chamomile

Matricaria chamomilla · Accepted scientific name

Scientific literature: Very Extensive (1150 studies) · ★★★★★

Chamomile, scientifically known as Matricaria chamomilla, is a beloved medicinal herb celebrated for its soothing properties. Renowned for its delicate, daisy-like flowers, this plant is widely used in herbal teas and essential oils to reduce anxiety, aid digestion, and promote restful sleep, making it a staple in natural wellness.

Family
Asteraceae
Native range
Europe
Parts used
Flower · Root
Common names
German Chamomile · German Mayweed · 14 more
Scientific synonyms
Leucanthemum Chamaemelum · Chamomilla Unilateralis · 38 more

Names

Common Names

Regional and Traditional Names

Spanish:

  • Manzanilla olorosa
  • Manzanilla vulgar
  • Manzanilla de Urgel
  • Camamila del comercio
  • Camamirla
  • Matricaria hedionda
  • Camamilda
  • Matricaria suaveolens
  • Manzanilla del huerto
  • Manzanilla cimarrona
  • Manzanilla de Aragón
  • Manzanilla ordinaria
  • Manzanilla alemana
  • Matricaria loca
  • Chrysanthemum chamomilla
  • Bonina
  • Chamomilla officinalis
  • Manzanilla de Alemania
  • Manzanilla blanca
  • Magarza montesina
  • Manzanilla bastarda
  • Ojo de vaca
  • Manzanilla de Aragon
  • Chamomilla recutita
  • Camamilla
  • Ojo de bue
  • Manzanilla de los corrales
  • Matricaria recutita
  • manzanilla

German:

  • Echte Kamille
  • Matricaria recutita
  • Chamomilla recutita
  • Kamille
  • Kamille

French:

  • Camomille Sauvage
  • Petite camomille
  • Camomille allemande
  • Camomille vraie
  • camomille allemande
  • matricaire camomille
  • petite camomille
  • camomille vraie
  • matricaire

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Matricaria chamomilla

Synonyms

Taxonomical Classification

This plant, Matricaria chamomilla, belongs to the kingdom Plantae and the phylum Streptophyta. Within the class Equisetopsida and subclass Magnoliidae, it is categorized under the order Asterales. Finally, it is classified under the family Asteraceae and the genus Matricaria.

Rank Classification Source
Kingdom Plantae WCVP
Phylum Streptophyta WCVP
Class Equisetopsida WCVP
Subclass Magnoliidae WCVP
Order Asterales WCVP
Family Asteraceae WCVP
Genus Matricaria WCVP

Distribution

This plant, known as Matricaria chamomilla, maintains a significant presence across various regions of Northern Europe. It can be found growing naturally within the landscapes of Denmark. Its distribution also extends to the northern territories of Finland. Furthermore, the species is commonly documented throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Finally, it is a recognized part of the flora in Norway.

Region Area Source
Northern Europe Denmark WCVP
Northern Europe Finland WCVP
Northern Europe Great Britain WCVP
Northern Europe Ireland WCVP
Northern Europe Norway WCVP
Northern Europe Sweden WCVP
Middle Europe Austria WCVP
Middle Europe Belgium WCVP
Middle Europe Czechia-Slovakia WCVP
Middle Europe Germany WCVP

Plant Parts

This plant, known scientifically as Matricaria chamomilla, is primarily utilized for its therapeutic properties found within its various aerial parts. The most significant medicinal component is found in the flowers, which are characterized by a distinct structure featuring yellow disc florets surrounded by prominent white ray florets. These blossoms are borne upon slender, herbaceous stems that support the overall growth of the plant's shoots.
Plant Part Sources Consensus
flower Biochemical pharmacology (and other 12 sources) ★★★★★
root Food chemistry (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
stem Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆

Chemicals

Matricaria chamomilla has 216 reported phytochemicals identified across 14 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include apigenin, Flavonoids, Chamazulene, luteolin, CD.

Chemicals reported in Matricaria chamomilla
Chemical Supporting sources Consensus
apigenin 19 supporting sources ★★★★★
Flavonoids 10 supporting sources ★★★★★
Chamazulene 8 supporting sources ★★★★☆
luteolin 7 supporting sources ★★★★☆
CD 6 supporting sources ★★★☆☆
CHLOROGENIC ACID 5 supporting sources ★★★☆☆
PB 5 supporting sources ★★★☆☆
quercetin 5 supporting sources ★★★☆☆
Terpenoids 4 supporting sources ★★☆☆☆
Umbelliferone 4 supporting sources ★★☆☆☆

apigenin

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Electrophoresis
  3. Biochemical pharmacology
  4. Journal of ethnopharmacology
  5. Phytochemical analysis : PCA
View 14 additional sources
  1. Talanta
  2. Research in pharmaceutical sciences
  3. Advances in clinical and experimental medicine : official organ Wroclaw Medical University
  4. Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis
  5. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences
  6. Therapeutics and clinical risk management
  7. Die Pharmazie
  8. Journal of medicinal food
  9. Planta medica
  10. Phytotherapy research : PTR
  11. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
  12. Molecular and cellular biochemistry
  13. Molecular nutrition & food research
  14. Planta

Flavonoids

  1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
  2. Bollettino chimico farmaceutico
  3. Heliyon
  4. Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)
  5. Journal of hazardous materials
View 5 additional sources
  1. Planta medica
  2. Frontiers in nutrition
  3. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
  4. Journal of the American Nutrition Association
  5. Cadernos de saude publica

Chamazulene

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Archives of biochemistry and biophysics
  3. Journal of the American College of Nutrition
  4. Plant molecular biology
  5. BMC plant biology
View 3 additional sources
  1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
  2. Planta medica
  3. Natural product research

luteolin

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Electrophoresis
  3. Talanta
  4. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences
  5. Die Pharmazie
View 2 additional sources
  1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
  2. Foods (Basel, Switzerland)

CD

  1. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry
  2. Ceskoslovenska farmacie
  3. Journal of AOAC International
  4. Turkish journal of pharmaceutical sciences
  5. Environmental science and pollution research international
View 1 additional sources
  1. Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju

CHLOROGENIC ACID

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Food chemistry
  3. Electrophoresis
  4. Nutritional neuroscience
  5. Journal of plant physiology

PB

  1. Ceskoslovenska farmacie
  2. Journal of AOAC International
  3. Turkish journal of pharmaceutical sciences
  4. Environmental science and pollution research international
  5. Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju

quercetin

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Frontiers in plant science
  3. Electrophoresis
  4. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences
  5. Journal of hazardous materials

Terpenoids

  1. BMC genomics
  2. Genomics
  3. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
  4. Journal of the American Nutrition Association

Umbelliferone

  1. Dr. Duke
  2. Food chemistry
  3. Chemistry Central journal
  4. Journal of plant physiology

Activities

Matricaria chamomilla has 561 reported activities identified across 14 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, Antibacterial, Sedative, Analgesic.

Most Reported Activities

Activity Sources Consensus
Antioxidant Dr. Duke (and other 20 sources) ★★★★★
Antimicrobial Dentistry journal (and other 11 sources) ★★★★★
Antibacterial Dr. Duke (and other 7 sources) ★★★★☆
Sedative Dr. Duke (and other 7 sources) ★★★★☆
Analgesic Dr. Duke (and other 5 sources) ★★★☆☆
Anticancer Dr. Duke (and other 5 sources) ★★★☆☆
Spasmolytic Biochemical pharmacology (and other 4 sources) ★★☆☆☆
Antiinflammatory Dr. Duke (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
Antispasmodic Dr. Duke (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
Anxiolytic Dr. Duke (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆

Medicinal Uses

Matricaria chamomilla has 91 reported medicinal uses identified across 14 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported uses include gastrointestinal disorders, inflammation, anxiety, pain, asthma.

Most Reported Uses

Use Sources Consensus
gastrointestinal disorders Arzneimittel-Forschung (and other 7 sources) ★★★★☆
inflammation Journal of ethnopharmacology (and other 6 sources) ★★★☆☆
anxiety Revista gaucha de enfermagem (and other 4 sources) ★★☆☆☆
pain Complementary therapies in clinical practice (and other 4 sources) ★★☆☆☆
asthma Heliyon (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
insomnia Environmental science and pollution research international (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
ulcerative colitis Cellular and molecular biology (Noisy-le-Grand, France) (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
COVID-19 Plants (Basel, Switzerland) (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
common cold PloS one (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
cough BMC complementary medicine and therapies (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆

Preparations

Preparations Sources Consensus
extracts Electrophoresis (and other 7 sources) ★★★★☆
essential oils Plants (Basel, Switzerland) (and other 3 sources) ★★☆☆☆
ethanolic extracts RSC advances (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
extract Rivista di neurologia (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
flowers Biological trace element research (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
methanolic extract Phytochemical analysis : PCA (and other 2 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
80% ethanol extracts Journal of ethnopharmacology (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
Climex Clinical and experimental obstetrics & gynecology (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
Dried flowers Biochemical pharmacology (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆
EO BMC complementary and alternative medicine (and other 1 sources) ★☆☆☆☆