Camphor essential oil has a strong, bold and refreshing scent with a slightly menthol and eucalyptus-like character. Camphor Essential Oil is good for cooling, calming and relaxing nerves and for clearing away stuffy feelings and apathy.
The plant we have to thank to for camphor essential oil is Cinnamomum camphora, an evergreen tree we usually call the camphor tree or the camphor laurel.
The camphor tree is native to East Asian countries like Japan and Taiwan. It also grows natively in some parts of China, Korea, and Vietnam, and it can grow to be almost one hundred feet tall. It is recognizable by its pale bark, bright green foliage, and small white flowers it produces in the spring.
Every Part of the Camphor Tree Contains Camphor
Essential oil makers most commonly use the bark, branches, and roots to produce natural essential oil of camphor. The production process includes using steam for extraction, as well as vacuum rectification and filter pressing. The result is a white, waxy substance. It does have some aromatherapy uses but isn’t widely used as an essential oil. Rather it’s used often medicinally.
Camphor Essential Oil Helps Relieve Anxieties Caused By:
- Repressed emotions
- Mental and physical fatigue
- Isolation and resentment
Blend Camphor Essential Oil With Other Essential Oils for Additional Anxieties:
- Lavender and Lemon: Promotes patience and tolerance.
- Cajuput and Grapefruit: Relieves metal fatigue and irritability
- Camomile and Rosemary: Helps eliminate disappointment and sluggishness
- Melissa: Helps drive away sadness caused by guilt
Uses of Camphor Essential Oil for the Body
Camphor essential oil has several distinct properties that make it useful to us. It acts as an antiseptic and anti-fungal agent. It is also sometimes used as a disinfectant. Camphor essential oil also has anti-inflammatory properties, which is why helps in treating swelling and sore muscles.
Camphor is a common ingredient in topical preparations that are used to alleviate muscle pain. It acts anti-inflammatory, and also as a mild local anesthetic, all the while boosting circulation. These effects also make it a popular choice for decongestant balms and cold rubs.
Uses of Camphor Essential Oil for the Mind
The essential oil of camphor can be used as a balancing agent for the mind. It acts as a stimulant, boosting the metabolism, secretion, and excretion. At the same time, it has a slightly sedative and relaxing effect. It also helps treat inflammations, which can affect our mood.
Camphor in Ancient History
Camphor has found a place in the traditional medicine of East and South-East Asian countries like China and India.
References to camphor, or karpur as it is called in Sanskrit, can be found in the ancient texts of Yajurveda. To this day, burning camphor is a part of prayer in Hinduism. It also has an important place in the Hindu festival of Maha Shivaratri.
Merchants in the early days of trade between India, Middle East, and Europe traded camphor as an aromatics. It also played a role in diplomacy – the Chinese emperors and Indians rajas sent it as gifts to early European and Middle Eastern rulers.
Pre-Islamic Persia coveted camphor as a commodity, and used it a symbol for whiteness in classical Persian poetry. The Koran also mentions camphor as a part of the Islamic funerary rites.
Camphor in Modern History
In more modern times, camphor played a role in the early attempts to deal with the plague. It is sometimes reported as one of the ingredients in the Four thieves vinegar. This mix of vinegar and various aromatic herbs and spices was thought to be able to ward off the plague.
Johann Sauer, an American printer and apothecary of German descent, also mentioned camphor as one of the remedies:
“Camphor is an oily, volatile salt, and therefore possesses the virtue and capacity to withstand all corruptions of the blood, of containing and sweetening the mordant matter of poisonous humors, of promoting sweat, of dissolving and dispersing all obdurate crudities of the blood, of calming a raging and unruly spirit, of thinning sluggish blood around the heart and restoring it to its natural flow and motion.”
And while his description might be characteristic of the 18th century, people continue to use camphor essential oil to this day for at least some of the effects Sauer observed.
Camphor Essential Oil Cautions:
Even though it can be very beneficial, camphor and its oil preparations are toxic, and in large enough doses they can be fatal.
People who have epilepsy, asthma, or are pregnant should avoid essential oil of camphor. Use it only strictly according to the prescribed methods. D not ingest camphor essential oil, nor put on open wounds.
