Castor oil is a topical product that penetrates through the skin, offering detox and lymphatic support. Used in a compress, castor oil draws out toxins when placed over swollen glands, cysts, and other lumps. It helps relieve pain and inflammation of the body’s hollow organs, including the uterus, fallopian tubes, blood and lymph vessels, gall bladder, and bowels.

Castor oil also effectively reduces pain and inflammation when applied over strains and sprains.

What is a Castor Oil Pack?

A castor oil pack is a compress made using a cloth that is applied over an area requiring detox or lymphatic support.

The first step in making a pack is to soak a piece of cloth in castor oil. Next, the oil-saturated cloth is placed on the skin and covered with a sheet of plastic. Then a hot water bottle is positioned on the plastic sheet to provide a heat source.

What You’ll Need by Way of Materials

• Castor oil, like certified organic St. Francis Herb Farm Castor Oil.
• A piece of undyed wool or cotton flannel that’s big enough to cover the relevant skin area in three layers.
• A piece of plastic (even a plastic bag will suffice) that is one or two inches larger than the area covered by the three layers of cloth.
• Hot water bottle.
• A container with a lid large enough to hold the oil-soaked layers of cloth.
• An old set of clothes and bed sheets that you don’t mind getting stained.

Assembling the Pack

1. Take the cloth that you’ve prepared and place it in the container.
2. Saturate the cloth with castor oil, but not to the point where it’s dripping wet.
3. Place the oil-soaked cloth over the body part being treated in a triple fold.
4. Cover the cloth with your piece of plastic.
5. Prepare the hot water bottle and place it over the plastic sheet.
6. Leave the hot water bottle over the pack for 45-60 minutes. During this time, you can rest and relax while your body absorbs the soothing goodness of the pack.
7. After that, you can remove the pack and clean the affected area with a solution of water and baking soda (in a ratio of 3 tablespoons of baking soda to 1 quart of water).
8. Then place the pack back in the covered container (or a baggie).
9. Store the container in your fridge until the next time you need to apply the pack. When you’re ready to use the pack again, take it out of the refrigerator for a couple of hours to bring it to room temperature.

How Frequently You Should Use the Pack

If you have a specific health problem, you should use a castor oil pack once a day, anywhere between three and seven days a week. An individual pack can be re-used as many as 25-30 times.

About the Author: St. Francis Herb Farm

At St. Francis Herb Farm, they work with nature to understand, nurture, and extract healing compounds. They are obsessed with herbs and the wisdom they unlock in our bodies to heal and nourish naturally. A proudly Canadian second-generation owned company of organic farmers who, for over 30 years, have crafted well-made plant medicine.