Sassafras

Ague Tree; Cinnamon Wood; Saloop; Sassafras albidum; Sassafras officinale; Saxifras

... Taking sassafras in any oral form is discouraged strongly. The sale of products that contain significant amounts of safrole (a major chemical in sassafras) is prohibited by law in both Canada and the United States.

Approximately 10% of any sassafras product is composed of volatile oils (also called essential oils) which usually evaporate quickly at room temperature and possess a characteristic spicy smell and somewhat sour taste. In turn, the volatile oil of sassafras contains 80% or more of a chemical known as safrole. In the 1960s and 1970s, animal studies showed that safrole caused permanent damage to liver tissue, which resulted in liver cancer for a high percentage of the tested animals. Safrole has also been implicated in producing nerve damage. Cases of accelerated heart rate, hallucinations, paralysis, and other severe adverse effects have also been reported in humans who ingested sassafras. ...

This page is about the Sassafras tree. Sassafras, Victoria is a suburb of M ...