Description
Holy Basil
That’s right, the time has finally come for a holy basil extract, and not just any extract, a highly potent supercritical CO2 extract! The latin name for holy basil is Ocimum tenuiflorum, and is closely related to regular basil (Ocimum basilicum). Holy basil is also commonly referred to as Tulsi, and is a very important botanical in Ayurvedic practices, often being made into a highly aromatic tea. Its highly aromatic nature is also where it derives the bulk of its benefits from as it is high in the beneficial terpenes caryophyllene (which is also found in our Rephyll offerings), and eugenol. Most holy basil extracts are quite low in these compounds though, as they are very hard to standardize for. The reason for this is that these terpenes exist in liquid form and to make matters even trickier, are also highly volatile. With this in mind, hitting the following breakdown of terpenes in this holy basil extract is quite the achievement:
Eugenol: 12-20%
Caryophyllene: 3-8%
Supercritical CO2 Extraction
One of the ways by which we can achieve such high levels of these terpenes is by utilizing a very unique extraction method, supercritical CO2 extraction. This is about as cutting edge as it gets in terms of extraction. CO2 can exist in multiple different phases, the most common of course being in a gas phase, however CO2 can also exist as a solid which is commonly known as “dry ice” and under the right temperature and pressure, CO2 can exist as a highly pressurized liquid which can act both as a liquid and a gas at the same time, we call this supercritical CO2, and when you force this supercritical CO2 through botanicals it acts as a very efficient solvent for extracting the terpenes and preserving the character of the botanical. This is one reason supercritical CO2 extracts are also very popular in perfumery as they can do a better job of preserving the true character of the botanical in question. This also translates to a very comprehensive effects profile in supplements that have been derived through supercritical CO2 extraction like our holy basil extract!
Holy Basil Benefits
Like many highly revered herbs in Ayurveda, holy basil has no shortage of benefits! It targets both neurological benefits like calming, mood enhancing and stress management effects, while also providing inflammation and oxidation balancing effects, in addition to positive effects on pain management, GI health and metabolic health!
Since holy basil is often only standardized to compounds such as ursolic acid and none of the highly beneficial terpenes, our extract does have a unique set of benefits which you will not find in any other holy basil extract. With this in mind, let’s focus on some of the benefits of the two main terpenes contained in our holy basil extract, eugenol and caryophyllene.
Eugenol is a unique terpene found in quite a few commonly used spices. One of the main spices which contains a high concentration of eugenol is cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) and you may actually find that the taste of the holy basil extract is reminiscent of cloves in terms of aroma and taste. More importantly however, eugenol produces lots of interesting effects, such as balancing the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA)-axis, which will help promote stress management. Furthermore, eugenol has a unique effect on pain, acting both systemically and topically. Due to its topical effects, holy basil can be great for attenuating discomfort in the digestive tract, and thus, for good reason, holy basil has traditionally been used as a digestive aid. Eugenol is also great at attenuating inflammation and oxidation, which further adds to its pain management and digestive comfort effects.
Caryophyllene is also a unique terpene which is also found in a few different spices, primarily black pepper. Caryophylene has a very unique effect on pain by signaling through cannabinergic pathways. Specifically, caryophyllene activates the non-psychoactive CB2 receptors which produces a robust pain management effect. This is great as a standalone, but when combined with eugenol, like in our holy basil extract, the pain management effects are kicked up another notch. Thus, it is no surprise that our holy basil extract is great for pain management! Caryophylene also has great effects on metabolic health and even on exercise performance. Clearly, having both eugenol and caryophyllene at high concentrations in this extract, makes for a fantastic overall effects profile!
Both eugenol and caryophyllene also help promote a positive mood while also helping to promote relaxation. Combined with its stress management and pain management effects, this makes our holy basil extract a fantastic option for putting a little pep in your step during those somber days!
How To Use Holy Basil
Our supercritical CO2 solution is also quite unique in the fact that we mix this very potent and aromatic extract with olive oil to dilute it, yet other than that it is still in its raw potent form. With that in mind, the taste can be a little bit strong for those that are sensitive to highly aromatic products. However, if you can handle the taste, it is actually quite pleasant and it opens up the door to sublingual dosing, which is one thing that can really set this holy basil extract apart. For sublingual dosing, simply place 0.5 mL of liquid under your tongue and leave it there for a few minutes. If you are feeling brave, you can even swish the liquid around your cheeks so you can take advantage of both buccal and sublingual absorption. Taken this way, the holy basil solution can provide rapid effects, which can come in handy when you need rapid calming or pain management effects.
If the taste is too much, or if you prefer taking capsules, then making your own softgel capsule is quite easy, especially if using one of our capsule machines. Since the holy basil extract is entirely oil based, the oil will not degrade the capsules and thus long term storage in capsules is possible.
There are lots of other creative dosing options to be explored too, for example incorporating the oil in some oatmeal instead of nutmeg and cinnamon or adding it to some bulletproof style coffee for a “spiced” bulletproof coffee. Just be sure to mix it into beverages that contain fats, because adding this oil to water will just cause the oil to float to the top of the beverage.
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