My Microbiote Open the app

Thymol and carvacrol

Specific molecules

The terpenes that make the smell of thyme and oregano, and that hinder the growth of many bacteria.

Volatile: drying drives off 30 to 70%. That is exactly why the app separates a fresh herb from a dried one.

Effects and benefits

The scents of thyme and oregano are weapons against microbes: they pierce the membrane of many bacteria, so much so that thymol is an ingredient of some mouthwashes.

Thyme and oregano make these terpenes to defend themselves. They slip into bacterial membranes and make them porous; in the laboratory, they slow common bacteria, including resistant strains (Nostro and Papalia, 2012). Thymol was isolated in 1719 and long served as an antiseptic.

Pure, essential oils are irritating and are not to be swallowed; a herb in a dish provides only small amounts, without risk.

Sources: Nostro and Papalia, Recent Pat Antiinfect Drug Discov, 2012

Where to find it (5)

Also, in smaller amounts (8)