The genus Cinnamomum

11 Pharmacology and Toxicology of
Cinnamon and Cassia
K.K. Vijayan and R.V. Ajithan Thampuran
Introduction
In the following text the term cinnamon is used to mean both Ceylon cinnamon and
Chinese cinnamon or Cassia cinnamon.
The medicinal and aromatic properties of cinnamon are used in the traditional
medicines of India and China. Cinnamon bark and cinnamon oil have also been used
as food additives, condiments and flavouring agents due to their carminative, antioxidant
and preservative actions. In the Ayurveda and Sidha medical systems, cinnamon
bark, twigs, leaves and oil are used as ingredients of many multidrug preparations. In
the pharmacopoeias of India, Britain, China, Australia, Belgium, Europe, France,
Germany, Hungary, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal and Switzerland both cinnamon
bark and oil are included as official drugs (mainly as a carminative and flavouring
compound, used for the treatment of dyspepsia and as a stomachic). Ayurveda texts
describe cinnamon as Katu-Mathiram (pungent-sweet), tiktarasm (appetizer and produces
dryness in mouth), ushnaveeryam (increases body temperature, improves blood
circulation, stimulates appetite and digestion), kaphavataharam (subdues vata* and
kapha*), pittaharam (subdues pitta*), laghu (helps digestion), ruksham (produces dryness).
These properties make cinnamon useful for the treatment of aruchi (anorexia),
hridrogam (heart disease), diseases of the vasthi (bowel), arsad (piles), and krimi
(helminthic infections). Since cinnamon bark contains many chemical constituents
and oil, (the oil also contains several constituents), it is logical to assume that more
than one might be the active principle and hence different modes of pharmacological
activities are exhibited by cinnamon.
‘The Indian Materia Medica’ (Nadkarni, 1976) describes cinnamon bark as carminative,
antispasmodic, aromatic, stimulant, astringent, antiseptic, stomachic and germicidal. Oil
is a vascular and nervine stimulant. In large doses it is an irritant and a narcotic poison.
In the book ‘Materia Medica of India and their Therapeutics’ (Khory and Katrak,
1994) many other valuable actions are attributed to cinnamon bark (powder) and oil.
* According to the Ayurveda system of medicine all the physiological functions of the human body are governed
by three basic biological parameters – the thridoshas or the three basic qualities, namely vata, pitta and kapha (kafa).
Vata is responsible for all voluntary and involuntary movements in the human body; pitta is responsible for all
digestive and metabolic activities; and kapha (kafa) provides the static energy (strength) for holding body tissues
together, and also provides lubrication at the various points of friction. When these three doshas (qualities) are in the
normal state of equilibrium the human body is healthy and sound, but when they lose equilibrium and get vitiated
by various internal and external factors, they produce varied diseases. Ayurveda treatment of any disease is aimed
at restoring the equilibrium of the three doshas or qualities.
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