Western Herbalism
Benzoin
Styrax benzoin
Also known as Benjamin tree, Sumatra benzoin, Gum benjamin, Gum benzoin, ān xī xiāng.
Benzoin is a fragrant balsamic resin obtained by wounding the bark of Styrax benzoin, a tree native to Sumatra, Java, and other parts of Southeast Asia. The resin dries into hard, brittle tears that are rich in benzoic and cinnamic acid esters and are prized for their vanilla-like fragrance. In Western herbal practice it has long been used both internally, in small tinctured amounts within expectorant compounds, and topically as a protective, mildly antiseptic dressing for skin and mucous membranes.
Ask Herbert about Benzoin. Herbert is the master herbalist inside Bountiful Herbs: he answers from this plate and eleven hundred others, with dosing, pairing and cautions. Your first ten questions are free.
Ask HerbertActions
Indications what the tradition reached for it in
- Chronic bronchitis with copious mucus
- Old, lingering coughs
- Laryngitis and hoarseness
- Minor wounds and cracked skin
- Chapped or fissured nipples
- Cold sores and minor skin ulcers
- Catarrh of the upper respiratory tract
- Inhalation for nasal and sinus congestion
Specific indications
Chronic, weak cough with copious thin mucus in a debilitated patient, where a warming aromatic stimulant expectorant is wanted
Cracked or fissured skin, such as sore nipples or chapped hands, needing a protective aromatic astringent film
Safety
Low dose botanical. Used in drop doses in the classical practice; not a plant to dose freely.
Breastfeeding: Topical use on cracked nipples is traditional and widely practiced, but the resin should be wiped off before nursing to avoid the infant ingesting alcohol-based tincture or resin.
The record lists 6 contraindications; open the plate in the library to read them in full.
In practice
Benzoin is rarely used alone. Physiomedicalist and Eclectic practitioners added small amounts of the tincture to tonic expectorant mixtures for old, relaxed, mucus-laden coughs, valuing its warming, stimulating action on sluggish bronchial tissue and its pleasant fragrance, which made otherwise unpalatable mixtures easier to take.
Dosing as the sources wrote it
| Preparation | As written | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| Compound tincture of benzoin (friar's balsam), topical | applied undiluted to small wounds, cracks or fissures as needed | |
| Tincture, internal (added to expectorant compounds) | 0.3-2 mL 1:5 tincture, in divided doses within a compound mixture, up to three times daily | 0.3-2 mL |
| Steam inhalation | 5-10 mL compound tincture of benzoin added to a bowl of hot water, vapor inhaled for 5-10 minutes | 5-10 mL |
| As a stimulant expectorant, it is used in doses of from twenty drops to half a fluid drachm | 0.4-1.85 mL | |
| The dose, in preparations, may be equivalent to 10 to 40 grains. | 2592 mg |
Doses are reproduced from the sources for practitioners and are not a recommendation for any person.
From the sources
Overview. Benzoin is a fragrant balsamic resin obtained by wounding the bark of Styrax benzoin, a tree native to Sumatra, Java, and other parts of Southeast Asia. The resin dries into hard, brittle tears that are rich in benzoic and cinnamic acid esters and are prized for their vanilla-like fragrance. In Western herbal practice it has long been used both internally, in small tinctured amounts within expectorant compounds, and topically as a protective, mildly antiseptic dressing for skin and mucous membranes.
Clinical Notes. Benzoin is rarely used alone. Physiomedicalist and Eclectic practitioners added small amounts of the tincture to tonic expectorant mixtures for old, relaxed, mucus-laden coughs, valuing its warming, stimulating action on sluggish bronchial tissue and its pleasant fragrance, which made otherwise unpalatable mixtures easier to take.
Properties and Uses. This balsam is valued mostly for its fragrance, and its stimulating expectorant properties. Its tincture may be added in small quantities to tonic expectorant compounds in the treatment of old coughs; or a portion of it may be thrown into hot water so as to have a room impregnated with its odor.
Specific Indications and Uses. Excessively alkaline urine; phosphuria; vesical irritability, with alkaline urine; fermentative urine; brain-fag, with phosphuria; "irritation of the sympathetic and spinal system of nerves with uric acid deposits" ... (Scudder).
Drawn from Cook's Physio-Medical Dispensatory; King's American Dispensatory, 18th edition (Felter and Lloyd), and the Bountiful Herbs editorial.
In formulas
Benzoin stands in 8 documented formulas in the library, among them thì bǎo dân, sù hé xiàng wán.
Often paired with
SpicebushBenzoin odoriferum
camphor treeCinnamomum camphora
StoraxStyrax officinale
AlmondAmygdala
GinsengPanax ginseng
American GinsengPanax quinquefoliusNearby on the shelf
BeggarticksBidens pilosa
Beleric myrobalanTerminalia bellirica
BellwortUvularia
Benedict's HerbGeum urbanum
Betel leafPiper betle
Beth RootTrillium erectum
BharangiClerodendrum serratum
Bhumi amlaPhyllanthus amarusThe whole plate is in the library. The compass, Compare, the Sky of eleven hundred plants and the formulary open with an email address and a password, free, with the formula builder and its safety engine. Herbert without limit, his formulating, clients, the handouts and the labels are the paid room.
Open the library, free