Rings of Desire - Aftercare

Information on Emu Oil

"Emu Oil is deep penetrating, anti-inflammatory, non-irritating, highly moisturizing, all natural nutritional supplement for your skin. It is hypo-allergenic, giving it a low potential for irritating the skin. Emu oil doesn't clog pores. It contains essential fatty acids required by the body. Topical application of emu oil delivers these nutrients deep into the skin to support healthy cell growth. Emu Oil is an excellent emulsifier and does not leave the skin feeling oily or greasy. Pure Emu oil soothes the skin after new artwork or piercing. Burning and itching are instantly soothed. Healing takes place more rapidly because Emu oil has healing properties and does not cover the skin with a petroleum type air barrier. It allows the skin to breathe and heal." http://www.desertpalmsemu.com

Reprinted from Issue 27 of the Association of Professional Piercers quarterly newsletter, THE POINT (relating more to Emu Oil for use on stretched earlobes):

Emu Oil: Miracle Oil or Bird Juice?
By Megg Mass

Many of us have seen clients (or staff members) with the tell-tale signs of rapid or careless stretching – flaky, dry skin and the thinned, strained tissue which looks more ready to snap than to support future stretches. Suggestions for thickening the tissue have ranged from using or avoiding weights to carefully placed 20 ga rings or cuts, massage, cocoa butter and prayer. My litany to clients has been that, once the circulation is gone and the tissue is damaged, their only options are to remove the jewelry, increase massage, and remind all their friends not to stretch so quickly. However, a piercer* recently pointed out that there is another product on the market that is reputed to stimulate cell regeneration and thicken thin skin -- emu oil.

As its name suggests, emu oil is indeed oil derived from the emu, whose name means “thunder chicken.” The emu is a large brown-black ratite, or “flightless bird” related to the ostrich and kiwi bird. They are indigenous to Australia, and have long been valued for their meat and fat, and their incredible breeding abilities. The average emu grows to 5 – 6 feet and approximately 110 pounds, and females can lay 400 to 1000 eggs in a 20-year breeding lifespan.

Unbeknownst to many of us, emu farming took hold in the US in 1990 and has quietly been growing ever since. The mainstay of the industry has been its low-fat meat, which is a new darling of the American Heart Association. However, the feathers, toenails, beaks and green eggs of the bird are also marketable, as is the rendered or refined oil, which commands a high price in the cosmetics industry. Due to a number of recent university and medical studies, the demand for emu oil for pharmaceutical and cosmetic use is on the rise.

Australian Aborigines traditionally used the melted fat of the emu as a topical treatment for burns, wounds and other injuries, and massaged it into painful joints and muscles. One method of treatment called for wrapping the injured person in the hide of a freshly killed emu and sitting the person in the sun. The sun’s heat would melt the emu fat, which would then soak into the patient’s skin.
In modern times, emu oil enthusiasts have recommended the product for a variety of uses, both externally and internally. The oil is said to lower cholesterol levels, ease pain when ingested, and soothe rheumatoid arthritis or sore muscles when massaged into the area. Various emu industry sources recommend it for everything from bruises to carpal tunnel syndrome and ADD. It is said to be antimicrobial, antiviral and anti-inflammatory. But more importantly for our purposes, emu oil is reported to speed wound healing, diminish scar tissue and thicken skin. Importantly, these claims have been backed by independent and government research. In this last application, emu oil may provide an answer to the problem of careless or skill-less stretching.

The evidence:
According to the American Emu Association (AEA), emu oil has been proven as a natural non-comeodogenic emollient, capable of transdermal penetration and thickening skin by up to 14% when applied twice daily at 100%. AEA-commissioned studies at the University of Massachusetts (2002) demonstrated that the oil does have anti-inflammatory and transdermal properties, and can be useful for carrying medications such as anesthetics into the skin. According to Alexander Zemstov, MD, MS, a double-blind study at the Indiana University School of Medicine concluded that the oil is “non-irritating, highly moisturizing and nurturing to the skin.”

A three-year study initiated in 1995 by Dr. John Griswold of the Timothy J. Harnar Burn Center in Texas (and funded by the AEA) analyzed the use of emu oil for healing re-epithelialized burn wounds. The results indicated a statistically significant reduction of scarring and inflammation of wounds treated with emu oil rather than traditional agents. Australian doctors, some of whom have been using the oil for a decade or longer, report significant improvement in recently formed keloid or hypertrophic tissue when treated with emu oil. Twice daily application of the oil is also noted to inhibit the formation of new scar tissue.

In a study that was published in several medical journals, Dr. Michael Holick, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine, Physiology, and Dermatology at Boston University School of Medicine, used emu oil in a double-blind study of skin and hair regrowth on mice. He remarked, “We found that there was about a 20% increase in DNA synthesis, which means that there was a 20% increase in the proliferative activity, or the growth activity of the skin in the animals that received (a processed emu oil), compared to the animals that received corn oil.” Other private studies demonstrated that the addition of emu oil could significantly increase the rate of proliferation of a cultured fibroblast cell line by up to 34%.

The Journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that an emu oil lotion (comprised of emu oil, vitamin E oil and an unnamed “botanical oil”) had a varying effect on wound tissue. When the lotion was applied immediately post op, the test group showed an initial delay in healing. However, an application at 24 or 48 hours post op doubled the rate of epithelialization, wound contraction and organized granuloma tissue infiltration (i.e. positive healing). They recommended therefore that the oil only be used on wounds after initial epithelialization (tissue growth) had occurred.

As to the antimicrobial/antiviral properties of the oil, these may be emu suppliers’ fables. The Rural Industries Research and Development Council, a highly regarded subsidiary of the Australian government, commissioned emu oil studies at several major universities and medical research labs. The results showed that, though the oil is conclusively anti-inflammatory, it shows no consistent antimicrobial or anti-fungal action. (The virus refrigerator malfunctioned, so those results were discarded.) Furthermore, while no wound contracting action was found on the deep excisional wounds tested, the studies’ authors admitted that evidence encouraged the oil’s use for healing surface wounds, burns and scars. Unfortunately, since no known animal model exists for the examination of emu oil’s affect on either these wounds or on scarring, they concluded that, “there is insufficient reason to justify the expense of a quantitative epithelialization study.”

Although the RIRDC (the authority on all things Australian and pharmaceutical) could not verify it, the clinical evidence seems to support the emu oil industry’s claims that the oil can increase the rate at which surface wounds heal, decrease existing scarring and swelling, thicken and rejuvenate skin, and keep new scar tissue from forming. However, results suggest that the oil should not be applied to fresh wounds, but only to those that are at least 24 hours old. Since our industry’s primary use for this oil would be the care of thinned or scarred tissue, this should not be an issue. In vivo trials predict visible results within three days, although longer application is generally necessary.

Why it works:
According to Dr. Leigh Hopkins, a consulting pharmacist of the emu industry, the oil works on the epidermis to plump and hydrate existing cells. More importantly, it is effective at a dermal level, where cells are capable of dividing and differentiating. He believes its healing properties for a wide range of differing pathologies derive from its ability to bring body processes back into normal balance. Where skin cells are not reproducing, it stimulates growth. In cases of inflammation or hypertrophic scarring where overproduction is the problem, it may actually hinder uncontrolled cell behavior. Hopkins explains that "[E]mu oil helps to normalize basic cellular function, and enable the body to progress with what should be normal healing." Hopkins also believes emu oil’s beneficial effects cannot be attributed to any one oil constituent, but rather to its specific combination of fatty acids (linoleic, oleic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic) and compounds. He states that its usefulness for a broad range of disease conditions indicates that the oil’s chief healing mechanism is nutritional in nature.

Nutritionally, emu oil is rich in Essential Fatty Acids, which aid oxygen transfer, hemoglobin production and cell membrane health. These acids include Omega-3 (oleic) acid, which is known to be useful as a local anti-inflammatory and for lowering cholesterol, and Omega-6 (linoleic) acid, which contributes to the health of cell membranes, and is used in the cells’ metabolic and nutrient distributing processes.
When linoleic acid is combined with gammolenic acid (also found in emu oil), it forms prostaglandins, which are found most notably in human breastmilk. Prostaglandins are thought to be essential for the growth and development of cell tissue and have been shown to increase epithelialization when applied topically to skin wounds. They are also involved in immune function, both encouraging the body to fight infection and keeping the natural inflammatory response under control.

The skin-penetrating quality of the oil may be attributable to its lack of phospholipids, or phosphorus compounds, which our skin is programmed to block out. Because the oil’s composition so closely mimics our skin’s natural chemistry, it is readily absorbed and its nutrients are easily put into circulation.

In the shop:
Jeremiah Toller, (formerly of Ground Zero, Muncie, Indiana; more recently of Halo, Phoenix, Arizona), was introduced to emu oil by family members who used it for arthritis pain and suggested he try it in his massage practice. Instead, he began using it on himself and his piercing clients for thinned skin, hypertrophic scarring and blowouts. He reports having excellent results and an encouraging response from his clients, who like that it is odorless and non-greasy.

Toller suggests massaging a tiny amount of the full strength oil into scarred or thinned tissue for five minutes, twice a day. Improvement may be apparent in as little as 24 hours but full effect may take several weeks. He has also found that clients who use the oil daily during stretching have healthier skin overall, with less dark, pink or damaged tissue inside the hole.
A word on emu oil processing:

As mentioned earlier, this oil is derived from the ground and melted fat of the posterior side of the emu. While all parts of the “harvested” emu are used (meat, nails, feathers, skin and oil), it is not cruelty-free. If you choose to use it, please encourage the responsible development of this fledgling industry by purchasing oil from free-range farms which do not use hormones, steroids, antibiotics or animal-based feed.
After emu fat is removed from the carcass, melted and filtered, it is often refined with caustic chemicals such as lye, then bleached and deodorized (“RBD” processing). These processes may not only destroy some of the oil’s beneficial qualities, but also add dangerous chemicals to your tissue and the environment. A safer process combines natural clay adsorbent filtration and centrifuge with high temperature vacuum distillation. This ensures a sterile and odor-free product without organic or chemical residue. Again, look for a reputable source and ask questions. For your own safety, use only oil certified as “fully refined,” and preferably “pharmaceutical grade.”

Caution:
Remember, even if emu oil does prove to be effective at thickening damaged skin and diminishing granuloma (hypertrophic scar tissue) and your clients agree to use it, this is not an excuse to stretch too quickly. A normal stretch of one size will take the body at least six weeks to heal, provided there is adequate circulation, nutrition and hygiene. Regardless of any “miracle” solution, you should always allow at least 6 weeks between stretches and only stretch one size at a time. Leaving three to four months – or longer -- between stretches will allow the skin’s collagen layer to not only heal, but also rejuvenate, and in the long run will produce healthier, happier tissue.
For perhaps thousands of years, the time and patience required have made stretching a mark of commitment and maturity. Emu oil may help maintain and restore healthy tissue functions along the way, but it should not undermine the meaning of the stretching process. It will never be a substitute for time.
*Special thanks to Jeremiah Toller for inspiring this research.

For more information:

www.homepages.ihug.com.au/~aussipol/medical.html - RECENT WOUNDS: Emu Oil applied to epithelialised wounds appears to reduce scar tissue formation. The anti-inflammatory action seems to soothe wounds after surgery. Emu Oil in its pure state has been tested not to grow organisms. It is safe to use on any open area. It can significantly speed up the healing process and reduce scarring."
www.emu-oil.com " 'Even though it is an oil, emu oil was demonstrated to be a "non pore-clogging substances, helping to keep the skin healthy.' "
www.aea-emu.org
www.rirdc.gov.au

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