Niaouli Essential Oil
Melaleuca viridiflora leaves and twigs, steam distilled, from Madagascar.
Aroma: Niaouli has a sweet, fresh, camphoraceous smell.
History: Niaouli essential oil did not appear in Europe until the 17th century. Captain Cook gave it the botanical name while on route from Australia, though the French still sometimes refer to it as Gomenol.
Common Uses: Analgesic, antirheumatic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, balsamic, cicatrizant, regulator, stimulant, vermifuge. Niaouli Essential Oil is used locally for a wide variety of ailments including aches and pains, respiratory conditions, and cuts and infections; it is also used to purify water. Due to its powerful antiseptic qualities it's a good choice of oil to treat skin conditions such as acne, boils, burns, cuts, insect bites and other similar conditions. It has also been used for treating respiratory problems like asthma, bronchitis, catarrh, coughs and sore throats. Niaouli essential oil is also used in pharmaceutical preparations such as gargles, cough drops, toothpastes, and mouth sprays. Possible Uses: Aches, acne, bronchitis, colds, coughs, cuts, dull skin, flu, oily skin, sore throat, whooping cough. [Julia Lawless, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils (Rockport, MA: Element Books, 1995), 56-66.]
Colour: Typically colorless, yellow or slight greenish tinge.
Consistency: Light
Note: Middle
Strength of Aroma: Medium
Constituents: Cineol, terpineol, pinene, limonene, citrene, terebenethene. [Julia Lawless, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils (Rockport, MA: Element Books, 1995), 171.]
Safety Information: Essential Oil Safety by Robert Tisserand does not indicate any special precautions when using this oil. [Robert Tisserand, Essential Oil Safety (United Kingdom: Churchill Livingstone, 1995), 220.]