GET TO KNOW YOUR OILS
German Blue Chamomile
Matricaria recutita
Chemotype: bisabolol oxide / beta-farnesene / chamazulene type
- PLANT PART
- flowers and buds
- EXTRACTION
- steam distillation
- AROMA NOTE
- mid
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
- mid
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
- 4%
- Phototoxicity
- Not flagged in this profile
- Oxidation risk
- medium
A cited maximum is a limit, not a suggested dilution. Missing restrictions do not establish safety.
No furocoumarin-driven phototoxic restriction was identified for the steam-distilled flower oil in the consulted sources.
Contraindications & cautions
- moderateA public AromaWeb safety summary citing Tisserand and Young states that German chamomile oil may interact with drugs metabolized by CYP2D6.
- moderatePatch-test literature reviewed by CIR found positive reactions in a minority of sensitized patients, so Asteraceae-sensitive users should use caution.
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
Public composition sources for German blue chamomile vary between beta-farnesene-rich and bisabolol-oxide-rich lots, but they consistently place bisabolol oxides, beta-farnesene, chamazulene, alpha-bisabolol, bisabolone oxide A, and spiroether/en-yn-dicycloether among the major constituents. This record anchors the quantitative profile to the open Estonian GC/FID-GC/MS paper, then cross-checks the broad German-chamomile pattern against current public supplier summaries.
| Constituent | Typical amount | Reported range | Chemical family | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| alpha-Bisabolol oxide A | 26.5% | 20–33% | sesquiterpene oxide | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; alpha-bisabolol oxide A entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 9-12 and 198-200: bisabolol oxide A 20-33%); https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/data/rw1445511.html (CAS 22567-36-8) |
| en-yn-dicycloether (spiroether) | 19.5% | 17–22% | spiroether | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; trans-spiroether entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 11-12 and 199-200: en-yn-dicycloether 17-22%); https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/data/rw1560291.html ((E)-en-yn-dicycloether synonym / no CAS listed) |
| (E)-beta-Farnesene | 8.5% | 4–13% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; (E)-beta-farnesene entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 10-11 and 198-199: (E)-beta-farnesene 4-13%); https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/data/rw1053891.html (CAS 18794-84-8) |
| alpha-Bisabolol | 5.5% | 3–8% | sesquiterpene alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; alpha-bisabolol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6 / lines 198-199: alpha-bisabolol 3-8%); https://webbook.nist.gov/cgi/cbook.cgi?ID=C515695&Mask=200 (CAS 515-69-5) |
| Chamazulene | 6% | 5–7% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Chamazulene entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 11-12 and 199-204: chamazulene 5-7%); https://comptox.epa.gov/dashboard/chemical/synonyms/DTXSID70200939 (CAS 529-05-5) |
| alpha-Bisabolone oxide A | 10.5% | 7–14% | sesquiterpene oxide | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; alpha-bisabolone oxide A entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 10-11 and 198-199: bisabolone oxide A 7-14%); https://www.arctomsci.com/hy-n8120-1 (CAS 22567-38-0) |
| alpha-Bisabolol oxide B | 10% | 8–12% | sesquiterpene oxide | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; alpha-bisabolol oxide B entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (pp.1,6 / lines 10-11 and 198-199: bisabolol oxide B 8-12%); https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/data/rw1467641.html (CAS 26184-88-3) |
| Spathulenol | 3.03% | 2.3–3.6% | sesquiterpene alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, Spathylenol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: Spathylenol 2.3-3.6% across three Estonian samples); https://webbook.nist.gov/cgi/cbook.cgi?Name=spathulenol&Units=SI (CAS 6750-60-3) |
| decanoic acid | 1.63% | 1.1–2.1% | fatty acid | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, Decanoic acid entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: Decanoic acid 1.1-2.1% across three Estonian samples) |
| Germacrene D (+ gamma-Muurolene, co-eluting) | 0.93% | 0.5–1.7% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, Germacrene D + gamma-Muurolene co-eluting peak entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: Germacrene D / gamma-Muurolene combined peak 0.5-1.7% across three Estonian samples) |
| alpha-Farnesene | 0.53% | 0.3–0.9% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, alpha-Farnesene entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: alpha-Farnesene 0.3-0.9% across three Estonian samples) |
| beta-Bisabolene | 0.28% | 0.05–0.7% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, beta-Bisabolene entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: beta-Bisabolene trace-0.7% across three Estonian samples) |
| Caryophyllenol | 0.25% | 0.2–0.3% | sesquiterpene alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, Caryophyllenol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: Caryophyllenol 0.2-0.3% across three Estonian samples; no confirmed CAS registry entry located, so CAS left null rather than guessed) |
| T-Cadinol | 0.2% | 0.2–0.2% | sesquiterpene alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, T-Cadinol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: T-Cadinol 0.2% across Estonian samples; isomer-specific CAS not confirmed in this pass, so CAS left null rather than guessed) |
| Artemisia ketone | 0.33% | 0.2–0.4% | monoterpene ketone | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, Artemisia ketone entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: Artemisia ketone 0.2-0.4% across three Estonian samples) |
| 3-Octanol | 0.17% | 0.1–0.2% | aliphatic alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, 3-Octanol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: 3-Octanol 0.1-0.2% across three Estonian samples) |
| beta-Caryophyllene | 0.1% | 0.1–0.1% | sesquiterpene hydrocarbon | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, beta-Caryophyllene entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: beta-Caryophyllene 0.1% across Estonian samples) |
| (E)-Nerolidol | 0.1% | 0.1–0.1% | sesquiterpene alcohol | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, (E)-Nerolidol entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: (E)-Nerolidol 0.1% across Estonian samples) |
| 1,8-Cineole + Limonene (co-eluting) | 0.1% | 0.1–0.1% | monoterpene hydrocarbon/oxide | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, 1,8-Cineole/Limonene co-eluting peak entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: 1,8-Cineole and Limonene reported as one combined 0.1% peak across Estonian samples; single CAS not assignable to the combined peak, so left null rather than guessed) |
| 6-Methyl-5-hepten-2-one | 0.1% | 0.1–0.1% | aliphatic ketone | View sourceVolatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; Table 2, 6-Methyl-5-hepten-2-one entry https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf (p.6, Table 2: 6-Methyl-5-hepten-2-one 0.1% across Estonian samples) |
Profile source: Volatile Constituents of Matricaria recutita L. from Estonia; German Chamomile Essential Oil profile (AromaWeb); Chamomile German Essential Oil (Hungary) (New Directions Aromatics) · https://kirj.ee/wp-content/plugins/kirj/pub/chem-1-2001-39-45_20230303105939.pdf ; https://www.aromaweb.com/essential-oils/german-chamomile-essential-oil.php ; https://www.newdirectionsaromatics.com/oils/essential-oils/chamomile-german-essential-oil-hungary
A TRADITION OF BOTANICAL CURIOSITY
Traditional & reported uses
These uses reflect the profile's reported traditions and literature. They are not established treatment recommendations.
- traditionally used in aromatherapy for calming and relaxation
- reported to support easing of occasional skin irritation and redness in topical blends
- used in massage blends for soothing muscle and joint comfort
- traditionally associated with easing occasional tension and promoting restful sleep
- used in skincare formulations for its calming, azulene-blue reputation
For aromatherapy and wellness use only — not medical advice. Effect statements are traditional/reported associations, not treatment claims. The Synergy Rating scores blend craft, harmony and safety, not medical efficacy. Read the safety framework.
What we're still learning · 5 data gaps
Good decisions start with knowing what is — and isn't — in the evidence.
- The public 4% max dermal figure used here comes from a live secondary compilation that explicitly attributes its chamomile maximum dilution list to Tisserand and Young; a directly inspectable primary/public profile page from Tisserand or IFRA was not available in this pass.
- No public source reviewed in this pass provided a native 0-100 odor-intensity score; the stored value normalizes qualitative aroma-strength language from public profiles.
- No public source reviewed in this pass provided verified volatility-rate data.
- No open chemical registry with a confirmed CAS number was verified for the generic combined en-yn-dicycloether entry, so CAS remains null instead of guessed.
- Mass closure was extended from ~0.865 to ~0.945 by adding every remaining Estonian GC/FID Table 2 constituent reported at or above roughly 0.1% (spathulenol, decanoic acid, germacrene D/gamma-muurolene co-eluting peak, alpha-farnesene, beta-bisabolene, caryophyllenol, T-cadinol, artemisia ketone, 3-octanol, beta-caryophyllene, (E)-nerolidol, the combined 1,8-cineole/limonene peak, and 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one). The source paper itself totals only 97-99% across 37 identified peaks with several sub-0.05% trace compounds omitted, so closure could not reach 0.95 without fabricating precision on trace-level values; 0.945 represents the ceiling supported by real, cited data.