Camphor

• What other names is Camphor known by?
• What is Camphor?
• How does Camphor work?
• Are there safety concerns?
• Dosing considerations for Camphor.

What other names is Camphor known by?

Alcanfor, Arbre à Camphre, Camphor Tree, Camphora, Camphora Officinarum, Camphre, Camphre de Laurier, Camphre Gomme, Camphrier, Cemphire, Cinnamomum Camphora, dl-Camphor, dl-Camphre, Gum Camphor, Kapur, Karpoora, Karpuram, Laurel Camphor, Laurus camphora.

What is Camphor?

Camphor was formerly obtained by distilling the bark and wood of the camphor tree. Today, camphor is chemically manufactured from turpentine oil. It is used in products such as Vicks VapoRub.

Likely Effective for...

• Cough, when applied as a chest rub.
• Skin itching or irritation, when applied to affected areas.
• Pain, when applied to the skin over the area of pain.

Possibly Effective for...

• Osteoarthritis, when a cream containing camphor is applied to the skin over the stiff joints.

Insufficient Evidence to Rate Effectiveness for...

• "Toe nail fungus," warts, hemorrhoids, and other conditions.

Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database rates effectiveness based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Effective, Likely Effective, Possibly Effective, Possibly Ineffective, Likely Ineffective, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate (detailed description of each of the ratings).