Cassia essential oil, cinnamomum cassia, has a sweet, spicy-hot fragrance. It is a physical and emotional stimulant and gets the blood and mind in motion. Cassia affects the libido and is known as an aphrodisiac, as well as an antidepressant. The aroma in a room reduces drowsiness, irritability, pain and frequency of headaches. Cassia essential oil makes a warming liniment to relax tight muscles, ease joint pain, menstrual cramps, and increase circulation. It has often been used as a spice and food flavoring, as well as for treatment of digestive complaints, and in Chinese medicine particularly for vascular disorders. Cassia oil is also a stomachic, carminative, mildly astringent, and is said to be emmenagogue and capable of decreasing the secretion of milk. Cassia is chiefly used to assist and to flavour other drugs, being helpful in diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, and to relieve flatulence. The essential oil is a powerful germicide, but being an irritant it is rarely used in medicine for this purpose. It is a strong local stimulant, sometimes prescribed in gastro-dynia, flatulent colic, and gastric debility.
Cassia is native to the south-eastern parts of China and to a lesser extent in Vietnam and India. It is a slender, evergreen tree up to 20 m high, with leathery leaves and small white flowers, with the essential being obtained by steam distillation from the leaves, twigs and stalks. It is cheaper and more abundant than the Ceylon variety, and is the only official essential oil of Cinnamon in the United States Pharmacopoeia and German Pharmacopoeia. It is mostly imported from Canton and Singapore. Its value is dependent mainly on the percentage of cinnamic aldehyde which it contains. It is heavier, less liquid, and congeals more quickly than the Ceylonese variety.
Cassia essential oil, cinnamomum cassia, blends well with the following essential oils: balsam peru, caraway, chamomile, frankincense, ginger, nutmeg, rosemary, geranium, black pepper, and all the spices, coriander, and citrus oils.
Cassia oil cautions - It can be a skin irritatant, and can redden, and even burn sensitive skin, so use carefully (no more than half drop per bath). Avoid use in cosmetics and during pregnancy.
-Dermal toxin
-Dermal irritant
-Dermal sensitizer
-Mucous membrane irritant
Always dilute with a carrier oil before use, never use it directly on the skin.
Cassia essential oil properties - Antidiarrheal, anti-emetic, anti microbial, astringent, carminative, spasmolytic.
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