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Tuesday, September 13

Cinnamomum camphora



English names:

Camphor tree, Formosan wood.

Description:

Evergreen tree about 15m. tall. Trunk bark thick and grooved. Leaves alternate, coriaceous, long-petiolate, shining on the upper side, 3-nerved at the base. Inflorescence in axillary panicle, shorter than the leaf; flowers small, greenish-yellow. Berry globose, black when ripe.

Flowering period:
May - June.

Distribution:

Cultivated as a shade-tree and for medicinal purposes.

Parts used:

Roots and wood of the trees when they reach 10-12 years of age, from which an essential oil is obtained by distillation.

Chemical composition:
The stem wood and leaves contain an essential oil consisting of camphor, D-a-pinene, cineol, terpineol, caryophyllin, safrole, limonene, phellandrene, carvacrol, camphorene and azulene.

Therapeutic uses:
The camphor from the trunk wood possesses cardiac, analeptic, antibacterial, demulcent and anodyne properties. Injections of camphor oil and sodium camphosulfonate are prescribed in cases of cardiovascular collapse. The peroral administration of camphor is effective for fever, colic, sore throat and impotence. It is applied externally as an antiseptic, demulcent and anodyne for impetigo, boils, neuralgia and rheumatism, in the form of a tincture, an aqueous solution or an ointment.



Source: Medicinal plants in Viet Nam (Institute of Materia Medica).

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