There are 100 varieties of cinnamon trees. But two types are used most for nutritional and medicinal purposes – Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), found in India, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, the Caribbean, and Brazil, and Chinese cinnamon (Cassia cinnamon or Cinnamomum aromaticum), which grows in China, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
Cinnamon is one of the oldest spices known to man. It was highly prized in ancient Egypt – it was valued more than gold. It was used not only as a medicine and a refreshing drink, but also as an embalming agent. It is even mentioned in the Bible. The bark of the tree is used most as a food supplement and spice. But the leaves of the cinnamon tree also have many beneficial properties.
Cinnamon tree leaves are rich in phytonutrients. Essential oils are extracted from them. The leaves undergo steam distillation and the oil yield is about 1.6% – 1.8%. Cinnamon leaf oil has a musky, distinctive aroma. It has a yellow hue, which differs from the reddish-brown oil from the bark of the cinnamon tree. It contains 80% phenols, mainly eugenol, which determines the properties of the oil, and also contains eugenol acetate, benzyl benzoate, cinnamaldehyde, and cinnamic aldehyde. The phenols in cinnamon leaves give the oil its rejuvenating and healthy qualities.
Cinnamon leaf oil possesses: antiseptic, analgesic, antispasmodic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, aphrodisiac, cardiological, and other properties.
