5 Effective Uses of Cardamom Essential Oil for Your Health

Cardamom essential oil benefits include antimicrobial properties, fighting cancer, and digestive health. Its distinct scent reminds us of cardamom’s therapeutic properties including anti-inflammatory properties and high levels of antioxidants. Joining ancient spices like cinnamon and myrrh, cardamom shares many of the benefits of these classic herbs with spicy aroma. Whether used as an expensive cooking spice or an isolated essential oil, the benefits of cardamom oil aren’t utilized often enough.

Types of Cardamom Plants

The common name “cardamom” can refer to two entirely different plants (and their essential oils). Elettaria cardamomum is considered to be true cardamom; while Amomum subulatum is “greater Indian” or black cardamom. Depending on where you live, you may know all of them as cardamon, as well.

Both types of cardamom have their benefits, and if a specific type is required in the benefits in this overview, we’ll note it. Both are from the ginger family, both have similar culinary benefits – though black cardamom isn’t as sweet – and both are good choices.

Cardamom essential oils include 1,8-cineol (also found in eucalyptus essential oil), various terpenes, and fenchyl alcohol, among other compounds.

If you’re using a cardamom essential oil for specific benefits, make sure you know which one your essential oil source has provided, based on the Latin name, and whether that’s the oil you need.

Historical Cardamom Uses

Cardamom seeds were harvested as a popular spice that originated in India and, as with most Indian spices, found its way to Rome in heavily utilized trade routes. (1) Even if the essential oil itself wasn’t isolated as we are able to do today, it was still enjoyed in whatever ways they could employ.

In the Ayurvedic traditions of India, however, cardamom seeds were used as both a culinary spice and medicinal ingredient. True cardamom was the variety of choice, and the entire cardamom pods were used for digestive wellness, nausea, detoxification, oral health, and respiratory health. (2)

This was, of course, the whole or powdered spice, which does contain the essential oil in small percentages. Many of the health benefits of cardamom extend to both whole spice preparations and essential oil.

Today, as we analyze the specific compounds in essential oils and how they behave in the lab and in the body, we are able to verify some of these actions and apply them in our own daily health and wellness routines.

5 Cardamom Essential Oil Benefits

Cardamom spice as a regular dietary inclusion will mirror ancient uses, or you can use the more concentrated essential oil, with the proper dilution of course. These studies reflect some of the more exciting things we know about cardamom essential oil.

Some of them will be specifically about black cardamom, while most will be about the more common true cardamom. In any case, they all give us a good understanding of how best to use cardamom essential oil in our natural remedies medicine cabinet.

1. Antioxidant Qualities

As an aromatic spice, cardamom is among the Indian culinary choices that have demonstrated free radical scavenging capabilities in vitro. (3) As an essential oil, black cardamom is especially potent as an antioxidant, with “significant activities in all antioxidant assays,” as well as anti-inflammatory properties.

Indications: A drop in culinary preparations; topical preparations for antioxidant benefits.

2. Gastrointestinal Function

The ginger family is renowned for its ability to aid digestion and support gut health benefits. The protective abilities for nausea relief and other gastrointestinal functions. Like ginger, cardamom essential oil is a good aromatherapy option for upset stomach, encouraging healthy gastric juices and digestive enzymes, and has been evaluated as a part of a blend for post-operative nausea. (5)

True cardamom in various forms, including essential oil, has been evaluated for its protective effects against ulcers, and found to have “significantly inhibited gastric lesions.” (6)

Indications: Inhalation for nausea relief; culinary inclusion as a flavoring agent to aid digestion and protect your gut health.

3.  Chemopreventive

The potential for cancer-preventive effects of essential oils to be used in our everyday lives is exciting and promising for the future. Alongside other potent antioxidants, the in silico studies demonstrate cardamom’s anti-tumor potential. (7) As with all essential oils, studies are underway to determine exactly how we can best utilize these benefits to prevent cancer and perhaps treat it. Until that day, we can rest easy knowing that our regular essential oil routines are contributing to overall health.

Indications: Inhalation, topical, and culinary use to access potential chemopreventive properties.

4.  Antibacterial Properties

Essential oils of the major spices and ginger family often have antibacterial effects, adding a warm touch to a citrusy aroma cleaning spray. In 2007, researchers tested this group of oils for their major components and ability to mitigate the growth of bacteria. The comforting scent of cardamom mixes well with other oils containing antibacterial properties. This gives you the chance to create truly synergistic essential oil blends in fun combinations – including antimicrobial oral health rinses. Additionally, cardamom has a strong antifungal activity. (4)

Indications: Cleaning sprays, well-diluted wound healing blends, oral health blends.

5. Antispasmodic

The category of antispasmodic covers a lot of ground: easing spasms. This action can apply to digestive upsets (stomach cramps, diarrhea) and respiratory health issues (coughing, tickle in the throat). Since we’ve already covered digestive wellness, we can take a look at the traditional use of cardamom for respiratory wellness as it was used for whooping cough relief.

Now that we better understand the compounds in cardamom, maybe future studies will continue proving traditional uses. For example, the presence of 1,8-cineol is a clue to potential benefits since this compound is shared with the respiratory poster-oil eucalyptus. Other research has been conducted toward varying kinds of respiratory benefits, including the cardamom extracts (not essential oil, but sharing some similar properties) easing symptoms of asthma. (8)

Indications: Steam inhalations, personal inhalers, diffusion with an ultrasonic diffuser to enjoy the therapeutic properties.

DIY Uses & Applications

For digestive health and general wellness promotion, cardamom can be included in meal prep as a simple addition to a healthy lifestyle. Just blend a single drop into sauces and ingredients that call for that spicy, smoky taste, before including the sauce in the full recipe. The lipid will dilute it, and the light inclusion will be both safe and beneficial.

Other applications include:

• Antimicrobial diffusion or sprays, with citrus, frankincense, and myrrh
• Respiratory steam inhalation, with eucalyptus
• Anti-nausea inhalation, with ginger and peppermint
• Bonus: include true or black cardamom in summertime bug/mosquito sprays with lemon eucalyptus (9)

Ancient spices are some of the most richly scented, richly historical essential oils. Bring a touch of the past into your everyday life with the Queen of Spices, cardamom.

Have you used cardamom essential oil?

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