Agarwood in its various forms; Oil, wood, powder, plants, etc. They have been used for many health benefits and the treatment of various diseases. Agarwood has been used medicinally for thousands of years and continues to be used in Ayurvedic, Tibetan, and traditional East Asian medicine. Here are some of its benefits and uses.
If you are new to the world of agarwood, it’s a good idea to learn more about oud before you discover its incredible benefits and uses!
- East Asian Medicine:
Agarwood is prescribed in traditional East Asian medicine to promote qi circulation, relieve pain, stop vomiting by warming the stomach, and relieve asthma (Anon., 1995a). - Chinese medicine:
Good quality agarwood powder is prescribed in Chinese medicine (Yaacob, 1999).
High quality agarwood powder is also used in the manufacture of pharmaceutical dyes (Heuveling van Beek and Phillips, 1999). - Use as liniment:
Malaysians use agarwood mixed with coconut oil as a liniment. The Indians and Chinese also use agarwood oil in their traditional medicine as a liniment to treat various skin diseases. (Burkill (1966)) - Rheumatism:
Agarwood oil is used in a cooked mixture to treat rheumatism and other pains in the body. (Burkill) - Jaundice:
Malaysians use the uninfected wood, often thrown away as kayu gaharu lemppong, to treat jaundice and aching limbs. (Chakrabarty et al. (1994)) - Smallpox and abdominal pain:
Agarwood is known for its use as a complex ointment for smallpox and various abdominal ailments. (1930, cited in Chakrabarty et al., 1994) - Pleurisy:
Its use to treat pleurisy is mentioned in the Ayurvedic healing text Susruta Samhita. - Nervous system disorders:
When used in aromatherapy, agarwood oil can help treat anxiety, stress, depression, and other nervous system disorders. - Liver and kidney:
Agarwood oil is used to treat cirrhosis of the liver and kidney problems. - Lung and stomach tumors:
Agarwood oil is used to treat lung and stomach tumors. - Carminative diuretic:
Agarwood oil is also used as a carminative diuretic. - The Indian Council:
The Indian Council sums up the properties of agarwood as follows: “Agarwood is said to be stimulating, anti-asthmatic, digestive, strengthening, aphrodisiac and astringent. It is used for diarrhea, dysentery, gout, rheumatism and paralysis. - The Cropwatch Organization:
The Cropwatch Organization also lists the recognized benefits of agarwood in Asian medical practice as “warming”, “relieving blocked energies, especially in the digestive and respiratory systems”, “pain relieving” and “balancing effects”. About “nervous and emotional disorders”. . “ - Middle East and Bangladesh:
Agarwood is described as a stimulant, heart tonic and carminative in Egypt, Arabia and the entire northeast of Bangladesh (Bhuiyan et al., 2009). - China and Japan:
It is used as a sedative, analgesic, and traditional digestive agent in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicine (Abdullah et al., 2007; Liu et al., 2008). - Assam:
The water content that occurs during the distillation process after the separation of the best oud oil as a distillate is currently used in Assam as an effective stimulant and tonic for the treatment of mental disorders and malnutrition. - Miscellaneous:
Arabian Oudh oil is used to treat illnesses during and after childbirth; for the relief of cramps especially in the digestive and respiratory systems, abdominal pain, asthma, cancer (as a general tonic), colic, chest congestion, diarrhea, hiccups, nausea, nerves and treatment of belching (Burkill, 1966; Chakrabarty et al., 1994; Kim et al., 1997; Barden et al., 2000; Bhuiyan et al., 2009).
Agarwood is also prescribed for dropsy, as a carminative, stimulant, for palpitations and as a tonic, which is taken especially during pregnancy, after childbirth and for diseases of the female genital organs (Chakrabarty et al., 1994).
