The essential oil of calamus is derived from the roots of the Calamus plant, or scientifically named as Acorus calamus, through a process of steam distillation. The calamus herb, especially the roots, have been in use since ancient times, ranging from the Egyptians to the Indians.

They mainly used it as part of their traditional healing systems. For example, the ancient Egyptians used it as a natural aphrodisiac to promote the good health of the reproductive system. Furthermore, it has its roots in the Bible as calamus was mentioned in Exodus.

Calamus is also well known in the Ayurvedic sphere as it is widely believed to stimulate positive effects on the human mind and soul. It improves the functions of the brain, such as memory power, intellectual capacity and it facilitates proper blood circulation to the brain, thus ensuring its smooth functioning. Calamus essential oil has a yellowish to dark-brownish colour and while it is toxic, it has a range of health and medicinal benefits that makes it a viable essential oil!

Health Benefits of Calamus Essential Oil:

1. Keeps Your Mind Focused

Calamus essential oil was widely used by meditating Yogis and Saints where it is believed to help them stay focused, calm and relaxed while they are in their meditational journey, known as yagna. The oil contains stimulant and relaxant properties, which makes it ideal to improve mental focus, concentration and alertness as it provides mental clarity.

Furthermore, it helps to ward off stress, anxiety, tension and unwanted feelings of depression to uplift and induce positive feelings for emotional stability. With its stimulating properties, it also induces blood circulation to the brain, thus getting rid of headaches and dizzy spells so as to maintain attentiveness and focus.

2. Prevents Memory Loss

Not only that, calamus essential oil contains memory-boosting attributes as it repairs whatever damages done to brain tissues and neurons, thus keeping your mind as sharp and alert as possible. This helps for those who have experienced memory loss due to various reasons, such as aging or traumatic experiences.

In fact, Ayurvedic medicine also believes that calamus oil is a potent psycho-pharmacological agent in treating epilepsy, mental retardation, syncope and stupor as it augments and improves memory power as well as intellect. With its stimulating properties, it enhances blood circulation to the brain and stimulates the neurons and nerves within the brain, thus promoting attentiveness and alertness.

3. Protects the Nervous System

Calamus essential oil is also a nervine, thus helping to augment the health of the nervous system. It is a rejuvenating nerve tonic that helps to strengthen the nervous system and fosters positive effects for learning, alert, focus and memory power. It also helps to mitigate and arrest the toxic residues in the brain and nervous system, thus ensuring its smooth functioning. It also decreases the prevalence of epileptic fits, hysteric attacks and other nervous afflictions.

Not only that, the essential oil of calamus helps to treat neuralgia where the blood vessels constrict the nerves which can possibly lead to a sharp and burning pain. As such, with its anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic properties, calamus essential oil reduces inflammation and returns the blood vessels to their normal size, thus reducing the constriction. The neuralgia is thus relieved.

4. Helps to Induce Sleep

Calamus essential oil is also a tranquilizer, which means that it can help to induce restful sleep that you so deserve after a long and stressful day. This thus greatly helps people who have difficulty sleeping and who always experience insomnia or restlessness. Because of its relaxant attributes, the oil is a great natural alternative to sleeping pills to promote relaxation and peace so that you can get a good and healthy rest.

5. Promotes Relaxation

Because it is a sedative, calamus essential oil also helps to induce feelings of relaxation, thus effectively promoting a peaceful state of mind. Therefore, whenever you are feeling stressed, tensed or anxious and are in major need of something to relax and soothe your messy mind, calamus essential oil is your go-to oil!

Not only can it provide relief to your mind, but it can also alleviate your body from different types of pain, such as chronic back pain. This hence helps to soothe your body and your mind, which will then alleviate anxiety, mental stress and induces sleep.

6. Provides Pain Relief

The benefits that have been mentioned so far are those that deal with the mental health and nervous system of the body. However, calamus essential oil is also an excellent anti-arthritic and pain reliever. Since it stimulates the nerves and enhances blood circulation as well as is a well-known relaxant, it helps to calm and soothe sore muscles and joints.

It also helps to eliminate excess fluids and toxic that might contribute to the inflamed muscles. As such, this oil makes it an effective natural remedy for conditions that give rise to pain and swelling, such as rheumatism, arthritis and gout.

How to Use Calamus Essential Oil?

Hence, you have read how calamus essential oil is an excellent agent to promote mental health and clarity, as well as stabilizing the nervous system and providing pain relief to the body. This can be attributed to its stimulating, tranquilizing, relaxant and anti-inflammatory attributes. Doesn’t the benefits sound attractive to you? Read on to find out how you can effectively and safely use calamus essential oil in your everyday use to induce rejuvenation to your mind and body.

• In a Diffuser: You can add about 1-2 drops of calamus essential oil into your diffuser, vaporizer or burner and proceed to inhale the aromatic wafts of this oil in your room to aid in mental concentration and mental clarity. However, be sure to only put it in the distiller for no longer than 30 minutes as calamus essential oil can be toxic.

• Topically: To stimulate your nervous system, you can create a massage blend by combining 5 drops of calamus essential oil, 2 drops of lavender, 2 drops of lemon, 2 drops of yarrow, 2 drops of cinnamon and 2 drops of patchouli essential oils. Mix the mixture with 10ml of virgin olive oil and this can greatly aid in promoting the health of the nervous system.

• Topically: To treat sore, stiff muscles and joints, you can mix 2 drops of calamus essential oil with 2 drops of ginger and 2 drops of eucalyptus essential oils. Mix this blend further with 3ml of coconut oil and massage it gently onto the affected areas. Alternatively, you can also add about 2 drops of calamus oil to 5ml of castor oil for a simpler massage blend.

• In Warm, Bathing Water: You can also put in about 6-8 drops of calamus essential oil with lavender oil as it blends well together. This helps to calm your mind and your body after a long, tiring and exhausting day.

Safety Precautions:

• Calamus essential oil is toxic and possibly carcinogenic. This means that it can potentially have tumour-causing effects, narcotic effects and might cause convulsions as well as hallucinations. As such, it should never be ingested.

• It should not be used on pregnant women and nursing mothers due to aforementioned compounds in the oil.

• Even when diffusing the oil, be sure to only put in a few drops (low doses) of the oil into your distiller and do not prolong inhalation for fear of causing hallucinations and convulsions. If you feel dizzy or light-headed after prolonged inhalation, ensure that you do not continue.

• When applying it topically onto the skin, be sure to dilute the oil with a carrier oil and perform a skin patch test first to ensure no sensitive or allergic reactions crop up.