Is emu oil the new snake oil?

Australians have a long and complicated history with the emu – and the tale continues in the murky wellness space.

There are a handful of emu farms still operating locally to harvest meat, oil, eggs and feathers from the flightless birds.

Norman and Tegan discuss the growing demand for emu oil, and what it’s claimed to do.

References:

• The Emu: More-Than-Human and More-Than-Animal Geographies
• Chemical Characterization and In Vivo Toxicological Safety Evaluation of Emu Oil - PMC 
• Review on emu products for use as complementary and alternative medicine - ScienceDirect 
• Anti-inflammatory activity of emu oils in rats | Inflammopharmacology
• Emu Oil Combined with Lyprinol™ Reduces Small Intestinal Damage in a Rat Model of Chemotherapy-Induced Mucositis
• Emu oil expedites small intestinal repair following 5-fluorouracil-induced mucositis in rats
• Vitamins and fatty acids against chemotherapy-induced intestinal mucositis
• Emu Oil and zinc monoglycerolate independently reduce disease severity in a rat model of ulcerative colitis
• Orally administered emu oil attenuates disease in a mouse model of Crohn's-like colitis
• Emu Oil reduces disease severity in a mouse model of chronic ulcerative colitis
• Emu oil enhances cutaneous wound healing by modulating inflammation through promoting macrophage M2 polarization via MAPK signaling pathway
• Effects of Topical Emu Oil on Burn Wounds in the Skin of Balb/c Mice
• Preparation and evaluation of minoxidil foamable emu oil emulsion
• Comparative effects of emu and olive oil on aortic early atherosclerosis and associated risk factors in hypercholesterolemic hamsters
• Emu oil decreases atherogenic plaque formation in cafeteria diet-induced obese rats 

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