditions being relieved and/or eliminated by the use of organic castor oil packs in combination with other treatments.

Edgar Cayce is known as the “Father of Holistic Medicine” and one of the world’s most documented psychics.  He gave over 14,000+ readings on many different topics, and over 8,000+ were specifically on health and healing conditions.  His traditional medicine ranged through a variety of different recommendations for the body, mind, and spirit including meditation, diet, exercise, herbs, oils, massage, manipulation, hypnosis, and even surgery in some cases.  Anyone who wishes to learn more can become a member of ARE (Association for Research and Enlightenment) and visit www.edgarcayce.org and search the entire database of information.  In the readings, Castor Oil packs was referenced over 1,300+ times and organic castor oil packs were specifically recommended for many different conditions.  According to the readings, when heated in a natural flannel cloth, castor become absorbed through the skin benefits and picked up by the lymphatic vessels.  Cayce called castor oil pack “food for the lymph” as it circulates through the various vessels of the body, most notably having a healing effect by aiding the liver and stimulating the peyer’s patches within the intestines.  Peyer’s patches are small collections of lymph tissue that act as a storehouse of immune cells.  According to Cayce, castor oil packs stimulates these lymphatic patches and boosts the immune system by increasing the eliminations and drainage of the body.  So, for anyone desiring to detoxify and cleanse the body, castor oil packs would be a wonderful remedy to use.  Personally and professionally, I recommend to use 3-5 days of hexane free castor oil packs with olive oil internally, along with a healthy diet, cleansing of the colon (enemas or colon hydrotherapy), and massage with manipulation for a full-body detoxification.

There is growing scientific evidence for uses castor oil pack for healing a variety of conditions.  Castor is the most abundant, known source of ricinoleic acid (89-92%); however, you want to be sure is has minimal processing, so I recommend using organic, hexane-free oil when making a castor oil pack.  There is an abundance of research on the importance of essential fats and using them in our diets as well as externally.  In a 2022 study that reviewed the effects of essential fatty acids and ricinoleic acid in castor oil pack, it was confirmed that ricinoleic acid has bactericidal, anti-inflammatory, and antiherpetic properties.  For arthritis, a 2009 study found that castor seeds castor oil pack was an effective treatment of knee arthritis with no adverse reactions when compared to a commonly used drug.  Although there are many studies published on the chemistry and synthesis of the oil, there are a few that been done on castor oil packs used in the manner described here.  In a 2011 study, castor oil packs were used on senior citizens and reduced pain and symptoms with constipation.  With an increasing demand in safe, natural alternative treatments, castor oil pack is an effective, evidence-based treatment that can help many people.

Over the years, I’ve tried different methods of castor oil packs, but a recent invention by Enhanced Health is by far one of my favorites.  The castor oil pack is durably built, and allows for the person to be up and mobile while the pack is on the abdomen.  They have created a quality castor oil use flannel that be easily detached from the belt along with high quality castor seeds castor oil pack that is hexane-free and minimally processed.  The belt was easy to use and extremely comfortable to wear.  They have an optional heating pad that can be heated in the microwave or you can use a simple electric heating pad.  When using this pack, I first laid down with my heating pad over the belt, and once it was hot enough, I disconnected the cord from the heating pad, but tucked the heating pad under the belt to keep the pack warm so I could be mobile while still having the pack on.  I strongly recommend using the Enhanced Health castor oil pack and believe that it is an effective home treatment.

Study References

B Medhi ¹, K Kishore, U Singh, S D Seth: Comparative clinical trial of castor oil pack and diclofenac sodium in patients with osteoarthritis. Phytotherapy Resource. 2009 Oct; 23(10): 1469-73

PMID: 19288533; DOI: 10.1002/ptr.2804

Gülşah Gürol Arslan ¹, Ismet Eşer: An examination of the effect of castor oil pack on constipation in the elderly. Complement Ther Clin Pract. . 2011 Feb;17(1):58-62.

 doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2010.04.004. Epub 2010 May 18.

PMID: 21168117. DOI: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2010.04.004

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Febri Odel Nitbani ¹, Putra Jiwamurwa Pama Tjitda ², Hermania Em Wogo ¹, Annytha Ina Rohi Detha ³: Preparation of Ricinoleic Acid from Castor Oil: A Review. J Oleo Sci. 2022;71(6):781-793.

PMID: 35661063. DOI: 10.5650/jos.ess21226