Emu Oil
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What is Emu Oil?
Emu Oil is a food by-product, obtained from the fat of the Emu.  The Emu is similar to an ostrich, a member of the ratite family.   One of the things we know about the Emu is that they have wonderful immune systems. The Emu can be close to death from injury and in a few days be good as new. It is this wonderful healing property that they pass along through the Emu oil. This is why the Emu oil is good for so many things.

So therefore it is an all-natural substance.   Emu Oil can be used for the "whole person".  Its basis and benefits are derived from Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs).    EFA's are involved with producing life energy in our bodies from food substances, and moving that energy throughout our systems.  They govern growth, vitality, and mental state. They hook up oxygen, electron transport, and energy in the process of oxidation.  

Oxidation, the central and most important moment-to-moment living process in our body, is the burning of food to produce the energy required for life processes. Ingesting Emu Oil provides these EFA's which are also important to oxygen transfer, haemoglobin production, and control of nutrients through cell membranes.  They markedly shorten recovery time from fatigue. Emu Oil can play a part in almost every function of our body.

When processed, the fat is taken through a series of steps to refine, sterilize and deodorize it.  Not all Emu oil on the market is "refined", so we must warn consumers to beware.  Some forms of Emu oil are simply "rendered"; this means the oil has only been filtered, and may contain contaminants.  Always ask for "refined" oil.

Why Emu Oil Works
Why Emu Oil Works is the million-dollar question or do we have some clues?  
The simple answer and one, which is close to being correct, is that Emu oil is one of the basic food groups that our culture has chosen to deny.  Avoiding fats in our diets creates the many conditions, which respond to Emu oil.  Why it works when applied topically, when other sources of these fatty acids do not, is still unknown, but this too could simply be due to the similarity of Emu oil with the fats in our skin thus enabling it to readily mix (and penetrate) with these fats.

How does it work?  
This is a subject that is made complex by the large number of steps within our body's chemistry that involve fatty acids.  To begin with, no drug offers the wide scope of activity seen with Emu oil, which further supports the idea that Emu oil activity originates from a food group rather than a single compound.  Our body's needs for fats can be broadly grouped into structural and functional needs.

Structural needs
All our cell walls are made of fat, which separates the watery contents of each unique cell from the adjacent cells.  These cell walls are complex constructions that contain pores, channels and receptors that enable the cell to receive and send signals and to respond to various chemicals and to release various chemicals.  When fats are missing from our diets, our body makes fat from the protein and carbohydrates that we eat. Unfortunately, it cannot make some types of fats that are required by the cell wall. Therefore, all cell wall structures are defective when some of the necessary essential fats, such as found in Emu oil, are missing from our diets. We can think of our skin as the largest cell wall we have. A dry, itchy skin (i.e., a defective skin) is a sign of missing essential fatty acids.

When the essential fats are missing from our cells, the more rigid saturated and monounsaturated fats must be used in their place. This rigidity impairs all our cells, which must be flexible to work best. Hard arteries can be thought of as containing rigid, saturated fats rather than the soft, polyunsaturated fats.

Functional needs  
Fats play many very different roles in our body other than the simple concentrated energy source and cushion which we usually think of fats as providing. All cells produce hormones directly from the fatty acids, which we must receive from our diet or from the topical application of these fatty acids. These hormones influence all aspects of local cell activity. They are involved in such activity as inflammation, healing, and cell growth and dying. When we don't have enough of the correct fats, these processes of every day life do not operate at peak efficiency. Emu Oil can provide the necessary fats that are required to normal cellular function.

Some of the Common Uses for Emu Oil  

Summary:
Apart from all the healing properties mentioned above and as a health aid in relieving most of the symptoms from the above conditions, Emu Oil in both lotion and capsule form is apparently very good.  I have heard from a Colitis sufferer who states that the Emu Capsules have prevented any flare-ups occurring in the past 2 years, and apparently patients can ask their consultants about a prescription for Emu Capsules.    

I believe that any natural product cannot be harmful, if taken by recommended and professional bodies who are promoting a safe and controlled product which has had stringent tests done to make these products safe for public consumption, and should only be helpful in the war against Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

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