GET TO KNOW YOUR OILS
Anise
Pimpinella anisum L.
Chemotype: trans-anethole dominant
- PLANT PART
- dry ripe fruits
- EXTRACTION
- steam distillation
- AROMA NOTE
- top
LEARN AS YOU COMPARE
What’s inside this oil?
Constituents are the natural chemicals that give an oil its character. See the main ones, learn what they do, and explore differences between batches.
Meet the main constituents, then select one to see what makes it interesting.
FOLLOW YOUR SENSES
Aroma & character
A closer look at this oil's scent, strength, and staying power.
- Aroma intensity
- 50 / 100
- Note layer
- top
If you like this scent, explore
A LITTLE CARE GOES A LONG WAY
Using it thoughtfully
Read the full safety context before bringing this oil into your routine.
- Cited dermal maximum · leave-on
- 2.4%
- Phototoxicity
- Not flagged in this profile
- Oxidation risk
- high
A cited maximum is a limit, not a suggested dilution. Missing restrictions do not establish safety.
EMA notes furocoumarins, mainly bergaptene, as minor constituents; no phototoxic dermal limit was verified for this steam-distilled oil in this pass.
Contraindications & cautions
- moderateThe usage of estragole-containing herbal medicinal products in pregnant and breast-feeding women is not recommended if daily estragole intake exceeds 0.05 mg/person per day.
- moderateThe usage of estragole-containing herbal medicinal products in children up to 11 years is not recommended if daily estragole intake exceeds 1.0 ug/kg body weight; the same restrictions apply to cutaneous use unless lower absorption has been shown.
- moderatePublic safety summaries caution that anise oil may inhibit blood clotting, so anticoagulant use should be treated conservatively.
Explore measured chemistry from supplier batches
A supplier report describes a particular sample. Open this workspace to investigate measured constituents and their original documents.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE SCENT
Inside the oil
An oil's character comes from its natural chemical composition. Explore each constituent to understand the connections.
About this composition
EMA describes anise oil as the steam-distilled oil of the dry ripe fruits, containing mainly trans-anethole with smaller amounts of estragole, anisaldehyde, linalool, alpha-terpineol, cis-anethole, and pseudoisoeugenyl 2-methylbutyrate. The values below use the EMA assessment report and European-country GC survey ranges that are directly readable from live sources; where the public source gives only a range, pct_typical is set to the midpoint and the locator notes that no distinct batch-specific typical was published.
| Constituent | Typical amount | Reported range | Chemical family | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| trans-Anethole | 88.32% | 76.9–93.7% | phenylpropanoid | View sourceEssential oil composition of Pimpinella anisum L. fruits from various European countries ResearchGate PDF page 4, table rows for trans-anethole across 14 country samples |
| Estragole (methyl chavicol) | 1.32% | 0.5–2.3% | phenylpropanoid | View sourceEssential oil composition of Pimpinella anisum L. fruits from various European countries ResearchGate PDF page 4, table rows for estragole across 14 country samples |
| p-Anisaldehyde | 1.38% | 0.1–5.4% | aromatic aldehyde | View sourceEssential oil composition of Pimpinella anisum L. fruits from various European countries ResearchGate PDF page 4, table rows for anisaldehyde across 14 country samples |
| Linalool | 0.8% | 0.1–1.5% | monoterpene alcohol | View sourceAssessment report on Pimpinella anisum L., fructus and Pimpinella anisum L., aetheroleum EMA PDF page 3/25, lines 135-140; midpoint of cited 0.1-1.5% range, no distinct typical value published |
| alpha-Terpineol | 0.8% | 0.1–1.5% | monoterpene alcohol | View sourceAssessment report on Pimpinella anisum L., fructus and Pimpinella anisum L., aetheroleum EMA PDF page 3/25, lines 135-141; EMA lists alpha-terpineol in the same 0.1-1.5% range as linalool, no distinct typical value published |
| cis-Anethole | 0.25% | 0.1–0.4% | phenylpropanoid | View sourceAssessment report on Pimpinella anisum L., fructus and Pimpinella anisum L., aetheroleum EMA PDF page 3/25, lines 135-143; midpoint of cited 0.1-0.4% range, no distinct typical value published |
| trans-Pseudoisoeugenyl 2-methylbutyrate | 1.15% | 0.3–2% | phenylpropanoid | View sourceAssessment report on Pimpinella anisum L., fructus and Pimpinella anisum L., aetheroleum EMA PDF page 3/25, lines 135-143; midpoint of cited 0.3-2% range, no distinct typical value published |
Profile source: Assessment report on Pimpinella anisum L., fructus and Pimpinella anisum L., aetheroleum; Essential oil composition of Pimpinella anisum L. fruits from various European countries · https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/herbal-report/final-assessment-report-pimpinella-anisum-l-fructus-and-pimpinella-anisum-l-aetheroleum_en.pdf ; https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ain-Raal/publication/5586276_Essential_oil_composition_of_Pimpinella_anisum_L_fruits_from_various_European_countries/links/54225de00cf238c6ea6798b2/Essential-oil-composition-of-Pimpinella-anisum-L-fruits-from-various-European-countries.pdf
What we're still learning · 3 data gaps
Good decisions start with knowing what is — and isn't — in the evidence.
- Odor intensity 50 is a normalization of AromaWeb's categorical 'Medium' strength of initial aroma into the archive's 0-100 scale.
- Volatility rate and tenacity were not directly quantified in a public source during this pass.
- pct_typical for linalool, alpha-terpineol, cis-anethole, and trans-pseudoisoeugenyl 2-methylbutyrate are midpoint estimates from cited EMA ranges rather than batch-specific published averages.