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Chamomile (
American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States and in most circumstances ...
) or camomile (
British English British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Oxford Dictionaries, "English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in England, or, more broadl ...
; see spelling differences) ( or ) is the
common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
for several plants of the family
Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae ...
. Two of the species, ''
Matricaria recutita ''Matricaria chamomilla'' (synonym: ''Matricaria recutita''), commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), German chamomile, Hungarian chamomile (kamilla), wild chamomile, blue chamomile, or scented mayweed, is an annual plant of the com ...
'' and ''
Anthemis nobilis ''Chamaemelum nobile'', commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is ''Anthemis nobil ...
'', are commonly used to make herbal infusions for beverages. There is insufficient
scientific evidence Scientific evidence is evidence that serves to either support or counter a scientific theory or hypothesis, although scientists also use evidence in other ways, such as when applying theories to practical problems. "Discussions about empirical ev ...
that consuming chamomile in foods or beverages has any beneficial effects on health.


Etymology

The word ''chamomile'' is derived via the
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
, from the Greek grc, χαμαίμηλον, khamaimēlon, earth apple, label=none, from grc, χαμαί, khamai, on the ground, label=none, and grc, μῆλον, mēlon, apple, label=none. First used in the 13th century, the spelling ''chamomile'' corresponds to the Latin and the Greek . The spelling ''camomile'' is a British derivation from the French.


Species

Some commonly used species include: * ''
Matricaria chamomilla ''Matricaria chamomilla'' (synonym: ''Matricaria recutita''), commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), German chamomile, Hungarian chamomile (kamilla), wild chamomile, blue chamomile, or scented mayweed, is an annual plant of the com ...
'' – often called "German chamomile" or "Water of Youth" * ''
Chamaemelum nobile ''Chamaemelum nobile'', commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is ''Anthemis nobil ...
'' – Roman, English, or garden chamomile; also frequently used (''C. nobile'' Treneague is normally used to create a chamomile lawn) A number of other species'
common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
s include the word ''chamomile''. This does not mean they are used in the same manner as the species used in the herbal tea known as "chamomile". Plants including the common name ''chamomile'', of the family
Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae ...
, are: * ''
Anthemis arvensis ''Anthemis arvensis'', also known as corn chamomile, mayweed, scentless chamomile, or field chamomile is a species of flowering plant in the genus '' Anthemis'', in the aster family. It is used as an ornamental plant. Distribution ;Native :; ...
'' – corn, scentless or field chamomile * ''
Anthemis cotula ''Anthemis cotula'', also known as stinking chamomile, or mayweed, is a flowering annual plant with a noticeable and strong odor. The odor is often considered unpleasant, and it is from this that it gains the common epithet "stinking". In pre-col ...
'' – stinking chamomile * ''
Cladanthus mixtus ''Cladanthus mixtus'', commonly known as the Moroccan chamomile, is a mostly Mediterranean species of flowering plant in the aster family, often considered a weed but is also distilled for essential oil, which changes in composition depending on ...
'' – Moroccan chamomile * ''
Chamaemelum nobile ''Chamaemelum nobile'', commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is ''Anthemis nobil ...
'' – Roman chamomile * ''
Cota tinctoria ''Cota tinctoria'', the golden marguerite, yellow chamomile, or oxeye chamomile, is a species of perennial flowering plant in the sunflower family. Other common names include dyer's chamomile, Boston daisy, and Paris daisy. In horticulture this ...
'' – dyer's, golden, oxeye, or yellow chamomile * ''
Eriocephalus punctulatus ''Eriocephalus'' is a genus of African flowering plants in the daisy family. General description The genus ''Eriocephalus'' appears in the ''Species Plantarum'' of Carl Linnaeus, item 926 (1753), and was dealt with by William Henry Harvey in ...
'' – Cape chamomile * ''
Matricaria discoidea ''Matricaria discoidea'', commonly known as pineappleweed, wild chamomile, disc mayweed, and rayless mayweed, is an annual plant native to northeast Asia where it grows as a common herb of fields, gardens, and roadsides. It is in the family Aster ...
'' – wild chamomile or pineapple weed * ''
Tripleurospermum inodorum ''Tripleurospermum inodorum'', common names scentless false mayweed, scentless mayweed, scentless chamomile, wild chamomile, mayweed, false chamomile, and Baldr's brow, is the type species of Tripleurospermum. This plant is native to Eurasia an ...
'' – wild, scentless or false chamomile


Uses

Chamomile may be used as a flavoring agent in foods and beverages, mouthwash, soaps, or
cosmetics Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protec ...
. It is used to "upholster" chamomile seats, raised beds which are about half a meter tall, and designed to be sat upon. Chamomile lawns are also used in sunny areas with light traffic.


Tea

Chamomile tea is a herbal infusion made from dried flowers and hot water, and may improve sleep quality. Two types of chamomile used are
German chamomile ''Matricaria chamomilla'' (synonym: ''Matricaria recutita''), commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), German chamomile, Hungarian chamomile (kamilla), wild chamomile, blue chamomile, or scented mayweed, is an annual plant of the com ...
(''Matricaria recutita'') and
Roman chamomile ''Chamaemelum nobile'', commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is ''Anthemis nobili ...
(''Chamaemelum nobile'').


Use in beer and ale

Chamomile has historically been used in making
beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...
and
ale Ale is a type of beer brewed using a warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. Historically, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typically has a bittering agent to bala ...
. Unlike for tea, in which only the flowers are used, the whole plant has been used to make beers and ales, adding a bitter flavor component favored by
craft breweries A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale pr ...
and homebrewers.


Research

The main constituents of chamomile flowers are
polyphenol Polyphenols () are a large family of naturally occurring organic compounds characterized by multiples of phenol units. They are abundant in plants and structurally diverse. Polyphenols include flavonoids, tannic acid, and ellagitannin, some ...
compounds, including apigenin, quercetin, patuletin, and
luteolin Luteolin is a flavone, a type of flavonoid, with a yellow crystalline appearance. Luteolin is the principal yellow dye compound that is obtained from the plant ''Reseda luteola'', which has been used as a source of the dye since at least the fi ...
. Chamomile is under preliminary research for its potential anti-anxiety properties. There is no high-quality clinical evidence that it is useful for treating
insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...
or any disease.


Drug interactions

The use of chamomile has the potential to cause adverse interactions with numerous herbal products and
prescription drug A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The r ...
s and may worsen pollen allergies. People who are allergic to ragweed (also in the daisy family) may be allergic to chamomile due to cross-reactivity. Apigenin, a
phytochemical Phytochemicals are chemical compounds produced by plants, generally to help them resist fungi, bacteria and plant virus infections, and also consumption by insects and other animals. The name comes . Some phytochemicals have been used as poison ...
in chamomile, may interact with
anticoagulant Anticoagulants, commonly known as blood thinners, are chemical substances that prevent or reduce coagulation of blood, prolonging the clotting time. Some of them occur naturally in blood-eating animals such as leeches and mosquitoes, where t ...
agents and
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) are members of a therapeutic drug class which reduces pain, decreases inflammation, decreases fever, and prevents blood clots. Side effects depend on the specific drug, its dose and duration o ...
s, while other phytochemicals may adversely interact with sleep-enhancing herbal products and
vitamin A vitamin is an organic molecule (or a set of molecules closely related chemically, i.e. vitamers) that is an essential micronutrient that an organism needs in small quantities for the proper functioning of its metabolism. Essential nutrie ...
s. Chamomile is not recommended to be taken with
aspirin Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to reduce pain, fever, and/or inflammation, and as an antithrombotic. Specific inflammatory conditions which aspirin is used to treat inc ...
or NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), as it may cause drug–herb interaction. Chamomile consists of several ingredients including coumarin,
glycoside In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...
, herniarin,
flavonoid Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans. Chemically, flavonoids ...
,
farnesol Farnesol is a natural 15-carbon organic compound which is an acyclic sesquiterpene alcohol. Under standard conditions, it is a colorless liquid. It is hydrophobic, and thus insoluble in water, but miscible with oils. Farnesol is produced from 5- ...
,
nerolidol Nerolidol, also known as peruviol and penetrol , is a naturally occurring sesquiterpene alcohol. A colorless liquid, it is found in the essential oils of many types of plants and flowers. There are four isomers of nerolidol', which differ in th ...
and germacranolide. Despite the presence of coumarin, as chamomile's effect on the coagulation system has not yet been studied, it is unknown whether a clinically significant drug–herb interaction exists with antiplatelet/anticoagulant drugs. However, until more information is available, it is not recommended to use these substances concurrently. Chamomile should not be used by people with past or present cancers of the
breast The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and sec ...
,
ovary The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the body. ...
, or
uterus The uterus (from Latin ''uterus'', plural ''uteri'') or womb () is the organ in the reproductive system of most female mammals, including humans that accommodates the embryonic and fetal development of one or more embryos until birth. The ...
;
endometriosis Endometriosis is a disease of the female reproductive system in which cells similar to those in the endometrium, the layer of tissue that normally covers the inside of the uterus, grow outside the uterus. Most often this is on the ovaries, fa ...
; or
uterine fibroid Uterine fibroids, also known as uterine leiomyomas or fibroids, are benign smooth muscle tumors of the uterus. Most women with fibroids have no symptoms while others may have painful or heavy periods. If large enough, they may push on the bl ...
s.


Pregnancy and breastfeeding

Because chamomile has been known to cause uterine contractions that can invoke
miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion and pregnancy loss, is the death of an embryo or fetus before it is able to survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks of gestation is defined by ESHRE as biochemica ...
, pregnant women are advised to not consume
Roman chamomile ''Chamaemelum nobile'', commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is ''Anthemis nobili ...
(''Chamaemelum nobile''). Although oral consumption of chamomile is generally recognized as safe in the United States, there is insufficient clinical evidence about its potential for affecting nursing infants.


Agriculture

The chamomile plant is known to be susceptible to many
fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately fr ...
,
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pa ...
s, and
virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsk ...
es. Fungi such as ''
Albugo tragopogonis ''Pustula tragopogonis'', the goatsbeard white rust, is an oomycete plant pathogen unrelated to fungal A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold ...
'' (white rust), ''Cylindrosporium matricariae'', '' Erysiphe cichoracearum'' (powdery mildew), and '' Sphaerotheca macularis'' (powdery mildew) are known pathogens of the chamomile plant. Aphids have been observed feeding on chamomile plants and the moth '' Autographa chryson'' causes defoliation.


Historical descriptions

The 11th century part of ''Old English Illustrated Herbal'' has an illustrated entry.
Nicholas Culpeper Nicholas Culpeper (18 October 1616 – 10 January 1654) was an English botanist, herbalist, physician and astrologer.Patrick Curry: "Culpeper, Nicholas (1616–1654)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (Oxford, UK: OUP, 2004) His book ...
's 17th century ''The Complete Herbal'' has an illustration and several entries on ''chamomel''.


In culture

* In '' The Tale of Peter Rabbit'' by Beatrix Potter (1902), Peter is given chamomile tea after being chased by Mr. McGregor.Michael Castleman *
Mary Wesley Mary Wesley was the pen name of Mary Aline Siepmann CBE (24 June 191230 December 2002), an English novelist. During her career, she was one of Britain's most successful novelists, selling three million copies of her books, including ten bestsel ...
's 1984 novel ''The Camomile Lawn'' features a house in
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
with a lawn planted with chamomile rather than grass. * In the
No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, ...
song "Hey Baby", chamomile is featured in the line "I'm just sippin' on chamomile", sung by
Gwen Stefani Gwen Renée Stefani (; born October 3, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, fashion designer and actress. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include " Just a Girl", " Spiderweb ...
. * Chamomile is the
national flower In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...
of Russia.James Minahan. ''The complete guide to national symbols and emblems, Vol. 1''. Greenwood Press. 2009.


References


External links


PLANTS Profile: Anthemis tinctoria L. (golden chamomile)
USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...
* {{Medicinal herbs & fungi Plant common names Medicinal plants Flower tea Flora of Mexico