Rosemary: a mint by any other name

GARDENERS LOVE IT. It's drought tolerant, requires little fertilizer, and always looks crisp and graceful even on hot summer days. This pine-scented bushy evergreen native to hillsides and open valleys along the Mediterranean coast of Portugal, Spain, Morocco, and Tunisia thrives in sunny locations and loves well-drained soils. More important, it can protect you from both cancer ... and flatulence.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) makes its appearance as a strongly aromatic, needle-like foliage with small lavender-blue flowers that bloom in clusters in the late spring and early summer. The plant normally grows about one to two feet tall, but can reach as high as six feet. In warmer climates, rosemary plants serve as hedges or ground cover for slopes.

Ancient Greeks and Romans knew this shrub well. In their world, it enjoyed a reputation for improving memory and rejuvenating the spirits. Greek scholars wore garlands of rosemary during examinations in order to improve their memory and concentration. Shakespeare also wrote that it improved recollection.

An age-old superstition led people to bind rosemary to their legs in an attempt to relieve the pain of gout. It often showed up at funerals, in Christmas decorations, and at weddings where it was presented to brides with the hope that they'd enjoy a happy marriage.

While rosemary is associated with various legends, it finds common use today as a fragrance in soaps, shampoos, hair conditioners, and bath lotions. The oil is used in perfumery, ointments, cosmetics, and aromatherapy. Its dried leaves add fragrance to potpourri.

Culinary Delight

Rosemary, a member of the mint family that includes such popular seasonings as basil, oregano, sage, and thyme, is a valuable culinary herb. It's a common ingredient in French and Italian dishes and can flavor stews, entrees, soups, and casseroles, as well as various dressings.

It can also be tastefully added to dishes featuring potatoes, squash, tomatoes, peas, and carrots. When used sparingly, rosemary adds an interesting flavor to cakes, baked apples, and biscuits. Its taste is at its best when the leaves are harvested when the plant is in bloom. The youngest stems contain the most flagrant leaves.

Medicinal Value

The flesh, dried leaves and flowering tops of rosemary provide a variety of medicinal benefits. In traditional European medicine, they were used internally as a tonic, stimulant, and as a carminative to treat flatulence. They also treated dyspepsia, mild gastrointestinal upsets, colds, headaches, and nervous tension. In India and China, rosemary leaves attacked headaches.

Early in American history, rosemary found use as an antispasmodic, appetite stimulant, and digestion aid. Today, it's recognized for its ability to stimulate bile secretion and protect against inflammation. Many people gargle rosemary tea to help heal mouth ulcers and canker sores.

The oil distilled from this plant's leaves can be mixed with a vegetable oil and used during massage therapy. Applied externally, the oil brings relief from muscular and arthritic pain. In Europe, rosemary oil treats rheumatic conditions, bruises, and circulatory problems. When applied in such a way, it appears to stimulate an increased blood supply. In addition, rosemary oil--or some freshly cut sprigs--can be added to bath water to soothe aching muscles and joints.

Active Constituents

Rosemary leaf contains important phenolic components such as rosmarinic, chlorogenic, and caffeic acids, along with a host of health-promoting flavonoids that possess strong antioxidant properties. The terpenoids in rosemary--such as rosmarinic acid, rosmanol, carnosol and ursolic acid--provide effective anti-inflammatory benefits. Ursolic acid also conveys antitumor properties.

The volatile oil boasts some antiseptic properties. The pleasant fragrance of rosemary is due largely to the presence of verbenone.

Protective Properties

The use of rosemary extract in laboratory animals has been shown to produce a significant decrease in the incidence of breast tumors. Another study recently discovered that carnosol in rosemary extract can protect against cancer. Carnosol blocks the expression of the human gene responsible for making the enzyme COX-2. This enzyme normally plays an important role in the development of colon, breast, and other cancers.

The British Herbal Pharmacopoeia reports that rosemary has antibacterial and antispasmodic action. An extract of the plant can also produce an increase in bile secretion, thus aiding fat digestion. The German Commission E approves the internal use of rosemary leaf for dyspeptic complaints and its external use in supportive therapy against rheumatic conditions and peripheral circulatory disorders.

Safety Issues

There have been no reports of side effects from the use of rosemary. In addition, there are no interactions with conventional drugs. Care must be taken that the oil be appropriately diluted before applying externally since it can cause irritation to the skin. Rosemary and its oil should be avoided during pregnancy because it may cause an abortion.

For internal usage, the normal dosage is about 5 grams of chopped leaf or leaf powder.

Winston J. Craig, Ph.D., R.D., is professor of nutrition at Andrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan.

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