Eucalyptus; The Good, The Bad and The Alternatives

Eucalyptus oil is toxic, an irritant and a known allergen*, which I feel is important to get that out of the way first, but it is expanded upon below.

This is purely a research article and experiment as part of a more interesting project from my point of view, so definitely don’t do anything solely based on what is written here. Better to ask a real life expert than the internet.

And somewhat unfinished, it is likely part one of an unknown quantity, and will probably be regularly changed or updated as I learn more.

• The Good
• The Bad
• Eucalyptus in Galicia (The Ugly?)
• What is eucalyptus?

_{*Is there anything that isn’t toxic, an irritant or an allergen to somebody?}

The benefits of Eucalyptus

There are many benefits associated with the eucalyptus plant including anti-bacterial and anti-septic properties, and many studies show that it can be used to help with a variety of ailments.

Quite a lot of the properties aren’t yet mentioned in this article, but to begin with let’s look at the for the following benefits and the alternatives to eucalyptus:

• Anxiety reduction
• Blood Sugar Control
• Cold Sore Relief
• Fresh breath & Dental Health
• Joint Pain
• Respiration & Decongestion

Anxiety

Some studies have shown that inhaling eucalyptus vapour can help reduce anxiety levels, but there are resources such as the following article from Harvard, that shows you can possible reduce anxiety through good nutrition.

The main things that you’ll need in your diet according to the article:

• Antioxidants
• Magnesium
• Omega-3
• Probiotics
• Vitamin B
• Zinc

It has referenced some studies related to each option, but not, that I can see, any regarding Vitamin B so I’ve included two in the list of studies below.

However if you wish to use a vapour bath with essential oils to manage anxiety, there appear to be several options, including jasmine and lavender.

Blood Sugar

So far, I have found three studies that suggest that eucalyptus can lower blood sugar as a part of treatment for diabetes, all of which are tests on mice or rats. Admittedly so were quite a few of the studies for alternatives that I have found so far.

Of the studies below, the small human trial suggests increasing the amount of raw vegetables in your diet can help. Including mice based studies however, other options include:

• Alfalfa
• Coriander
• Juniper

Cold Sores

Eucalyptus oil has anti-inflammatory properties which can help with the treatment of cold sores. However there are other oils that can also work, such as lavender, in which one study points out that it is “without evidence of significant toxic effects”.

According to Medical News Today, on their list of essential oils for treating cold sores lavender is also the only essential oil that does not require diluting with a carrier oil.

Coughs, Colds & Decongestion

Coughs and colds can be treated with syrups, lozenges and vapour rubs that contain eucalyptus or vapour baths using its leaves in hot water. Although there is a study that considered it safe, the efficacy was concluded to be minimal.

A simple alternative would be honey, lemon and ginger.

Fresh Breath

First of all; What is wrong with mint?

It is suggested that due to the antibacterial properties of eucalyptus that it can fight the germs that cause bad breath and tooth decay.

But, if something only had to be anti-bacterial for fresh breath, then there are still several alternatives, for example:

• Garlic
• Oregano
• Rosemary

Although garlic isn’t renowned for its “fresh” smell.

Another option are polyphenols, which are also linked to lower bacteria that cause cavities and gum disease.

Joint Pain

There are studies that show that using a vapour bath, the essential oil of eucalyptus can be used to help reduce joint pain.

This is another issue where lavender also serves as an alternative, but if you are not into aromatherapy, lutein and turmeric have also been shown to be anti-inflammatory and helping those with joint pain or arthritis.

Respiration & Decongestion

Many people use eucalyptus vapour by putting a few drops of essential oil in to a bowl of boiling hot water.

There seem to be some articles that link the anti-bacterial properties of some essential oils as the reason that it might help, which offers some alternatives such as Oregano.

There are articles that mention that menthol is not likely to help but on the same page recommend it, and along with conflicting reporting, some studies also show that there is conflicting data.

The Bad

The bad, obviously, refers to the downsides attributed to the use of eucalyptus, particularly if not done so with care.

First of all, you could die. It was reported, although only once in studies below, ingesting 3.5-5 ml of essential eucalyptus oil was enough to kill somebody. Based on the information available, it seems ingesting any essential oil runs the risk of toxic side effects.

Mount Sinai recommends that you should consult a doctor before you use eucalyptus if you suffer from:

• Asthma
• Seizures
• Liver disease
• Kidney disease
• Low blood pressure

Although it is reported, and mentioned above, that it can help asthma sufferers, perhaps somewhat ironically, if you are allergic to eucalyptus it can actually make things worse.

Additionally if you have an allergy you should also avoid using the eucalyptus vapours to clear your sinuses.

Eucalyptus in Galicia

This section is the main area of my interest in the plant. There are plenty of alternatives when discussing the properties eucalyptus and the ailments it is thought to be able to help resolve, but not so much from the perspective of forestry.

The ecological problem is larger in scale, but there are a considerable amount of searches for eucalyptus, it’s properites, about the eucalyptus vapours and essential oils. So I question whether helping people find alternatives, I can raise awareness of the ecological issues.

But, I am yet to find anything recent that suggests other alternatives for plantations that.

One site did propose pine as a possible future back in 2022, but currently their homepage boasts about having the best eucalyptus.

And also there is Forestry Plan of Galicia, but that’s going to take some time to get through.

So what have I been able to find out?

Firstly, according to Campo Galego the two main species grown in Galicia in 2023 were nitens and globulus and it is estimated that this non-native species makes up approximately 33% of the of forest in Galicia.

One of the main concerns is about how flammable it is, to which the natural response might be “well of course, it’s wood,”.

But, Bay Nature has an article that investigates some of the uncertainty around the issue in quite some depth. Some of the issues it highlights are that it:

• Can produce between 18-65 tonnes of debris per hectare
• Burns at 1500BTU higher than your average plant material
• Likely evolved to tolerate fire better than, and possibly to the detriment of, other species

Also, there are groups of volunteers called “Brigadas Deseucaliptizadoras” that gather to remove eucalyptus trees from areas with high-risk of forest fire, with praise from some Australian researchers.

However despite the impact a non-native species, it does have some benefits. For example in 2021 it was reported that it also generates 1000€ per hectare and year compared to 300€ from pine.

So although I don’t have a an alternative for plots of land it is at least an interesting starting point for me.

What is Eucalyptus

One thing that annoys me about internet these days is that if you have a question, before you get to the answer it is typical to be confronted with the entire history of the subject and a breakdown of why things are important before getting to the actual answer.

However, I have tried to avoid that and added this bit here at the end as an extra bit of information should anybody be interested.

For example, I didn’t realise that Eucalyptus actually refers to a genus of shrubs and trees that are part of the myrtle family.

Nor did I know that there are more than 660 species within the genus.

The eucalyptus plants are native to Australia and Tasmania, but they are also cultivated for commercial purposes in other parts of the world, such as in Spain, the UK and the US.